On the Heroes, Heroines and History blog, we're talking about the history of the Emerald, May's birthstone. Here's a preview of the article. May is my favorite month. The sights, sounds and smell of Spring as it finally arrives, the baby animals that can be seen all around, the fresh smell of rain on newly growing plant sprouts. It's just a lovely time of year! And it's my birthday month. But that doesn't make me biased at all. ;) I've always been fascinated with the birthstone of May, the emerald. It's a beautiful stone, and one with a rich history. So let's explore where this gem was first discovered, and how it has progressed through time. The first known emeralds were mined in Egypt around 1500 B.C. That's about the time that Moses was being called by God to return to Egypt and free the Israelites from slavery. So it is possible that Hebrew slaves were the ones to mine the very first diamonds from the earth. Read the full art...

Because of the COVID-19 Stay at home order, I've discounted ALL of my ebooks to only $0.99 on Amazon.  Ebooks can be read on any phone, tablet or computer by downloading the free Amazon kindle app. (If you need help with this, let me know!) Books are a great way to pass the time while infusing your soul with uplifting and inspirational messages. My way of saying, stay safe and healthy.  God bless you all! https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00CIXK91M

Today I thought I'd share a couple of interesting tidbits I stumbled upon while researching the lives of these two famous women. Sarah Grimke Meet the Grimke sisters, a pair of ladies who fought for civil rights during the Victorian era. I studied them while writing 12 Sisters Who Changed History, and their lives fascinated me. They were the first female advocates of abolition and women's rights in America. Sarah Grimke was much older than Angelina, however they always shared a special bond. Raised in South Carolina on a plantation, they witnessed slavery first hand and God ignited a fire in their hearts to abolish it. They were pivotal instruments in the anti-slavery movement in America. They even supported President Lincoln in his fight to end slavery during the Civil War. Angelina Grimke The two sisters were quite different in personality, and even differed greatly in their beliefs and exercise of faith, but that never drove them apart. This is one of...

We're talking about some interesting tidbits I stumbled across with gifts exchanged between Bloody Mary and Elizabeth Tudor on the HHHistory blog. Here's a preview of the article.    Mary and Elizabeth Tudor are a fascinating pair of sisters. Same father, but rival mothers and seventeen years apart, it is surprising how affectionate the two were throughout most of their lives. One of the main ways that the sisters expressed their affection was through gifts exchanged. We can learn a lot about their situation and relationship from each of these.  Mary, as the elder sister, often sent Elizabeth spending money and cloth for making clothes since King Henry often neglected attention to such details. She also gave Elizabeth many pieces of jewelry, some of these pieces can be found in museums today. Her gift giving became so much of a custom, that when the relationship between Mary and Elizabeth turned hostile, Mary’s councilors told her she should send Eliza...

Why Did Queen Elizabeth I Never Marry? Elizabeth I Darnley Portrait This a question has fascinated people since Elizabeth the Great was alive. Considered one of the greatest monarchs in English history, an intelligent and pleasing woman, deemed a beauty during her time with a knack for fascinating men, it is a true curiosity. She had at least half a dozen men fall in love with her and had many offers of marriage from English poets to monarchs from allied countries, so a lack of suitors was certainly not the culprit. Why then did this woman choose to rule alone during a time when that was unthinkable? Elizabeth intentionally left a lot of ambiguity on this subject, never admitting a hard answer, but there are three main theories.  Read the entire article on HHHistory.com here. 

In case you haven't heard, 12 Sisters Who Changed History is now available on Amazon & Smashwords! To celebrate, we're giving away a $10 Amazon gift card as well as a paperback version of the book. You can enter to win using the rafflecopter form below . Giveaway ends August 8th. a Rafflecopter giveaway About the Book: The remarkable lives of twelve sisters who changed the course of history. Historians paint pictures of amazing men and women who influenced the world, but seldom do we hear about sister duos that forever altered the course of history. Whether fighting together—or against each other—these twelve women set armies to flight, guarded homelands from invasion, transformed countries and religious systems, and begat nations. From mythical Athena and Artemis, to the English thrones of Mary & Elizabeth Tudor, the influence these women left behind is taken for granted. Join us on an inspirational journey through time as we explore the extraordinary ...

Welcome to the Story Sparks Multi-author Blog Tour. Between May 21-26, 2018 readers get a chance to enter and win ebooks from six different authors. Linda Shenton Matchett is today’s featured author. A lucky winner will get a copy Love’s Harvest. Today, Linda will be talking about History, Mystery, and Faith. Read on to discover what sparks Linda’s creativity and to enter the rafflecopter to win her heartwarming retelling of the biblical book of Ruth. ***** I’ve been making up stories since I was little. In fact, I recently found my notebooks from back then and had quite a laugh reading my childish scrawl and teenaged angst. Even then, my fertile imagination was apparent. During interviews and speaking engagements I’m often asked where I get my ideas. The short answer is: I find them everywhere. But that’s not very informative, so I’ll let you in on my secret. I’m constantly on the lookout for “what-if” kernels-sparks, if you will. For example, if I’m in a public locatio...

Welcome to the Story Sparks multi-Author Blog Tour.   Between  May 21-26, 2018,  readers get a chance to enter and win ebooks from six different authors. T It's my day today. :)   A lucky winner will win a copy of my 2018 Christian Indie Award winner, Solve byChristmas , PLUS I have a cover reveal to share. Read on to discover what sparks my creativity and to enter the rafflecopter to win her inspirational mystery with a Sherlock flare. “Too many books, not enough time” is a two-fold saying for me. On one hand, there are so many good books to read, and on the other hand, there are so many ideas to write. For me, ideas come from everywhere. They can come from passing a mailbox, walking by an abandoned building, overhearing a conversation in the grocery store, day dreaming, reading the Scripture, or from history reading. Other times the idea is just dropped into my mind like a Valentine from God. Usually though, the best ideas come from...

Today we continue the Story Sparks multi-author blog tour with guest Catherine Castle. Between May 21-26, 2018 readers get a chance to enter and win ebooks from six different authors.  Catherine’s winner may choose an ebook from any of her three books listed above on her book spine. Today Catherine will talk about the story sparks that started each of these books rolling. Read on to discover what inspires Catherine’s creativity and to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway . ***** Hi, everyone! I began my writing journey as a stringer for a local weekly newspaper. The hardest thing about that job was finding ideas to write about. I was in Writer Heaven when the editor called with a story idea. It was like getting a bright, shiny gift topped with a beautiful ribbon. The problem was those editorial gifts didn’t come in as fast as I wanted them to when I first started writing. So, I had to figure out where to find more ideas to write about. And of course, the burning quest...