The Crab Chronicles

Let's Hear It For the Little Old Ladies

Since I am now well on the way to becoming a Little Old Lady, I have a confession to make. I find old ladies fascinating, particularly older Southern ladies. We are taught from birth to be sweet and be ladylike but when we get past fifty or thereabouts some of us rebel against that upbringing. When my mom turned 50 she told Dad she was through being nice to people she didn't like and if he insisted she keep going to cocktail parties and events for business reasons, he better brace himself. She wasn't kidding. She was a sweetheart 99% of the time but if she got riled up, God help you if you were the target of her ire.

Most Little Old Ladies have seen some stuff and they don't have time for foolishness, as my memaw would say. [That's her below, in the red dress, next to her sister Hazel in the blue dress] So below, I've included some Little Old Lady quotes you might find interesting. All these books are available on Amazon, just FYI. The links are in the titles.

Ghosts in the Garden City

Synopsis: Leigh Harrington is haunted by a past she cannot remember. One day, walking through a department store, she smells a scent that catapults her back to her childhood, to a trauma she has blocked out. She senses there is far more to the memory than anyone in her family wants her to know. All her attempts to try to retrieve the blocked memories of what happened that long-ago day fail. A short time later, Leigh inherits an old suitcase from her long-dead grandmother, and she discovers a family secret that has long been kept hidden. Eager to learn more, Leigh sets out on an scary but amazing journey.

QUOTE:

To Leigh’s shock, Miss Maudie [age 90] grabs her hand and looks at her intently. “You look a lot like your grandmother, Leigh. Now I’m going to tell you something I’ve learned in my long life. Listen up, Honey. I may be dead before you see me again. Every woman holds secrets, deep in her heart. We have to take care of everybody, all our lives. It’s the burden of Eve, it sure is. But we also have the blessing of being able to love more than any man can even comprehend. We love true and for always. Your grandmother was a loving person, a gentle person. It shone out of her like a light. That’s why I remember her so well, even though we didn’t really know one another. Whoever that little baby belonged to, trust that your grandmother did right by her. I know she did.”

 

Leaf Season

Synopsis: When Wyatt Jamison, a busy lawyer, inherits an antebellum house in the beautiful North Georgia mountains he soon realizes it's not simply a vacation place. Why did his uncle drop dead in the backyard? Why did he build a high brick wall around the place and shut himself off from everyone? Wyatt's wife flees from the house, screaming. Is it haunted?So many questions.Next door to the home, Wyatt meets Sally, a lady he met once before -- an encounter she never forgot. Wyatt finds himself drawn to Sally, and the idea of retiring and living in the mountains, but small town gossip, messy legal problems and a family tragedy keep Wyatt and Sally apart. Can they ever be together in the mountain town that seems so tranquil but actually holds so many secrets?Leaf Season draws the reader in to a world of mystery and heartbreak, love and family, and hard-won peace.

Quote:

“Young man, I am not deaf. My hearing is augmented by a device, allowing me to hear everything with crystal clarity, which is sometimes unfortunate. I will not need your assistance in getting in the house. I am not infirm. However, I will take your arm as I mount the steps, since it looks like nobody has swept them in a while and I don’t want to trip on the debris. Come along then.” [Aunt Catherine is 88 years old and Wyatt had just finished sweeping the steps before she arrived]

 

Dancing in the Wreckage

Synopsis: Dancing in the Wreckage opens with news that wealthy attorney Carson Strickland has died in a plane crash, and his will specifies that his son James Williams inherits everything. The problem is that none of Carson’s colleagues or friends have ever heard of James Williams. Carson’s law partner Jason Barnes sets out to find Williams, and he uncovers a history of bad behavior in Carson’s colorful life.

Zak and Amy -- two individuals who are connected to Carson and yet unknown to each other for years -- meet and recount their life stories, trying to understand their connections to him. When Zak and Amy finally finish sharing their complicated life stories, they realize they love each other -- and more importantly, they realize that understanding the truth about Carson can actually generate healing.

Quote:

“I have to believe there’s a man out there for you, Amelia. Don’t give up the idea. Your mama wants you to find someone and be happy with him. You are a beautiful girl. Beautiful, Amy. Beauty isn’t about looking perfect. When you show your love, you are beautiful. Look at someone with love in your eyes and he will see you, the real you.”

 

In conclusion, if you have a Little Old Lady in your life, listen to her. Remember her wisdom, and cherish the time you have with her, because she won't be around forever.

#oldladywisdom, #oldladiesunfiltered, #oldsassysouthernladies, #littleoldladyquotes, #grannyisms

An Unconventional Romance Book

Last year I published a book I'd been working on for months, a "romance" with a twist. I couldn't write a conventional, boring romance. So this one contains a lot of non-romantic elements, including addiction. Then there are my standard ingredients: lots of food descriptions; a wise old lady; it's set in Atlanta and Augusta; the male main character is a young attorney; the female main character is a smartass (cough, cough) just like me. I could go on... Two of my guy friends have read it and liked it, so it's not just for the gals. PLUS -- AND THIS IS A BIG BONUS -- YOU CAN READ THE FIRST COUPLE OF CHAPTERS BEFORE YOU BUY! Click on the link to go to the Amazon page and then click on "Look Inside" - right under the photo of the book cover. Check it out.

The Wedding ConspiracyBy Dee Thompson and Annabelle St. Clair

 

If you're still on the fence, I've included an excerpt. In this scene our main character, Alex, is visiting her grandmother, asking for advice.

“Alex, this man you’ve described to me sounds very uptight, but he doesn’t sound like a bad person.”

“I know, Granny. To tell you the truth, I think I might be falling in love with him, but it scares me. I don’t think he loves me back, and maybe he never will.”

“Oh child, love scares everyone. Nothing is more scary.”

“But worth it, right? Especially if it gets you to a happy marriage?”

“Yes. Those are not easy to have, though.”

“Mom told me once that anything worth having is going to be hard to get, including a happy marriage.”

“She is right.”

I rock and think. This is why porches are so important – great places to think, even on a scorching hot day.

“Seemed like you and Harold had it pretty easy.”

She snorts, then chuckles. “Oh my, you have no idea. Harold was no picnic, especially right at first, but he was trainable. That’s important. Men are just like dogs. They have to be house trained.”

I giggle. “Trained how?”

“Oh gosh, Harold was an old slob. He had to be trained in everything – to put his dirty clothes in a hamper, to put lids back on things in the kitchen, to tell me when he left the house so I wouldn’t worry and wonder. Those first couple of years were tough.”

“I see. You loved him though, right?”

“Well of course. I wouldn’t have put up with him if I hadn’t loved him.”

“How will I know if what I feel for Paul is the real thing, or if it’s just an infatuation?”

Granny sips her tea and gives me a very penetrating look. “Alex, you are reaching out again, for a life, and that makes me very happy. You’ve hidden away for the last few years.”

“Well, Covid made a lot of people hide,” I respond defensively.

“It was more than that. When that man attacked you he took away your self-confidence. I hated to see what it did to you. We have all been worried about you, even that rascal Adrian.”

I nod, feeling tears in my eyes, but I also have to smile.

“I thought he was going to hit Paul.”

“Well, he feels like you’re his daughter! I’m glad to hear it.”

We rock in silence for a while.

“Was Harold the love of your life, Granny?”

“No, your grandfather was the love of my life, but Harold’s love was what I needed at that time and we had a lot of good years together.”

She smiles and waves at an older lady walking in from the parking lot. She wears white pants and a cheerful red top/ Her white hair has a blue aura to it.

“Who is that?”

“Oh, just my friend Pauline. She makes the most wonderful sandwiches for bridge club. Curried chicken salad.”

We rock in silence for a few minutes. Just when I think Granny might be nodding off to sleep, she pops out with a question.

“Alex, you said that last night Paul showed his butt and acted really cold after Adrian came in, so what makes you think he might be the one?” she asks.

I have to think how to describe my feelings. “When Paul kissed me, it felt like time stopped, like there was a magical place where time stands still. There was nothing else in the world but the two of us. I’ve never felt like that before. It was how I’ve always wanted to feel!!”

Suddenly I realize that I have a hunger inside of me, a hunger to be touched again, to feel a man wanting me, but not just any man. Then the tears come. I stop rocking and put my head in my hands.

“Oh baby girl, please don’t cry,” Granny says softly. “I know you’ve been through a lot the past few years but my old heart can’t take seeing you so sad.”

She gets up and goes inside, then comes back out with a box of tissues and hands the box to me.

I pull away and look at her. “Are you all right Granny?”

“I didn’t mean it literally, Alex,” she says tenderly, handing me a Kleenex.

“Thank God,” I sigh, blowing my nose.

“Here’s my best advice, Alex. Give it time. Get this wedding over with and by then you will have spent more time with him and hopefully the way will be clear by then. You’re right though – a man who makes time stand still has a powerful hold on your heart.”

“Thank you Granny,” I sniff, blowing my nose again.

#unconventionalromance, #romanceinthesouth, #atlantaromancebook, #paralegalattorneyromance

Mother Daughter Drama

I don't know why exactly but books with a lot of mother and daughter drama are not appealing to me. They appeal to a lot of women, and I understand that, because the relationship with your mom is a crucial one, and if it's not good you are always going to feel the lack.

I have been very lucky in my life, because my mother and I got along really  well about 95% of the time. She died in 2020. I was a caretaker for her for the last 7 years of her life. We talked about everything.

My mother, Elva Hasty Thompson, was a consummate storyteller and her stories were always really interesting and often funny. I encouraged her to write blogs in her final years, and after she died I compiled them into a sort of memoir, Singing to the Cows. She talked a lot about her childhood and about topics of interest to her, like cooking. When I re-read the book I hear her voice clearly, and it's like she is sitting in the room with me telling the story, which I cherish.

Not all mothers and daughters get along as well, unfortunately.

I had a friend growing up who was constantly fighting with her mother, and I couldn't understand why. I got along great with her mom, and she was always incredibly nice to me. I think she loved her daughter deeply, but she could not figure her out. When I found out the daughter had been diagnosed as bipolar it made perfect sense to me. I always felt sorry for both mother and daughter, and I felt like if they had just gotten some therapy things would have been much better. They were greatly suspicious of any sort of mental health treatment, and one of the hallmarks of being bipolar is a resistance to any sort of therapy.

I digressed. Your mother is your first teacher, your first friend, your confidante, and also your example of what it means to be a woman.

Most of us grow up either emulating our mother or wanting to be the total opposite of our mother. It's always a multi-layered, complex relationship.

I didn't realize until this morning that several of my books prominently feature mother/daughter relationships. Fascinating topic. Below I explain this in more detail.

 

The Garland BellesThis is my newest novel and it centers on the relationship between a mother and a daughter. When Hadley's mother Grace dies, Hadley learns a lot of starting things about her prim and proper mother's life, astonishing things. As a result, Hadley gradually gains a new acceptance of herself, and finds the strength to reassess and reorganize her own life, which looks idyllic on the surface but isn't at all, in reality.

I found when I was writing about Grace that I really liked her, and it was somewhat sad for me to write about the many mistakes she made in her life. She is a bright, dynamic character, who felt constrained by the social etiquette of her small southern hometown.

I don't want to give away the book's ending, but it was deeply satisfying to tie up the loose ends. My mother was a voracious reader and she would get really angry if a book didn't "end up right." There is something emotionally satisfying about resolving conflicts by the end of the book; in fact I think as humans we crave that.

 

Dancing in the WreckageMothers and daughters feature prominently in this novel about a group of characters who all learn new truths about their lives when a freewheeling and somewhat dangerous attorney dies, setting in motion a set of events that change many lives for the better -- eventually.

The main character, Amy, has an awkward and frustrating relationship with her mother because her mother refuses to tell Amy anything about her father, who was never present in her life. There is a distance there that causes Amy a lot of grief, but she is lucky because she has a very close relationship with her aunt who was very prominent in her childhood, in a positive way.

 

Ghosts in the Garden CityThis was my first novel and I started it with the idea that the entire plot would center around the revelations that occur when Leigh inherits an old suitcase that was her grandmother's, and sets out to solve a mystery. As I wrote it I began to realize that I really wanted to make it about Leigh's mother Peggy, too, because she's a very complex woman who tries to lead a very respectable, proper life, but is forced to confront some really awkward truths about herself as her daughter learns more and more about her grandmother.

 

Return to Marietta This book centers around a marriage, but there is a mother/daughter dynamic between the main character, Lillian, and her own mother, Victoria, who feels helpless and frustrated by the Great Depression and its effects on her daughter. Victoria stays awake all night cooking food for her daughter to take on the long car trip that is the centerpiece of the book.

Lillian is based on my grandmother, Wilma Butler Hasty, and Victoria is based on her mother Beulah Butler, a lady I never met but heard a lot about over the years. Below, my grandmother's family around 1921. My grandmother is on the far right, with the big hair. Granny is the older lady with glasses, seated.

 

If you like to read novels that explore the complicated relationships between mothers and daughters, check out these books.

#motherdaughternovels, #storiesofmothersanddaughters, #daughtersandmothers, #dramabetweenmothersanddaughters, #familydrama

Books That Changed Me

I belong to a Facebook group called Friends and Fiction [excellent group if you love to read] and a lady posted on there about finding a first edition of the book Roots, by Alex Haley. It got me to thinking about books that have changed my life. 

There are basically three ways to learn about history.

• Read a textbook or nonfiction book
• Live through historic events
• Read Historical Fiction

For my money, Historical Fiction (HF) is the best way to learn. The best books in that genre put the reader inside the mind of someone living in the past. I've traveled the world, in many different time periods, because of Historical Fiction. If I could teach History I would have students read HF novels because they teach so effectively if they are well written.

Here are some of the books that forever changed me because of the writer's skill at putting me right inside that time period, seeing the world through the eyes of a character. It's one thing to read about something. It's quite another thing to vicariously live through it. I can tell my children all day long about the events of 9/11/01 but I don't know if I have the skill to really convey how it felt to live through that terrible, eerily quiet day, not knowing if our country was under attack and we all might be facing imminent invasion or even death.

Books have incredible power. Here are a few that changed my life.

Roots, by Alex Haley, 1976

I was in high school when the book was originally published, and I read it very quickly after watching the miniseries on TV. Haley skillfully told the story of his ancestor who was captured in Africa, Kunta Kinte, who endured the Middle Passage and lived as an enslaved person, suffering through horrors that are hard to imagine nowadays. The book opened my eyes to something that had just seemed sad when I studied it in History class. Reading about human beings being treated like property gave me as much insight as any white person can have into that terrible time. Some of my ancestors owned slaves, which is a terrible and tragic thing. I wish I could travel through time and make that right, but unfortunately I can't. All I can do is try to raise children who judge people by their character, not color, as Dr. King so eloquently stated. Since both my children have dated non-white people I like to think I did something right.

This is a book that deserves to be read by everyone, of every race. Understanding what happened is crucial if you want to call yourself an educated student of History.

The Winds of War, by Herman Wouk, 1971

My father loved History and he tried to teach me about World War II but I always found everything about the topic really boring, until I read this book. The book came out in 1971 and my parents both read it. I saw the massive book in our bookcase and didn't want to ever read it, but while home from college my junior year I had nothing to read and I started it. I quickly found myself entranced by the story of the Henry family. The father, Pug, has access to world leaders like FDR and Churchill, but we also learn about the lives of his grown children and their spouses and children. One of his sons married a young Jewish woman so there is a fair amount about the Holocaust. When the miniseries came out I was really disappointed but only because in my head everything looked so different -- which is why it's a mistake to read a book before watching the movie or miniseries. The sequel, War and Remembrance, was also quite good.

The Mists of Avalon, by Marian Zimmer Bradley, 1984

I loved this retelling of the Arthurian legend through the eyes of Morgaine, Arthur's half-sister. It explores the time in England when Paganism was being banished and replaced by Christianity, which was not an entirely good thing. The ability to use herbs and plants to heal was lost, for one thing. It started me on the path of questioning traditional Christian beliefs, and wanting to have an open mind about all matters of faith. This is from the Prologue: "I have no quarrel with Christ, only with his priests, who call the Great Goddess a demon and deny that she ever held power in this world. At best, they say that her power was of Satan. Or else they clothe her in the blue robe of the Lady of Nazareth--who indeed had power in her own way, too--and say that she was ever virgin. But what can a virgin know of the sorrows and travail of mankind?"

When I lost my dad to cancer I was 33 and I started questioning everything about orthodoxy and exploring the idea of death as simply another state of being. My belief system started to change, but in a good way. This book started it all, years before Dad died, and I highly recommend it.

 

I have never really tried to write a book that could strictly be classified as HF but my book Return to Marietta is set between 1923 and 1933. I hope I conveyed accurately what it must have been like to live in that era, but who knows. My one fantasy novel, Heart of My Own Heart, combines time travel and takes place from the time of Queen Elizabeth I to today, so I did a lot of research and I hope I did a good job there.

 

historicalfictionispowerful, #themagicofbooks, #teachinghistorythroughnovels

The Garland Belles

My new novel The Garland Belles is available today on Amazon in either paper or Kindle formats. It's my seventh novel and I am really proud of it. It's completely different from any book I've done before, for a number of reasons.

It's completely set in South Carolina, the state I am most at home in, other than Georgia. I have a lot of family living in small towns in South Carolina. Several chapters take place in Charleston, probably my favorite city in the world besides Atlanta. You can learn so much about history there, while also being right on the water and being able to eat fabulous food everywhere.

I started thinking about the plot of this one not long after my mother died. The precipitating event in the book is when Hadley's mother dies, and Hadley starts to find out a lot of things she never knew about her mother Grace. In her youth, Grace was a wild child. Hadley is a shy conformist, with none of the beauty and boldness of her mother. Grace falls in love with an entirely unsuitable man and pays a very high price for that relationship. So does Hadley, years later, but in a different way.

My mother was absolutely beautiful, as a young woman. I was not. [right, my gorgeous mom] That got me to thinking, plus my mother fell in love with one of her first cousins, in her late teens. She never told him her feelings and they were never more than friends. That interesting fact was unknown to me until I was grown, after my dad had died.

I began to wonder what it would be like to fall in love with a guy who might or might not be your first cousin. How thrilling and scary. All of my male first cousins are attractive guys but I never felt anything but brotherly love for them... fyi -- but then again I knew them growing up. Hadley doesn't meet her cousin Bo until both are in college.

I am in a Facebook group for folks (mostly ladies) who like to read romance novels. I did a post more than a year ago and asked if anyone would be willing to read a book about a young woman falling in love with her first cousin. All the comments were variations of EEEUW, NO! So I had to write a first chapter that made it clear that Hadley and Bo are not first cousins. Hopefully that doesn't spoil things. There are still questions to be answered throughout the book.

Hadley goes through a transformation in the book which I have never undergone, because I've never been married, but I know a thing or two about controlling guys so it wasn't really hard to write those parts. I giggled a bit while writing those scenes.

The mother/daughter dynamics in the book are a central theme. I adored my mother and I miss her greatly but it was also something of a relief when she passed because I don't have to deal with her judgment any more. My mother and I were great friends but she could also be very critical. Most everyone I know has (or had) that kind of relationship with their mother.

The book is also about sisterhood. I have a number of friends and cousins who have the same sisterhood dynamic; serious, traditional wife/mom older sister and rebellious wild younger sister. It's a fascinating dynamic, especially to gals like me with no sisters.

As in all my books, there is a lot about food. I love to eat and I love to write about food and cooking.

There is a lively old lady, who has a lot of wisdom, because I always have an old lady in each of my books who is an important character. Another old lady is a pivotal character and I liked writing her, too. She is named Augusta, after the city of my birth!

I think The Garland Belles will appeal to most any female of any age. There are characters of all ages, and all socio-economic classes. It's about life in a small town, the value of female relationships, love, marriage, motherhood, and more. You can check it out here and read the first few chapters, see if you like it. Just look under the photo of the cover where it says READ SAMPLE.

#forbiddenlove, #motherdaughterbooks, #smalltownromance, #garlandbellesbackstory, #bookssetinthesouth, #sisterhoodbooks, #bookssetinsouthcarolina

 

All My Books

Do you like to read women's fiction? Stories set in the South? Memoirs that make you laugh out loud? I've now written and published a number of books and in case you are interested in a fun read or a more serious read, here's a list that tells you a little about each book and links to the page where you can order it. Amazon periodically puts my older books on sale, so if you think you might want to buy one, click on the link. It will take you to the Amazon page and you might find a bargain. For all these, you can look at the photo of the cover and right below it where it says READ SAMPLE you can read some of it before you make your buying decision. You can also look here and see the Amazon page containing links to all of my books.

The Garland Belles (2024)

My newest novel is a generational saga and a love story. Set in the fictional town of Garland, South Carolina, it tells the stories of Hadley and her mother Grace, who both fall in love with men their families don't approve of, and who bow to pressures to break off those relationships -- with very different consequences.

#southernfiction, #smalltownromance, #mothersanddaughters

Talking Back: Stories from the Big Hair and Pantyhose Years (2023) memoir, humor

My life is a patchwork of stories that will make you laugh, from my weird dating history to my weird paralegal jobs over the years. I've had a lot of ups and downs, but my late mother taught me it's better to laugh than to cry so I've tried to focus on the positive. Some of these stories have already been published and some are brand new, but my aim is to amuse. Folks who have read it tell me it made them laugh out loud, which pleases me very much.

#funnymemoir, #paralegalmemoir, #southernfiction, #funnysouthernbook

Paralegal 411: Tips Tricks and Timesavers for the Litigation Paralegal (2023) non-fiction, paralegal professional advice

SYNOPSIS: This is a book of practical advice for new litigation paralegals who are trying to get up to speed in their first job, or who are soon to begin their first job. Most of what they are taught in school doesn't really help them day to day, it's too theoretical. I have worked as a litigation paralegal for more than 25 years and I've learned a lot about how to keep track of my work, actually manage cases, organize my day, keep myself focused and organized, etc.

#paralegaladvice, #newparalegalguide, #paralegalinformation, #reallifeparalegaladvice

Dancing in the Wreckage (2023) women’s fiction, historical fiction, mystery

PLOT: Dancing in the Wreckage opens with news that wealthy attorney Carson Strickland has died in a plane crash, and his will specifies that his son James Williams inherits everything. The problem is that none of Carson’s colleagues or friends have ever heard of James Williams. Carson’s law partner Jason Barnes sets out to find Williams, and he uncovers a history of bad behavior in Carson’s colorful life, including many affairs, a pregnant girlfriend he abandoned, and a devious nanny.

The Wedding Conspiracy (2023) contemporary romance, mystery

PLOT: Alexandra and Paul are complete opposites but when her sister and his best friend announce they are getting married, chaos ensues. The bride to be and groom are party animals and refuse to be tamed. Alex and Paul are tasked with planning a wedding they fear will never happen, and when the bride disappears it looks like all is doomed.

#attractionofoppositesromance, #southernromancestory, #darkromance

Return to Marietta   (2022) women's fiction, historical fiction, mystery, romance

PLOT: It’s 1933. America is in the depths of the Great Depression. Lillian Taylor, 8 months pregnant, broke, and with a four-year-old son to support, sets off alone on desperate drive from Marietta, Georgia to New York City, to try and persuade her husband Will to return home after being away for months. Will pitched for the Philadelphia Athletics until a scandal cost him his major league baseball career in 1923. Now he is unemployed, broke, far from home -- and haunted by the past.

Everything is at stake for Lillian in 1933; her marriage, her children, possibly even her life. Can Lillian get Will to come home? Can the man in Marietta who is obsessed with Lillian succeed in getting her away from her husband? Can Will ever regain his major league baseball career?

[This book was inspired by a true story. In 1923 my grandfather, Bob Hasty, was accused of a crime he didn't commit and the resulting scandal cost him his major league baseball career. The photo below was made in 1923 shortly after they married.]

bobhastybaseball, #baseballandromancebook, #baseballnovel, #historicalromance

  Singing to the Cows (2021) memoir [I just edited this one]

My mother Elva Thompson was a wonderful storyteller and this is a collection of her blogs. There are stories of her childhood and World War II, young adulthood, singing career, what it was like to be the daughter of a professional baseball player, etc. She also loved to cook and there are lots of great recipes. I love to re-read this periodically and hear her voice as I read.

#southernmemoir, #recipesandstories

What's for Dinner, Mom? (2020) non-fiction, memoir, cookbook

This little book presents a number of family recipes and the stories behind them. My mother's recipes for things like meatloaf and spaghetti sauce are easy to make and crowd pleasing. Her salad dressing is simple and yet so delicious that I've seen kids who normally wouldn't touch a salad gobble it down. This is also a fun book and none of the recipes are complex.

#familycookbook, #recipesandstories, #familyrecipes

Heart of My Own Heart: An Epic Story of Time, History, Magic and Love  (2020) fantasy, historical fiction, time travel, magical realism

PLOT: The secret daughter of Queen Elizabeth I, Sarah Walker escapes England amidst accusations of witchcraft. In the New World, she avoids capture and raises her baby in safety, while teaching her the old ways of magic. That’s only the beginning of her extraordinary journey, though. A beautiful goddess bestows upon Sarah an extraordinary gift – time travel. Sarah travels through centuries and confronts many threats until a shocking betrayal threatens everything. After more than four hundred years of traveling through time to guide and nurture her descendants, can Sarah protect her newest and most vulnerable descendant in 1914? Can she find true love? Can she overcome her biggest challenge in four centuries, when confronted with a fellow time traveler?

A time-traveling witch, an angel, a wizard and a dead queen all combine to make Heart of My Own Heart a unique and extraordinary adventure.

#timetravelwitch, #historicaltimetravel, #romancefantasytimetravel

Leaf Season  (2019) mystery, romance, magical realism

PLOT: When Wyatt Jamison, a busy lawyer, inherits an antebellum house in the beautiful North Georgia mountains he soon realizes it's not simply a vacation place. Why did his uncle drop dead in the backyard? Why did he build a high brick wall around the place and shut himself off from everyone? Wyatt's wife flees from the house, screaming. Is it haunted? So many questions.

Next door to the home, Wyatt meets Sally, a lady he met once before -- an encounter she never forgot. Wyatt finds himself drawn to Sally, and the idea of retiring and living in the mountains, but small-town gossip, messy legal problems and a family tragedy keep Wyatt and Sally apart. Can they ever be together in the mountain town that seems so tranquil but actually holds so many secrets?

#southernfiction, #unconventionalromance, #romancemystery, #southernfantasyromance, #southernghoststories

Ghosts in the Garden City (2019) romance, magical realism, mystery, women's fiction, historical fiction

PLOT: Leigh Harrington is haunted by a past she cannot remember. One day, walking through a department store, she smells a scent that catapults her back to her childhood, to a trauma she has blocked out. She senses there is far more to the memory than anyone in her family wants her to know. All her attempts to try to retrieve the blocked memories of what happened that long-ago day fail. A short time later, Leigh inherits an old suitcase from her long-dead grandmother, and she discovers a family secret that has long been kept hidden. Eager to learn more, Leigh sets out on a scary but amazing journey.

#novelsetinAugusta, #southernfiction, #ghoststories

I Earned This Face

I just read a post on Twitter/X by a young woman who couldn't be more than 35 and she posted on there and said "Do you ever look at photos of your younger self and just want to cry because you don't look like that any more?!" I replied and and said NO! I earned these wrinkles and gray hair. I am glad not to have to worry about my looks any more.

I saw Jodie Foster interviewed on CBS Sunday Morning and she is the same age as me and she looks it. She has gray hair and wrinkles! Good for her! Most Hollyweird actresses over 50 still have long hair and faces that look really weird and unnatural and they creep me out. [Courtney Cox and Julia Roberts, I'm talking to y'all...]

There's only one photo of me that I kinda wish I still looked like:

Then again, I was constantly worried about my hair, my makeup, my earrings, etc. I spent a ton of my life trying to look perfect and attract a husband and it was all a silly waste of time.

I think I am part of one of the last generations to be raised by pre-feminist mamas. My mom's youth was spent in the 1950's -- the decade she graduated from high school, graduated from college, got married, and had her first child. She faced a ton of discrimination. SHe was almost an "old maid" at 22! She wasn't allowed to wear pants to school even in college. Women were denied entry to management training programs because they would "just get married and quit." My mother never left the house without putting on lipstick.

So much of her self-worth had to do with what she looked like, and she tried to pass that on to me. I bought into it in my 20's and 30's, what I call The Husband Hunting Years.

When I adopted my daughter I realized she needed a full-time mom who didn't date, who would focus only on her, because that was not true of her birthmom. She deserved a full-time mother so I quit trying to find a husband, quit worrying about my hair and makeup and shifted into Mom Mode. Ditto for when I adopted my son a few years later. I had gained a lot of weight by then, which I regret of course, but the peace of mind I felt from not worrying about my appearance was priceless.

I think some moms are still preaching to their daughters that looks are super important and I don't agree with that. I think a woman should want to eat right and exercise because she wants to be healthy, not because she wants to "catch a man."

I am not against dating or marriage. Far from it. I am open to any guy who likes full-figured ladies with gray hair. I just won't turn myself inside-out to try to fit some idea of what I SHOULD look like.

I have sometimes reflected on the fact that if I had gotten married in my 20's and had biological children I wouldn't have ever met my children, and that would be truly awful. When I turned 60 I started thinking about all my life choices, good and bad, and I decided to forgive my younger self for the mistakes I made.

As my precious Memaw taught me, "Dee, do your best every day, all the time, and then you won't have regrets."

I've done my best. No regrets.

I earned all my wrinkles and gray hair. I earned and more importantly I LEARNED.

I also earned the ability to laugh at all my mistakes and foibles, and that's why I wrote my memoir, Talking Back, Stories from the Big Hair and Pantyhose Years.

One of my friends who read an early draft, who chose an entirely different path to career and motherhood, said to me after she finished it:

"Omg so much I can really relate to in my own life growing up and now. And future readers of this work of your will also relate as well."

That meant so much to me, that she could relate.

If you are a woman over age 50 you should be able to relate to a lot of things the book. If you're in the legal profession you should find a lot to relate to, and if you're a Southerner you should find it very relatable. If I've done my job right, though, you can be none of those things and still like the book.

You can click on Read a Sample, and scroll down to page 18, and you will get a good idea of the rest of the book. I try to mainly be positive and share funny stories but I mention some of the negative stuff in my life, not because I want anyone to feel sorry for me, but just because otherwise I think it wouldn't ring true. Check it out.

#memoirsofmoms, #funnymemoirs, #funnyparalegalstories, #storiesfromthesouth

An Experienced Paralegal Speaks to Students

My father was president of Toastmasters for many years, and he actually enjoyed public speaking. His last speech happened just a couple of weeks before he died, to the Augusta Rotary Club, when he was named a Paul Harris Fellow. When I was a little girl, not yet in Kindergarten, Mom woke us up very early one weekday morning to watch Dad on an early morning news show in Augusta, where he was talking about The Importance of Making A Will.

She thought we would get a big kick out of Dad being on TV. We did not. We asked to go back to bed. Mom and Dad laughed about it for years.

Dad was a trust banker, so he helped people with estate planning, trusts, etc. and he felt it was important for everyone to have a Will.

[Right, me and Dad dressed for work, about 1986]

I like giving speeches, too. Many people have a morbid fear of public speaking. I enjoy it.

I have been asked to speak to a class of paralegal students in a couple of weeks and I am really looking forward to it, even though it will be by Zoom. I hope the students will enjoy hearing stories of real life scenarios they may encounter. I've been a paralegal since 1985 so I have a LOT of stories.

A few months ago, I published a guidebook for paralegals, Paralegal 411: Tips Tricks and Timesavers for the Litigation Paralegal.

As part of my marketing efforts, I emailed a number of paralegal schools around the country and just asked them to let students know of its availability in case they were getting ready to finish and get their first jobs. I am not a brilliant sales person. I just thought the "soft sell" was my best approach. Apparently it worked because the book is selling pretty well. 

In paralegal school [like law school] about 90% of what you learn is about the law. You learn little or nothing about real life scenarios. Most classes are taught by lawyers who have never worked as paralegals.

So I am looking forward to speaking to the class and giving them the 411 on some real life scenarios.I really enjoy public speaking and I would love the opportunity to speak to paralegal students. With Zoom, it makes it much easier.

#paralegalspeakers, #realworldparalegalstories, #experiencedparalegalwisdom, #whatitsliketoreallyworkinalawfirm, #paralegallife, #paralegalwarstories, #paralegalwisdom

The Best First Line

I have long been fascinated by the first lines of bestselling novels because most people will not keep reading unless that first line grabs them, and then it's up to the author to carry the good momentum to the first paragraph and the first chapter. Below are a few famous first lines, just for reference:

 

"Scarlett O'Hara was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it when caught by her charm as the Tarleton twins were." Gone With the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell

"While I was still in Amsterdam, I dreamed about my mother for the first time in years." The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt

"She is twelve years old, and she will be married in the morning." The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese

"First, I got myself born." Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (Winner of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize)

"It wasn't a very likely place for disappearances, at least at first glance." Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

 

So I am trying to come up with an idea for my next novel, and I am taking my time because I want it to be my best book yet. I have an unpublished manuscript I am shopping around to agents but without much luck, so it occurred to be that I need to do a better job of coming up with the first line of my next book. Once I have the first line, I generally will be able to come up with the gist of the book's plot and from there and outline will shake out eventually.

Below are some first lines I like, but I'd like to know which one you like best. Drop me a comment and let me know.

1) DNA doesn't lie, but Ann still couldn't believe what she was seeing on her computer screen because the truth of it made everything in her life completely false and hollow.

2) Jayne stared at the soaking wet, naked man with long tangled blonde hair lying on the floor and tried to understand the events that had led to his appearance in her life -- and from there she hoped to be able to harness the mysterious power she had been unaware of just one minute ago.

3) "When you believe in yourself, really believe, other people will too," Skyler's father told her sternly, hoping she would believe his words, that she would listen.

4) There are places in the world like Greystone Georgia where the past and the present exist simultaneously, with just the thinnest of membranes separating them, but Charlie Bay could see that membrane clearly, despite the migraine.

5) It's time to tell you the truth about your daddy, and what happened the night you were born -- but don't be thinking you'll have the right to hate me then because you won't.

6) Camellia Gardenia Crow was named after two famous Southern flowers because she had to be named after her two grandmothers, according to a family tradition she hated -- but as a result she spent her childhood stomping in every mud puddle she encountered, loudly hollering whenever possible, and determined to be as ill-mannered and obnoxious as a child could be. 

Check out my newest novel, Dancing in the Wreckage, on Amazon.

bestfirstlinesofbooks, #firstlinesthatmakeyouwanttoreadthebook, #firstlineofanewbestseller

above, me in London, 1988

Art from the Heart

I asked my son the other day why he never reads any of my books and he just shrugged. I was reminded of a time when I was young and I hated hearing my mother sing. My mother was a professional singer when she was young. She had a wonderful voice. People would often come to our house for parties and since we had a piano and she was an excellent accompanist for herself, they would ask Mama to sing. I always made myself scarce. 

When I heard her sing it made me profoundly uncomfortable.

A few years ago I was trying to re-learn the guitar and my son walked into the living room when I was playing a song and singing it. He listened for a moment, then turned and fled upstairs to his room, and slammed the door.

I have several close friends who refuse to ever read any of my books, and my own brother won't read my books.

I've had a lot of time to ponder this and I don't have any well-researched or definitive answers but I have a few theories.

I sent one of my novels to a cousin I've always been close to and his email to me when he had finally finished it was complimentary but then again, sort of not? He said as he read he just kept finding little things that reminded him of me, and it made him uncomfortable.

I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing but I appreciated his honesty.

When I sing, I try to sing the correct notes and to breathe properly because I studied voice for years. I try to sing with feeling, of course, but I probably worry more about singing correctly. My mother sang with more feeling. Hearing her voice was like opening a window and seeing her heart. She was a VERY tender-hearted person. I needed her to be strong. Marriage to my father was never easy for her, for a lot of reasons. After we started living together and raising my children together her voice didn't bother me. We often sang together. I have a couple of recordings of us that I cherish. I didn't need her to be strong any more. I was strong enough to take care of us both, as she grew older and more fragile.

A book is different from a song, but probably often even more intimate. Every novel I write has a lot of me in it. Not in every character, but I figured out years ago how to tap into what I know in order to create believable worlds and characters. I also research, of course, but I have not been able to physically travel anywhere for years, for several reasons, so my imagination and the internet often have to suffice for actual research.

I have started trying to imagine sensory details when watching movies. I try to imagine what the characters feel when they are touching someone or something. For instance, when you hug someone who is wearing a cotton dress shirt, I know what that feels like. I know what a ripe peach smells like when you cut into it. I remember the sensation of riding a horse because I took riding lessons for years. I know how it feels to hold an infant, the sweetness of it and the terror that they might be dropped because they can be so wriggly.

A great writer invites you inside their heart and their head.

A great artist in any medium causes you to feel a certain way, because they know their art, either through instinct or training.

I have a new manuscript I am trying to use to get a literary agent, which is a frightening process. You have to send out queries to agents, which they then read -- and often decide in a matter or seconds how they feel about your work. It's like an audition, but for a writer. I hate auditions.

I always want to say look, I am not great at marketing myself, but I am a pretty decent writer. That's not allowed, though. I always wish the first thing read would be my biography:

I earned an MA in Creative Writing and I have worked as a freelance writer, a journalist, and a paralegal. My essays have been included in the award-winning books Call Me Okaasan [2009] and The Divinity of Dogs [2013].  This is my sixth novel. The first five were self-published on Amazon, to wit: Ghosts in the Garden City [2019], Leaf Season [2019], Heart of My Own Heart [2020], Return to Marietta [2022], and Dancing in the Wreckage [2023]. Additionally, I’ve published numerous articles online and in print, [portfolio] and I’ve been writing a personal blog, The Crab Chronicles, since 2005.

Then again, it seems like some agents get a thrill out of championing a writer who has just finished their first novel. That's okay. If the writing is great, that's entirely fair.

I just wish some agent sometime would see that I've self-published five other novels, and each one has been better than the one before. I have literally taught myself how to write by actually writing. I'll keep publishing as long as I keep writing and I likely won't stop writing until I die. Maybe all my work will have to be self-published and I will have to continue the painful process of figuring out how to market myself. I would like to try the traditional method of getting published, though.

I keep envisioning an agent reading my query and recognizing that my novels are not just about stuff happening or filled with poetic descriptions, but they are filled with details from my heart, from all the life I've lived for the past sixty years. If you want to know what dogged determination feels like, or what a broken heart feels like, or the agony of watching your child screw up their life, you need to talk to someone over forty.

One final thought... so many agent bios I read online say the agent is looking to represent BIPOC people or handicapped people, those whose voices are not heard so often. How about older people? Not like Stephen King or Diana Gabaldon but older people who are not wealthy and/or famous? Do you not want to hear our voices because you think it will be too uncomfortable? Older people have lived and loved and suffered and we have a lot to share. I remember what it was like to fall in love. I remember what it was like to be belittled because of my gender or because I am southern. I remember every slight and every triumph.

Another crucial point: we love to read books written by our peers or older folks -- so we are a great untapped market...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A GREAT GIVEAWAY!

If you want to win a free copy of one of my self-published books, go to my Facebook page and share the post on there and you will be entered to win a free copy of one of my already-published novels -- your choice!

The drawing will be held on July 4th!

bookgivewaway, #freebooks, #novelsbyolderwriters, #novelsaboutthesouth, #novelssetinthesouth

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