I just realized it's been way too long since I've written a blog post! I'd love to have an excuse...I mean, a valid one. Alas, I can't blame it all on the hurricane. For those who don't know, we live on the east coast of central Florida so we had a big scare of hurricane Dorian, at one point a Category 5, heading our way. Fortunately for us, it weakened and stayed just off shore as it passed. The phrase "dodged a bullet" certainly applies. The poor people of the Bahamas

Yes, the title is a little play-on-words with our cozy mystery book titles. All three of those things, however, relate to my life at the moment. First of all, we've had a round of bronchitis (to the extreme) going around the household with three of the four kids and myself. Even though we're feeling much better, we have coughs that are lingering. Mine is particularly annoying at the moment. And there's that tickle in the throat that shows up at the worst possible moments

Today being Father's Day, I thought I'd share some thoughts on my father and the father characters in my books. I grew up a daddy's girl, and the fact that he is my stepfather (who officially adopted me) indicates that he's something special. Keith, my husband, is in fact stepfather to my three kids, and another one of those super-special men who willingly took-on a challenging dad role and did so with excellence. Growing up, my dad was my "coach." I ran track and did chee

Two of my all-time favorite things: coffee and books. If you've read any of my stories, you know that coffee shows up in every one of them. I took my coffee inspiration to a whole new level with our cozy mystery series. From the title to the main character's obvious addiction, coffee plays a major role in these books. And rightfully so! Who doesn't love to curl up with a good book and a warm beverage? Maybe you aren't a coffee lover. Maybe you're more of a hot tea typ

Yesterday, my husband and I went to Femme Fatale Arms and Training (the store mentioned in the first Charlotte Ritter mystery book) for an Intro to Firearms/Concealed Carry class. We spent a few hours in the classroom learning about gun safety, gun laws, how guns work, and the like. Then, we went to a shooting range to learn about stance and grip, and to actually shoot at a target. Our instructor, Richard, did an excellent job of imparting knowledge and keeping us relaxed.

I like to think that I'm not a mushy romantic, but I'm often forced to admit that simply isn't true. I'm a hopeless romantic if ever there was one. Writing romance is a challenge for me because I feel like I have a different perspective on what constitutes romance compared to most women my age. Or, maybe I just like thinking I'm different than everyone else. Regardless, I like to incorporate romance into my stories; Bert and Doris, Michael and (possibly) Kelly, and who kn