15 Reminders of Love

Valentine's Day may be over, but celebrating love doesn't have to be forgotten. As a reminder of this to myself, here are a few of my old loves and reads:

1) My family

2) My friends

3) Reading

4) Writing. 

5) Love is in the Air - Time to spread some love... a few of the authors of FIRST LOVE, IWSG Anthology #7 would like to share some lovely thoughts about how they and/or their characters romanticize Valentine's Day!

6) These are a Few of My Favorite Weird Things - a few things about myself that readers found interesting or funny.

7) 5 Step Formula for Plot Structure - a quick and reliable formula to help plot or revise a story of any length or genre.

8) When God Says Wait - a good read for anyone struggling with patience.

9) Loving Castle - a favorite television series that I'm enjoying rewatching.

10) Creativity, Inc - a great book on creativity and leadership.

11) Bernard Pivot Blogfest - one of my favorite questionnaires of all time.

12) Loving a Great Character - some of my favorite characters of all time.

13) Dulcinea and New Links - my dogs favorite questionnaires of all time.

14) Show, Don't Tell - a favorite exercise I use with students when teaching inferences and the concept of Show, Don't Tell.

15) Summer Literary Trips

How about you? Did you revisit any old loves this month?

2026 Week of Love

Many are already making plans for the next holiday, but did you know there is actually an entire week of love that thousands celebrate? Most of the people I know only celebrate, or dread, the most famous day which is Valentine's. However, according to multiple sites, there is an entire week of love and each day leading up to Valentine's has a significant meaning or purpose.

According to those love experts, the days are as follows: 

For more information, check out: Valentine's Week Full List 2026: Rose Day, Propose Day And Kiss Day; How To Celebrate These Days

While I love flowers and jewelry, my family and friends know my favorite gifts are a good book and chocolate.

Interested in a few FREE romantic flash fiction pieces? Try my stories:

Thankful Every Day
Madame Tooshkas Spell
Masters in Love
Love's New Beginning

Or order the last IWSG anthology on the right - First Love: The Art of Making Doughnuts.

Not sure what to get the writer in your life? Check out this list of suggested Valentines day gifts for writers or check out these Six Ways to Participate in Romance Week at Goodreads.

Want to share the theme of love with children? Check out these 10 Best Children's Books About Love.

So many of us love reading and writing. We have favorites that we return to again and again. How about you? 

I am especially grateful for a warm home full of books as I've been seeing the massive freezes and storms sweeping parts of the world. I hope you all stay safe, warm, and loved. Happy Valentine's!

Will you be participating in the week of love? What is your favorite genre? Favorite author? Favorite book from childhood? Are you doing something special that week, or for Valentine's Day?

Planning for a Week of Love

Many are already making plans for the next holiday, but did you know there is actually an entire week of love that thousands celebrate? Most of the people I know only celebrate, or dread, the most famous day which is Valentine's. However, according to multiple sites, there is an entire week of love and each day leading up to Valentine's has a significant meaning or purpose.

According to those love experts, the days are as follows:

 

While I love flowers and jewelry, my family and friends know my favorite gifts are a good book and chocolate.

Interested in a few FREE romantic flash fiction pieces? Try my stories:

Thankful Every Day
Madame Tooshkas Spell
Masters in Love
Love's New Beginning

Or order the last IWSG anthology on the right - First Love: The Art of Making Doughnuts.

Not sure what to get the writer in your life? Check out this list of suggested Valentines day gifts for writers or check out these Six Ways to Participate in Romance Week at Goodreads.

Want to share the theme of love with children? Check out these 10 Best Children's Books About Love.

So many of us love reading and writing. We have favorites that we return to again and again. How about you? 

I am especially grateful for a warm home full of books as I've been seeing the massive freezes and storms sweeping parts of the world. I hope you all stay safe, warm, and loved. Happy Valentine's!

Will you be participating in the week of love? What is your favorite genre? Favorite author? Favorite book from childhood? Are you doing something special that week, or for Valentine's Day?

Week of Love

Did you know there is an entire week of love? Most of the people I know only celebrate, or dread, the most famous day which is Valentine's. However, according to multiple sites, there is an entire week of love and each day leading up to Valentine's has a significant meaning or purpose.

According to those love experts, the days are as follows:

 

While I love flowers and jewelry, my family and friends know my favorite gifts are a good book and chocolate.

Interested in a few FREE romantic flash fiction pieces? Try my stories:

Thankful Every Day
Madame Tooshkas Spell
Masters in Love
Love's New Beginning

Or order the most recent IWSG anthology on the right - First Love: The Art of Making Doughnuts

Not sure what to get the writer in your life? Check out this list of suggested Valentines day gifts for writers or check out these Six Ways to Participate in Romance Week at Goodreads.

Want to share the theme of love with children? Check out these 10 Best Children's Books About Love.

So many of us love reading and writing. We have favorites that we return to again and again. How about you? 

I am especially grateful for a warm home full of books as I've been seeing the massive freezes and storms sweeping parts of the world. I hope you all stay safe, warm, and loved. Happy Valentine's!

Will you be participating in the week of love? What is your favorite genre? Favorite author? Favorite book from childhood? Are you doing something special this week, or for Valentine's Day?

Gilmore Girls Reading List

Some months ago, my 15-year-old daughter discovered Gilmore Girls. We recently finished watching not only the original seven seasons, but the Year in the Life reunion series as well. While I didn't care for all of them (mainly the seventh season and reunion series) I was glad to see it rekindle my daughters love for (almost) all things literary.

Out of curiosity, we googled to see if anyone had typed up a list of all of the books mentioned in the series. Not only are there dozens of lists, but they also range in numbers from approximately fifty to more than 500 titles.

Some of the smaller lists don't seem to have caught all of the titles. Some of the longer ones mention not only the titles the main character discusses, but also the ones she is seen silently reading, or they can be seen on the shelves in her room(s) throughout the series.

The most comprehensive list we have found so far is this one by Jules Buono. There are 518 titles listed. My daughter was dismayed to find she has only read 18 of the titles so far, and now she is digging through my personal library to see how many more of the titles she can find to consume. I have not yet checked to see how many I have read. A quick perusal showed I may not care to read them all, but I have read quite a few.

Regardless of whether or not either of us ever reads them all, it's great to see her reinspired to pursue a love of reading. It's also been great to have discussions about not only the show, but so many of these books as well.

How about you? Have you ever seen the show? Did you like it? How many of these 518 titles have you read?

Week of Love

It's the week leading up to Valentine's, and while I love flowers and jewelry, my family and friends know my favorite gifts are a good book and chocolate.

Interested in a few FREE romantic flash fiction pieces? Try my stories:

Thankful Every Day
Madame Tooshkas Spell
Masters in Love
Love's New Beginning

Or preorder the upcoming anthology on the right - First Love: The Art of Making Doughnuts

Not sure what to get the writer in your life? Check out this list of suggested Valentines day gifts for writers or check out these Six Ways to Participate in Romance Week at Goodreads.

Want to share the theme of love with children? Check out these 10 Best Children's Books About Love.

So many of us love reading and writing. We have favorites that we return to again and again. How about you? 

I am especially grateful for a warm home full of books as I've been seeing the massive freezes and storms sweeping parts of the world. I hope you all stay safe, warm, and loved. Happy Valentine's!

What is your favorite genre? Favorite author? Favorite book from childhood? Are you doing something special this week, or for Valentine's Day?

The Week of Love

It's Valentine's week, and while I love flowers and chocolate my family and friends know my favorite gift is a good book.

Not sure what to get the writer in your life? Check out this list of suggested Valentines day gifts for writers or check out these Six Ways to Participate in Romance Week at Goodreads.

This year's Goodreads challenge can be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/1161-romance-week-2018

Want to share the theme of love with children? Check out these 10 Best Children's Books About Love.

So many of us love reading and writing. We have favorites that we return to again and again. How about you? 

What is your favorite genre? Favorite author? Favorite book from childhood? Are you doing something special this week?

Happy Valentine's!

For Love

It's Valentine's week, and while I love flowers and chocolate my family and friends know my favorite gift is a good book.

Not sure what to get the writer in your life? Check out this list of suggested Valentines day gifts for writers or check out these Six Ways to Participate in Romance Week at Goodreads.

This year's Goodreads challenge can be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/1161-romance-week-2018

Want to share the theme of love with children? Check out these 10 Best Children's Books About Love.

So many of us love reading and writing. We have favorites that we return to again and again. How about you? 

What is your favorite genre? Favorite author? Favorite book from childhood? Are you doing something special this week?

Happy Valentine's!

IWSG: Love Your Genre

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh. Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs. You can also join us on twitter using the hashtag #IWSG, or on the Facebook page.

Now, IWSG hosts have changed up the format in an effort to make it more fun and interactive.Every month, they will announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG Day post. These questions may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Include your answer to the question in your IWSG post or let it inspire your post if you are struggling with something to say. 

Don’t forget to visit others that day to see their answers. Want to join, or learn more? Visit our - Sign-up List.

FEBRUARY QUESTION: What do you love about the genre you write in most often?

MY ANSWER: Happy Endings. While I've written a few cliffhangers, or downright unsettling endings for my characters, I usually prefer the "Happily Ever After" conclusion. Real life is hard with many disappointments. Even though my characters struggle, I want them to achieve their goals and dreams - at least for a little while.

How about you? What is your preferred genre and what do you like most about writing it?

Happy New Year!

This year I hope to be braver, stronger, kinder, and happier. I pray we all have love, hope, and a fierce determination for accomplishing good.

I'll be back on January 3rd for the next IWSG post. Until then...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!