After my BA in English Lit, I was faced with the question of what to do with it. I’d always assumed I’d go on for more schooling–maybe all the way to a PhD. The theory was, I wanted to have a day job that kept me so that I could write, and teaching at a college seemed like a nice day job.

The problem was, I wanted to write really badly! I loved writing, and my deepest, most cherished dream was to write books for a living. I didn’t want to put it off or focus on a more realistic day job. Was it possible? Could I even make a living? I had no idea, but I wanted to write.

So I made the terrifying and unpopular decision to give it a whirl! That was about seventeen years ago now, and there was a lot of struggle and growing to get where I am now. But when I made that choice, it was momentous for me. I was choosing my deepest dream, and tossing “practical” out the window. I never looked back.

In those early days, I made a little bit of money off of articles for small magazines, and my first cheque for $60 after I quit my full time job for a part time gig that left more writing time meant a lot to me because it was the start of something. In my mind, it was like those businessmen who frame their first dollar.

So I photocopied the cheque before I deposited it, and put the photocopied cheque on my wall.  It was to remind me that I had a goal, and I wasn’t to get distracted from it. All this sacrifice was for a reason, and I wouldn’t waste my time. The cheque is still there! I mean, a different wall, obviously, but it still means a lot to me. It’s part of my journey, and whenever I look at it, I remember how hopeful and excited I was about the chance to live my dream at long last!

In a lot of ways, I feel like I’ve made it now. I write books for a living, and I’m doing exactly what I’d dreamed of doing all those years ago. But I don’t take it for granted, and whenever I look at that cheque on the wall, I remember that I don’t want to waste my time. I’ve got goals to achieve still. And a writing career is maintained with a heck of a lot of hard work.

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Coming in April 2020!

Pre-order now!

For a proper young Amish widow struggling to begin again, encountering her reckless first love will test her forgiveness, resolve—and heart . . .

Overwhelmed by grief and tending twin baby daughters, Rosmanda Lapp is without options. She still blames her brother-in-law, Levi, for her husband’s accidental death—but she and her aging in-laws need him to keep their farm going. Yet as Levi takes on his responsibilities with a new determination and steadiness, she can’t help but regret that she chose his serious-minded brother over him. For Levi is still very much the passionate man she loved—and Rosmanda now has even more reasons to keep him at arm’s length . . .

Levi can’t blame Rosmanda for staying clear of him. He has mistakes to make up for and must finally do right by his parents. Still, he never got over his brother stealing Rosmanda away. And he can’t  deny the feelings that even now tempt them back to each other. And when a mistake from her past threatens her reputation, Levi will do whatever it takes to help her—and trust that faith and courage will at last help them claim a future together . . .