Live By The Word -- News & Blog

Today I share Susan Mathis and her final installment in our series of three blog posts about Julia's Joy. About Julia’s Joy: When Julia Collins reluctantly sets foot on Sister Island, compelled by her wealthy grandmother's will, she is intent on claiming her inheritance and moving on. But when she experiences the peaceful, faith-filled island life, and connects with the handsome lightkeeper, William, Julia finds herself confronting her open wounds from her parents' deaths. William Dodge, lightkeeper of Sister Island, harbors a heart hardened by a past betrayal. Between that and his chronic pleurisy, he wants nothing to do with love. But when Julia arrives on the island bursting with vitality and unconventional notions, William's world is turned upside down. As she chips away at the walls William has built for himself, he finds his reluctance waning. But just as love begins to blossom between them, Julia is faced with a tempting proposal from a prominent Brockville family. Will she succumb to societal expectations or choose the richness of her island life and the love of the steadfast lightkeeper? Here’s an excerpt from Julia’s Joy : As William scanned the lamp room, it smelled of dampness and kerosene, scents ingrained in the very fabric of the lighthouse. The rain continued to patter incessantly on the ten-sided glass room, a staccato call to be at attention, though he doubted many would traverse the river in such weather, save the oceangoing salties or perhaps a laker or two already en route to port. Still, after the recent crash on that foggy night, he had to remain vigilant. He approached the massive lamp, that giant sentinel in the center of the room, and lit it. The wick flickered, a dim flame yearning for attention. He sighed. Much like the lamp, there were aspects of his heart that also needed tending. He carefully fine-tuned the wick, coaxing it to life with a gentle adjustment. The flame responded, dancing with renewed vigor. William polished the brass components of the lamp until they gleamed, each stroke a subtle swish of reflection. The windows of the lamp room also caught his attention. With a determined resolve, he set about cleaning them, but the view beyond the glass was obscured, much like the uncertainty that clouded his tomorrows. As he wiped away the residue, he appraised Julia’s inner storm and the book that held the answers to her battle. Though she hadn’t mentioned the many notes and comments his father and mother had added to their family heirloom, he knew many of them by heart. Indeed, he had added a few of his own over the years. He wouldn’t force Julia to share her revelations. No, he had to let her come to him when she was ready. In the meantime, he would pray for her. He set about puttering, as he often did when deep in thought. The clang of metal against metal resounded through the lamp room as he tinkered with the brass workings of the massive apparatus. He smiled as the beam of light from the lighthouse swept across the stormy river, cutting through the thick mist that clung to the island and beyond, just as it should. About Susan: Susan G Mathis is an international award-winning, multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate NY. Susan has been published more than thirty times in full-length novels, novellas, and non-fiction books. She has thirteen in her fiction line including, The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy, Christmas Charity, Katelyn’s Choice, Devyn’s Dilemma, Sara’s Surprise, Reagan’s Reward, Colleen’s Confession, Peyton’s Promise, Rachel’s Reunion, Mary’s Moment, A Summer at Thousand Island House, Libby’s Lighthouse, and Julia’s Joy, the second in her three-book lighthouse series. Her book awards include three Illumination Book Awards, four American Fiction Awards, three Indie Excellence Book Awards, five Literary Titan Book Awards, two Golden Scroll Awards, and a Selah Award. Susan is also a published author of two premarital books, two children’s picture books, stories in a dozen compilations, and hundreds of published articles. Susan makes her home in Northern Virginia and enjoys traveling around the world but returns each summer to enjoy the Thousand Islands. Visit www.SusanGMathis.com/fiction for more. Where can people find you online? Susan’s website: https://www.susangmathis.com/fiction-books Buy links: Amazon | Barnes&Nobles | Wild Heart Books Social media links: Website | Author Central | Facebook | Twitter | Blog | Instagram | Goodreads l Book Bub | Pinterest | Julia’s Joy book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq7XLUohjrA

Help me welcome author Lisa Pelissier as she shares about a subject near and dear to her heart -- literacy and comprehension. After all, what is the benefit in knowing how to read if we don't understand what the author is trying to convey? The neighbor boy was over at our house, playing with my daughters. They were working puzzles on the living room floor—wooden puzzles that my grandmother used when she was a kindergarten teacher from 1950 to 1970. Suddenly this ten-year-old boy cried, “Miss Lisa! I think something terrible’s happening in this puzzle! I think it’s slavery!” I didn’t remember having a slavery puzzle, so I looked over to see what he was talking about. It was Hansel and Gretel. You know, the scene where the witch has Hansel locked in a cage while she tries to fatten him up as a precursor to eating him. The neighbor boy had never heard the story of Hansel and Gretel. After remedying the situation, I sat back to ponder. I was raised on Grimm’s fairy tales. I had a big book of fairy tales—still have it, in fact. Classic fairy tales were everywhere—in children’s books, in chapter books, and on TV. Everyone knew the stories of Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, Rapunzel, and more. Those tales are being lost. My solution was to create a reading comprehension book for children containing 22 Grimm’s fairy tales told in 26 short lessons. The stories were taken right out of the fairy tales, and the comprehension questions from the stories. I was working as a long-term substitute teacher for a second-grade class at the time, and I created the stories with them in mind. The kids loved them. Reclaim: Reading Comprehension for Cultural Literacy based on Grimm’s Fairy Tales is appropriate for students with a reading level between second and third grade. It’s an easy way for homeschool parents or classroom teachers to introduce Grimm’s fairy tales to their students in a way that takes ten to fifteen minutes per lesson. I know this blog is usually about newly released fiction. It’s intended to let you all—the readers—know what is up and coming. But it’s good also to take a moment to look back on the varied stories that made us who we are as individuals, as a nation, and as a culture. From that foundation, we can press forward in our own creative journeys and in making beautiful choices about what we choose to read.  Link to Reclaim : https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CC7C36SR/ About Lisa: Lisa Pelissier lives in Oregon where she is a homeschool mother of four and self-published author of six middle-grade fiction novels, as well as two early-readers' chapter books and two YA fantasy novels. Lisa owns SneakerBlossom Books, offering Christian, classical homeschool study guides and curriculum. She also works as a freelance copy editor, copy writer, and virtual assistant. She blogs at Eleventh Willow, a site she and two friends started for Christians parenting the mentally ill. In her spare time Lisa enjoys making art, playing the piano, and singing. Connecting Online: Website: https://www.sneakerblossom.com/ Email: sneakerblossom (at) yahoo.com Blog: https://www.eleventhwillow.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lisa.pelissier.author Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisaedkela/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/edkela/ Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Lisa-Pelissier/author/B08794GCR1 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SneakerBlossom TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lisapelissier1

Help me welcome Dienece Darling today as she shares about a recent release. There’s a running joke in my family which comes from the 1995 Sense and Sensibility movie starring Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet. The youngest daughter, Margaret had a habit of always saying the wrong thing when guests came to visit. After several ‘mistakes,’ her mother and sisters inform Margaret that one should speak of the weather if they don’t know what to say. Lo and behold, there’s a very awkward scene at the end of the movie. No one has any idea what to say, and Margaret—finally remembering her etiquette lessons—pipes up, ‘We’ve been enjoying very fine weather.’ And what does Margaret get for all her troubles? Her mother and sisters shush her. Poor Margaret, she’d done what they told her to do! Talk about the weather to fill an awkward pause. And somehow it still wasn’t right. My family loved this quote back when I was a teenager. We probably wore it out, but years later, it still makes me smile. And occasionally, I dare to tell my family that the weather has been ‘very fine’ lately. But weather isn’t always a safe topic. In fact, weather can be devastating. Floods, snowstorms, drought, and dare I mention hurricanes? There are times when speaking of the weather is the last thing anyone wants. Just such an occasion happens in my book Hearts Unknown. In 1763, London suffered one of the worst winters anyone could remember. It was so bad that not only did the Thames freeze over, but the very ground itself. Gardeners were unable to work and took to the streets dressed in mourning clothes. Can you imagine what it would look like to see gardeners marching through the streets like a funeral procession because they couldn’t work? Things got so bad the East India Company gave 10 guineas to several parishes for the relief of the poor. In today’s terms, this is roughly worth around $1,400. Not exactly a drop in the bucket. According to https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/currency-converter/ 10 guineas equalled around 100 days of wages. On top of that, a poor lady got lost on her way home from buying bread, wandered into a fen, and froze to death. All these distressing scenes pile up on my heroine Edith Howard in Hearts Unknown. She wants to do something for the poor. She wants to help, but it’s not like she’s got $1,000 dollars lying around. What can one lady do in the face of such great need? Have you ever felt overwhelmed? Like there wasn’t anything you could do to fix things, to help? In Hearts Unknown Edith learns the value of two mites given to God. And of course, since this is a romance, she manages to fall in love while she’s at it! 😉 Buy link: https://www.books2read.com/heartsunknown Connecting Online: http://www.dienecedarling.com https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063748350005 https://www.instagram.com/dienecedarling/ https://x.com/DieneceDarling About Dienece : Inspirational historical romance author Dienece Darling was born in American but now calls Australia home. Her stories find love and faith in history, and her first name is a variant spelling of Denise.

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Welcome author and blogger Susan G Mathis back for her second of three posts about her upcoming release, Julia's Joy. Julia’s Joy Book two is out now! She came to claim her inheritance, but the mysterious lighthouse keeper makes her question all her plans. When Julia Collins reluctantly sets foot on Sister Island, compelled by her grandmother’s will, she is intent on claiming her inheritance and moving on. But when she experiences the peaceful, faith-filled island life and connects with the handsome lightkeeper, William, Julia finds herself confronting her open wounds from her parents’ deaths. William Dodge, lightkeeper of Sister Island, harbors a heart hardened by a past betrayal. Between that and his chronic pleurisy, he wants nothing to do with love. But when Julia arrives on the island bursting with vitality and unconventional notions, William’s world is turned upside down. As she chips away at the walls William has built for himself, he finds his reluctance waning. But just as love begins to blossom between them, Julia is faced with a tempting proposal from a prominent Brockville family. Will she succumb to societal expectations or choose the richness of her island life and the love of the steadfast lightkeeper? Libby’s Lighthouse: Book one is available now. When a lighthouse keeper’s daughter finds a mysterious sailor with amnesia, the secrets she uncovers may change her life forever. Elizabeth Montonna, daughter of the Tibbett’s Point Lighthouse keeper, thought she’d love the lighthouse life forever—until her mother, on her deathbed, reveals a long-buried secret. Now Elizabeth’s world has been turned upside down, making her question if she’ll ever truly belong and be loved. But when a dashing young sailor appears on her shore, wounded and disoriented, she finds purpose in helping him recover. Although the man knows nothing about his past or identity, his kindness and character steal a little more of her heart each day. If only she knew his full name. When Owen awakes on the shore of Lake Ontario with no knowledge of who he is, or where he was headed when his ship wrecked, he has no choice but to accept the hospitality of the lighthouse keeper and his lovely daughter. But as Owen works to repay their kindness, and his relationship with Libby turns into something more, he knows their budding romance can go no further until he uncovers his past. With each passing day, Owen inches closer to discovering the secrets of his identity, but will the revelations bring him closer to Libby or tear them apart forever? About Susan: Susan G Mathis is an international award-winning, multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate NY. Susan has been published more than thirty times in full-length novels, novellas, and non-fiction books. She has thirteen in her fiction line including, The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy, Christmas Charity, Katelyn’s Choice, Devyn’s Dilemma, Sara’s Surprise, Reagan’s Reward, Colleen’s Confession, Peyton’s Promise, Rachel’s Reunion, Mary’s Moment, A Summer at Thousand Island House, Libby’s Lighthouse, and Julia’s Joy, the second in her three-book lighthouse series. Her book awards include three Illumination Book Awards, four American Fiction Awards, three Indie Excellence Book Awards, five Literary Titan Book Awards, two Golden Scroll Awards, and a Selah Award. Susan is also a published author of two premarital books, two children’s picture books, stories in a dozen compilations, and hundreds of published articles. Susan makes her home in Northern Virginia and enjoys traveling around the world but returns each summer to enjoy the Thousand Islands. Visit www.SusanGMathis.com/fiction for more. Where can people find you online? Susan’s website: https://www.susangmathis.com/fiction-books Buy links: Amazon | Barnes&Nobles | Wild Heart Books Social media links: Website | Author Central | Facebook | Twitter | Blog | Instagram | Goodreads l Book Bub | Pinterest | Julia’s Joy book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq7XLUohjrA

Help me welcome author Lori DeJong as she shares about her upcoming Christmas release. In July 2023, I was so excited when I was invited to join three other Scrivenings Press authors in a Christmas novella collection entitled A Match Made at Christmas, that was set to release in October 2024. My debut novel had just released two weeks before, and I was hard at work on the second book in the series. But the chance to work on a lighthearted Christmas romance novella was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up. I’d never written a novella before but came up with a loose concept of a character who had left their small town with big dreams and was coming home for Christmas for the first time in years. I didn’t know yet if it would be him or her, just that this character’s life was at a crossroads, and I wanted their mothers involved somehow in the scheme to get them back together. After some brainstorming, the story of Cody Lansdale and Aubrey Mayfield came into view. High school sweethearts from a small Texas town with big dreams of making it in Christian music. When they’re finally “discovered”, however, it doesn’t exactly go the way they’d planned, and Cody leaves Aubrey in Nashville to become all she can be. Jingle Bell Matchmakers opens with Aubrey, now billed as "Aubrey May", country music star, being lured home by some misinformation eleven years later. And when she and Cody, now a widowed father of a precocious little girl, keep finding themselves in the same place at the same time, they begin to wonder if something’s going on behind the scenes. I hope you enjoy Jingle Bell Matchmakers, a second-chance romance story with a committee of well-meaning, spunky ladies pulling the heartstrings! About the story: When country music star Aubrey Mayfield is lured home after years away, she’s bewildered when she and ex-fiancé-now-widowed-dad Cody Lansdale keep finding themselves in the same place at the same time. As they become reacquainted, however, old feelings stir. Aubrey’s at a crossroads in her career and is contemplating a change. But when a chance at headlining her own tour takes her back to Nashville, Cody realizes her dreams may once again come between them. Unless God, with a little help from the Jingle Bell Committee, has a better plan. 

Help me welcome back Lisa Pelissier as she shares another of her books with a theme we can all understand -- the longing for freedom. The second book in my fantasy series, The Illumination of the Siann Dha , was released yesterday, November 5. In the first book, four very diverse characters came together, driven by their own needs and goals, and ended up saving their world from certain destruction. Now, in Book 2, Untethered, those whose plan had been to destroy their world and escape to start a new civilization are adrift in the cosmos outside of the enclosed world of Gannoir. Inside the skyboulder, an enormous spaceship carved from rock, the joint masterminds behind the scheme to destroy Gannoir are forming a new plan. Among those they’ve taken out of the world with them are Dynny, a gnomish, intellectually disabled man; pregnant Mailu, who is mostly dead; and Xylo’s grandson he’s never met, Talag. Will elderly Xylo, petulant, anguished Tass, and true-blue Talag be able to bring the skyboulder home before it’s too late? Will Xylo get justice for the wrongs that were done against him and his family? Will Tass be able to bring her sister Mailu home safely? Will Talag succeed in saving himself and Dynny despite their desperate circumstances? This series is a look at the destructive nature of sin. Tass’s angst stems from being abandoned by a mother who never loved her. Xylo and Talag’s family has been destroyed by greed and the lust for power. In the depth of their own pain, they all have to wrestle with their own tendencies to sin against others. Some of them are victorious, choosing right over wrong most of the time. Others give in to the darkness, which appears as a physical force that has invaded their world. I believe there is value in writing from a place of darkness and anguish. For most people—maybe all—darkness and anguish are present in their lives. Periods of hardship ebb and flow over time, but it’s important to stop, point, and say, “that is evil” and to stand against it, even when it seems that resisting the evil is impossible. One of my characters decides it is in their best interest to join forces with the evil to get what they want. Another resists from the get-go, but may still be destroyed by it nonetheless. Ultimately, the goal of portraying the darkness is to point out the power of the light to dispel it. That is the hope for this four-book series. What is Untethered About? Justice is all Xylo craves. His enemy has escaped into the unknown, taking nearly 40 others aboard the skyboulder-among them, the grandchildren Xylo never knew he had. Determined to bring his enemy back to face the consequences of the destruction he's wrought, Xylo embarks on a mission that will lead him to the unexpected-for better or for worse. Twelve-year-old Tass has never felt more alone. Her only friend is dead, and her sister—whether alive or lost forever, she doesn't know—has vanished aboard the skyboulder. Desperate to find her, Tass faces a perilous journey, torn between saving her sister and losing herself along the way. Can she survive the search without sacrificing her life... or her soul? Talag has always been an outsider. When his grandfather chose him to board the skyboulder, one of the few selected to create a new world, Talag was left confused and out of place. Now, with his unlikely companion—an elderly, intellectually disabled man named Dynny—Talag must confront his family's dark secrets and his own role in their legacy. As dangers mount, can Talag and Dynny find a way to save themselves before it's too late? Check out the book here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DJRQDV48 And the series here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BFMTBJPL About Lisa: Lisa Pelissier lives in Oregon where she is a homeschool mother of four and self-published author of five middle-grade fiction novels, as well as two early-readers' chapter books and a YA fantasy novel. Lisa owns SneakerBlossom Books, offering Christian, classical homeschool study guides and curriculum. She also works as a freelance copy editor, copy writer, and virtual assistant. She blogs at Eleventh Willow (at the SneakerBlossom website), a site she and two friends started for Christians parenting the mentally ill. In her spare time Lisa enjoys making art, playing the piano, and singing. Connect online: Website: https://www.sneakerblossom.com/ Email: sneakerblossom (at) yahoo.com Blog: https://www.sneakerblossom.com/eleventhwillow Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lisa.pelissier.author Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisaedkela/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/edkela/ Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Lisa-Pelissier/author/B08794GCR1 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SneakerBlossom TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lisapelissier1 

Join me today as I welcome friend, author, and blogger Susan G Mathis as she shares about her upcoming release. About Julia’s Joy: When Julia Collins reluctantly sets foot on Sister Island, compelled by her wealthy grandmother's will, she is intent on claiming her inheritance and moving on. But when she experiences the peaceful, faith-filled island life, and connects with the handsome lightkeeper, William, Julia finds herself confronting her open wounds from her parents' deaths. William Dodge, lightkeeper of Sister Island, harbors a heart hardened by a past betrayal. Between that and his chronic pleurisy, he wants nothing to do with love. But when Julia arrives on the island bursting with vitality and unconventional notions, William's world is turned upside down. As she chips away at the walls William has built for himself, he finds his reluctance waning. But just as love begins to blossom between them, Julia is faced with a tempting proposal from a prominent Brockville family. Will she succumb to societal expectations or choose the richness of her island life and the love of the steadfast lightkeeper? Here’s an excerpt from Julia’s Joy: Inspired by the tranquility of the moment and determined to depict the lighthouse at sunset, Julia gathered her art supplies and made her way to an eastern spot on the island. From here, she could capture the lighthouse and the western sunset. The early-evening sun kissed the shores of Sister Island, radiating on the landscape. A symphony of bird calls, lapping waves, and buzzing insects filled the air, a familiar melody to accompany and inspire her artistic endeavors. The river breeze carried whispers of tales untold as Julia dipped her brush into the palette, her heart beating to the ebb and flow of the breakers crashing against the rocky shore. The lighthouse held secrets etched into its weathered exterior, bathed in shades of the slowly setting sun, and she would do her best to capture each one. Julia’s hands trembled with anticipation and reverence as she sketched the silhouette of Sister Island Lighthouse. The canvas lay before her like a blank chapter waiting to be written. Each stroke was like a waltz between the brush and the page, a hushed conversation with the lighthouse she’d come to love. When did that happen? She wasn’t sure, but she’d contemplate that later. The sky, now ablaze with the fiery farewell of the sun, embodied her growing feelings about its lightkeeper. The small flame he’d sparked in her was quickly becoming a burning fire, prompting her to reevaluate everything in her life. Beautiful, but scary too. William emerged from the cottage and made his way toward her, but she stayed deeply engrossed in capturing the enchanting sight of the setting sun spilling its luxurious beams on the river and lighthouse before the light faded. Lost in the moment, she barely acknowledged his presence. “Good evening, Gingersnap.” William’s voice carried a touch of regret. “Sorry I can’t join you, but duty calls, you know. Perhaps we can create side by side under the bright light of day.” Julia smiled, confirming his words with a nod but maintaining her dedication to the painting. “I understand, William. Truly.” “May I take a peek, please?” “Certainly.” She paused her brushstrokes. “Though I fear I’ll struggle to capture the splendor of this evening before the light bids its farewell.” William slipped quietly behind her, then gasped as he took in her work in progress. “Texture galore. I can almost feel the waves and the setting sun. Glorious, Julia. Just glorious!” In his enthusiasm, he touched her shoulder, his proximity emphasizing their shared appreciation for the art unfolding before them. His breath tickled her ear as he leaned closer and whispered, “Don’t stop. Don’t ever stop.” With those words, he swiftly retreated to the cottage, leaving her quivering from his accolades. Minutes later, light exploded across the water, scattering an ethereal glow on the river and affirming the magic of that fleeting moment. She lost herself in the process, each brushstroke a meditation on the grandeur that surrounded her. Her senses came alive as the wind carried the musky scent of the river, and the distant call of seagulls added a serenade to her artistic refrain unfolding on the art. Julia scrambled to capture the essence of Sister Island—the way twilight played upon the weathered stones, the delicate waltz of seagulls in the air, and the quiet strength that emanated from the lighthouse itself. She captured her connection to the lighthouse in an unexpected moment that brought tears to her eyes. Once this summer was gone…she’d never be the same. About Susan: Susan G Mathis is an international award-winning, multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate NY. Susan has been published more than thirty times in full-length novels, novellas, and non-fiction books. She has thirteen in her fiction line including, The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy, Christmas Charity, Katelyn’s Choice, Devyn’s Dilemma, Sara’s Surprise, Reagan’s Reward, Colleen’s Confession, Peyton’s Promise, Rachel’s Reunion, Mary’s Moment, A Summer at Thousand Island House, Libby’s Lighthouse, and Julia’s Joy, the second in her three-book lighthouse series. Her book awards include three Illumination Book Awards, four American Fiction Awards, three Indie Excellence Book Awards, five Literary Titan Book Awards, two Golden Scroll Awards, and a Selah Award. Susan is also a published author of two premarital books, two children’s picture books, stories in a dozen compilations, and hundreds of published articles. Susan makes her home in Northern Virginia and enjoys traveling around the world but returns each summer to enjoy the Thousand Islands. Visit www.SusanGMathis.com/fiction for more. Where can people find you online? Susan’s website: https://www.susangmathis.com/fiction-books Buy links: Amazon | Barnes&Nobles | Wild Heart Books Social media links: Website | Author Central | Facebook | Twitter | Blog | Instagram | Goodreads l Book Bub | Pinterest | Julia’s Joy book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq7XLUohjrA