Plate Update: Weary and Blessed

This year is rushing by like a puppy who stole something. I’m pretty sure I just did one of these updates last week, right? *laughs and cries because quarantine has made time meaningless*

I’ve spent this quarter both world and injustice weary and exceedingly blessed and surprised by what God is doing. I can’t wait to see what happens next. 😉 

(Note: I’ve been in a quarantine-world for this entire quarter except when my state opened up for a couple weeks.)

What have I been READING?

Quiet Power (five stars)

On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness (five stars)

Firmament: No Man (four stars)

Life, the Universe, and Everything (five stars, filtered)

Monument Maker (four stars)

Irena Sendler and the Children of the Warsaw Ghetto (five stars)

The First Fowler (four stars)

Guitar Notes (four stars)

Dollhouse Magic (five stars)

Doctor Who: I Am a Dalek (five stars)

A Mother in the Making (three stars)

The Trouble With Love (FIVE STARS)

Byrd’s Eye View (four stars)

Pumpkinheads (three stars)

Broken Strings (FIVE STARS)

What have I been WATCHING?

Doctor Who Lockdown rewatches. It was SO. MUCH. FUN. and the community that grew up around it was very lovely. 😉 I’m sad it’s over!

Andy Griffith (new lunchtime tradition!)

Minority Report (with edits). WOW that was trippy.

The Book Thief rewatch… *bawls all over again*

The Emporer’s New Groove (laughed. my. head. off.)

Doctor Who, series 8 and 9

Agents of Shield, season 7 (It’s still airing which is awesome. 😀 )

What have I been WRITING?

Blog posts (and I’m sorry I haven’t been keeping to schedule…)

Reviewssssss

Fanfic! 

A few false starts of stories (send help)

What have I been LISTENING to?

Searching for Us (the whole album) by Skye Peterson

Joy and Deep Dark Well, both by Scott Mulvahill

Lost in the Thick of It by Gabrielle Aplin

One Together by Charlie Peacock

Movie soundtracks! It’s pretty fun. 😉

Yes by Ben and Tan (I accidentally added it to a playlist three times, so it’s quite my jam 😀 )

What have I been MAKING?

Mint chocolate chip cupcakes

A microwaved s’more

Scrapbooked cards

Mac and CHEESE

What have I been MISCELLANEOUSING?

Drawing a little fanart 

Baking long-distance with a bestie

Watching movies long-distance

Welcoming home new books ❤

Formatting Sincerely, Jem for paperback ❤ ❤

Re-publishing The Treasure Hunt!

Sending PACKAGES 

Visiting the library ❤

I’ve also been hanging out with family, enjoying (safely) a new local coffeeshop, and preparing for an upcoming blog party. (More on that later!)

What have you been doing?

The Treasure Hunt Blog Tour: Last Day! ;)

Happy last day of blog tour, y’all! Again, it has been brilliant fun to have you all around here, and I hope you enjoyed. 😀

One last post to share… Mikayla interviewed me via Zoom and posted her own review. Check it out!

See you all again tomorrow with a giveaway winner announcement (and possibly some more bonus behind-the-scenes 😉 ).

The Treasure Hunt Blog Tour: DIY Treasure Hunts (+copies available!)

Happy blog tour day four!

Anna (yes, THE Anna from the book) just posted a fantabulous blog post with tips for setting up your own treasure hunt (and a super cute picture of her with the book). Check it out here!

Also, today, Abigail is sharing her review of The Treasure Hunt on her blog.

Thanks so much, ladies, and thank you to everyone who has been a part of this tour. ❤

Also, as promised… I. HAVE. COPIES. 😀

(All my other books are now in stock too, if you’ve been waiting for signed ones.)

ORDER HERE

Have a lovely day!

The Treasure Hunt Blog Tour: A Lovely Review <3

Hello all! Today’s post is quite short and late, but I couldn’t miss linking out to this lovely review by Jana T.! Thanks so much, Jana. 😉

Don’t forget to check out the giveaway and read-aloud videos. 😀

The Treasure Hunt Blog Tour: READ-ALOUD!

Happy second day of blog tour! (This is going to start sounding like the 12 Days of Christmas, isn’t it? 😂 ) I hope you all had a blessed Memorial Day of remembrance and celebration. 😉

Here’s something I’m excited about right now…

Eeeek! I’ll be sharing pics (and an order form for signed copies) soon! 😀

Hop on over to read this review by Rebekah Morris and watch me read-aloud the first two chapters. ❤

And don’t forget to check out the giveaway! 😉

The Treasure Hunt Blog Tour: Release Day!

Happy (re)release day to The Treasure Hunt! Six years ago, in June, I published my very first book. There was a lot of nervousness and A LOT of excitement, and I’ll never forget the feeling of holding the first copy in my hands. ❤

The journey since then has been long, and hard, and beautiful, and you all have been a blessed part of it. ❤

I searched through my old blog for mentions of the book, and this made me feel nostalgic…

😭😭

A few months later, I was interviewed by Sarah Holman, one of my biggest heroes, over on Homeschooled Authors. The post is still up, if you’d like to read it. And take a look at my profile picture! I was such a baby. ❤ (I adored that jumper, fyi.)

Today, I am so happy to share the new edition of The Treasure Hunt with a brand new cover, interior formatting, and a few minor grammatical fixes. 😉

In celebration of six years of this book (I still can’t believe it), here are a few reviews from over the years…

This review, my second ever and one I was delighted to find when I first discovered Goodreads 😉

This reader who was solving right along with the characters (and discovered her “Old and Boring” status 😂)

This lovely one (and I’m glad the reader liked all the nicknames)

This reader was inspired and you all have no idea how much that melts me

And this one. 😭😭

I had a hard time choosing reviews, so even if yours isn’t here, know I appreciated it. You all are the best. ❤ Thank you for your kind words, support, and letting me see a little glimpse of what you’ve enjoyed about this book.

ENTER HERE

(Ships the US only)

Have a beautiful day!

My Bookish World

Last week I posted about the strange writing stasis I find myself in. No big projects, half-ideas, and maybe a little bit of rest needed. 😉 I’ve still had the insane bug to write, write, write, and I recently found a very fun and restful way to satisfy that while waiting for the big, important stories to come. 

I wrote my first piece of fanfiction, guys. 

I’m weirdly over the moon in love with it. XD It wasn’t easy to write per se, but because it’s set in an established world with established characters that I could just play with and maybe because the idea has been living in my brain for over a year… I just wrote and wrote. 😀 There wasn’t any pressure except to keep people in character, and I think maybe I should do this again sometime when writer’s block is attacking me. 😉 

Another exciting writerly thing… I GOT PROOF COPIES! ❤ Yes, multiples. I received a copy of my first book and the proof for my most recent book in the same weekend, and if that’s not poetic I don’t know what is. Behold…

(Didn’t Perry do a brilliant job on that cover?!)

Also, my brain has been insaaannnnneeee with ideas right now. More than I could probably ever write actually. I came up with a spy network concept one day and then the next day two twists on the classic mermaid tropes. I’ve got problems, y’all. 😉

Oh, and for another problem, one of my sisters pulled out an old manuscript of mine. It’s one of my absolute favorites, and it’s in need of a good bit of love before publishing. Just seeing those pages brought the story rushing back and a billion ideas of what I could do to work with it. Definitely not in the publishing/writing plan for now, so I’m trying to avoid it. XD We’ll see how successful I am. 😛

I’ve been really tired lately, and it’s seemed like all the books I’ve had available to read next are either really serious or complicated fantasy. Not cutting it for this mood reader. 😉 I decided to splurge and buy some full-price ebooks, and I snagged a light sci-fi and a sweet-looking romance. Brilliant fun. 😀

What has your bookish life been like lately? How do you combat writer’s or reader’s block? 😀

Blog Tour Time!

Guys, this week/weekend has been soooo exciting bookwise! I got a copy of The Treasure Hunt (new edition!) releasing this month. 💖 It looks so good, and I’ve been toting it (and a Sincerely, Jem proof copy) around like a happy toddler with her blankie. 😆😜 I can’t wait to share it with you!

It’s evening here, so too dark for pictures, but I promise you’ll get to see the lovelies soon. 😁😉

In the meantime… it’s time to set up a blog tour for later this month, and if you’d like to join…

SIGN UP HERE!

Thanks for your consideration (and I totally understand if it’s too short notice 😉)!

A New Cover for My First Book!

Guys, I am sooo excited to share a brand new cover with you all today. 😉 It’s doubly exciting for me because this cover belongs to the new edition of my very first book. ❤

After six years (and some increasingly bad misprints 😛 ), I decided it was time for a change.

Perry Elisabeth did an AMAZING job capturing the spirit of the story, and I couldn’t be happier. 😀

Ready?

❤ ❤

About the book

They were silent a moment each thinking of the strange clue and even stranger signature. Anna was first to speak. “It seems like some sort of treasure hunt.”

A boring summer vacation turns into an exciting adventure when Anna and her brother David discover a mysterious note. Soon they are hunting for clues, solving puzzles, and cracking codes–all on their own farm!

Releasing May 25th! Add on Goodreads.

Thank you for all your support these past six years of being a published author. It’s been an amazing journey, and revisiting the beginning like this only reminds me of you all. ❤

Thank You, Wow

Last weekend, I spent my third year with Generation Rising at the AFHE homeschool convention. There were a ton of amazing, hilarious, goofy, and downright does-my-brain-even-exist-now-I’m-so-tired conversations. We met with friends, new customers, and fans. Some of my favorite moments were when readers stopped by to tell us how much our books have impacted them. My answer to those stories was, “Thank you, wow.” And then teared up silence.

And after this weekend, those words pretty much sum up how I’m feeling. 😉

Below are some of my favorite pictures from the weekend.

The cast and crew of this comedy–er, booth. (Minus one member.) Look at all those books! 😀

Day one! In the booth! Looking tired and goofy!

Car selfie on the way home. I was very happy about that sandwich… #stillabetterlovestorythanTwilight

Second day!

That moment when a book club stops by to get copies of Kiera. [insert crying emoji] So blown away!

After clean-up selfie…

I’m so grateful to get to be a storyteller, and now I need to sleep for a week. 😉