Getting it right

I usually try to do the right thing. Really.

I never litter, I wait my turn in lines, and I pay my taxes. It just kills me when I try to follow instructions and still get it wrong.

Like lately—at Starbucks.

Okay, I know some folks have political or environmental objections to Starbucks, but face it, they’re on every other corner and (more importantly) they’re in Barnes & Noble.

Anyway, the other day I went to the Starbucks in town and ordered a frothy latte, and what did they say? “Uh, next time just tell us you want an extra wet cappuccino.” To which I replied, thanks, no problem.

I may be an old dog, but I can learn new tricks.

So the other night I went to Barnes & Noble for my Words For The Journey meeting, and before the meeting started, I scurried over to Starbucks for my tall, extra wet cappuccino. You’ll never guess what the barista said to me: “What you really want ma’am, is a frothy latte.”

For the love of all the bahia beans in Brazil—what’s a girl to do?

Back from Dallas and the ACFW Conference

Hi, friends. What a wonderful time I had this past weekend at the annual ACFW conference. To tell the truth, it’s quite a different experience when you don’t have to go around begging agents and editors to take a peek at your work.

Some of my best conference moments were when I got to connect with my editor from Tyndale House, Jan Stob, and with my agent Beth Jusino from Alive Communications. What a treat. Below is a photo of me and Jan at the awards banquet.


Several months ago Rachel Hauck (conference worship leader) asked me to give Friday morning’s devotional. What an honor to stand before so many people who exemplify the excellence of the industry—and what an intimidating experience. I was told, however, that no one could see my knees knocking, so that’s good.

Part of the pleasure of my conference was spending time with Marion Bullock and Angie Poole my critique partners. We were able to celebrate with Angie because she got 2nd place in the Genesis contest for her genre.

The best part, of course, was in connecting with our Savior. I had some unmistakable God moments, and was humbled to allow Him to use me for His glory among the sweet saints at the conference.

Numbers in movies

This is fun--some creative person clipped together 100 movies using dialogue to count down from 100. Check it out: http://www.flixxy.com/100-greatest-movies.htm?a=6

Thanks to novelist Angie Hunt for a few minutes of amusement.

Cool Survey

Bethany House Publishers is soliciting our opinions on a book cover. Take this fun survey and enter for a chance to win a free book.

Tell me, what was your favorite cover Why?

The Restitution

Welcome to new friends surfing the Internet to keep up with The Restitution blog tour.

Wow. I could hardly put down The Restitution, MaryLu Tyndall’s third book in her Pirate trilogy. Thanks to MaryLu, I lost sleep and also lost time to work on my own writing. I became obsessed in the few days it took me to read this book.

The Restitution is a wonderful, swashbuckling, exciting read. I could feel the sand between my toes as I joined the adventure with Lady Isabel Ashton as she searched for her kidnapped son, the product of a violent encounter with pirate Kent Carlton—the one man who can help her recover little Frederick. The characterization is so well done in this novel that I feel I would recognize any number of the villains or heroes that roamed the Caribbean if I should run across them.

Truly, even if you don’t usually read historical novels, treat yourself to a few hours of pleasure aboard the Restitution amid a cast of characters that you’ll alternately cheer and jeer for. What a fun book to read. Thanks, MaryLu.


Mary Lu Tyndall spent her early years on the shores of South Florida. She graduated from San Jose State with a degree in Computer Science, and worked for a software company in Silicon Valley for fifteen years. She has been writing for more than twenty years, and currently lives in California with her husband, six children and three cats.

Fiction mirrors life or vice versa?

We’ve all heard that pieces of real life make their way into fiction novels. That’s good, right? It adds to the realism. In Searching for Spice, I’ve included my frustrating drive into work—the construction, the new traffic lights, the commuters who give their fellow travelers, ahem, impolite gestures.

Well, a fellow scribe in Poland drew from his life experiences, too. Only the experience he drew upon was a murder he apparently committed in 2000. So, this guy was sharp enough to get his book published, but he didn’t figure out someone might connect the dots. Oh, come on!

If you interested in the (grisly) details check it out: Polish Author Convicted of Murder.

So, do any of you authors out there want to make any confessions about what we might find in your books? Let us know about it.

Thanks to Pub Rants for publicizing the link to this story.

Playing along

My friend Jan has one of the most playful personalities ever. She’s a delight to spend time with. Today she tagged me to play along with her. And if I don’t, she’ll boycott my blog.

The game is to finish this sentence, “You know you’re a bona fide writer when you . . .”

Here are my responses:

• Try to put into words a beautiful or frightening or interesting scene that you see.


• Suffer intense guilt when you don’t write every day.


• Nod your head as if you’re actually listening, but instead you’re plotting.


• Meet regularly with other writers.


• Cry when you have to hurt your characters.

There, Jan. Will you still be my friend?

Oh, by the way, stop by and visit Jan’s blog Bold & Free. It’s a wonderful sample of what life is like when you allow yourself to step into the life our Heavenly Father has created for us and walk in faith, boldly and with purpose.