On Wednesdays, I share posts, fables, songs, poems, quotations, TEDx Talks, cartoons, and books that have inspired and motivated me on my writing journey. I hope these posts will give writers, artists, and other creatives a mid-week boost.
Here are a baker’s dozen of suggestions for those challenging periods:
Welcome to my Second Acts Series!
Today, we have Wild Rose Press author Kimberly Baer sharing her inspiring reinvention story and her novels, The Haunted Purse and Mall Girls Meet the Shadow Vandal.
Here’s Kimberly!
Joanne, thanks so much for inviting me here today. I’m honored to be featured on your blog.
I never set out to reinvent myself. Reinvention has been forced upon me by fate—time and time again.
Long ago, I was a young stay-at-home mom living a comfortable domestic life with my husband, Richard, and our three children, ages six eight, and twelve. Then the unthinkable happened: Richard died of a sudden, first-time heart attack. In the blink of an eye, I became a widow with three young children to support. At the time, I had only a high school education. My focus in life narrowed to raising the kids and putting myself through college. I didn’t date, because it didn’t seem fair to make the kids share their only parent with someone new.
My family’s journey wasn’t easy, but we made it. The kids grew up and, miraculously, turned out okay. I graduated from college and got a good job as an editor. And then came the second blow. That great job I had? I lost it. The organization I was working for shut its doors for good. As a result, I was out of work for six months. After applying for dozens of jobs, I finally snagged the perfect one. The only problem: it was two hundred miles away—and that meant I had to leave the town I’d lived in my whole life.
That second upheaval was almost as hard to deal with as the first. In my hometown, I’d had a support system consisting of friends, relatives, coworkers, and neighbors. My parents and sister lived minutes away. I knew the area so well, I could have driven the roads blindfolded. But after I moved, I was alone in a strange city, working with people I didn’t know. I was constantly getting lost on the unfamiliar roads. I’d lie in bed at night pining for my beloved old house, my good friends, the life I’d left behind.
That was nine years ago. My new locale isn’t so new and scary anymore. I still have the great job that brought me here in the first place. I’ve made friends. And although I’ll probably never know the area as well as I know my hometown, I manage to get to all the important places. More excitingly, I’m now a traditionally published author of two books: a young adult paranormal novel, The Haunted Purse, and a middle-grade mystery novel, Mall Girl Meets the Shadow Vandal. The cherry on top of everything: after all those years of not dating, I have a wonderful fiancé named Clint.
Sound like a happily-ever-after ending? It isn’t really. (I’m not sure such a thing even exists.) Life has thrown me a new curve ball. A few years ago, Clint was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, a terminal lung disease. The only cure is a lung transplant—and, miraculously, he was able to get one. Unfortunately, he’s suffered many setbacks since then and remains at risk of developing an infection or succumbing to organ rejection.
So once again, I’m facing a challenge: caring for a loved one with a serious medical condition. Am I up for it? You bet. They say that what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, and I believe that. Getting through one crisis shows us that we have what it takes to get through the next one.
Sometimes I sit back and marvel at the journey I’ve made thus far. My life today is very different from what it would have been if Richard hadn’t died. I’ve grown tremendously as a person. I’ve gone from sheltered young wife and mother to mature college student to uprooted career woman to caregiver. That’s four acts, four different scenarios. And each transition was forced upon me by fate.
Are you facing tough challenges of your own? Relax—you’ve got this. Know that you will get through whatever life throws at you. You’re stronger than you think, and you have the power to reinvent yourself as many times as fate demands it.
Blurb for Mall Girl Meets the Shadow Vandal
(a middle-grade novel)
Chloe Lamont doesn’t live in a neighborhood, like most kids. Her house is in the middle of the mall. And now someone is stealing items from her house and using them to vandalize stores. Who is trying to frame her? And how are they getting into the house?
Desperate to catch the real vandal and clear her name, Chloe seeks help from the kids in her Mystery Reading Group at school. While searching for clues, the Mystery Groupers make an astounding discovery. And then things get really crazy…
Blurb for The Haunted Purse (a young adult novel)
That old denim purse Libby Dawson bought at the thrift store isn’t your run-of-the-mill teenage tote. It’s a bag of secrets, imbued with supernatural powers. Strange items keep turning up inside, clues to a decades-old mystery only Libby can solve.
Filled with apprehension and yet intrigued by the mounting pile of evidence, Libby digs for the truth. And eventually finds it. But the story of the purse is darker than she imagined—and its next horrific chapter is going to be all about her.
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I’m happy to welcome Wild Rose Press author Shirley Goldberg. Today, Shirley shares an entertaining chat with the heroines of her novels, Middle Ageish and Eat Your Heart Out.
Here’s Shirley!
When Joanne asked me to guest post, I invited two of my main characters to join me. Living through the writing process with me hadn’t been easy.
They didn’t seem all that eager.
“What’s the problem?” I’d been wrestling with words all day and didn’t welcome moodiness from my imaginary beings.
“Isn’t this a tad weird?” Sunny’s voice was taut with attitude.
“Weird? How?” Dana asked.
“We’re characters in books and we’re chatting as if we’re real people.”
“Not so odd.” Dana scratched a mosquito bite. “We’re friends in the books.” “Florida was great, by the way. Except for the bugs,” she added.
“Don’t say anything about who you went with on vacation,” Sunny said. “We don’t want any spoilers.” She gave Dana a stern look. “I guess we should introduce ourselves. I’m Sunny Chanel, the main character in Middle Ageish, Shirley’s first novel.
“I’m Dana, Sunny’s BFF in her book.”
“You have your own book now, though. How do you feel about that?”
“You sound like my therapist.”
“The two of you bicker inside my head all day long,” I interrupted. “It’s unnerving.”
“I’m the one with a therapist, not you.” Sunny stepped around me to confront Dana.
“Hey, no spoilers. Not everyone has read Middle Ageish.”
“Sorry.” Sunny looked embarrassed. “Aren’t we supposed to be introducing Shirley?”
“You start.” Dana gestured with her chin. “Give the readers a heads-up about her background. Why she wrote the book.”
“I’ve always wondered myself.” Sunny looked at me. “You did a lot of online dating and took notes in the ladies room, didn’t you? When you were on a meet.”
“I’ll admit it.” I put my hands up in surrender. My dirty little secret was out. At least they weren’t bickering.
“So let me get this straight. You’re on a date. You excuse yourself to go to the restroom. And take notes in the toilet stall? Seriously?”
“Pretty much,” I said.
“It’s true,” Sunny said. “You wouldn’t believe how many guys I had to do the old meet-and-greet with to keep the story moving forward. Shirley planned it all in the restroom.” She gave a little sneer. “How romantic.”
“I don’t write books in the toilet,” I protested. “Notes. I took a few notes.
“We’ve all heard the advice writers get.” Sunny fixed me with a look that said I wasn’t getting away with anything. “Write about what you know.”
“I’ve heard that,” Dana said. “We’re getting off track here. The book is about starting over. Not so easy when you’re a little older. Shirley knows because she started over. She was living in Crete, teaching English. She and her husband ended their marriage.
“Right, sorry about my tirade,” Sunny said. “Shirley moved back to Connecticut and started over.
“We met when you moved from Paris to New Haven and enrolled in the grad program.” Dana crossed her legs and scratched her mosquito bites again. “Just like Shirley.”
“Are you saying the book is autobiographical?” Dana asked Sunny.
“Ask Shirley,” Sunny said. “I think all writing is somewhat autobiographical.”
“My marriage was circling the drain.” No point in denying the similarities in the book to my own life. “Look, relationships aren’t easy. It’s a wonder two people come together, much less stay together.”
“So in Middle Ageish, I issue the dating challenge that starts the ball rolling,” Sunny said.
“I made up that dating contest,” I said.
“Yeah, probably after three glasses of wine.” Sunny looked around the living room. “I could use a glass of wine.”
“Hey.” Dana poked Sunny in the arm. “We’re guests here.”
Sunny gave Dana a look. “Shirley forced me to date. A lot. And broke my heart.”
“No spoilers!” I’d had it up to my eyelashes with my characters. Especially Sunny.
“Dana, you’re the heroine in Eat Your Heart Out. Can you say a little something about––”
“Friendship,” said Dana. “Women. Men. Two foodies. We sauté together, banter, and dance around each other. No spoilers here.”
“Shirley said she writes to make readers laugh,” said Sunny.
They exchanged a knowing look.
“Amen to that, wouldn’t you say?” Dana put a hand on her hip and executed a little salsa move.
The three of us burst out giggling.
Two foodies, Dana and Alex, banter, sauté and tiptoe around each other. Except for the occasional smooch. What’s with that? They’re not ready to go from friends to lovers. Will practice make perfect?
Blurb for Eat Your Heart Out
When a tyrant in stilettos replaces her beloved boss, and her ex snags her coveted job, teacher Dana Narvana discovers there are worse things than getting dumped on Facebook. Time for the BFF advice squad, starting with Dana’s staunchest ally, Alex—hunky colleague, quipster, and cooking pal extraordinaire. But when the after-hours smooching goes nowhere, she wonders why this grown man won’t make up his mind.
Alex Bethany’s new lifestyle gives him the confidence to try online dating. What he craves is a family of his own until a life-altering surprise rocks his world. He knows he’s sending Dana mixed messages. Alex panics when he thinks he’s blown his chance with his special person. From appetizers to the main course will these two cooking buddies make it to dessert?
Funny and bittersweet, Dana and Alex’s story will have you rooting for them.
Excerpt from Eat Your Heart Out
“However things play out, I want to tell you something.” Alex took both my hands now between his. “Getting to know you, your sense of humor, compassion for the students—corny, I know, I’m a corny guy—has been such a pleasure.” His voice like hot fudge, sincerity emanating in waves. “But I’m not lying to myself.” He turned toward me, a loaded grin transforming his expression.
My defenses faded, replaced by the kind of warmth you feel when a specific compliment comes from a specific, uh, person.
“I’m not saying you would date me, Dana,” he said, ducking his head as if the boldness of the statement surprised even Alex himself. “Date me, Dana,” he repeated. “It has a ring,” he said and laughed. “But I certainly have a bigger chance now, don’t I? Than that much, much bigger guy I used to be.”
My mouth hung open as I groped for a clever retort. Where the hell was my repartee when I needed it?
“Relax,” he said. “I’m sorta messin’ with ya. Thank God you’ll never know what it’s like to be as large as two and a half men.” He sat back, hugged his arms to his chest and rocked once, twice.
Sure. Letting me off the hook, saying he was messing with me. His way of letting himself off the hook, too? Date me, Dana. Date. That word had a way of popping up every once in a while between us.
And what did he mean by however things play out? His comment repeated on me, like too-spicy sauerkraut. What was playing out? We weren’t dating. Did he think this spontaneous dinner was a date? Impossible. More like he was back-pedaling, resending those mixed messages.
His hand slid over mine. “I want to make you happy, enjoy the moment. You’re my friend, my good friend.” A little half smile.
I knew his problem. He still couldn’t make up his mind. Normal under the circumstances. With such a huge lifestyle change, it was no wonder he was confused and overwhelmed. Overwhelmed? That was putting it mildly. For starters, a son he never knew he had. And the women, dozens probably. He needs an excel sheet to sort them out. Because he’s online, isn’t he? He’d be a fool not to be.
Alex leaned forward, his elbows on the table. “I don’t know if I should ask you this. Hell, I’ll just spit it out. How’s the dating thing going? Are you in extreme like? Or has it gone over to the smitten side?”
How could I answer that one? I suspected Alex was the smitten one, although he’d said very little about Honey, the woman he was dating, other than she’d had some tough relationships, a problematic mother, and they were having fun, he and Honey. Honey. The name felt thick and sweet. He has to be kissing her. And more. A man didn’t date someone for weeks, or months without…that meant he was kissing us both. And doing one of us.
My so-called date date date date at Union League? I wasn’t his first choice. But those kisses. When he kissed me…those slow, meandering kisses… My mind floated, imagining what it would be like to—
“Dana?”
“Yes?” I let more wine slide down my throat, leaned toward him pointing a finger. “You have a nice mouth. Do you know that?”
Buy/Read Links
Amazon | Apple Books | Barnes & Noble | BookBub
About the Author
Shirley Goldberg is a writer, novelist, and former ESL and French teacher who’s lived in Paris, Crete, and Casablanca. She writes about men and women of a certain age starting over. Her website http://midagedating.com offers a humorous look at living single and dating in midlife. Shirley is the author of two rom coms. Eat Your Heart Out and Middle Ageish, both in the series Starting Over. Shirley’s friends nag her to tell them which stories are true in her novels. Her characters believe you should never leave home without your sense of humor and Shirley agrees.
“Started very different and very interesting. Was a great book watched the relationship grow from the beginning. I fell in love with this book and didn’t want to stop reading.” Goodreads Review
My Socials
Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram | Amazon Author Page | BookBub
On Wednesdays, I share posts, fables, songs, poems, quotations, TEDx Talks, cartoons, and books that have inspired and motivated me on my writing journey. I hope these posts will give writers, artists, and other creatives a mid-week boost.
In her recent release, The 4% Fix, bestselling author Karma Brown shares time-management and goal-setting strategies that have worked for her as well as for others. Here’s one strategy recommended by Jerry Seinfeld:
Brad Isaac was a young comedian just starting out when one night he ended up at a club where Jerry Seinfeld was performing. He was able to catch up with the king of comedy backstage and asked Seinfeld if he had any tips for a newbie on the comedy circuit.
The story goes that Seinfeld told Isaac the way to be a better comic was to write better jokes, and the way to write better jokes was to write every day. Every day. He told Isaac to get a wall calendar and hang it somewhere he would see it regularly, then, with a red marker, put a big X through each day he wrote. He explained that, after a few days, Isaac would see a chain of those X marks, and after a few weeks, that long chain would be pretty satisfying. Isaac’s only job, Seinfeld told him, was to not break the chain.
This has been referred to as the “Seinfeld Strategy.” One of the main reasons it works is because it removes the pressure of focusing on a huge accomplishment (for Isaac, to deliver the best ever comedic performance, à la Jerry Seinfeld) and moves your gaze instead to a smaller, more manageable and results-based goal: write every day. It’s process-based rather than performance-based, so it isn’t about how “on” Isaac might feel during a performance, or how motivated he is, but rather about growing the chain of X days. A simple, habit-focused task.
Source: The 4% Fix by Karma Brown
I’m happy to welcome author Beth Caruso. Today, Beth shares her creative journey and new release, The Salty Rose.
I’m thrilled and grateful to be on Joanne Guidoccio’s blog today. I’d like to share with you the top ten influences in my life that led me to become an author.
1. I loved to write witches’ cookbooks as a child. The concoctions I came up with included bloody, bony bananas, puffed dragon’s eyes, and sauteed troll toes. I wish I still had a copy of one of those cookbooks, but sadly, they are gone forever. At least the memories of badgering the neighbor boys to try these gruesome remedies remain.
2. I also had several puppets and a mini theatre which became the inspiration to create a couple plays, who-done-it murder mysteries. Unfortunately, I have no idea what became of them either. I wondered about writing in the future in only a fleeting way.
3. As a teenager I couldn’t get enough information about the Salem Witch Trials or colonial history. Fascinated to learn about the psychological motives of those who accused others and the possible connection to the supernatural, I was determined to learn more, and did so during countless hours reading and researching.
4. I forgot about my childhood interests of witch cookbooks, puppet drama, and long reads about witch trials to pursue more practical endeavors such as maternity nursing, public health, a Peace Corps tour of duty in Thailand, and an herbal apprenticeship in North Carolina, not realizing that these adult endeavors would give me the experience I needed to write my first novel.
5. Upon moving to Windsor, Connecticut in the winter of 2005, I truly had no idea that what I would discover there would propel me into the writing profession. It all started when my neighbor, Joan, casually brought up the fact that the townspeople of Windsor accused Alice ‘Alse’ Young of witchcraft during a deadly epidemic. Alice Young became the first person to hang for witchcraft in the American colonies on May 26th, 1647. I was shocked and outraged never having heard of Alice or her plight that took place forty-five years before the Salem trials even began—the spark that started all of them!
6. I needed to know more about what happened to Alice. To be content with the few long-held assumptions about her did no justice to her suffering. I embarked on a years-long effort to research old historical records that no historian had ever bothered to look at fully such as Windsor land records. What I discovered evolved into a remarkable story that had never been told.
7. Had it not been for Alice Young, I may never have started down the path to be an author. Until that point in time, I merely mused about writing historical novels in a distant and nebulous future. Initially too shy and nervous to take on professional writing for the public, I remained private about my dream to write. But Alice and those who loved her beckoned me and would not let go. She demanded a concrete project to raise awareness about her death. To this day, I still do not know if the voices I heard during this process were my own or if they were from those spirits who witnessed Alice’s persecution so long ago. In any case, they brought Alice’s story to light and I knew there was no escape in telling it. I was compelled to do it for Alice Young and all of her generations of descendants. I’m so glad I did. One of Windsor: The Untold Story of America’s First Witch Hanging was published in October of 2015. It continues to raise awareness about the lesser-known Connecticut Witch Trials.
8. With One of Windsor, I’d learned a lot about historical research and genealogy as well as the profession of writing. The experience spurred me on to explore telling the story of another little-known female troublemaker in early colonial America, tavern keeper Marie du Trieux, who lived in the colony of New Netherland. I discovered her in my husband’s family tree. At the same time, I wanted to explore what happened to one of the main characters in One of Windsor after Alice Young’s death and the trajectory of the Connecticut Witch Trials culminating in the Hartford Witch Panic.
9. With both research from genealogy and history not used in One of Windsor, I was able to create a story about both Marie du Trieux and a contemporary counterpart in New England, trader John Tinker, the devastated cousin of Alice Young. Their stories started out separately but there was plenty of opportunity to merge them. The cover of The Salty Rose shows the exact moment when they meet each other outside of Marie’s tavern in New Amsterdam. I was fascinated to learn about so many astonishing pieces of early American history and how they came together in researching and writing for this novel. The result was The Salty Rose: Alchemists, Witches & A Tapper in New Amsterdam. It was released in September of 2019 and received the 2020 Genre award from the Independent Publishers of New England. I am so pleased and grateful to share more about it with this blog.
10. As any writer does, I am honing my skills and growing more deeply into this role as time goes on. I am still in the process of fully becoming an author. My current work in progress is the legend of a family kidnapping that took place among Sicilian immigrants in the early twentieth century. I’m also interested in exploring writing in other genres and currently have an outline for a ghost story.
Blurb
Marie du Trieux, a tavern keeper with a salty tongue and a heart of gold, struggles as she navigates love and loss, Native wars, and possible banishment by authorities in the unruly trading port of New Amsterdam, an outpost of the Dutch West India Company.
In New England, John Tinker, merchant and assistant to a renowned alchemist and eventual leader of Connecticut Colony, must come to terms with a family tragedy of dark proportions, all the while supporting his mentor’s secret quest to find the Northwest Passage, a desired trading route purported to mystically unite the East with the West.
As the lives of Marie and John become intertwined through friendship and trade, a search for justice of a Dutch woman accused of witchcraft in Hartford puts them on a collision course affecting not only their own destinies but also the fate of colonial America.
Excerpt
The Director General slammed the gavel down with the harsh thud of an ending.
“Marie du Trieux, you are hereby banished from New Netherland forever!” he said.
As I held on to the railing of a departing schooner, I remembered the jarring finality of those stark words against me. Looking back one last time at my town, a little place in the wilderness that had grown up with me—I longed to stay in the home where I gave birth to all my children, the location of my loves and of my losses.
This is the best place to begin recounting the story of how I played a part in the transition from Dutch New Amsterdam to English New York, my dear granddaughter.
I suppose the English will have their own tales to tell about the events that transpired but I want you to know my personal and secret version of the history of my beloved city before I am gone.
Having left New Amsterdam for the first time on that cold winter day in 1664, I felt unsettled, not quite believing that the time for my departure had finally come. Where had the time gone? How quickly had it passed? It had been nearly forty years since I first set foot on the shores of Manhattan with my mother, father, and little brother.
The view from our vessel, The Morning Star, was unrecognizable from the one my family saw many decades earlier. We had arrived to nothing but marsh, forest, and a few Indian canoes that approached our ship in greeting and curiosity. It’s easy to recall my excitement as a young girl of flowing dark hair seeing the Natives for the first time when we reached these shores many years ago.
But at the point of my expulsion, I wasn’t an adventurous, naïve child anymore. A mature and defiant woman who had faced her share of hardship and disappointment had taken her place. The Council of New Netherland and Director General Stuyvesant had told me they were finished with my repeated offenses and had given the order for banishment. I’d been in trouble with the authorities far too often they said. They’d insisted that my tavern be closed.
“So this is how it must end,” I uttered in disbelief to my son Pierre, your uncle, as we huddled together on deck.
Buy Links
Author Bio and Links
Award-winning author, Beth M. Caruso, is passionate to discover and convey important and interesting stories of women from earlier times. She recently won the literary prize in Genre Fiction (2020) from IPNE (Independent Publishers of New England) for her most recent novel The Salty Rose: Alchemists, Witches & A Tapper In New Amsterdam (2019). The Salty Rose is Beth’s second historical novel and explores alchemy in early colonial times, an insider’s view of the takeover of the Dutch colony of New Netherland, and the Hartford Witch Panic with information she gathered from previous and ongoing research. Beth’s first historical novel is One of Windsor: The Untold Story of America’s First Witch Hanging (2015), a novel that tells the tale of Alice ‘Alse’ Young and the beginnings of the colonial witch trials. She based the story on original research she did by exploring early primary sources such as early Windsor land records, vital statistics, and other documents. She lives in Connecticut with her family. Beth kayaks and gardens to unwind.
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Giveaway
Beth M. Caruso will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour. Find out more here.
Follow Beth on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour here.
I’m sharing my latest release, No More Secrets, on Linda Carroll-Bradd’s blog.
Find out more here.
I’m chatting with Amber Daulton about my writing process and new release, No More Secrets.
Drop by Amber’s blog.
Welcome to my Second Acts Series!
Today, we have Wild Rose Press author Julie Howard sharing her creative journey and new release, Spirit in Time.
Here’s Julie!
Briefly describe your first act.
For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be a writer. Nothing else appealed so when I went to college, I was faced with a dilemma: what major would best enable a writing career? English came to mind, of course, but journalism was more practical as far as earning a living while writing. My first act, then, was as a reporter and editor for a variety of newspapers in California, Nevada and Idaho. I loved this career even more than I expected, not just because I could write every day, but also because the people I interviewed were fascinating. I interviewed celebrities, company CEOs, and average people who ended up in extraordinary, newsworthy situations. I learned a great deal about human behavior – from kindness to deception.
What triggered the need for change?
Oh, the ‘80s and ‘90s decades were great for journalism! Newspapers had plentiful staff to tackle issues of the day and all I had to focus on was good, solid reporting. The technology changes came swiftly and complicated my job. Layoffs began in earnest and about one-third of newsroom staff were suddenly gone, meaning I needed to do even more. Frankly, the joy of working in the newspaper industry disappeared and I began thinking more and more of my childhood dream of being an author.
Second acts can take a lot of time and planning. I knew what I wanted but didn’t quite know how to get there. With two kids soon heading to college, we couldn’t afford for me to quit. But I tinkered with fiction here and there in my (very) limited spare time. I realized that fiction-writing was much different from non-fiction. There was point of view, voice, story arcs, plot, character development, and so many more things to learn. It took me a few years to make the transition.
Where are you now?
I have seven books published and am hard at work on the eighth. I have several more books in mind and can’t imagine ever doing anything else.
Do you have advice for anyone planning to pursue a second act?
Starting a second act can be scary. Who knows whether you’ll succeed? But what if you do? Even the effort is an achievement. Not everyone even gets a chance, or pursues a long-burning dream. Don’t expect success right away, stay the course and be patient.
Tagline: Time is not on her side.
Blurb
Time travel isn’t real. It can’t be real. But ghost-blogger Jillian Winchester discovers otherwise when an enigmatic spirit conveys her to 1872 to do his bidding.
Jillian finds herself employed as a maid in Sacramento, in an elegant mansion with a famous painting. The artwork reveals another mystery: Why does the man within look exactly like her boyfriend, Mason Chandler?
Morality and sin live side by side, not only in the picture, but also within her. As her transgressions escalate, she races the clock to find the man in the painting, and hunt down a spirit with a disconcerting gift.
But will time be her friend or foe?
Excerpt
“Are you a ghost?” A young girl stood where the guard had been only minutes before. She spoke matter- of-factly, her dark eyes alive with curiosity.
The house was still whole, she was alive, and the world hadn’t ended. Jillian scanned the room for damage, then blinked. This must be a dream. The long dining table—bare just moments ago—was now laid for a meal. Glasses sat upright, forks and spoons lined up in perfect order, and a tall flower arrangement appeared unscathed. A crystal chandelier above the table remained perfectly still.
The guard and Asian man were nowhere in sight.
The girl, dressed neatly in a calf-length white pinafore embellished with pink ribbons, didn’t appear rattled by the cataclysmic jolt.
“What happened?” Jillian asked, still crouched on her knees. “Are you okay?”
“You don’t belong here. Mother will be angry.”
Even though the floor had ceased to shake, the roiling continued in her head. Might this very real looking girl be a spirit? Most apparitions wavered in some manner, their appearances paler and less there than the tangible world around them. This child appeared solid in every way, from the tips of her shiny chestnut hair to the toes of her lace-up black shoes.
Buy/Read
Amazon | iBooks | Barnes & Noble | Bookbub | Goodreads
About the Author
Julie Howard is the author of the Wild Crime series, and Spirited Quest. She is a former journalist and editor who has covered topics ranging from crime to cowboy poetry. She is a member of the Idaho Writers Guild, editor of the Potato Soup Journal, and founder of the Boise chapter of Shut Up & Write.
Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon | Bookbub | Twitter | Instagram
On Wednesdays, I share posts, fables, songs, poems, quotations, TEDx Talks, cartoons, and books that have inspired and motivated me on my writing journey. I hope these posts will give writers, artists, and other creatives a mid-week boost.
A longtime fan of bestselling authors and coaches Marc and Angel Chernoff, I look forward to receiving their daily emails. Here’s a recent message that may resonate with anyone who is struggling to achieve their goals.
If you want something in life, you also have to want the costs of getting it.
Most people want the reward without the risk. The shine without the grind. But you can’t have a destination without a journey. And a journey always has costs…
So instead of thinking about what you want, first ask yourself:
“What am I willing to give up to get it?”
Or, for those inevitably hard days:
“What is worth suffering for?”
Seriously, think about it…
If you want the six-pack abs, you have to want the sore muscles, the sweaty clothes, the morning or afternoon workouts, and the healthy meals.
If you want the successful business, you have to also want the long days, the stressful business decisions, and the possibility of failing several times to learn what you need to know to succeed.
And the same general philosophy holds true for HEALING any source of pain in your life – you have to want to WORK through the pain, step by step.
Regardless of what you want the next chapter of your life to look like, you have to consistently DO things that support this idea. An idea, after all, isn’t going to do anything for you until you do something productive with it. In fact, as long as that great idea is just sitting around in your head, it’s doing far more harm than good. Your subconscious mind knows you’re procrastinating on something that’s important to you. The required work that you keep postponing causes stress, anxiety, fear, and usually more procrastination – a vicious cycle that continues to worsen until you interrupt it with positive ACTION. That’s the brutal truth!
The best action you can take right now, though, is changing how you THINK about the actions you need to take…
And there is a path. Marc and I have walked this path ourselves many times. A decade ago, in quick succession, we dealt with several significant, unexpected losses and life changes back-to-back, including losing my brother to suicide, losing a mutual best friend to cardiac arrest, financial unrest, and more. The weight of these dire circumstances had us STUCK to say the least, and we were avoiding the very actions we needed to take to heal and move forward. But, by changing our thinking, these circumstances became the proving ground for achieving renewed happiness and beauty in our lives.
The key is to understand that no matter what happens, or what challenges you face, you can choose your response, which dictates pretty much everything that happens next. Truly, the greatest weapon you have against pain, anxiety, negativity and stress is your ability to choose one present thought and action over another – to train your mind to make the best of what you’ve got in front of you, even when the journey is harder than you expected.
Yes, YOU CAN change the way you think and respond to life! And once you do, you can master a new way to be.
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Joanne Guidoccio 