In June, 2012 we sold our horse ranch in Sun Valley, packed up our four cats, and moved to South Orange County. We’ve never looked back or regretted our escape from LA County, not even once. (Apologies to those of you still living there.)
My hair is gray now. Such freedom! No more pale roots and horrible dye jobs. Moving to a new community was the time to do it too.
Since we moved, I’ve been to Africa (Malawi) twice with short-term mission teams from our new church. I hope to go again this spring. I wrote a dozen journal posts on my website about that first trip.
Unfortunately, six months later my website was hacked beyond repair and I took it down permanently. It was a traumatic experience; a lot of publishing history gone in a flash. I eventually realized it was time to let it go and move on.
I’m thankful for the journalism experience I got writing for newspapers in LA, and while I’ve posted a few articles on the Mission Viejo Patch and considered a story for the OC Register, I think I’ve pitched my last newspaper.
So, you ask, what are you doing in the WRITERS in Residence blog? Because I’m still writing!
I have two other blogs. “Here’s How it Happened” is a mini-website, with a variety of articles. Check out the recipe for homemade Snickers. Yum! “Morning Meditations” is a more serious journal blog of my early morning quiet times in the Bible and prayer.
I do proof-reading and copy-editing, which is SO appropriate for a perfectionist nit-picker like me! I’ve worked on a couple mystery book manuscripts, a doctorate thesis, a “how-to” craft manual, and an African children’s novel translated from Dutch. And I still review books for Mystery Scene Magazine!
Look for my future posts on WinR about “The Agonies of Book Reviewing: A 12-step plan” “How Lillian Jackson Braun’s ‘Cat Who’s’ Inspire Me” and “Start Writing Cereals…er…Serials!”
The Writers in Residence 