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Stories, History & Behind the Scenes
Reflections on history, theatre, storytelling, research, and the journeys that inspire the Inherited Treasures Series.
LATEST STORIES
Thoughts, discoveries, and glimpses behind the books.
Becoming Hazel Won an Award!
Hello, Readers! I am thrilled to announce that the first book in the Inherited Treasures Series, Becoming Hazel, has just been announced as a winner of an Author Shout Recommended Read Award.I know that many of you have read all four of the published books in the...
New Book Videos!
Hello, readers, and Happy Holidays to all of you. I hope you are finding time to spend with the ones you love and are spreading a bit of joy wherever you are able. In my newest book, Finding Salvadora, which will be published in February, Eleanor Roosevelt reminds us,...
Becoming Hazel is in Bookstores!
I have exciting news, readers! The second edition of my book, Becoming Hazel, Inherited Treasures Book 1, is not only available from the publisher, Archway Publishing (archwaypublishing.com), from Amazon, and wherever you get you books online.It has also made its...
What a Girl Should NOT Do
(1924 Edition)Admonitions from one hundred years ago… It seems every generation worries that their children are in harm’s way, and we need to protect them. I found it fascinating that even one hundred years ago, our great grandparents felt the same way.The poster I’ve...
Casting Call!
Announcing the Winners of"So, you want to be in picture . . . in my next book?" A while ago, I posted a couple of offers for readers to submit their names and a brief description of themselves for an opportunity to become characters in Book 4 of my Inherited Treasures...
Pulling Together
Hazel and Charlie never had many worldly possessions. They always lived in a tiny house, even when they had four children living with them. Both Hazel and Charlie worked hard and never complained about what they were doing, no matter how long the hours nor how...
Getting Around
Charlie and Hazel were ordinary people, so they had mixed feelings when they found themselves suddenly in possession of a fancy Model T. It was flashy, with bright yellow wheels, and they were used to walking to church or to the store in their little suburb outside of...
Last Call
A few weeks ago, I announced a contest for readers to become a character in my fourth novel, Gangsters & Reels, which will be published in the summer of 2025. It takes place in 1930 during prohibition and is set in speakeasies and movie studios. It comes on the...
So, you want to be in pictures…in my next book?
Have you ever dreamed of being a character in a movie or in a book? Well, I’m giving some of my readers the opportunity to live out both of those dreams!Movies aren’t only about the stars – and books aren’t only about the main characters. In fact, one of the most...
Those Big Blue Eyes
Both of my parents have blue eyes, and so it follows that my brother and I have inherited the trait. My maternal grandfather, Malcolm (yes, the same Malcolm who appears in the books), and my maternal grandmother, Eileen (you guessed it, same Eileen), also had...
Kindness, Through Charlie’s Eyes
I recently returned from an amazing vacation in Italy, accompanied by my husband, daughter, son-in-law, and two of our grandchildren. We all understand that we are privileged to be able to do such things, and we are reminded of being more generous with what we are...
The Power of Music
Music was Hazel’s passion.But she also knew that it could stir the spirits of those around her, and she could share her passion through her performances. At a basic level, she enhanced the enjoyment of the audiences who watched the silent films she accompanied. But...
Hazel on the Rails
When I grew up with my great-grandmother Hazel, we all lived in southern California, so I somehow assumed she had been born there.It wasn’t until I inherited all the family Bibles and began reading through the birth entries that I realized she was born in Kalamazoo,...
Parental Love
Those of us who are fortunate enough to be blessed with children know the pure joy of holding them in your arms for the first time or welcoming them into your home if you’ve made the generous choice to open your heart and your life to the child of another mother and...
Charlie as a Husband, Father and Grandfather
I’ve written a lot about Hazel as a talented, independent woman who made her mark on the world.She was strong-willed and determined to push the limits of whatever rules and societal norms were put in place to keep her “where she belonged.” But Hazel still managed to...
Reaching into the Past
When I first received my “Inherited Treasures” – boxes of photographs, letters, journals, and an assortment of family Bibles – I had no idea what I would find.The family I’ve always known isn’t very large. I have only one brother and so does my mother. I have only a...
Hazel’s Life as a Mother
Hazel is a character in Becoming Hazel and in subsequent books, but it’s important to remember that all of this is based on real events. When you come to the end of Becoming Hazel, you probably don’t think of her in terms of motherhood at all, but I’ve already told...
Hazel and Charlie as Mutt and Jeff
I’ve mentioned that Hazel was two feet shorter than Charlie, but it’s hard to get your head around what that looked like unless you see a picture. Unfortunately, Charlie apparently decided he wouldn’t stand still long enough to take one when they were first married....
Hazel the Suffragist
Hazel was a well-practiced and skilled musician. In her rather short but illustrious career, she managed to do things that most women of the age could not and dared not do. She worked under her own name while married, lived independently, and fought fiercely for...
Hazel’s Pianos
This Steinway isn’t the first piano Hazel ever played, nor is it the last. In truth, she didn’t play this instrument at all. But when I saw it on stage during a recital a few days ago and heard the remarkably resonant sounds of composers ranging from Beethoven,...
Hazel’s References
Hazel fought hard for her career. She defied her father to become independent and to be able to perform at all. Then she lived on her own for months on end after she was married to Charlie, and always performed using her own name. Music was what gave her...
The Journey of Hazel’s Chair
In my continuing series of "Inherited Treasures" blogs, I'm especially pleased to share a photograph of Hazel's beloved rocking chair.It is in my living room by the fireplace, and it's not uncommon for someone to choose to sit in it when all of us are gathered...
More About the Real Hazel
Now that the paperback and Kindle editions of Becoming Hazel have been released on Amazon, I thought it was the perfect time to share a bit of background information about Hazel and about the series, "Inherited Treasures".Hazel is based on a real person – my...
How It All Began . . .
I didn’t purposely set out to be a writer, though I’ve always written.From the time I was a little girl, I used to keep little spiral notebooks full of poetry I’d write as gifts for my parents and for my brother for every holiday and for their birthdays. My mother...