This summer whizzed by faster than I could ever imagine. It seems that I haven’t accomplished anything. Yet I entertained many guests.













Young guests like my precious grandchildren, adorable kids way too active and noisy, had me collapse on my bed by nine o’clock, delighted and exhausted after a day at the beach and the pool.



















Older guests wanted to hit the stores and take advantage of special sales. With them I discovered interesting places and new bargains. Believe me, shopping with a nineteen-year-old teenager was a tiring but lovely experience. She reminded me of my daughter. Memories of  the long hours spent in fitting rooms with my daughter when she prepared for college brought smiles and tears to my eyes.


So that was my summer: two weeks with one set of grandchildren, two weeks with my cousin and family, two weeks with the other set of grandchildren, and two weeks helping my daughter moved back.

Side effect: I am very nicely tanned.
But I didn’t write a single line.

However I participated in two multi-authors boxes.

WEDDINGS ON MAIN STREET

TEN BRIDES FOR TEN HEROES

So how was your summer?

From chemistry in the lab to chemistry between people. 

Mona Risk left a scientific career to share with readers the many stories brewing in her head. Her books won Best Romance Novel of the Year at Preditors & Editors; Best Contemporary Romances at Readers Favorite; EPPICON Award Finalists; and many stellar reviews, and are Amazon Bestsellers. She received the 2013 OUTSTANDING ACHIEVER Award at Affaire de Coeur Magazine for her "Wonderfully written books about true love." ~ Happyly Ever After Reviews

Any reader would probably wonder why I set my book AN UNUSUAL CHRISTMAS in a little

known country such as Belarus.

During the mid-nineties, I often traveled to Russia and Belarus for business. I was quite impressed by the Russian culture and hospitality and decided to set my new book in Minsk, the capital of Belarus. With my heroine, Dr. Jillian Burton, you will discover a different civilization, visit interesting places, marvel at the Russian architecture, taste the exotic food, toast with vodka, wear the warm chapka, experience many of the local customs, and fall in love with a gallant Belorussian doctor.

Traveling to Minsk was a long and tiring twenty-four hour flight. Starting from Cincinnati, OH, I flew on Delta to New York with a couple of colleagues, spent three hours before boarding the big jet to Germany, and arrived in Frankfurt or Munich the next morning around seven. We hardly had two hours to change terminal. Carrying a couple of carry-on luggage, we rushed from one terminal to another to catch the Lufthansa flight connection to Minsk that flew only three times a week. When we missed it, we were stuck for two days or rerouted to Moscow.

In Belarus, the government stops the heating between May 1^st and October 31^st. I went to Minsk for the first time in October 1994 and was greeted by a freezing rain and a brisk cold that seeped through my clothes. Do I have to mention that I was shivering outdoors and indoors, and I never drank as many cups of hot tea—shaye?

Our first official meeting attended by officers, chemists and doctors, took place in a government building called the Hall of Officers. After a series of speech, our Belorussian hosts invited us to celebrate the new contract with toasts of vodka that we were supposed to drink bottoms up while saying Na Dzhrovia.  No orange juice or ice was added to dilute the 40% alcohol drink. My throat burned and my stomach caught fire. It took several trips for me to get used to the vodka and find it a practical way to stay warm. When I got sick, my Belorussian friends insisted on treating me with vodka, their universal remedy against cold, cough, stomach pain, and headaches!

The Belorussians are very hospitable people. We were invited for dinner in many homes. After the inevitable toasts of vodka, we ate the delicious stuffed cabbage, potato pancakes, black bread and sausage. The children impressed me with their impeccable manners and their fluent English. They often acted as interpreters for their parents.

In Minsk, I used a car with an excellent heating system and a chauffeur who spoke English. My rental car became a haven during the freezing months of winter and the only place where I felt warm and comfortable. Out of curiosity I took the underground train once. It was old and not very clean, a far cry from the magnificent trains of Moscow.

To go to Moscow, railroads were the most comfortable means of transportation. I traveled with, the overnight Red Train that left Minsk at midnight and arrived in Moscow the next morning. In the sleeping compartment with couchettes, we were provided with sheets, covers, wool blankets. Dinner was included in the fare and came with a bottle of vodka, of course.

Short Synopsis for AN UNUSUAL CHRISTMAS: Dr. Jillian is always running away to the end of the world to avoid Christmas celebrations and the sad reminders of her dead son. But in Belarus, a baby girl, four little boys, and a handsome doctor will teach her the true meaning of Christmas.

If you like this novel you may also enjoy: 

CHRISTMAS HERE AND THERE: A box set of Christmas Stories.

HER CHRISTMAS CRUISE (Christmas Wedding Muddle): The perfect fiancé is a cheater and the fabulous Christmas wedding is off. But the would-be honeymoon cruise may fulfill the dreams of Julia and her unexpected companion.
AN UNUSUAL CHRISTMAS: Dr. Jillian is always running away to the end of the world to avoid Christmas celebrations and the sad reminders of her dead son. But in Belarus, a baby girl, four little boys, and a handsome doctor will teach her the true meaning of Christmas.
CHRISTMAS BABIES: When a health problem jolts Dr. Madelyn into the realization than there's more to life than just work, she longs to surrender to the magic of Christmas. But can she handle the charming and secretive Dr. Nick Preston who carries his own package of disillusions? Can she allow two newborn twins to worm their way into her heart?

HOLIDAY BABIES SERIES: A box set of three bestselling books at Amazon.com

CHRISTMAS BABIES: It takes a health crisis and two adorable orphaned babies to bring Dr. Madelyn Ramsay to her senses and force her to look life and love in the face.
VALENTINE BABIES: Can he love a woman expecting another man’s baby?
MOTHER’S DAY BABIES: Can a woman from Kentucky teach an ‘old dog’ new tricks, even if he's a CEO?

 

DOCTOR’S ORDERS BOX SET: A box set of three bestselling books at Amazon.com

BABIES in the BARGAIN: "ER" and "Grey's Anatomy" in the NICU.
RIGHT NAME, WRONG MAN: What's a girl to do when she whispers another man's name in her fiancé's arms?
NO MORE LIES: A lie that brings a smile or a truth drawing tears?


If you like to travel and love to read, come and enjoy my international romances. I will take you around the world through stories that simmer with emotion and sizzle with passion.

An excerpt from my nonfiction book about gardening and country life,  Shenandoah Watercolors, a 2012 EPIC eBook Award Finalist:

“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature.” 

~ Anne Frank

(Image by my mother, Pat Churchman. If you look closely you can see my daughter Elise as a child and her little friend, James, peeking our from behind the trees.)

“A cold autumn wind blew as my younger daughter, Elise, and I scurried about the garden in the last of the light to gather in our treasures. She heaped great orange Cinderella pumpkins into the wheelbarrow and picked the rest of her pink and blue Indian corn. Beams of sun touched the crimson cockscomb flowers just coming into full bloom, an antiquated variety that I seeded late and coaxed through our wet summer. (Cinderella Pumpkins, image by Elise taken this fall)

The vibrant color of the plumes stood out against the grayish black clouds like a king’s velvet robes. This wealth will quickly dwindle if the temperatures dip too low tonight. The weather is quite cool here today. Forecasters are calling for the chance of frost tonight, but only if the gray blanket covering the sky clears and bright cold stars come out. Then maybe Jack Frost’s chill breath will silver the hoary earth.

I must get myself to the garden and pick the last of the orange persimmon tomatoes–truly the most luscious variety in the world–and the heirloom lima beans, called Christmas limas. These beans are mottled a lovely wine color and very tasty. Perhaps I can get our dog, Mia, to help me. But I doubt it. She takes no interest in vacuuming or dusting either, just wants to know when its time to eat.

I have this wild hope in the back of my mind that maybe I will wake up one day and find the house ordered and gleaming, all put to rights while I slept. I suspect this delusion comes from my having read The Elves and the Shoemaker too often, and other fairy tales. I have also seen too many Disney movies.”

(Colorful maple tree near green rye field on our farm in the Shenandoah Valley, image by Elise)

***Shenandoah Watercolors is available from Amazon in kindle and now paperback with lovely photographs taken by my family.

***For a seed link to the Christmas Pole Lima Beans click HERE.

***For a seed link to Cinderella Pumpkins click HERE

***For a seed link to my favorite Orange Persimmon tomatoes click HERE.

After your initial purchase you can save the seed.

Daughter Elise has finally completed her highly imaginative and wonderfully illustrated children’s book, Skaritch Skaratch Munch: A Cautionary Tale. A perfectionist, she labored over every detail, as I do words, and the result is well worth all the toil she invested.

Of herself, and her book, Elise says:

“This is a project that has been very dear to me and that I have been working on for well over a year and a half now.  I wrote in the style of a reverse cautionary tale, where instead of the adults being right, (as they usually are in cautionary tales,) in this tale it’s the children who are right all along and who ultimately come up with a solution to the problem.  I always like to try out new ways of illustrating so for this book I decided to go with some major mixed media creating and I had a lot of fun experimenting with it.  I greatly admire author/illustrator Mo Willems ,and his book Knuffle Bunny is one of my inspirations for illustrating this book the way I did.”

*Before and After images below

Having lived and breathed the ongoing efforts of an artist at work for many moons, I much more appreciate all that goes into illustrating a children’s book, not to mention writing it, and the thought behind even the font size and positioning of the words on the page. And a big plus, the two darling little people featured in the book are my grandbabies Emma Rose and her big brother Ian.

I’ve always loved children’s books and took Elise to the library faithfully when she was young. She haunts used bookstores and secondhand shops and has amassed quite a collection of her favorite authors and illustrators. Sometimes she or I even buy the copies new, but considering the library she’s building we must keep an eye on the budget. Any funds she gets from her own book will probably go back into buying others.  Or art supplies…computer software….

For eager readers young and old, Skaritch Skaratch Munch: A Cautionary Tale is available in print from Createspace.com and Amazon.com

To visit Elise’s newly formed blog and learn more about this book and her other projects visit: Coloring On The Couch

Years ago we owned a black cocker spaniel. When my son started to crawl the dog took exception to another small creature invading its territory and snapped at his face. Needless to say, we quickly found the dog a new home without children.

After that experience, we had a dog-free household until my son started school. Then we decided he was big enough to cope with another dog. This time I researched thoroughly to find a friendly breed that wouldn’t mind the attentions of children. The result: we found ourselves proud owners of a small fuzzy pudding on legs. A Shih Tzu!

This breed has an ancient and proud heritage, descended from the oldest and smallest of Tibetan dog breeds. The type we know today originated in China from dogs gifted to the Chinese Emperors. In the seventeenth century, the Dowager Empress, Tzu Hsi, instituted a breeding program. The dogs were bred to resemble the lion, venerated by the Chinese because it was symbolic of Buddha. Eunuchs in the Imperial Palace in Peking vied with each other to breed the most leonine specimen.

The Shih Tzu is characterized by its long, flowing coat, sturdy build, intelligence, and a friendly, energetic nature. They have a variety of coat colors and the long coat can be allowed to grow or clipped short. Their coat is not like the fur of other breeds; it’s more like human hair. Instead of shedding, Shih Tzu lose hair gradually. If the coat is allowed to grow it requires daily grooming, but if kept short, the coat is as easy to care for as any short-haired breed.

They generally stand about 9 to 11 inches high at the withers (above shoulders) and weigh between 10 and 16 pounds.

Some interesting cross breeds are available: the Shizapoo, a Shih Tzu and a Poodle; the Shih-wawa, a Shih Tzu and a Chihuahua; the Peki-Tzu, a Pekingese and a Shih Tzu. (Hmm, Peki-Tzu sounds familiar! I wonder if that’s where the writers of Pokemon found the name?)

Unlike some dog breeds, Shih Tzu are usually content when left alone. Most enjoy exercising outdoors, although they don’t need a lot of exercise and are quite happy to run around the house or yard.

The choice of breed was certainly the right one for us. We now have two who tumble around together and love family life, especially if it involves eating!

For those of you who know me, don't faint, I was actually tossing some articles I've saved from older Writer's Digest magazines. One that caught my attention dealt with focus.

Focus. Now that word can send chills to my heart. I'm not the kind of person who maintains focus in many areas of my life. I certainly can't keep my focus on cleaning. I don't focus well on organizing or filing.

At different times in our lives we need to focus on different things.

From the time I discovered the bookmobile I focused on reading. (A bookmobile is a traveling library. I was in first grade and suffering from withdrawal pains. Summer meant no school and no school library.)

Even as a teenager I focused on reading, making the school library and the public library my second homes. Oh, yes, I did other things. I did homework, played the oldest sister, and helped around the house while my parents worked. I took piano lessons but read novels instead of practicing.

For years I had to focus on motherhood, teaching, and helping my husband build a photography business. There was no time to focus on anything else, including reading for pleasure.

I couldn't focus on writing until I left teaching and my daughter entered high school and began to work part time at her dad's studio. My focus on writing developed as I discovered the new Macintosh computer at the studio. I had access to it after studio hours and worked after everyone left for the day. Often I worked until dawn. No way would I leave the studio at 2 or 3 AM, so I kept working.

During my daddy's illness, I changed focus to him and Mama. Both have left us and I sometimes question my focuses before those later years. Often as families grow and scatter, our areas of focus change. Our spouses and kids demand our time and attention, leaving less for our parents and siblings and extended family.

Since my daughter is married and my husband is now my EX, I can focus on my writing, my critique groups, and my friends. Because of my focuses, most of my friends are writers. I did not mention cleaning as a focus, because it isn't one.


FOCUS AND WRITING.
Mary Marvella Barfield

We must each decide if now is the time to focus on writing in a big way or as one of the things we do. We are entitled to have some things that bring us pleasure.

We can focus on writing for pleasure or on writing to publish. Whatever you do, don't give up the joy of writing.

What is your focus when you write?

What do you write? Do you write stories in the same genre, the same kinds of stories?

I find that whether I write suspense, or women's fiction, or romance, one focus is always there. Family - family lost, or gained, or valued. My heroes and heroines or protagonists are loyal to family and value family. Family that's there for them, or family they wish they had, or family they miss. Sometimes the family consists of a parent and a child. Some families include couples and sometimes parents and siblings.

Do you have one central focus in your projects? I prefer to call mine stories.

We are a quirky group of romance and mystery novelists who blog in the style of an off-center woman's magazine.

The membership cap for columnists is 15. If we are full and you'd like to join, we do have a waiting list. You must be a romance or mystery writer to be considered.

Twice a month, we each schedule a daily topic to blog about:

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Twice a month, we each submit prose to showcase our talent and give our audience a free story. This can be a published or unpublished novel excerpt, a teaser from your work-in-progress, a short story, creative nonfiction, poetry or essay. You may include your book cover, link to your website or to buy the book, and contest information if you'd like.

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