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Do Not Look Where You Fell
hen we slip, we can go one of two ways. We can catch ourselves and right ourselves or we can fall. Sometimes we fall hard.
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A Vlog About Writing (Because I didn’t feel like writing it)…Is that weird?
I don’t post these types of videos very often here on my blog as I do on social media. Earlier, I thought about going LIVE on Instagram, but then decided to just post a video about the writing and editing process. If you enjoy talking about writing and interacting as a writer, follow me on Instagram at stephanieverniwrites or on TikTok at stephanieverniwrites, and I’ll be sure to follow you back. 🙂 I’ve always been fascinated by how other writers works. Do they plot? Do they write as they go along? What’s their editing process? Believe me…over the years, I’ve listened to and heeded the advice of many talented writers.…
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The Magic of Miracles
Forewarning: this one’s about God and miracles and the divine. It’s kind of personal. If it’s not for you, no worries. But since it’s about my interpretation of these quotes, I’ll continue… This week’s quote comes from G.K. Chesterton and is as follows: The most incredible thing about miracles is that they happen. G.K. Chesterton Perhaps it’s because I have committed to Bible in a Year with Father Mike Schmitz on the Hallow app and am moving along with it in awe, but whoa, there’s a lot to take in. It’s completely enlightening. I’m glad I’ve made this commitment. My children went to Catholic school in their elementary years, and…
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Stop Glorifying “Perfect”
In our attempts to be perfect we are missing a lot of the little joys that come along with the exercise of "going for it." Some of the best stuff happens along the way.
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Beauty + Joy
Today’s quote as pulled from my box is this: Beauty is whatever gives joy.Hugh Nibley One of the best things we did over the Christmas season was to attend our church’s Festival of Lessons and Carols. It was held the Friday before New Year’s Eve and consisted of 9 scripture readings and 9 carols. The service lasted one hour and took place in a beautifully decorated church filled with Christmas spirit and love. It was incredibly moving. The choir lifted the church with its voices, and the use of the handheld bells added to the Christmas spirit. There were a few songs that the choir performed and many others in…
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Delight in the Little Things
Today’s card is a very simple, yet poignant quote from Rudyard Kipling, British short-story writer, novelist, poet, journalist, probably best known for his collection of stories in The Jungle Book and his poem Gunga Din. The quote reads: Delight in the little things. – Rudyard Kipling I can’t help but harken back to my younger days, when I was a child growing up in Bowie, Maryland. We lived in our ranch on Pointer Ridge Drive until I was 13 years old. What we learn as children can often inform our lives as we grow and age and work and then retire. The truth is, compared to now, life was simpler…
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It’s A Sad State of Affairs
I hate to end 2022 on a sort of melancholy note, but I can't help myself. Rarely, if ever, do I get preachy on my blog. Typically, I'm here to share news, light, personal stories, fictional writing, poetry, and my own uplifting insights. What will start on today's post as a downer, I hope will turn into something positive as we move forward into 2023.
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Sorry, I Just Think It’s Weird—House of the Dragon, updates on a new book, a reunion & Italy
Thoughts on House of the Dragon’s Casting Last Sunday night on House of the Dragon, they replaced the two actresses who played Raenyra (Milly Alcock) and Alicent (Emily Carey) with two other actresses as ten years had passed between the previous episode and Sunday night’s. The switch was jarring—they didn’t look or act like the previous characters. I’m sorry, I just think it’s weird in today’s era of movie making that they would choose to do this—films age characters all the time. What’s even stranger is that Matt Smith who plays Daemon, continues in his role, looking no older than before despite the passage of 10 years. As well, Paddy…
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The Death of Cursive and the Repercussions
According to an article by Christopher Bergland in Psychology Today, “accumulating evidence suggests that not learning cursive handwriting may hinder the brain’s optimum potential to learn and remember.” Thank you for validating what we educators have been saying for years: students remember material better when they take longhand notes rather than type into a computer. I’ve preached it. If you had a me as a professor, you know that I’ve shared these findings with you. Mind you, I’m not discounting the importance and relevance of digital devices, I’m merely focused on retention of information via handwritten notes. In study after study, the results are in: there is a direct correlation…
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The Annual Birthday Post: You Can’t Teach an Old Dog New Tricks. Or Can You?
And so another birthday has landed on my doorstep. I’m sitting here staring at the empty page, trying to come up with something clever and snarky to write for my annual birthday blog post. The cursor blinks. I curse it. Wait. Something has come to me. A retrospective of sorts. Since last year’s birthday, a lot has happened. Let me attempt to recount the changes that have occurred in our lives over the past year without boring you to death. 1—I underwent hip replacement surgery two weeks after my birthday last year. It’s been a year-long road to recovery. Initially, while I was healing, my SI-joint went out of whack,…
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Do You Google While You Watch? And other thoughts…
I was thinking about the shows that my husband and I tend to watch on television. Most of them require me to Google while I watch, meaning they are typically rooted in some sort of reality or history, and we’re often pausing the television as we search to see how much of it is true. Do you do this, too? The benefit of online access is that we can check dates, facts, people’s names and histories, etc. The problem is, we need to know which credible sources we can turn to in times of our curiosity and which ones are accurate. One of the things I’ve prided myself on all…
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Book Reviews Are Coming In: Here’s what readers are saying
I can’t thank my friends, family, and readers enough for all the help you’ve given me to spread the word about The Letters in the Books. The two and a half years I’ve spent working on this novel is paying off for me personally, simply by seeing the support you have given me this past week. I’m touched, humbled, and so glad the book is now in your hands. Below, I’m sharing a little about the novel and some of the early reviews that have come in. Since people are always asking me how they can help, here are three ways you can help independent authors: 1- Talk the book…
