Wednesday Writers–Koush Hollow by Leigh Goff

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book excerpt from Koush Hollowy, Gothic, Koush Hollow, Leigh Goff, mystery, Wednesday Writers, YA

Today’s Wednesday Writers guest is Leigh Goff. Leigh will be sharing an excerpt from her newest YA release Koush Hollow, a southern Gothic set in New Orleans with a mystery and an environmental twist. Welcome, Leigh!

 

Koush Hollow:
Where bayou magic abounds and all that glitters…is deadly.

After her father’s untimely death, Jenna Ashby moves to Koush Hollow, a bayou town outside of New Orleans, dreading life with her wealthy mother.

As the sixteen-year-old eco-warrior is introduced to the Diamonds & Pearls, her mother’s exclusive social club, she comes to the troubling realization that secrets are a way of life in Koush Hollow.

How do the Diamonds & Pearls look so young, where does their money come from, and why is life along the bayou disappearing?

As Jenna is drawn into their seductive world, her curiosity and concerns beg her to uncover the truth. However, in this town where mysticism abounds and secrets are deadly, the truth is not what Jenna could have ever imagined.

EXCERPT:

This excerpt is from Chapter 1 of Koush Hollow. The sixteen-year-old main character, Jenna, seems to have a waking nightmare where an interesting creature appears, but only to her. Is it real or is it a dream?

Tap, tap.

My eyes flashed wide. A curvy, gray-haired lady tapped on my passenger side window. Jenna, snap out of it, I thought to myself. I breathed and remembered how to roll the window down.

“You okay, hon’?” She stared at my hands. “You’re shaking like you drank ten café lattes.”

“I’m j-just a little on edge. I mean, I thought I hit that…that woman.”

She jolted upright and looked around. “What are you talking about?”

My gaze flitted all around her. “She w-was r-right there—the painted woman,” I stuttered and pointed. “Where did she go?” My knees finally stopped knocking, allowing me to slide out of the car.

“You didn’t hit anyone. Are you on something?”

I stumbled to the front and bent over searching underneath the car. Nothing. No one. I stood up and scanned the sidewalks, but I didn’t see the mysterious woman anywhere.

“Maybe you shouldn’t be driving, hon’.”
Maybe I shouldn’t be.

“Is there someone I can call?” she asked.

I wiped my sopping wet forehead with the back of my hand. It had to be stress affecting me. It had been a tough few months and maybe it was catching up with me. I turned to the kind woman. “I’m only a few minutes from my mother’s house.” I’d get the Diet Cokes and vitamins later. “I’ll be fine. Thank you.”

We both returned to our cars. She waited for me to move. With trembling fingers, I managed to shift into drive. I pumped the brakes to see if they worked. They worked fine. The rattling sound in the engine was gone, too. I could hardly think straight. Was that Voodoo woman real or a figment of my imagination? I shoved aside the bad feeling, inhaled a calming breath, and decided to apply logic, which suggested the whole thing was a brain-glitch from stress. However, no matter how logical I tried to be, the uneasy feeling remained.

BUY LINKS Amazon – The Parliament House

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Leigh Goff writes young adult fiction. She is a graduate from the University of Maryland and a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI).

Born and raised on the East Coast, she now lives in Maryland where she enjoys the area’s great history and culture.

Her third young adult novel, Koush Hollow, a Southern gothic set in New Orleans released on September 1, 2020 from The Parliament House.

Learn more about Leigh Goff on her website and blog. Stay connected on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Goodreads.

A Writer’s Garden–Why I Love Gardens by Carole Brown

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a garden blog, A Writer's Garden, author Carole Brown, Caleb's Destiny, clean romance, flowers, mystery

Welcome to A Writer’s Garden where writers who are gardeners or just love gardens will be sharing their garden and flower stories, as well as a bit about their writing.

Today’s writer/gardener guest is Carole Brown talking about why she loves gardens. Welcome, Carole

 

wild violets

Strolling down the graveled and sometimes oily, township road, I head to our neighbor’s home where an elderly lady lived who spoiled us and allowed us to be a little bit untamed while there. The walk to her house was as much a part of the evening as being there.

My eyes feasted on the festive colors of the scene around me, and my writer’s mind, even at that youthful age, stretched and recoiled much like a rubber band, exploring the beauty of the world around me.

Queen Anne’s lace

Stately white Queen Anne’s lace and wild, orange-coated, freckle-faced Tiger lilies grew side by side, best of friends. In the spring, miniature purple violets grew in profusion along beside the colonies of daffodils, their heads nodding like pools of golden butter.

Further back from the road lay a jungle of myriad plants and trees. Sassafras, with its two and three-fingered leaves and aromatic bark, the legendary Dogwoods, especially graceful in early spring when they wore their handsome crowns, were favorites. The walnut trees and nuts in the fall were captivating, staining my hands a deep, unwashable brown.

Among all these, closer to the ground, grew the Black-eyed Susans, looking like senoritas in yellow shawls, demure Buttercups, the milk maidens of the field, and the favorite Daisy, lending its petals for my childish chants of “he loves, he loves me not” and giving me hours of delight in weavings chains and rings. Overall sprang the heady smelling tangles of honeysuckle.

As I lay in in the grass staring at the bunnies who played close by or listened to the frogs croaking in a nearby pond, and watched the stars in the heavens wink at me good-night, no wonder my imagination grew and expanded as I imagined tiny fairies and Tom Thumbs peeking at me from beneath dandelion plants. With a beautiful, exotic world such as I grew up in, how could I not allow the talent God had placed inside me develop into a writing career where I could use my imagination to my heart’s content?

Honeysuckle

My love of Flowers: This i:s a beautiful, profound memory for me. I can still see that little gray shabby house with its steep banks and flowers galore around it. It’s a memory that has grown inside me, creating a love of flowers—all flowers, for my own gardens. Is there a flower I don’t love? I think not.

 

ABOUT THE WRITER/GARDENER:

Besides being a member and active participant of many writing groups, Carole Brown enjoys mentoring beginning writers. An author of ten books, she loves to weave suspense and tough topics into her books, along with a touch of romance and whimsy, and is always on the lookout for outstanding titles and catchy ideas. She and her husband reside in SE Ohio but have ministered and counseled nationally and internationally. Together, they enjoy their grandsons, traveling, gardening, good food, the simple life, and did she mention their grandsons?

Connect with Carole on her Personal blog: FB Fan Page:  Amazon Author Page:

 

CALEB’S DESTINY

By Carole Brown

Mr. Michael, Destiny Rose McCulloch, and Hunter have a mysterious history. Why were three fathers, all business partners, murdered under suspicious circumstances while on their quest to find gold?

• Hunter, who is Mr. Michael’s ranch manager, is determined to find the answers and protect the precocious young lady who he suspects holds a key answer to his questions.
• Michael wants only to be left alone to attend to his property, but what can he do when Destiny refuses to leave and captures the heart of everyone of his employees?
• Destiny almost forgets her quest when she falls in love with Mr. Michael’s ranch and all the people there. And then Michael is much too alluring to ignore. The preacher man back east where she took her schooling tried to claim her heart, but the longer she stays the less she can remember him. She only came west to find a little boy she knew years ago. A little boy all grown up by now…unless, of course, he’s dead.

Inspirational, clean, historical, romantic suspense

BUY LINK

Amazon

 

 

 

 

A Writer’s Garden–Orchids with Elizabeth John

Tags

A Writer's Garden, Author Catherine Castle's garden blog, Elizabeth John, Forever Hold Your Piece, mystery, orchids, pictures of orchids, suspense, Sweet romance

Welcome to A Writer’s Garden where writers who are gardeners or just love gardens will be sharing their garden and flower stories, as well as a bit about their writing gardens—aka their books.

Today’s guest is Elizabeth John. She will be sharing orchids with us! Welcome, Elizabeth.

Thanks, Catherine.

For this blog post, I had planned to write about orchids. I know nothing about orchids, and you might wonder why I would choose this topic. The reason is simple. I love flowers and plants, including orchids, and have beautiful gardens on my property. But life changes.

Last year, much to our surprise, my husband and I became empty-nesters with no warning. Our son went on vacation to Texas and never came back. He enjoyed the area and decided to live there permanently. Our daughter began a new job and moved into an apartment closer to work. With this new found freedom, we suddenly found ourselves in a big, empty house.

Teaching full-time and writing keeps me super busy. The large yard requires a lot of maintenance. The vegetable garden needs constant weeding. The potted flowers want daily watering. Exhausting!

I’ve decided to downsize, and the first place I started was with the landscaping. I hired a company to put decorative stone in my front yard gardens and add low maintenance plants. My husband has been traveling so much for work, he didn’t plant his annual vegetable garden this year. Despite cutting back, the backyard has many bushes, trees, and flowers that are overgrown. We will tackle that project in the fall.

The problem is we want to see flowers. One solution we find helpful is to visit gardens. We adore Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania and especially like to go when they have their orchid display. Here are some pictures of orchids I took on my trip. (The orchid at the top of the page is also from Longwood Gardens)

 

 

 

 

 

My husband developed a passion for orchids and decided to try his hand at growing his own plants. Now, he’s a bit of an expert and has several growing in his business office. These are on his desk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soon he will be moving out of the building where he works and will bring his orchids home. He’s already buying attractive pots to transplant his orchids and getting ready to display his beauties in our house.

So much for downsizing the flowers.

Maybe I should sell the furniture first.

 

About the Writer/Gardener

Gardener/writer Elizabeth John has been gardening ever since owning her first home. Her favorite thing about gardening is seeing pops of bright colors in her flower beds. When she’s not gardening she’s writing sweet contemporary romances and cozy romantic suspense novels. You can learn more about her at http://www.elizabethjohn.com/

 

 

Forever Hold Your Piece

by Elizabeth John

Lily Becker believes the worst day of her life was when her fiancé stood her up at the altar. That is, until she stumbles upon his dead body in her family’s bridal shop. The shop becomes a crime scene, her business expansion plans tank, and brides demand back their deposits. Confused, scared, and certain that she is being watched, Lily struggles to keep her business and her life afloat.

PI Jake Ward, hired to find a priceless stolen painting, tracks the thief’s location to Lily’s small coastal town. As part of his cover, he leases the vacant bait and tackle shop next door to hers, unaware that she and her sisters had planned to rent the place.

The Chief of Police worries that someone close to Lily murdered her ex and he fears for her safety. The chief, a surrogate father to Lily, asks Jake to act as her bodyguard. Jake agrees and pretends to work on his business but never leaves her side. Although annoyed that Jake interfered with her family’s business plan, she admits that Jake makes her feel protected.

Jake and Lily can’t deny their attraction to one another. Lily decides to trust again as their relationship grows serious. The more time they spend together, the more they realize they are perfect for each other. Guilt eats at Jake’s conscience since he must lie about his true identity. Can he solve his case before he’s free to tell Lily the truth and she learns of his deception?

Forever Hold Your Piece, releasing September 12, is currently available for presale on Amazon.

Warning to readers: While this a sweet romance, the book may contain mild language in this book.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elizabeth John
Tender Romances with a Touch of Intrigue

www.facebook.com/elizabethjohnauthor
@elizabethjohn34

 

Wednesday Writers–A Day in the Life of Romantic Suspense Author Leeann Betts

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A day in the life of a romantic supsense writer, Catherine Castle's Wednesday Writers blog series, Hidden Assets, Leeann Betts, mystery, romantic suspense, suspense, women slueths

Today, Wednesday Writers welcomes Leeann Betts to the blog. A romantic suspense writer, with book number 6 out in her By the Numbers suspense series, Leeann will be giving us a glimpse into her daily life as a romantic suspense writer. Welcome, Leeann.

Thanks, Catherine,

When I was growing up, I loved to watch movies where a writer was involved. I particularly enjoyed watching about women from small towns who made up stories about love and happily-ever-afters and handsome cowboys and men who were true heroes.

So when I grew up, it seemed only natural to write those kind of stories. And because of the support of the best gift God could give to me, my husband Patrick, I can do that.

Sometimes I have to pinch myself because I feel like I’m living out my dreams. And not because I live in a castle or have nothing to worry me.

I’m living my dream because I know I am right where I’m supposed to be. God has called me to be a writer. I’ve taken that calling seriously and “gone back to school” by attending a number of writer’s conferences, by being a member of several critique groups and applying feedback, and by writing.

That may seem like a strange thing to say, that as a writer, I write.

But how many people have you met who say they’re a writer, but you never see word one from them? Or who haven’t gone to a conference? Or won’t join a critique group? Or won’t even let you see what they’ve done?

As writers, we must be willing to be transparent to God, transparent to other writers, and transparent to our readers.

This dream life I live includes spending most of every day in the same room as the love of my love, my husband. Our marriage and our romance thrives on being in close contact. For the first five years we were married, we never went anywhere without the other. Friends used to tease us that we were joined at the lip and the hips.

Hubby and I spend time in devotions, prayer, and scripture reading every morning, in addition to our own individual quiet time. Then we work from home together, and often work together in ministry in the evenings.

My day, once we’re done with devotions, usually begins with writing something. Emails, blog posts, social media posts, perhaps a synopsis for a book proposal, and then actual words in a manuscript. On Mondays, I meet several writer friends at a coffee shop and we all write together. That time is a set-in-stone appointment in my calendar.

Do I write all day every day? No, I don’t. But even when I’m not sitting at my computer, I’m thinking about the story. Keeping the story in my head helps keep me anchored in the story, so I don’t have to spend so much time reconnecting before I write.

But here’s one thing I do before I start on my story: I pray. I thank God for letting me be the first person to see and hear this story. And I ask for faithfulness as I transcribe the story that He wants to tell.

Because I truly believe that without Him, no story is worth telling.

I write romantic suspense because I like justice. I want the good guys to win, and the bad guys to get what they deserve, always keeping love and compassion as my guides, of course. I also like mysteries, and I love answering the big What If? Questions, getting my characters into more trouble, and getting them out.

Because I know the trouble I got myself in, and what God had to do to get my attention. What Jesus had to do to redeem me. And what the Holy Spirit goes through in dealing with me day after day.

As I said at the beginning, my hubby is my biggest fan and supporter. He believed in me before I ever believed in myself, and he not only encourages me, he takes on tasks around the house when I’m under deadline. He supports me financially; I don’t have to work outside the home because he wants me to write. That doesn’t mean I don’t contribute to the household. I do. I work one day a week for a company that produces legal transcripts. I am the main cook, cleaner, grocery shopper.

But without his love and faith in me, I couldn’t do what I do.

Just as without God, I’d never be living my dreams.

Here’s the Blurb from Hidden Assets by Leann Betts

 

Carly Turnquist, forensic accountant, responds to a call from her friend, Anne, who is in the middle of a nasty divorce, and travels to Wyoming to help find assets Anne thinks her husband has stolen. But the mystery begins before Carly even arrives when she sees a man thrown off a train. Except there’s no body. Husband Mike uncovers an illegal scam in a computer program he has been asked to upgrade, and then Anne is arrested for her ex’s murder. Can Carly figure out what’s going on, and why a strange couple is digging in Anne’s basement? Or will she disappear along with the artwork, coins, and money?

 

About the Author:

Leeann Betts writes contemporary suspense, while her real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, pens historical suspense. She has released five titles in her cozy mystery series, By the Numbers, with Hidden Assets released the end of June. In addition, Leeann has written a devotional for accountants, bookkeepers, and financial folk, Counting the Days, and with her real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, has published a book on writing, Nuggets of Writing Gold, a compilation of essays, articles, and exercises on the craft. She publishes a free quarterly newsletter that includes a book review and articles on writing and books of interest to readers and writers. You can subscribe at http://www.leeannbetts.com/ or follow Leeann at http://www.allbettsareoff.wordpress.com/ All books are available on Amazon.com in digital and print, and at Smashwords.com in digital format.

CONNECT WITH LEEANN ON: Facebook: http://bit.ly/1pQSOqV

Twitter: http://bit.ly/1qmqvB6

Books: http://amzn.to/2dHfgCE

 

Mystery, women sleuths, suspense,

 

 

 

 

Wednesday Writers Welcomes Teresa Pollard

Tags

author interview, Hopesprings Books, Inspirational romance, mystery, Not Guilty, Teresa Pollard

Today I’m welcoming Teresa Pollard to Wednesday Writers. Teresa, please tell the readers about the book that is being showcased today.

This book is called Not Guilty and was actually written by my friend Candi Pullen and me back in 1982, but was published for the first time by HopeSprings Books in 2013. It’s the story of a minister’s daughter named Carrie Shepherd, who’s raped by a masked intruder as she’s coming home from college one day. She’s so traumatized by the event, she doesn’t tell anyone until she realizes she’s pregnant. How can she face her family and fiancé? What about the church? Who was the rapist? Could he be a member of the congregation?

 

How did you come up with the concept for this book?

I was sitting in church one evening listening to a sermon on an entirely different topic when this plot came into my head whole cloth. I went home and wrote furiously for three days then showed an eighty page hand-written first draft to Candi. She had a lot of ideas for additions and sub-plots, so we put our heads together for the next year on it.

What are you working on now? Do you have a release date for this book?

I’d love to get everyone to read Not Guilty now, because the sequel, Not Ashamed, is    coming out in July, 2015. It’s the story of Charity Wright, Carrie’s daughter, as she comes home to confront her biological father, the man who raped her mother. Since both stories are written in a mystery format, the second one will spoil then end of the first if you don’t read them in sequence.

Tell the readers how you got started writing.

I started writing on a dare. I’ve always been a voracious reader. My friend had given me a large grocery bag of Harlequin Romances. After reading quite a few of them, I complained that they all had exactly the same plot. I said, “I could write a better novel than these.” So she dared me to do it. I’ve been writing ever since.

Do you write in more than one genre? If so, why?

Yes. I’ve always said I was a writer who hates to write. It’s not something that comes easily or naturally. It’s a compulsion that I believe is God given. When He gives me a story, I have to get it down on paper. I love mysteries, and a lot of my stories are in a mystery format, but I’ve also written several Biblical novels. My novel Tokens of Promise is an imagining of the story of Tamar and Judah from Genesis 38. It was also published in 2013 by HopeSprings, and Woman of Light, a story of Deborah will be released in October, 2015.

Some writers like quiet when they write, others want music. Which one are you?

I have to have quiet. It’s not because I don’t love music. It’s because I do. When I listen to music, I want to sing or dance, or both. I get very little writing done.

Are you pen and paper writer, strictly computer, or some combo of the two?

It’s definitely a combo. I have bunches of the small legal pads for when an idea comes into my head, so I can get it down on paper as quickly as possible. But then I enter it into the computer, and most of the revisions are done from there.

What is does your writing process look like?

I tend to write in stages: dialogue first, then go back and put in the different layers—sensory, visceral, emotional, settings.

What’s the worst technical difficulty or disaster you’ve ever had as a writer?

I’m a total non-techy when it come to computers and social media and have experienced a number of flubs, including wiped out discs, crashed computer drives where I lost 50 pages I’d just written, improper blog setups that caused me to lose my web name address.

Are you a morning writer, afternoon, evening, or midnight oil writer?

Because I’ve always had children (and now grandchildren) to take care of while I was writing, most of my writing has always been done after nine p.m. and late into the night.

What’s the first book you ever remember reading as a child?

You’re really asking me to go back a long ways. When I was little, we started learning to read with Fun with Dick and Jane. But I had a huge Grimm’s Fairy Tales long before that that I loved to have read to me, and I often read myself as soon as I could.

What’s the book you are reading now?

I just finished a light-hearted mystery called The Case of Moomah’s Moolah by Jim Stevens, and am getting ready to start on Picture Perfect by Janice Thompson.

How often do you read non-fiction?

Probably not as often as I should. I recently finished The Harbinger by Jonathan Cahn. Written in a fiction format, this is an amazing book that I highly recommend. Books on ancient Israel, its laws and customs, and histories of Biblical figures are also among my favorites.

What’s the first book, in the genre you write in, that you remember reading?

It would probably be one of the Trixie Belden or Nancy Drew mysteries. I loved those as a kid. But it’s also possible that it was a Hardy Boys mystery. My dad had a bookcase full of those, and I read all of them.

Do you know the meaning of your name? If so, does it fit you?

Teresa means Harvester. I’ve been a children’s Sunday School worker for most of the last forty years (I now teach Senior ladies) so I’d say, yes. My greatest joy is to lead someone to Christ. And that’s the greatest desire I have for my writing too.

I love going to the movies. Do you? If so, what was the most recent movie you’ve seen?

The last movie I saw was Heaven is for Real, and I’m going to see God’s Not Dead tonight. Can’t wait.

Tell us a little bit about your hobbies outside of writing?

I sang in the choir for most of my life. I’m not the least bit artistic, but I love art, so I do try my hand at photography. For the last seven years, my friend Krystal and I have taken up hiking through the woods to find waterfalls. We’ve chased waterfalls from Niagara to El Junque in Puerto Rico

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s been a pleasure having you here today. As you say goodbye, can you leave the readers with an encapsulation of your life’s philosophy?

I guess my philosophy that I tried to instill in my children comes from Joshua 1:9. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord you God is with you whereever you go.”

It’s 1974 and Carrie Shepherd, daughter of the minister at Windspree Community Church, is a college senior with plans to be a missionary in Africa. Raped by a masked assailant, Carrie is so traumatized she tells no one until she realizes she’s pregnant. Refusing to have an abortion, she must find the courage to face her family, her fiancé, her friends, and a gossiping, angry congregation which may include her attacker.

 Can Carrie find a way to cope with the secrets, silence, and shame that threatens to tear apart her family and church?

 

“Ooh,” she mused dreamily as she put her wallet back into her purse, “If Easter is as pretty as this day, maybe we ought to have our wedding outdoors. The birds’ singing would make such a beautiful accompaniment to Andrew’s voice.” Even as the words came out of her mouth, she suddenly realized how quiet the birds had become. She was startled when a small group of sparrows flew from a bush into higher branches of a nearby tree. A few of the birds had been so close to her she felt the air moving as they darted past. It took her a second to catch her breath. “W-well, pardon me. I didn’t mean to come so close. I wouldn’t hurt you. You d-mmph.”

As one large hand encompassed her face, another grabbed her shoulder like a vice. Uselessly, she dropped her books, kicked and tried desperately to grab above and behind herself at the heat of her attacker. It was all happening so fast, her mind staggered. He threw her to the ground with the cool determination of one driven, not by malice, but by a job to be done. There was little anger evidenced in his onslaught, even as Carrie frantically grabbed for the gray knit ski mask that kept his identity hidden from her.

He calmly collected her hands and drew them into one of his and held them there as easily as a father holding back the hands of a toddler straying too near a flame. His grasp didn’t hurt her, he just possessed tremendous strength. In Carrie’s mind, he was huge. Her efforts were thwarted at every turn, as he had his way. He tore her clothes as if they were made of tissue paper. She screamed and yelled and kicked with all her might, jerking her tiny fists as if convinced she could actually free them. By now he had also restrained her legs so that the only weapons she had left to her were her mind and her mouth. “Satan, I rebuke you!” she cried, using what little strength she had left. His body tensed and he breathed in spurts, like a bull preparing for the charge. Her rebuke had angered him, and he became deliberately cruel. He was relentless in the pursuit of his goal, and Carrie was helpless to do more than just cry out, “No, No! Oh, my God help me, NO!” Mercifully, she fainted, and her torment was over. Or had it just begun?

Barnes and Noble

Tokens

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tokens-of-promise-teresa-pollard/1115475023?ean=9781938708145

Not Guilty

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/not-guilty-teresa-pollard/1112801831?ean=9781938708060

Amazon

Token

http://www.amazon.com/Tokens-Promise-Teresa-Pollard/dp/1938708148/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1389905045&sr=8-7&keywords=teresa+Pollard

Not Guilty

http://www.amazon.com/Not-Guilty-Teresa-Pollard/dp/1938708067/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1389905045&sr=8-1&keywords=teresa+Pollard

GOODREADS

Tokens

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18027695-tokens-of-promise?from_search=true

Not Guilty

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17329503-not-guilty?from_search=true

HopeSprings

http://www.hopespringsbooks.com/

 

About the Author:

Teresa Pollard is from Richmond, Virginia, and was saved at a young age.  She has a Masters degree in English and Creative Writing from Hollins College, and has served as a Sunday School teacher and children’s worker for most of the last forty years.  Married for forty years, she was devastated by divorce and the death of her youngest daughter, but God has blessed her with a new home and another grandson, and she now resides in Dacula, Georgia.  Her website is TeresaPollardWrites.com