Thoughtful Thursdays
Musings on faith, family, & fiction
Though a novelist by trade, one of the trademarks of my books is the spiritual depth and exploration I includes as my characters work through what it really means to walk out their faith. Faith, in fact, is one of the things I like to ponder most. In these once-a-week articles, I gets thoughtful at the crossroads of faith, family, and fiction.
Thoughtful About . . . How Did I Miss That??
I just realized that my one-year anniversary of this blog passed at the end of July without me paying a lick of attention. The nerve! Why, I oughta break up with me for such an oversight . . . ;-)Yesterday I realized I'd crested the 300 post mark and thought, "Wow, my...
Thoughtful About . . . Salvation
I remember thinking, sometime between ages 12 and 14, that I could never write a story that took place before Christ. Or which dealt with people after Christ who never heard his message. "I just couldn't do it," I recall thinking. "I'd be wondering about their...
Thoughtful About . . . Whatever
For the past month or so, I have been in the "Whatever" stage when it comes to publishing. This isn't a negative place, though it might sound like it, given the name. But that's an abbreviation. Really, it's the "Whatever You Want for Me, Lord" stage.See, the industry...
Thoughtful About . . . Getting Away
Don't forget you have a chance to win Stray Drop at www.ShannonVannatter.com! The last time my family took a vacation was September '08, when Rowyn was 7 months old. Last summer we just couldn't take the time--and this summer we expected to be crammed full of travel...
Thoughtful About . . . Prayer in the Headlines
Yesterday, while the rest of the country's newspapers probably had headlines about Russian spies, oil spills, or presidents, the Cumberland Times-News dedicated its front page to prayer. Oh, it might not have known that's what it was doing. But we did.See, the front...
Remember When . . . The Post Had Wings–er, Hooves?
"Whatever the condition--be it snowing, raining, blazing hot, or dark--they never fail to complete their assigned journey in the fastest possible time."Post Office motto? Well, not the one you're thinking. That's actually what Herodotus says of the Persian post...
Thoughtful About . . . Sharing and School
A couple weeks ago in one my daughter's Famous Fits of Four-Year-Old Frustration, she tossed out that she hates being alone in her room (and tacked on that I don't care because I'm mean). Which made a strange idea click into me head. Me, the queen of One Child Per...
Thoughtful About . . . Wuv, Twue Wuv
Nine years ago today, I pledged my heart, body, and future to David. The man I loved since I we were 15, the man I knew with all that was in me was The One. Sometimes, I think he's much more than that.It seemed an appropriate day to muse (not for the first time, I...
Thoughtful About . . . The Spirit
I'm writing a book right now that's way more spiritually charged, spiritually involved than I imagined it would be. There are a lot of beyond-your-vision battles raging, and that means a lot of Roseanna praying before writing--I so don't want to get this stuff...
Thoughtful About . . . The ACFW Conference!!
Totally Worth ItAs conference season warms up, I'm tickled to be a stop on the official ACFW Conference Blog Tour. This is the only conference I've had the pleasure of attending thus far, so I can't really compare it to any others out there. But I can share my...
Thoughtful About . . . The Idyllic
I'm sitting on my back porch. The clock just flipped to 7 a.m., and the air's still cool and scented with honeysuckle. I'm in exercise gear, though I have no intention of exercising--but my aunt passed along a too-cute tank with built in shelf, and it seemed a good...
Thoughtful About . . . The Right Thing
This may be rambling, so we'll have to see where I go with it--at the moment, I'm not quite sure. There are times in life when we know absolutely what we have to do. Times when the Lord speaks so clearly, guides so strongly that we have no doubts. We recognize His...
Thoughtful About . . . Confidence and Humility
Giveaway here - Deb Raney's Almost ForeverGiveaway of A Stray Drop of Blood - a special Mother's Day contest at Sunnybank Meandering includes my book and many other awesome prizes. Also, there's a really awesome interview and giveaway to correspond with the ACFW book...
Thoughtful About . . . Plotting (No, Not World Domination–Yet. Mwa ha ha ha)
Giveaway - last day to enter for a chance to win Lena Nelson Dooley's Love Finds You in Golden, New Mexico!~*~So, I've been having a fabulous writing streak. I'm talking super-fab. The last few days I've been managing a chapter a day, which is just awesome. And while...
Thoughtful About . . . Discoveries
Two giveaways - Jennifer Hudson Taylor's Highland Blessings and Ginny Smith's Third Time's a Charm (last day!!).~*~I love history. Have I mentioned that before? And it's not that I just love learning it for its own sake--I mean, that's cool and fun, but I always have...
Thoughtful About . . . Feelin ‘ It
Giveaway - Last day to enter for Sarah Sundin's A Distant MelodyGiveaway of Stray Drop - at the fabulous Jennifer Taylor's blog~*~First, a funny story. Over the weekend we went to the big St. John's vs. Naval Academy Croquet Tournament . . . yeah, only Johnnies or...
Thoughtful About . . . News!
Today's the last day to enter to win Jill Williamson's To Darkness Fled!!~*~So it's been an interesting week. As I've considered what would be a good followup to A Stray Drop of Blood, I got an idea for another Biblical Fiction that would be a new twist on the...
Thoughtful About . . . My Guys
Don't forget the giveaway of Ann Shorey's The Promise of Morning!~*~Today's a pretty cool day in my history. It's my husband's and mine dating anniversary--twelve years that we've been together! Woo hoo! I was 15 when he became my boyfriend, and we've been going...
Thoughtful About . . . Building Character(s)
Today's the last day to enter my giveaway of Meander Scar and Carman's giveaway of A Stray Drop of Blood. Still have time on The Character Therapist's of Stray Drop, though!~*~So I've been thinking about characters lately. Probably because all of the new reviews have...
Thoughtful About . . . Lessons Learned in the Laundry Room
Today's the last day to enter to win Once in a Blue Moon!~*~I never thought I'd sink so low as to write about laundry, but there you have it. I'm writing about laundry. Perhaps this wouldn't be odd for some, but I hate doing laundry. Even more than I hate doing...
Thoughtful About . . . Other People’s Opinions
Don't forget to enter the giveaway for Love's Winding Path that posted on Tuesday, or the one for Amanda Cabot's Scattered Petals from Friday--last day for that one. And for those who are eager for a copy of A Stray Drop of Blood, today's your last chance to enter the...
Thoughtful About . . . Sales
Few things--today's the last day to enter the giveaway for Never Far from Home, but you still have a few days to enter the giveaway for Liberty's Promise. Also, for those of you still awaiting a copy of A Stray Drop of Blood, there's a giveaway up today at Michelle...
Thoughtful About . . . Friends
Don't forget to enter the giveaway for The Big 5-Oh! ~*~ Have you ever paused to take account of your friends? Tried to categorize them? Mentally nudged a particular person from one category to the next? How do you rate them/think of them/judge them? Do you have...
Thoughtful About . . . Bartok the Jeep
Again, TWO giveaways to remind you of! First is Friday's of Deliver Us from Evil by Robin Caroll (romantic suspense), and then Tuesday's of The Stones by Eleanor Gustafson (Biblical Fiction).And while I'm reminding, don't forget to check out giveaways of A Stray Drop...
Thoughtful About . . . Silence–and Birthdays
First, the announcements. Don't forget my giveaway of Christa's Walking on Broken Glass, and swing over to Sunnybank Meanderings for a really neat giveaway of A Stray Drop of Blood Plus. (The plus includes Companion Guide, bookmark, chamomile, lip balm, and recipe...
Thoughtful About . . . Rejections
Today's the last day to enter the giveaway for A Lady Like Sarah, so hop down and leave a comment!~*~Yesterday morning, I received what every author dreads: a rejection. And this isn't your run-of-the-mill, "Thanks, but after reading the proposal, it's not what we're...
Thoughtful About . . . An E-World
Don't forget that today's the last day to enter the giveaway for Wind of the Spirit! ~*~ It strikes me at least once a week that my world is pretty much wrapped up in the internet. Especially when I get to church and someone says something about talking to strangers...
Thoughtful About . . . Stray Mittens
(Real quick--today's your last day to enter the giveaway for Golden's A Prisoner of Versailles before I draw the winner tonight!) I know, I know. You look at the title to this post and think I'm going to talk about my kids' propensity to lose one of each and every set...
Thoughtful About . . . Organizing
Hello, my name is Roseanna, and I am disorganized.That's right, I confess it. The dishes sometimes sit on the counter for a day or so. The toys lay scattered on the floor. And I flip out every day at four o'clock when I realize that yet again I have to make dinner,...
Thoughtful About . . . Book Lovers
I will never forget my shock. There I sat, an innocent, in the admissions office at my college. All around me were the usual people that made up my day--the admissions counselors, the office manager, the director and associate director. We were minding our own...
Thoughtful About . . . What’s Been and What’s Coming
Well, here we are on the last day of 2009. Kinda hard to believe, isn't it? In a lot of ways, it's been a busy year. And in some ways, I feel like I got nothing done.What have I accomplished this year? Well, I've met my goal for books produced (though I didn't set a...
Thoughtful About . . . Christmas Memories
I decided to post today solely that I could copy my friend's idea from her blog yesterday and chat about some of my favorite Christmas things. =)I have so many fabulous memories surrounding the holidays, but one of my favorites is from the first year my grandmother...
Thoughtful About . . . Who I Am
I had the pleasure of spending last weekend with some of my dearest friends. It's kind of funny. When I'm with both of them at the same time, it inevitably makes me think about who I am as compared to who they are. For all the things we have in common, there are so...
Thoughtful About . . . Christmas, Reviews, and Party Dresses
My, aren't I focused this morning? With one cup of coffee under my belt, my brain's still fluttering here and there. But hey. It's my musing day, so I'll just go with the muse. (How very Greek of me!) Anyway. So in my house, Christmas prep is in full swing. Were it up...
Thoughtful About . . . Anticlimaxes
Well, there I was. Fully aware that the calender had flipped to my release date. Fully aware that I would never have a release date for this book again (I mean, I already got two--that's more than most people get, LOL). Fully aware that if I didn't somehow pour some...
Thoughtful About . . . Gee, Take a Guess!
I imagine 99% of blogs today are going to talk about Thanksgiving in some form or another. I toyed with the idea of taking a holiday from blogging, but I'd actually like to sit back and muse about the day. We'll see if anyone reads it, LOL.This year, I have so much to...
Thoughtful About . . . MY COVER!
Drum roll, please . . . Though this is only a proof, and there's one mistake that's been fixed (dare ya to find it, LOL), here it is. The full cover of A Stray Drop of Blood. Since it's hard to read the text in this size, here's what it says: The endorsement on the...
Thoughtful About . . . Gearing Up
With the official release of A Stray Drop of Blood only two and a half weeks out, I'm getting pretty darn anxious and excited. And it occurs to me that I have lots of stuff to announce to my three faithful readers! ;-)First, Stray Drop is available for pre-order at...
Thoughtful About . . . The Potter and the Dried Out Play-Doh
When I was younger, one of my favorite songs was "The Potter and the Clay." I had the sheet music for it, and I would sit down and play and sing that song until my family was probably ready to snatch it from my piano and toss it out the window. In high school, I got a...
Thoughtful About . . . Growing Up
It's a phrase we've heard, and which I've tossed around a few times: "Oh, grow up." And lately, I've had a few moments of "Wow. I feel like an adult all of a sudden." Like when we finally bit the bullet and bought insurance. Do you have any idea how grown-up it feels...
Thoughtful About . . . Extra Stuff
I confess. I'm one of those writers that just wants to write. When I was first informed that I'd have to market, I said something like, "Grooooooaaaaaan." I've mostly gotten over that, but I still had a few pockets of Hold-Out in my little brain.For some reason, one...
Thoughtful About . . . Things Autumnal
Ever since I can remember, I loved fall. I love the colors on the trees, I love the bite in the air, I love the smell. I love that last hoorah of harvest before the doldrums of winter sets in. Here in the mountains of Maryland, we don't get a ton of snow, so winter is...
Thoughtful About . . . A Toddler’s Focus
The deeper I get into the toddler years with my second child, the more I gotta wonder. I mean, really. How is it that this kid can't sit still for a diaper change, but he can spend an HOUR playing in my silverware drawer? Why will he not let me eat my dinner without a...
Thoughtful About . . . Progress
How do you measure your progress? It depends a lot on the project, obviously, on the type of work. But it's something I think we all do. Who doesn't end their day with the thought of, "What did I get done today?"My husband has a job that can be measured in monetary...
Thoughtful About . . . My Family
Yesterday a couple things happened. Though I spent my free-time de-adverbing Yesterday's Tides so that it can go out to the editors who requested it today (I'm addicted to adverbs, I swear), I spent the rest of my day with family.For starters, my awesome and gorgeous...
Thoughtful About . . . Finding Your Place
With the ACFW Conference in Denver only a week away (woo hoo!), my thoughts have inevitably turned to the dual hope/fear of finding that perfect editor (or not) for the book I'll be pitching.Up until two days ago, I didn't even know what I would pitch. I have a few...
Thoughtful About . . . Rewrites
Many, many moons ago I started writing a book. Well, it started as a short story, which pivoted around the crucifixion. As I went through college, I kept bringing it out over holidays and summer breaks, writing, writing, writing. I had a hard time writing it when...
Thoughtful About . . . New Things
This has been a landmark week. For a family whose method of budgeting is usually "Don't spend any money!" we've gone on a spending spree. A necessary one, granted. But still.A goodly little while ago, our fridge started leaking. Leaking rusty water, that is. My...
Thoughtful About . . . Angels
When I was very little (as in, from 2 to 4 1/2 years old) my family lived in a split-foyer house. There are things I remember about this house--my room. The kitchen with the breakfast bar separating it from the dining room.The stairs.Why, you ask, do I remember the...
Thoughtful . . . About Romance
It's a topic I've written about before. Romance in novels--what we expect from them, what we expect from life because of them. There are some people who have been adversely affected by them, drawn astray or given unrealistic expectations. There are others who had...