Quote of the Month ~ July 2016

Love this one! :) How about you?

~

(Click here for previous Quotes of the Month on StJ!)

Heidi Peterson is a lover of wide-spreading land, summer dust, white pounding waterfalls, and mountain tops; also of good dark coffee and rich stories. Most of all she's a lover of the One who is the Word, the Word made flesh. You can visit her additional blog (where she shares more about books, movies, and further marvels of life) at: Along the Brandywine.

Visit and contact at: Sharing the Journey // Along the Brandywine // ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com

Quote of the Month ~ May 2016

Such a great one! Agreed? :)

~

(Click here for previous Quotes of the Month on StJ!)

Heidi Peterson is a lover of wide-spreading land, summer dust, white pounding waterfalls, and mountain tops; also of good dark coffee and rich stories. Most of all she's a lover of the One who is the Word, the Word made flesh. You can visit her additional blog (where she shares more about books, movies, and further marvels of life) at: Along the Brandywine.

Visit and contact at: Sharing the Journey // Along the Brandywine // ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com

3 Things I Love in a Good Story // Emma Jane

from Emma Jane

1. Sparkling Dialogue

I’m really not sure why I used the word ‘sparkling’ -- it may or may not be the best choice for what I mean, but it just popped into my head and I thought, why not. ;-P What I really mean is dialogue, and I didn’t want to just say ‘good dialogue’ because that’s boring and I’m pretty sure everyone would say the same thing.

Besides characters, dialogue is probably the most important thing in a story for me -- in fact, it’s what defines the characters. Dialogue is what shows you how the characters think, how they interact with each other. It’s very important that it be realistic and have a natural flow to it; it’s got to sound like how people really talk. One thing that really bothers me about dialogue in a lot of books (mostly adult books, I’ve noticed) is when the characters say things to each other for the sole purpose of informing the reader of what’s going on -- you know they wouldn’t say that to each other, they’re only saying that because the author wants you, the reader, to know. That seems lame to me. If characters talk to each other in an honest, easy way, that really draws me in, and I feel more connected to them. It’s the same with movies.

Some examples of Books With Exceptional Dialogue: True Grit by Charles Portis (DUH DUH DUH); The Lizzie Searches for Love series by Linda Byler (which are pretty much the sweetest books on the planet); Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry (or anything by Larry McMurtry, for that matter) 

2. Original description 

I love analogies, and metaphors, and all kinds of yummy descriptions. Admittedly, I’m not a huge fan of extensive description -- I could do without thirty pages about the history of bombs, Mr. Victor Hugo -- but if the author has an insightful way of looking at things and a creative way of describing things, then give it to me, baby! I say ‘original’ because I tend to get annoyed with an author if they keep using a certain word to describe something that I’ve seen countless authors use for the same thing. I love it when authors come up with their own -- it shows great imagination. (Depending on what kind of book it is, I might even go with made-up words, but very rarely. ;-P) 

So yes, I love creative description, but in moderation. I don’t need to know everything; I want to be able to imagine a fair bit of it for myself. 

Some Examples of Books With Refreshing Description: Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery; the Sarah, Plain and Tall books by Patricia MacLachlan; the Songbird series by Sara Evans and Rachel Hauck 

3. Strong Bonds Between Characters 

I’ve noticed a pattern in books and movies I especially adore, and it usually has something to do with strong relationships between the characters. By this I mean, characters who care about each other, who sacrifice things for each other. This also goes with Strong Characters in General, I suppose. And most of my favorite stories have some kind of strong bond between siblings, between married people, between friends, or even between a crazy trigger-happy grandma and a shy granddaughter. (I love you, Richard Peck.) What’s even more fun is if it’s an unexpected bond, one that grows stronger through the course of the book/movie/whatever. 

Some examples: August King and Annalees in The Journey of August King; Paul McLean and Normal McLean in A River Runs Through It (THAT MOVIE THOUGH); Gus McCrae and Woodrow Call in Lonesome Dove (seriously, don’t get me started); Orry Main and George Hazard in North and South (the most epic friendship ever recorded on screen); Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday in...well, real life, and Wyatt Earp and Tombstone; Mary Alice and Grandma Dowdal in A Year Down Yonder; Cabot Murray and Eden Day in Yankee Stranger; Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe in the Anne books; Atticus Finch and Scout Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird; Simon Birch and Joe what’s-his-name in Simon Birch; and on and on….

(Note from Heidi: Thank you so much for sharing, Emma! :))

~     ~     ~ 

And... would you like to share three of your favorite things in a guest post? You don’t have to be a writer to qualify! This series is by story lovers for story lovers.
For post specifics/guidelines you can see the initial post here, then send Heidi a quick email at ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com. (Don’t be shy. I’d love to have you! :))

3 Things I Love in a Good Story // Rosie

from Rosie

1. Good Dialogue

I simply do not like cheesy dialogue. It’s not my thing. And I can’t stand stilted dialogue, either. Dialogue that drags the story down does not belong in any good novel. I like dialogue that adds to the plot and helps you to get to know the characters better. Dialogue should be fresh, personal, and be absolutely OWNED by the characters saying it. It has to be something they would actually say.

Now, of course, it’s hard to keep dialogue original and interesting. I mean, of course, when a boy surprises a girl who’s just dropped her books and papers everywhere, it’s not like they’re going to be terribly witty and gripping. The boy will say “Oh, hullo. D’ya need any help?” and the girl will go, “No, nnnoooo, I’ve got this, thanks.” I understand that! The only thing that I ask is that the dialogue really fit in the story. It helps to make the story so much more enjoyable and memorable. 

2. Atmosphere

I love it when an author creates a world that seems real, a world that you can immerse yourself in so deep that you forget that you have to come out. Wodehouse does that to me. So does Agatha Christie. In my favorite of Christie’s novels, Death Comes As The End, I was drawn in completely to the Ancient Egyptian world that she had created. I even became the heroine, which since it was a murder/romance story was really stressful, actually, but I couldn’t help it. It was just So Good. 

3. Nice heroes

I know I put this in third place, but I actually think it’s the thing I care most about in a book. Which may or may not have something to do with the fact that I’m a girl - I leave to you to figure that out :P What can I say? All girls like to read about romance. However, that being said, having nice heroes is very important to me. By “nice” I don’t mean perfect, at all, at all. I recognize that no one is perfect, not even a hero in a novel. And it’s interesting to read about how they deal with their faults/problems.

I just have problems reading heroes of the type that generally seem to inhabit more and more of our modern romance novels. The kind that has perfect hair, a hawk nose, and an ATTITUDE! The kind that thinks they own the world. The kind that has every lady’s attention and knows it. The kind that doesn’t hesitate to say nasty things. I simply cannot enjoy reading the story arc of a man who starts off as a monster, and I think it’s because I tend to put myself in the heroine’s place when I read a novel. That may seem weird to some of you, but it’s what I do . . . 

And that is why I like “nice heroes.” I would much rather read a story with a more humble and honest hero, even if it means he’s only “average good-looking.” I actually don’t care about perfect hair, funny as it sounds. Because in books, perfect hair seems to go with egotistical, stuck-up heroes. Give me any time a hero who struggles with shyness or a lack of confidence, and I’ll give you the one with the designer label. Only I warn you: he comes with the ability to charm you, betray you, and leave you sobbing in a chair. They’re dangerous, peoples. 

Thank you so much for having me, Heidi! I really enjoyed myself! And I hope I didn’t make too many enemies with that last point! Happy February, everybody! :P 

(Note from Heidi: Thank you so much for sharing, Rosie!)

~     ~     ~ 

And... would you like to share three of your favorite things in a guest post? You don’t have to be a writer to qualify! This series is by story lovers for story lovers.
For post specifics/guidelines you can see the initial post here, then send Heidi a quick email at ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com. (Don’t be shy. I’d love to have you! :))

3 Things I Love in a Good Story // Victoria

from Victoria

1. Atmosphere

This one is a little hard to explain, but it's critical to a good story in my opinion. Atmosphere is the tone, the aura, the ambiance, the feel of a particular place or land or setting in a story. Think of the glorious, majestic security and beauty of Rivendell in The Lord of the Rings, the coziness of Mr. and Mrs. Beaver's home in The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, the drafty, echo-y mystery of Thornton Hall in Jane Eyre, the earthy, rustic comfort of the Gargery's Forge in Great Expectations. It's not something you pin down exactly, or point to a particular passage and say, "There it is -- there's the atmosphere." It's woven into the fabric of every description of a place in a story. Sometimes it runs through the entire story, but usually the atmosphere is connected to a particular place or building in a tale. And then there's the overarching feel of the entire book, made up of a string of individual atmospheres like diamonds on a necklace. I find that (second only to the characters) atmosphere is what keeps me coming back over and over to my favorite books.

2. Characters

I know that lots of other bloggers have already used "Characters" as one of their top three in this series, but I really do think it is absolutely indispensable to a good story. I mean, try to even imagine a truly fantastic story with weak, wooden characters. It's nearly impossible. Characters are usually what we remember most about any good story. Humanity, honor, humor -- all play a part in making memorable heroes. But even villains or side characters or characters that only show up once can all be memorable. As long as they are believable, have realistic dialogue, and accurately reflect humanity in all its complexity, characters can feel as real as flesh-and-blood people that you actually know. And maybe most importantly, they can impact your life forever -- who hasn't been influenced in some way by a hero they read of as a child? I wouldn't be the woman I am today if I had never met Gandalf, Aslan, Mr. Knightley or Dym in the pages of a book.

3. Self-Sacrifice

Think through every compelling, stirring or touching story you've ever read or watched. I don't care if it's How to Train Your Dragon, Sense and Sensibility or The Lord of the Rings, nearly every story has a pivotal scene or theme of self-sacrifice. It doesn't have to necessarily be a matter of life and death, but it always involves someone giving of themselves or laying down their own good for the good of another. Joe Gargery giving his life's savings for Pip, Aragorn riding to the Black Gates for Frodo, Tony Stark taking the missile meant for Manhattan in The Avengers, Flynn Rider choosing Rapunzel's life over his own in Tangled -- self-sacrifice is everywhere. It's kind of ironic to find this in a world that claims to hold a survival-of-the-fittest Darwinian worldview. As a Christian, though, it's easy for me to understand why writers and directors all throughout the world find themselves creating stories of self-sacrifice, book after book and movie after movie. It's because it reflects the life-changing, earth-shattering self-sacrifice of Christ Himself. In a laying down of self so monumental and unbelievable as that of the Maker dying for His creation, the crucifixion of Christ became the single most important event in the history of the world -- whether certain humans throughout history choose to acknowledge that fact or not. Because of Christ, self-sacrifice (like truth, honor, love and good triumphing over evil) has become an ever-present theme throughout literature and film throughout the ages.

Note from Heidi: Thank you so much for sharing, Victoria! :)

~     ~     ~ 

And... would you like to share three of your favorite things in a guest post? You don’t have to be a writer to qualify! This series is by story lovers for story lovers.
For post specifics/guidelines you can see the initial post here, then send Heidi a quick email at ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com. (Don’t be shy. I’d love to have you! :))

Quote of the Month ~ January 2016

(via Pinterest)

Love this one! And what think you? Do you have any other good writing quotes you're mulling over this January?

~

(Click here for previous Quotes of the Month here on StJ)

Heidi Peterson is a lover of wide-spreading land, summer dust, white pounding waterfalls, and mountain tops; also of good dark coffee and rich stories. Most of all she's a lover of the One who is the Word, the Word made flesh. You can visit her additional blog (where she shares more about books, movies, and further marvels of life) at: Along the Brandywine.

Visit and contact at: Sharing the Journey // Along the Brandywine // ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com

3 Things I Love in a Good Story // Hamlette

from Hamlette

1 – Characters I Want to Be Friends With 

No lie -- this is make-or-break for me. If I don't want to be friends with at least a few of the main characters and hang out with them, I won't be re-reading or re-watching this, which means I don't love it, or even like it much. I realize this is highly subjective, as no one can really predict what will make me want to be friends with a fictional character, but there it is.

Actually, I do have some pretty basic things I like in a character. They need to be nice and helpful. I also appreciate characters who are loyal, sensible, and practical. A little quirkiness is nice, and I appreciate both sarcasm and sass a lot. But those are all gravy. I don't love characters who are not both nice and helpful. Now you know.

2 – Realistic Dialogue 

It needs to sound like things real human beings in that point in time would say. (William Shakespeare gets a pass for this one -- no mere mortal talks as well as his characters. But it would be nice if we did!) 

Also, I really appreciate it when an author tells me a character has an accent, say Scottish, and then lets me imagine the accent. I dinnae apprrreciate it when they mun go to verrrah grrreat lengths to wrrrite oot the accent -- ach, mon, it gives me a rrroarrring headache if I cannae rrread it easily.

3 – Happy Endings

And by that, I mean endings that make me happy. I want moral balance restored to the universe at the end of a story -- good triumphs over evil, etc. This is why I consider the ending of Hamlet to be happy -- good has triumphed, even if at great personal cost. If evil wins, or if good kinda wins but evil is still lurking somewhere, then it's not a happy ending, to me.

(Note from Heidi: Thanks so much for sharing today, Hamlette and I heartily concur with every one of your points! ;))

~     ~     ~ 

Would you like to share three of your favorite things in a guest post? You don’t have to be a writer to qualify! This series is by story lovers for story lovers.
For post specifics/guidelines you can see the initial post here, then send Heidi a quick email at ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com. Don’t be shy. I’d love to have you!

Inkling Explorations Link-up // July 2015

Inkling Explorations is an exciting link-up for any and all story lovers who love discovering treasures in everything they read—whether it's in an old favorite or something crisply and deliciously new on the shelf.

It's completely optional (you can enter some months and not in others) and it's open to entries from literature and film—and with selections from fiction, historical fiction, fantasy, romance, action, poetry, even sometimes non-fiction! The range is pretty much limitless. (Note: Entries will be moderated, however, and must be clean, edifying, and suitable for all ages.)

*Rules*

1. Post the Inklings button on your sidebar.

2. Do a post on your own blog relating to the month's selection/subject (a literary excerpt as short or as long as you like AND/OR—if specified that month—a screencap from a film with an explanation of how the scene builds/develops the story). Link back here somewhere in your post.

3. Come back here and paste your link in the comments box and I'll add it to the post. Then enjoy visiting and reading everyone else's contributions!

That's all there is to it!

July Topic: A well crafted animated film climax

July specific notes: Film entries only this month. Also, an addendum! As you can see above, I've added one other quick thing to Step #3. After pasting your link in the box below, leave a quick comment as well so everyone who's already posted is able to keep easily and quickly updated on new additions. :)

And my July selection is… 

Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. 

Incidentally, I’ve been planning this selection all month, but it also perfectly coincided with the wrap-up for the Ring Around the Rose link-up, so I’m hoping to tag along a little with that here as well. (If you’d like to see more on the link-up, visit Jenelle’s or Hayden’s blogs here and here where they also link to the other authors.) 

And now, Beauty and the Beast! 

First seeing this as an adult, I was actually thrilled almost to tears by the depth of the ending. The central theme—self-sacrifice/the true nature of love—goes on to resurface in both Tangled and Frozen and other more recently released favorites of mine, and is given a fresh and deeper turn in each. It’s self-sacrifice and the true nature of love closely tied as it is to transformation and resurrection. 

There’s something going on here—particularly potent and heady. 

For tied to that death and resurrection, the people we care about are taken to the breaking point. A protagonist is taken to his limit. It’s a reminder of what makes great story. A reminder (for me, as a writer) to go all the way—the umpteenth mile to the very edge—to go beyond the edge. 

Because it’s beyond the edge for the characters—but it’s not beyond the promise. It’s when everything is darkest (i.e. “how in the world or out of it can a promise be fulfilled if the one who received it is lying dead?”), it’s when the ground has just been cut from under us—that the mystery of fulfillment comes. 

As Tolkien put it, “The consolation of fairy-stories, the joy of the happy ending: or more correctly of the good catastrophe, the sudden joyous “turn” (for there is one true end to any fairy-tale): this joy, which is one of the things which fairy stories can produce supremely well, is not essentially “escapist,” nor “fugitive.” In its fairy-tale—or otherworld—setting, it is a sudden and miraculous grace: never to be counted on to recur. It does not deny the existence of dyscatastrophe, of sorrow and failure: the possibility of these is necessary to the joy of deliverance; it denies (in the face of much evidence, if you will) universal final defeat and in so far is evangelium, giving a fleeting glimpse of Joy, Joy beyond the walls of the world, poignant as grief. 

“It is the mark of a good fairy-story, of the higher or more complete kind, that however wild its events, however fantastic or terrible the adventures, it can give to child or man that hears, when the “turn” comes, a catch of the breath, a beat and lifting of the heart, near to (or indeed accompanied by) tears, as keen as that given by any form of literary art…” On Fairy-Stories 

(In fact, as Tolkien himself goes on to say, in essence, insofar as fairy tales clearly mirror the truest and most magnificent Story of all, they are themselves one of the highest forms of art.) 

And there, good friends, are a few of the reasons why I love the ending of Beauty and the Beast and consider the Disney version to be masterfully well told! 

~     ~     ~ 

And your entries here!

Olivia @ Meanwhile in Rivendell
Courage & Sacrifice -- Hamlette @ Hamlette's Soliloquy
Natalie @ Raindrops on Roses & Whiskers on Kittens

As always, entries are open through the end of the month and I’m looking forward to seeing your selections! 

Up next month: A scene happening on/around a train or train station in book or film

Inkling Explorations Launch and Celebratory Giveaway!

Inkling Explorations is an exciting link-up for any and all story lovers who love discovering treasures in everything they read—whether it's in an old favorite or something crisply and deliciously new on the shelf.

It's completely optional (you can enter some months and not in others) and it's open to entries from literature and film—and with selections from fiction, historical fiction, fantasy, romance, action, poetry, even sometimes non-fiction! The range is pretty much limitless. (Note: Entries will be moderated, however, and must be clean, edifying, and suitable for all ages.)

*Rules*

1. Post the Inklings button on your sidebar.

2. Do a post on your own blog relating to the month's selection/subject (a literary excerpt as short or as long as you like AND/OR—if specified that month—a screencap from a film with an explanation of how the scene builds/develops the story). Link back here somewhere in your post.

3. Come back here and paste your link in the comments box and I'll add it to the post. Then enjoy visiting and reading everyone else's contributions!

That's all there is to it!

Subject for May

Since we're just getting started here in May, I thought we'd pick something easy. Hence, this month's selection is “violets.” (And for a few whispered hints: L.M. Montgomery, Louisa May Alcott, and Laura Ingalls Wilder all share about them. ;))

And some May specific notes: If you absolutely, positively can't think of any violet references, feel free to share something referencing any other type of flower....EXCEPT roses (we're saving those for a later month). This month is also open for film/screen entries. (They just have to be integral to the plot: i.e. Colonel Brandon and Willoughby both bringing Marianne flowers in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.)

My entry for this month comes from Greenwillow by B.J. Chute: 

“He had been kneeling to single out the widest violet-faces, but he turned and stood up. “It's not my wish, Dorrie! Do you think I'd not stay forever if only I could?”

“I know.” She looked down at the roots of the tree he was standing by, moss so thick about them that the twists and gnarls were all cups of green velvet. “Gideon, at the candle-walking on Christmas Eve I used my wish against your call, though I've never told you.” She raised her eyes. “The candle blew out.”

“You should never have wasted your wish, Dorrie. You should have asked something for yourself.”

“I was asking for myself, Gideon,” said Dorrie.

“All the violets he had picked spilled through his fingers, and their bits of sky and their heart-leaves fell and lay at Dorrie's feet. He looked at her with the west wind lifing her unbound hair from her shoulders and April all around her and the earth jubilating, everything new and winter past and no more than a step between where she sat and he stood.”

Lovely, isn't it?

~     ~     ~

And you can share your link here!

Hamlette's Soliloquy
The Edge of the Precipice
Raindrops on Roses & Whiskers on Kittens
An Old Fashioned Girl
Meanwhile, in Rivendell...
Violets -- Montgomery sure loved them! -- Wonderland Creek
Sweet with Violets -- Captured by the Word
Inkling Explorations in Gone with the Wind @ a room of one's own

And now for our giveaway! 

As part of our grand, opening celebration, I'm giving away a paperback copy of Greenwillow! (Note: you can participate in the link-up without entering the giveaway, but if you do choose to enter, you have to have done the link-up for your entry to be valid. The happy winner will be drawn on Friday, May 29th.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Now let the fun begin! Entries are open through the end of the month and I can't wait to see what you all share!

Up next month: A Gripping Story Opening in Literature

Announcing....a new link-up!

The date of the grand announcement has arrived! Coming the week of May 11th, I'll be starting a monthly link-up here for any and all readers who love delving deep into their favorite works while also sharing and discovering with fellow story lovers. It promises to be an entirely wonderful experience and I hope you'll join us!

More details to follow when the link-up officially starts next month, but meanwhile, tell your friends—and be sure to share the button!

~     ~     ~

Heidi Peterson is a lover of wide-spreading land, summer dust, white pounding waterfalls, and mountain tops; also of good dark coffee and rich stories. Most of all she's a lover of the One who is the Word, the Word made flesh. You can visit her additional blog (where she shares more about books, movies, and further marvels of life) at: Along the Brandywine.

Visit and contact at: Sharing the Journey // Along the Brandywine // ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com

Spenser, Lewis & A Short Exercise in Metaphor

“God…sent the human race what I call good dreams. I mean those queer stories scattered all through 
the heathen religions about a god who dies and comes to life again and, by his death, has somehow given new life to men.” C.S. Lewis

I’m going to let you all into a little secret. One of my favorite stories is Edmund Spenser’s first volume of the Faerie Queene (rendered most excellently here by Roy Maynard). It’s the story of the Reformation in England and it’s the story of St. George and the Dragon. Upstream from and influencing C.S. Lewis, it’s also similar to Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress (written a century later), but different in that it’s martial and militant—the story of the Christian waging war on his own sin, waging war and falling and picking himself up again—ultimately falling and failing and needing to be delivered. It’s a riveting epic (deserving wide recognition!), but today I’m specifically bringing it up as it’s part of the immense tapestry behind us—the tapestry of types and shadows and literature and history. 

Looking at that tapestry, seeing it as God’s story and handiwork, we naturally see the fountainhead of it all, his given Word: perfect in its history and pictures and poetry. In the beginning we have the garden, and Genesis and Exodus are chock full of shadowy returnings to that garden—returnings to the garden Adam and Eve left. And popping up in key places, that garden continues appearing all the way through to Revelation. 

We also have characters. We have the first Adam. We have Boaz, the kinsman redeemer. Joshua, the conqueror. Othniel and Samson and Jephthah, saviors of their people. David—a sinning king yet a man after God’s own heart. The list could go on and on and on…all of them pointing to our great kinsman redeemer, conqueror, deliverer—perfect and sacrificial High King. 

Christ is the ultimate fulfillment, but if we know our types and shadows, we can explore different facets of the great story and catch a fresh and deeper perspective—a deeper understanding of what it all actually means. Digging into it and figuring out the connections is also an excellent training ground in metaphor. And, if we’re going to tell good stories in our own turn, such an exercise is invaluable!

Metaphor lets us approach something obliquely, adding depth and a further layer to be unpacked—adding multiple layers to unpack. Naturally, when it comes to writing, this requires subtlety, understatement, and a level of mystery. We want the reader to have the thrill of digging and discovering and putting the pieces together for themselves in our wonderful stories.

Deep metaphors are tricky—often tricky to get straight in our own minds—and so, in the end, it often comes down to capturing and describing a mystery with clarity. But when we do, a marvel happens—more mystery springs from the earth and our stories come alive.

~

Share your thoughts! How are you creating with metaphor?

Heidi Peterson is a lover of wide-spreading land, summer dust, white pounding waterfalls, and mountain tops; also of good dark coffee and rich stories. Most of all she's a lover of the One who is the Word, the Word made flesh. You can visit her additional blog (where she shares more about books, movies, and further marvels of life) at: Along the Brandywine.

Visit and contact at: Sharing the Journey // Along the Brandywine // ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com

New Blog & A Giveaway!

Welcome to my new blog and author website! 

Storytelling takes many forms and a good story is influenced from a myriad of sources. Here on this blog—with quotes, encouragement and conversations with other creative souls—we’ll be able to explore some of the tremendous similarities, differences, and delights between diverse forms of story crafting.

And yes…there will be updates on my writing as well! So on that note, enjoy checking out the various pages here and be certain to enter the giveaway!

Giveaway Rules

You can enter one or both giveaways with each winner eligible for one book (i.e. whichever one is first drawn). For both books it's also winner's choice of either a paperback or Kindle edition. For summaries and excerpts of each book, check out the tabs just under the header at the top of this page.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Do enjoy!

Heidi Peterson is a lover of wide-spreading land, summer dust, white pounding waterfalls, and mountain tops; also of good dark coffee and rich stories. Most of all she's a lover of the One who is the Word, the Word made flesh. You can visit her additional blog (where she shares more about books, movies, and further marvels of life) at: Along the Brandywine.

Visit and contact at: Sharing the Journey // Along the Brandywine // ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com