Gratitude
-
Author Spotlight: It’s Me, Back in River’s Edge!
**We have winners!! Renee Simmons and Shari–you both won a $5 Amazon gift card Heather Farr–you are the winner of the goodie box. I’ll be in touch with all of you to get your prizes to you. Thanks so much for stopping by! Sure appreciate your support! Hullo, mes amis! Welcome home to River’s Edge! Reviews from ARC readers are already coming in and they’re loving this story! “Every word that Nan Reinhardt writes is a gift to her readers.” “As with all of this author’s books, the stories are clean romances with characters that you’d love to meet in real life.” “Wonderful, heartwarming story where the puppy really steals…
-
Sunday Snippet: The Things I Should Have Mentioned in 2024 Edition
It’s January 5 and maybe a few days late for rehashing 2024, but I have few memos for the past year that I need to get off my mind before I plunge into 2025. Dear Summer 2024, Where did you go? I mean seriously? I know the summer lasted the usual 3-4 months, but it sure didn’t feel like it was that long. We didn’t get enough lake time or enough time to go out exploring state parks and places of interest as we’d planned to do. Stick around and be more organized in 2025, okay? Longingly, Nan ~*~*~*~ Dear Election, Sigh. What can I say? Things did not end…
-
Sunday Snippet: The It’s Almost the New Year Edition
2025 is nearly upon us. A new year should never bring a feeling of dread and yet… here we are. We are living in chaotic and scary times, and I keep thinking what can I do? My stomach roils at the thought of what’s happening in Washington (not much, thanks to a do-nothing off-the rails House) and how divided we are as a nation. I have to have faith in my fellow Americans–that we will come together against the crazy that’s happening in politics. We must be proactive, to mobilize against the far right’s obsession with an autocrat and oligarchs. So, there’s that… But what can I do? I actually…
-
Sunday Snippet: The Holiday Music and Joy Edition
Despite struggling financially, my mom always made the holidays a treat for me and my sibs. We always had a Christmas tree, the house was always filled with the scent of cookies baking and there was always, always music. Oh, the music of it all! Mom would go to the Firestone store or to the Marathon gas station every year and pick up their annual Christmas album to play on our old console stereo. Remember when a record player was a piece of furniture? And when holiday record albums that were like 99 cents or at most $1.99? We had them all. I can still sing every song… I loved…
-
Sunday Snippet: The Imposter’s Ah-Ha Moment Edition
Have you ever heard of impostor syndrome? Basically, it’s “the persistent inability to believe that one’s success is deserved or has been legitimately achieved as a result of one’s own efforts or skills.” I suffer from this, and I think a lot authors do. We are all pretty much people who are writing, not for the kudos for finishing a book, but because we have these characters in our heads begging to have their stories told. It has never occurred to me not to write, but I struggled with the idea of trying to get what I write published. Would it be good enough? Would people want to read it?…
-
Sunday Snippet: The Weeping Time Edition
It’s almost December 19, and the 10-year anniversary (what a strange word to use in this context) of losing my sister Kate. Wicked cancer stole her from us too soon. PJ and I both still maintain that a third of us is missing, and that is so very true. But this part of December–the first couple of weeks have become a gray time for me since Kate’s passing. I’m not sure if it’s the anticipation of the anniversary or the starting the holidays without her…again, but I am weepy and sad and wishing desperately that she was here. So many times since December 19, 2014, I’ve thought, okay, now it’s…
-
Sunday Snippet: The It’s a Mom Thing Edition
This Thanksgiving weekend, when we were all together as family, I realized something significant. It wasn’t startling, but I saw it in all the parents/grandparents who sat around my sister’s huge, but cozy table. It’s this. We never ever stop being parents—once you have a child, you’re signed up for life and beyond. We moms suffer just as much when our child struggles at age 45 as we did when they fell and broke their arm at age 5. I once heard that a mother is only as happy as their unhappiest child. I don’t know if that’s true or not because I only have one, but I do know…
-
Author Spotlight: Susan Lute Kicks Off the Holidays for Us!
We have winners! Stephanie Ludwig, you are the winner of an e-book copy of The Christmas Makeover and Linda Danis, you are the winner of an e-book copy of The Prodigal Brother Returns. Susan will be in touch with both of you. Thanks to everyone for stopping by and participating–we love talking with our readers! I’m delighed to welcome fellow Tule Publishing author, Susan Lute, to her first appearance in the Author Spotlight. She’s also kicking off the Holiday Season for us with her wonderful Christmas romance, The Christmas Makeover, and a fun giveaway! Susan loves to write bold, brave, heartwarming stories. Like all children of military families, she spent much…
-
Sunday Snippet: The River’s Edge Is Happening Edition
I’m old enough to remember when people would say something was “happening.” You know, like “it’s a happening place”? I’m not sure when that phrase started or when it stopped being part of the vernacular, but this past week, my little town of River’s Edge, Indiana, was a happening place–for real. Let me explain… River’s Edge, my fictional town on the Ohio River, is inspired by a real town on the Ohio River called Madison, Indiana. Madison is a lovely place, filled with history and culture and art and wonderful kind folks. It’s one of my very favorite places to visit, and when I wanted a setting for my sweet,…
-
Sunday Snippet: The Deep Sigh Edition
Every morning, I meditate. I sit in the wing chair in the dark living room, and I use an app called Insight Timer to begin each day. I find that the meditations offered there help me get through the day. One of the things the teachers there talk about is our breath. How we breathe affects so much of how we feel. When Husband and I took a yoga class several years, we learned to focus on “the breath.” That was where I learned the in for four, hold for four, out for four, which I depend on when the world goes mad and I feel like screaming. The instructors…