If you haven’t had the chance to read “His Heart’s Long Journey,” this is the perfect time to grab a copy of “Forsaken by Love,” which is the first book in the three-book series. May 7th thru May 11th, you can get a free eBook copy on Amazon! And don’t worry…book one doesn’t end with a cliffhanger like I do in several of my other series. You’ll be happy to find a satisfying ending. However, I hope it will inspire you to move on to book two and three for the continued story of Vern Harpole. He has some incredible adventures!
This series is based on the true story of my friend, Ann Wood’s, ancestor. Annie told me the story when we met for lunch one day, and she kindly gave me permission to write about Vern’s life and helped me with as many details as she could remember from things passed down through the family.
Vern Harpole was only eight years old when his mother left him on the porch of a bakery in Kansas City. She abandoned him and disappeared. Though Vern was taken in and raised by the kind baker and his wife, Vern still struggled with his abandonment. Once he became a grown man, he felt compelled to go West.
This story tells how he found his true love–who had her own troubled past–and how they supported each other and found a way to move forward together.
I imagine that the title of my blog sparked your curiosity, and that’s why you’re reading this right now! I’m not sure what exactly prompted me to choose this for my subject, but it popped into my head, and I decided to follow the inspiration.
Many, many years ago, I worked at a fast-food restaurant. It wasn’t my first job, but it was one of them. I was only eighteen when I worked there, but boy did I learn a lot! I feel everyone should have the experience of being employed by one of those kinds of establishments. It’s not easy work–especially if you’re at a popular location. I learned how to manage my time, and even more importantly, how to multitask.
I’ll never forget when my manager looked at me one day and said, “You have two hands, use both of them.” Honestly, I don’t remember what I was doing at the time, but what she said sure made a lot of sense. Maybe I was restocking condiments. Who knows? Still, whatever it might have been, her words remained in my head. I need to point out that she didn’t say it with any kind of nastiness, she said it with sincerity. She was a great manager–exceedingly patient, kind, and organized. Like I said, I learned a lot at that job.
It might sound silly that up until that point I’d never given much thought to using both of my hands at the same time. Being right-handed, that hand did my school work. I also like to draw, paint, and color, so again, my right hand stayed busy. I didn’t play sports, and if I had gotten into basketball, I might have learned that two-hand-usage lesson a lot sooner. I was one of the tallest girls in the school and the coach wanted me on the team, but I wasn’t a ‘sporty’ girl. I might have had the height the coach wanted, but I wasn’t exactly coordinated.
At this point in my life, I’m extremely thankful that I have two capable hands. I use them every day to type my stories into my laptop computer. I never dreamed that the typing class I took in Junior High would be one of the most valuable courses in all my years in school. I confess that I haven’t learned to master the ‘two-hand’ system on my phone. I watch young people work their thumbs over their screens in lightning-fast precision, texting up a storm. I have large thumbs, and I can’t figure out how they manage to sent readable texts and not just a mishmash of nonsensical words.
So, I may not be a whiz at texting, but I can still type like there’s no tomorrow. As long as ideas keep popping into my head, my two hands will keep flying over the keyboard.
Aside from the ‘two-hand skill,’ something else lingered from the guidance I received working in the fast-food industry. The way I manage my time. It’s hard for me to sit still unless I’m doing something. I can sit and write for hours on end and not even realize how much time has passed, but if I have to sit and wait for a program to load on my computer, I get restless. So, I’ve found things to do whenever I have those brief moments of wait-time. I keep a set of weights on hand. (Yep, weights for the waits!) I do a series of lifts. Using both hands, of course. I do twenty reps of ‘over the head’ and two variations of curls. If the wait is really long, I’ll get out of my chair and do a few other variations. I’m hoping this repetitive activity will keep my arms strong–not to mention avoid having my grandson comment about the ‘jiggle’ under my arms. Thanks to the weights, that jiggle is gone. Woo-hoo!
A friend of mine who has a tax services business also beta reads for me. You might wonder how this fits into my ‘use both hands’ subject. Well…she’s a multitasker, too. I feel bad when I ask her to read for me during tax season, but she’s always willing. When I asked her how she finds the time, she said she keeps the book open on her computer, and when she has to wait for documents to print, she reads a little bit. Sometimes, if it’s a lengthy document, she can read quite a lot. She’s like me. She doesn’t like to be idle.
So, if you find that you’re having a hard time fitting everything that you need to accomplish into your day, ask yourself, “Am I using both hands?”
It’s good to enjoy everything you do, and if you can find ways to squeeze more tasks into the little spaces that can be overlooked, you might find that you’re getting even more out of your life.
I’d love to hear how you find ways to multitask. Please comment below!
I was thrilled to be invited as one of the featured authors at the Civil War Reenactment scheduled for this coming weekend in Ridgetop, Tennessee!
Most of my books are set either right before the war, during the war, or after the war at the time of Reconstruction. When I first started writing, agents, other authors, and publishers cautioned me against choosing this time period to set my stories. However, if you’ve followed my blog, you know that a dream inspired my first series, and from then on, I’ve felt compelled to write about the struggles this nation went through during that difficult time. I believe wholeheartedly that although this was a sad time for our country, it’s crucial that what happened isn’t forgotten. Hopefully, by remembering these events, we can learn from them and prevent them from happening again. If you’re in the area this weekend, come by and experience something you’ll not soon forget!
Here are the books I’ll be featuring!
The Smoky Mountain Secrets Saga. Book one, “Whispers from the Cove,” takes place at the end of the Civil War in Cades Cove, Tennessee. You’ll learn about the struggles of the poor farming families as they try to cope with soldiers from both sides coming into their cove and helping themselves to whatever they please. The families are affected by the war in more than one way, and it forever changes their lives. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZYYY5WKA Confederate soldier returns to his Atlanta home to find it burned to the ground and his family gone. Distraught, he hops a train, thinking he’s going west, but wakes up in a hospital bed in Boston, Massachusetts. He fearfully pretends to be mute, so those caring for him won’t know he’s from the South. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PB84TTOFollow five families in the Southern Secrets Saga as they learn to cope with life in Mobile, Alabama after the war. This seven-book series spans two generations. This series is my dream-inspired work and definitely the steamiest of all my books! This is by no means a ‘typical’ romance series. It takes many surprising turns. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0139LASFSThe River Romance series begins prior to the Civil War, and a good portion of the stories take place on steamboats on the Mississippi River. Each book is a stand-alone and comes to a conclusion. Yet, the series continues the stories of characters you’ll meet along the way. In book three, “Forgotten,” young Billy goes to fight for the Union Army. He’s fallen in love with a mixed-race slave who works for his family, and he’s determined to fight for her freedom. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZYCQIP0
For more detailed information about all of these books, be sure to check out my book tab!
It’s the perfect time for summer traveling, but with today’s high gas prices, it’s not always feasible. So, here’s an alternative!
Take a journey with me through the pages of “His Heart’s Long Journey!” This series is based on the true story of Vern Harpole. At the age of eight, Vern is abandoned by his mother and left on the porch of a bakery in Kansas City. The kind baker and his wife take Vern in after they’re unable to locate Vern’s mother.
They teach Vern everything he needs to know about baking and running a business. They also grow to love him, and vice versa. Yet, the need to know why he was abandoned troubles Vern, and he can’t let it go. In addition, something keeps compelling him to go West. His life’s journey takes him on quite an adventure.
Today thru Tuesday, July 26th, book one, “Forsaken by Love” is available as a FREE download from Amazon. Here’s a little more about the book!
Since you’re reading this blog, that tells me you do read! Excellent!
I’m curious, do you read books? I’m not asking as a means to tell you to go out and buy mine, (although if you decide to do that, that’s okay, too😊), I’d like to know because I hear more and more that people swear books are becoming a “thing of the past.”
Simply pondering that idea hurts my heart–and not only because I’m an author. Books have played a big part in my life. I have my favorites from my childhood like the “Little House” books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, and “The Chronicles of Narnia,” by C. S. Lewis. I used to love getting those little flyers in school with the order forms allowing us to be able to buy books and have them delivered right to the classroom. What a wonderful treat! I don’t know if they even do that anymore.
As I got older, I still read the previously mentioned books (many times), and expanded to “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings.” The list of what I’ve read is vast, so I’m not going to put you through reading that. However, I treasure every hour spent with my nose in those pages.
I’ve discussed the subject of declining readers with several of my author friends, and they’ve told me that at in-person events, people will ask them, “When’s the movie coming out?” and go on to say, “I don’t read.” Ouch!
We’d all love to have our books turned into movies, and I hope I see that happen before I leave this earth. However, even if that does happen, I can guarantee that there’s so much more to experience by reading the book and not just seeing the movie. Movies have a limited amount of time, so a lot of details are whittled down to accommodate the time constraint.
I understand the entertainment value of movies. I happen to LOVE movies. They’re a quick entertainment fix. Maybe people are reading less because they feel it takes too long, or perhaps they feel pressured to keep busy and won’t allow themselves the time for it. I sure hope that society hasn’t made people feel that they’re not permitted to slow down long enough to indulge in the experience of really “living a story.”
When you open the pages of a book, or fire up your e-reader, your mind will take you to another place, and maybe even another time. It’s important to keep our minds sharp and active, and extremely crucial to use our imaginations. Movies offer the interpretation of the screen writers, directors, set designers, and actors. As a reader, you become those people and even the costume coordinator if the author doesn’t go into a lot of detail in that regard. Some are more descriptive than others. You paint the picture in your mind’s eye, and if the author has done their job, you’ll also feel what the characters are experiencing.
I refuse to believe that our need to have everything quickly in our grasp means the death of reading. There are thousands of books that will never be made into movies, and if you only allow yourself that format of experiencing a story, you’ll miss out on so much.
So please, pick up a book and remind yourself what it’s like to dive headfirst into an adventure. The original “virtual reality.” No helmet required, just your brain. You might be surprised to find that you have an amazing imagination!
When I first visited Cades Cove in the Smoky Mountains, I was taken back in time. If you’ve followed my blog for a while, you’ve likely seen many posts about the smokies and my passion for the history of the cove and the people who lived there.
I’m excited to share this beautiful video produced by Vince Pinkerton! He captured the feel of my story and gave me abundant chills in the process. It’s incredible to see this come to life, if only for a brief 30-second clip!
If you’ve not yet delved into the Smoky Mountain Secrets Saga, I hope you’ll consider giving it a read. Book one is just the beginning. After all, the series is a ‘saga.’ My prayer is that we’ll learn from our history and not repeat the same mistakes.
I had the privilege of being able to preview Vince Pinkerton’s debut novel, The Devil Plays Six Strings. Making me even happier, Vince allowed me to edit it, putting me even deeper into the incredible story. I told him that it was fine as it was, (he’s a brilliant writer), and that it just needed a little polish. Kind of like putting wax on your favorite fancy sportscar. I wanted his book to shine.
It’s not the sort of book I typically read, but I couldn’t put it down! There are parts that get very dark and disturbing, but what can you expect when a down-on-his luck man sells his soul to the devil in order to provide food and a home for himself and his infant son?
This story opens in 1930–a time when racial tension was even worse than it presently is. The main character, Elijah, is a black man who loses his wife after giving birth to their son. She possessed a deep faith that made her shine, and she wanted Elijah to grasp onto that faith, make good choices in his life, and pass on all things good to their baby boy. Unfortunately, Elijah doesn’t choose wisely, even though he tries to do what he thinks is best.
This isn’t a feel-good book, but it’s definitely thought-provoking. You’ll find yourself cheering the good characters on and cringing whenever the evil ones come onto the page. Mr. Pinkerton paints imagery with words almost too well!
I grew up in a small town in northern Idaho, and I loved the mountains. I have great memories of hikes I took with my grandpa, as well as treks up the mountains to pick huckleberries with my mom and dad. To this day, I can still remember the smell of huckleberry bushes. As we drove up the rugged roads, we’d stick our noses in the air to catch the scent of those wonderful berries. And when we smelled them, we’d holler for the vehicle to be stopped so we could get out and hunt them up.
Almost thirty years ago, I left Idaho in pursuit of my dreams, and I moved to Tennessee. Here, I met my husband, and he introduced me to another range of mountains. The beautiful Smokies. They have some similarities to the Rockies, but they’re also different in their own right. The shades of green are definitely different, and I’ve never smelled huckleberries in the Smokies. Regardless, I fell in love with the mountains all over again.
My husband took me on a trip to Gatlinburg, TN, for one of our first anniversaries. The town has its own charm–as does Pigeon Forge and some of the other outlying cities. We took a drive ‘up the mountain’ to a place I’ll cherish forever. If you’re familiar with my books and my writing, you’ve probably heard this story before, because I can’t stop talking about it! We ended up in Cades Cove.
When he told me we’d be going to a place that only had a one-way road that looped from one end to the other, and that everyone had to drive around it slowly, I wondered why. He talked it up as if it was the best thing in the world. Honestly, I thought it sounded horribly boring. As much as I appreciate pretty scenery, putting along on a one-way road didn’t sound too appealing. I wanted excitement and adventure–like I knew I could get at the nearby theme park.
I learned a valuable lesson on that venture. My husband was right. It was the best thing in the world. Cades Cove transported us back in time to a simpler life. One that was unhurried and pure. The cove sits in the middle of the mountains. Acre after acre of land that was once farmed and loved by the people who lived there. Some of the original cabins still remain, along with a mill, several churches, and cemeteries with the graves of those who’d called the cove their home. The unsurpassed beauty of the land touches my heart every time I go there.
We return to Cades Cove every year. I’ve memorized much of it, but I’m never any less in awe of the splendor. It had to have been difficult for the residents of the cove, when the states of Tennessee and North Carolina decided to create a National Park that included the Cades Cove land. I doubt it was easy to put a price on the land they loved, then leave it behind and go elsewhere. Some residents were able to stay, yet I’m sure it wasn’t the same.
All that being said, I’m glad that the past has been preserved in the cove. When I learned about the hardships that the residents endured during the Civil War, I was compelled to write about it. Here’s a link to the first book in my Smoky Mountain Secrets Saga: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZYYY5WK I did my best to capture what life was like for those families, and to this day, I feel like I can sense them walking by my side when I visit the cove.
Every place in this world has a story to tell, and I hope that you’ll make a trip to the Smoky Mountains and specifically, Cades Cove. Be sure to have your camera handy, so you can capture its majesty. It’s a little bit of Heaven on Earth with some wildlife thrown in for good measure. You might see a bear or two, as well as deer and turkeys. If you like to hike, there are plenty of trails you can take. Some will lead you to remote cabins, and others are simply for the sake of enjoying nature. More than anything, you’ll come away, content, with an appreciation for the simpler things in life.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved puzzles. Mainly, jigsaw puzzles, but I’m also fond of word games like crosswords and word searches. I’ve heard that doing those keeps your brain active, and as I grow older, that becomes more and more important. My parents are in their eighties and still sharp as ever, so I’m hopeful that I’ve inherited their sharpness genes.
So what is it about jigsaw puzzles that draws me in? Maybe it’s because I like to fix things, and if I see something all discombobulated, I want to make it right. Plus, it’s so much fun watching an image come together. I don’t know about you, but I get a happy thrill every time I put a piece in place. I guess it’s good that it doesn’t take much to amuse me!
My first puzzle memory is from when I was about six years old. We lived in Spokane, Washington at that time, and there was a local fair a short distance down the road from us. It was one of those sorts that was likely put on by the high school and run by teenagers. They had all kinds of games and activities for children. I can’t remember what the particular game was that caught my eye, but the prize for winning the game was a puzzle. They were used puzzles donated by the organizers of the event. Used or not, I didn’t care. Trouble was, I didn’t have any money and couldn’t play the game. So, was that a good memory? Oddly, yes, since it makes me smile to remember it. I didn’t get a puzzle from that fair, but my desire for jigsaw puzzles never left me.
I have quite a collection now, and many of my puzzles have been put together more times than I can count. Most of them have 1,000 pieces, and I can usually put them together in a few days’ time. I like to work on them in the evenings after a day of writing. It helps me relax, but it also allows me time to gather my thoughts for my next day of writing.
I like the puzzles that have interesting pieces–those that aren’t a typical shape. They make the entire process more challenging. However, I also appreciate pieces that fully interlock. So, I guess you could say, I love any type of puzzle.
I recently put together the most tight-fitting puzzle I’ve ever encountered. So tight that I could hold it up in the air while it still had a lot of pieces missing. Hopefully, you can see what I mean in this photo.
Yep! You can see right through the middle, and nothing fell apart when I held it up. Crazy! This is the kind of puzzle that wouldn’t even need glue if you decided to frame it.
I always start by putting together the border. I think that’s pretty typical, thought my son tells me it would be more challenging if I didn’t. From the picture on the box, I also know what it’s supposed to look like when it’s done. Again, my son tells me not to look at the image to increase the challenge of putting it together. I try that sometimes, but there are certain puzzles that stump me and I have to look.
I think my writing style is similar to the way I construct puzzles. I know how I want a story to start, (thus the border), and I know how I want it to end. (Like the finished picture). But the middle often takes me in different directions. I may add a piece that takes me down an unexpected road. Those little surprises makes the process so much fun! A character who I think is minor becomes a major part in putting together the puzzle of my story.
I suppose I also like to fix the discombobulated lives of my characters. I promise a happy ending–eventually–but they usually go through many challenges on their way to attaining it.
Thank you for reading, and I’d love to hear your ‘puzzling’ stories, too!
I’m sure you’ve seen the great commercials on TV about people who are becoming their parents. I laugh at the ads because I can completely relate to them.
I don’t know when the transition takes place, but it definitely happens. Not only in the things we do, but for me, I see the transformation in the mirror. So often, my mom smiles back at me. I have many of her mannerisms, and when we talk on the phone, we frequently sound alike. We have the same vocal tones, and we oftentimes sigh or laugh at the same time and sound identical.
So, there’s the physical transformation, but what about the mental transformation? When do we start behaving like “old fogies.” Even that dated term validates what I’m saying. When I was young, I felt so up-to-date and “in-the-now.” When my parents did something silly or forgetful, I’d just chalk it up to their age. Now I’m the one doing ridiculous things and forgetting what day of the week it is.
I suppose it has everything to do with the brain. As we age, we process things differently. And, we considerably slow down. We wake with aches in our bodies that we can’t explain and groan with that first step we take out of bed.
I guess what surprises me the most is my change in attitude. Things I used to think were funny or entertaining on TV, I see now as dumb. I get frustrated when I drive down the road and have to listen to the loud thumping of the music coming from the car next to me. As a youth, I likely would’ve thought it was cool. So, yes, I’m becoming an old person. Sigh . . .
On the bright side, I have so many stories to tell. With all the years I’ve lived, (boy, I’m really sounding ancient!), I’ve accumulated massive amounts of life experiences. I feel I’m capable of giving my children and grand-children advice from all that life-lived knowledge. The same kind of advice my parents gave me. I may have thought some of the things they told me were foolish, but I’ve come to realize that they were usually right. (And if you’re reading this now, Mom and Dad, don’t gloat!)
I’m blessed that my parents are still living. I can go to them when I need to talk, and I continue to listen to their advice. They’ve inspired me time and again! I pray that I can do the same for my children, and that they’ll always turn to this “old person” whenever they need me. Besides, I count on them to help me manage all the difficulties I face with every new-fangled gadget that’s released. I’m still learning new ways to fully use my phone. It took me until about three years ago to part with my flip-phone. (Should I be hiding my head in embarrassment?)
The photo above is me and my dad at the zoo in 2019, and the one to the right is my Mom at her 80th birthday celebration in 2018. Unfortunately, they live a great distance from me, but in that respect, I’m grateful for my new-fangled phone. We can talk as long as we want and we don’t have to incur hefty long-distance charges! If you’re as old as I am, you’ll remember the days when it was cheaper to call after 7:00 p.m. It’s nice not to have to worry about the time of day when making a call.
Going back even farther in time, do you recall the days of party lines? No, they had nothing to do with politics! Households had shared telephone lines, and you could pick up your phone and hear your neighbor talking to someone. Of course, if they knew you were on the line interrupting their call, you’d get fussed at. Rightfully so!
I appreciate the advancement in technology, but I often miss the good ol’ days. The new phones have great benefits, but it makes me sad to see so many people with their faces glued to their phones. They’re missing out on the real world before them. So, please, take it from this old fogey. Put your phone down and look at what’s around you, and if you’re in a restaurant, talk to the person you’re there with, not the one on your screen.
From someone who loves to write historical fiction, take the time to enjoy the simplicities in life. A walk in the woods, a picnic by a lake, watching the sun set (or rise), or enjoying a board game with your family. (The old-fashioned, non-electronic type).
We’ve seen our share of frustrating times this past year, but never lose hope! Life is good!
Jeanne Hardt 