The Storyteller | Mary Vee

Today I welcome my kindred friend who is  sparky, supportive, encouraging, future authoress, and funny : Ashley.   Enter to win a copy of Dani Pettrey's book Submerged, see below. I met Ashley as a writing partner (alley cat) on the Writers Alley. We have prayed together, written posts, encouraged and blessed each other through an online friendship. This year I met her lovely smile and felt her hug at the ACFW conference. I heard her laugh and tell her goals for writing. I asked her to share her writing journey with you: Heart Writing First I want to thank Mary for having me on her blog today! I feel so blessed to know her as a fellow Alley Cat and as a friend. I guess you could say I have always been a writer. I can remember watching through the windows of my parents’ car when I was young, dreaming up stories about the people who passed by.    I’ve always loved language, thoughts, and ideas. And who can forget library story time?

Beth Vogt with me at the Dallas ACFW conference Think of the one special something you've received. It doesn't have to be tangible, it could be a thought, a concert, a hug, a conclusion, a beginning, there are no limits except you can only pick one. Got it? Good. Allow the bigness, the elation, the adrenelin bubble to the front of your thoughts. Recall the moment you first discovered what you would receive and walk through that day. Keep walking through the days after. Your blood is tingling, racing through your veins. Feel excited again?  Are you bursting to retell the event? If you can, run, now, to the nearest person or call someone. Tell them your exciting news. How did they respond? Did they get excited with you? Did you tell your story with animation, (arms and hands moving), facial movement, (brows up an down, lips switching from happy to serious, etc), Did you add details because of their excitement, maybe rewind the story and retell parts? Perhaps you cou

Montana Gals at the ACFW Gala Event I was stuck in line waiting to get to my seat on the plane with nothing to do but look at the back of heads in front of me and watch first class drink their beverages. A man sitting in third row of first class ignored his beverage and focused on his cell phone. He received a text. His eyes moved left and right. Then he smiled. The kind of smile that pops when someone we care about says something special. He seemed truly happy. And because he didn't tap the screen or keys, I assumed he reread the message more than once. The smile remained on his face until I passed his seat. I thought, hmmm. What kind of message would pop a smile like that on my face? Would a passage from God's Word pop the same kind of smile? I'd have to say, sometimes yes, and sometimes no. Yes when I read verses about His loving care and blessings, a tender story, or a sweet recounting. No when bad choices are made, or someone is hurt, probably not during

Today I welcome American Christian Fiction Writers as my guest. Yes! All of them. Live from the Conference From all over the world, many Christian fiction writers drove, flew, or possibly walked to this year's conference held here in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas. We have come to sharpen our skills, test our work, network, make new friends, and mentor each other. But the greatest of all, we will worship and pray. This is my fifth Christian Writers' conference. I've also attended conferences for teachers, caseworkers, and accompanied my husband for his medical conferences. And during the days saturated in specialized topics, I've seen a huge difference between a Christian Writers' conference and others. First , no one is required to attend. Therefore those who do attend, come because they want to. We receive no brownie points or certification required to get a license. One of many advantages: a writing conference provides a unique opportunity to meet, on

Author Brandilyn Collins Sometimes I prefer to learn from a book. I don't have to worry about making a mistake or being embarrassed. Unfortunately, I tend to learn best by experience. I think most people do. Last week I watched a twenty-six-month old girl and her mother in a restaurant. The girl wanted the powder donut from her mother's plate. Her mother tenderly pointed to the eggs on her daughter's plate and told her in a soft voice to eat the eggs first. Quite to my surprise the little girl didn't fuss. She picked up a fork, stabbed the eggs, and successfully delivered the food to her mouth. She piqued my interest!  Author Gayle Roper When the girl finished her eggs she asked for the donut again. Her mother cut a few pieces and put them on her plate. Rather than shoving them in her mouth, she clapped her fingertips together high above her head and cheered. Then ate the donut.  The grand finale - When she finished the donut, the little girl licked

The winner of Friday's drawing is...see end of post .  ACFW 2011 Conference Is there an event you're looking forward to? So much so you feel more than bubbly...you feel jittery? Children look forward to birthdays, Christmas, and other gift receiving events. They also love to give gifts. Watch Mommy's eyes brighten and her lips smile when she opens their handmade treasure. Sporting events, dates, vacations, new jobs, recitals, graduations, so many events move us from one anticipated day to the next.  I am looking forward to a big event. This Thursday I'll travel to Dallas for the annual American Christian Fiction Writer's Conference. I am not a candidate for an award, am not in the spotlight in any way. It's kind of like being the 51st out of 51 team members.  Writers Alley Cats who attended 2011 I get to attend, enjoy the networking, laugh, sing, wear my cowgirl hat . . .  oh yeah, I will sport my hat, boots, and the rest of a

Today I welcome my kindred friend, authoress, funny, techy smart, willing to help, loving mom: Krista.   Enter to win a copy of Krista's new book, Sandwich with a Side of Romance I met Krista as a writing partner for the Writers Alley. We have prayed together, written posts, encouraged and blessed each other through an online friendship. AND I AM ROOMING WITH HER AT THE ACFW CONFERENCE!  eeeeeeeeeeee! I asked Krista to share with us the blessings to publication Bubbling about Publishing Bubbling Over! Mary asked me to "bubble" about my publishing experience. So I'm going to try to reach back into the past and pull out my teenage-bubbly-girl hat and like, totally, tell you about how radically cool and awesome publishing is. Or something like that! Preparation Bubbles Like a sandwich, all publishing journeys need a little prep time. Some will be a year, some will be twenty years. Mine was bubblin' four years from w

I love jumping into a good book. It lets me step into other people's worlds and take a break from mine. I have no problems showing outwardly what is happening in the book. The character's situations make me laugh, cry, cheer, tell them their wrong, gasp, and well, you've been there. Hopping into a book and pulling back the cover is a great way to relax. My friend, Krista Phillips' debut novel, Sandwich with a Side of Romance , released only days ago.  Today I am walking the streets of small town of Sandwich, Illinois. I like company when walking. Join me? The first person we meet is Maddie. Maddie moves to Sandwich in a tiny clunker of a car to find a job and someplace to sleep other than the back seat of her vehicle. She's excited about her first job as a hair dressing and even more thrilled she can prove herself worthy as caregiver for her brother. Maddie's grumpy boss allows her to sweep the floor, and maybe cut the hair of a walk-in customer. Wh

photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.com Last Sunday, in a local buffet style restaurant packed with patrons fresh from church or other activity, a young family sat at a table across from us.  The mom helped her children get their plates and food, while the dad filled his plate. He then sat with the children while mom went back for her food.  The two curly top little ones did not have an interest in eating. The twelve-month-old twisted in his seat and sang, gibbered, bubbled raspberries, and looked around. The three-year-old played with his food. Mom came back to the table and smiled at her crew. She leaned over to her three-year-old and said, "Would you like to have a cheeseburger?" He replied "Like to I would have a cheeseburger," using the same question tone his mother had. He smiled, took the cheeseburger she offered, and ate.  His imitation of mom earned a ten on the cute scale. Imitation is a form of learning we use at any age. Show

Today I welcome a friend from Australia, a 2011 ACFW Finalist, an encourager,  a fun-loving mom, and future authoress.   Enter to win a copy of The Root of All Evil, by Brandt Dobson (a fast paced, who-done-it) See instructions below I met Karen when she joined the Writers Alley group, and at the 2011 conference. When I asked her to share the "real" her with you, she said: A Childhood Dream My dream of becoming a writer began as a child. I loved books from the very start, but I vividly remember the moment when I first realised I could be a shaper of stories rather than just a passive recipient. "Mum," I asked, "where do the storybooks come from?" "People write them," she replied. Those simple words sparked something revolutionary inside my little-girl brain. Right then and there, I knew that was what I wanted to do. I wanted to write stories. That dream has stayed with me from childhood, and I've never wavered from

photo taken by Mary Vee How do you like your beverage? Cream? Sugar? Here is a virtual cup made special for you.   This is a samovar.  I hand carried this treasure from Moscow, and refused to let anyone "help" me hold it. It is my special memory and the souvenir of a trip to Russia. I don't know what one would cost today, but we paid eighty rubles. A samovar is used as a tool when serving a hot beverage like tea, coffee to guests. I suppose hot cider or other drinks could be served this way as well. The gold ornate body is filled with cold water and heated with electricity. The holes in top gold piece allow steam to vent and heat the small kettle placed on top. (This samovar did not come with a matching kettle.) The small kettle is filled with concentrated beverage of choice. Our host served highly concentrated tea. The guest pours the concentrated beverage in their cup then sets the cup under the spigot in the lower center.  By rotating the spigot handle

My friend, Rhonda, a former trucker. There are many thankless jobs that pay our bills. Today I want to honor the truck driver.  Thanks to the truckers, I can go to stores or shop online to buy products I want.  I must admit, other than hearing reminders on Sesame Street or Mr. Rogers of the lengthy process to get those products in my possession, I rarely think of those involved as I happily display, wear, consume, use, etc the product. I'd like to thank the truck drivers who sit in a moving monster of a vehicle for hours, moving the very item I want from a factory, farm field, ranch, etc. to the place where I could purchase it. And, of course, I also thank the truck driver who delivers my online purchases to my front door.  Dear Trucker, Without you I wouldn't have products I enjoy. You sit in your trucks, mostly by yourselves. Entertain yourself with the radio or other audio media. Spend more hours in rush hour and construction traffic, hurdle unplowed snow, wad