Last week I gave a keynote at a plenary session to approximately 350 court staff from across the state of Indiana on customer service and why they matter. As I left, I thought back to 12-year-old me who sat in a hearing room at the Nebraska Unicameral and was so impacted watching attorneys with a national advocacy organization testify on …
Book Talk: Cara Putman Listen to the episode with Cara Putman and Pepper Basham Y’all, I never thought we’d get here. When I started Book Talk, I didn’t have a vision for a podcast that would become this. Today to mix it up, my good friend Pepper Basham is interviewing me. It was so fun to share some of my …
Book Talk: Toni Shiloh Listen to the episode with Toni Shiloh Life doesn’t always go the way we want it to. If you’ve lived any amount of time, then you know that. What I love about Toni Shiloh‘s novels with Bethany House is that they are spiritual or Hollywood fairy tales. They capture that idea of finding a prince or …
Looking for Something to Read? If you’re like me, then you probably always have at least one, if not two, three or four books that you are reading. Many days that’s one or two audiobooks. One or two novels and one or two nonfiction titles. I’m always reading as well as writing. It’s really like breathing. Then when I find …
Book Talk: DiAnn Mills Listen to the episode with DiAnn Mills It is my absolute delight to introduce you to my writing friend DiAnn Mills. I met DiAnn at my very first ACFW in 2005 when I attended one of the workshops on plotting and brainstorming. I have loved her and her books ever since. In this episode, we talk …
One of the things I’ve been piloting in my day job is a program for graduating senior women to help them with the transition from college student to first job and the first six months. This week we met for our first Zoom session post graduation. Beyond it being wonderful to see these young women who I’ve invested so much …
Book Talk: Crystal Caudill and Angela Ruth Strong Listen to the episode with Crystal Caudill and Angela Ruth Strong Have you ever wondered what it’s like to write in a novella collection when the authors intentionally connect the stories closely? That’s exactly what Crystal Caudill, Angela Strong, and I did for our collection We Three Kings which releases in September …
Book Talk: Kathleen Denly Listen to the episode with Kathleen Denly Today it is a pleasure to introduce you to my writing friend Kathleen Denly. Her historical fiction is set in 1850s San Diego County California, and you’ll enjoy getting to learn more about her passion for discovering little-known aspects of California’s history and transforming it into a story. We …
Book Talk: DiAnn Mills Listen to the episode with DiAnn Mills It is my absolute delight to introduce you to my writing friend DiAnn Mills. I met DiAnn at my very first ACFW in 2005 when I attended one of the workshops on plotting and brainstorming. I have loved her and her books ever since. In this episode, we talk …
This post includes the slides I used in the June 12, 2023, Characters: Making Them Unique workshop for ACFW. If you would like to have me speak at your event, please contact me through this form. Resources/books I referenced: Lethal Intent by Cara Putman Across the Shores by Cara Putman, Carolyn Miller, Angela Couch and Kelly Goshorn Beyond Justice by …