My Youngest Son Is Entering Adulthood

A couple days ago I made a choice that was extremely difficult for me. I chose to accept the fact that my youngest son no longer needs my permission for every little thing he wants to do. He probably felt I was treating him like a child when I wouldn’t allow him to do certain things (staying out as late as his friends were allowed to, for instance), but I only wanted to protect him. That’s what a loving Mom does.
My son is entering adulthood. He has graduated high school and is now a freshman in college so, as much as it pains me to admit it, it’s time to let go. I need to let him live his life and make his own choices. Since I raised him, I know he’s a responsible young man capable of making good choices, so I believe he’ll stay on a positive course. But we all make mistakes. I hope that when he makes his, he’ll learn from them.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying he’s on his own. No matter how old he is, as long as I’m in this world, he will have my love and support. What I’m saying is he now has the freedom he’s been wanting.

Bernie Mac

I turned on my computer today and found out that Bernie Mac is no longer with us. I am so saddened by this news. One of the greatest gifts I believe a person can have is to be able to make others laugh, and Bernie Mac certainly had that gift. I didn't watch his stand-up, but I have quite a few movies he plays in. My son and I watched Guess Who just a few days ago, and I thank Bernie so much for the laughter that filled my living room. I'm sure he has brought happiness to the lives of so many people and I am so sorry he is gone. He will truly be missed, and my prayers go out to his family and friends. May God bless them and keep them. May they feel His comforting presence during their time of sorrow.

My Testimony

On August 3, 2007 I dragged myself out of bed in the afternoon, took a shower and got dressed so my husband could take me to the hospital. I had been sick for two weeks. My body hurt, I had a fever and I hadn’t kept anything down for an entire week. I remember looking in the mirror that day and thinking that I looked half dead. Little did I know -- I was.
I arrived at the hospital with so little energy that my husband had to take me into the emergency room in a wheelchair. I was told that my blood pressure was way too low. A blood pressure cuff was immediately placed around my upper arm so I could be monitored. I was also hooked up to a heart rate monitor and an IV so I could get the fluids needed to re-hydrate me and medication, and I was given oxygen. Different doctors came in and out, and then I was told that my kidneys were failing. That certainly wasn’t something I expected to hear!
I was immediately admitted to the ICU, and every single day blood was drawn so test after test after test after test could be done. It got to where the veins in my arms wouldn’t give the blood needed for any more tests, and the IV couldn’t be administered anymore after being changed three different times. Before my veins gave out I was told that my potassium and magnesium levels were all out of whack and I had a staph infection in my bloodstream. And by the time the IV could no longer be used my kidneys were functioning well again and the infection was gone, so I was able to take oral medication for my potassium and magnesium levels.
While I was at home sick in bed I kept claiming God’s Word, “By Jesus’ stripes I am healed… by Jesus’ stripes I am healed.” Then about two days before I finally let my husband take me to the hospital this thought came to me – ‘God can heal miraculously, but He also gave us doctors and hospitals’. I have never heard God’s voice audibly. I do believe there are those who do and I also believe that He’s never spoken to me in that way because He knows I’m not ready for all that. And, truth be told, I’m not sure I ever will be. Anyway, I know the heavenly Father was speaking to me that day. Still, I can’t stand hospitals, don’t like doctors probing and prodding, and needles certainly are no friends of mine. So I convinced myself that I might not be able to keep anything down, but that was just my body getting rid of toxins or whatever it was in me that shouldn’t have been there. And I kept trying to convince my husband, who was so concerned about me, that the sickness would pass. But I finally did listen to the voice of God and my husband and it’s a good thing I did. If I would have waited any longer to get to the hospital I probably wouldn’t be here today.
So here’s what I have to say one year later - “I testify to God's awesome goodness and healing power! To God be the glory for all the things He has done! I thank Him so very much for “keeping” me as I tried to convince myself I didn’t need to see a doctor. I thank Him for allowing me to remain here with my husband and two sons. I thank Him for doctors who know how to reverse the condition of failing kidneys. I thank Him for the doctor who seemed a bit baffled at first as to what was going on inside of my body with its high white blood cell count, but he kept asking me questions and did many different tests until he figured it out. I thank Him for physical therapists who accompanied me up and down the hospital corridor; it was like I had to learn to walk all over again. I thank Him for the nurses who washed me when I couldn’t wash myself, and helped me to the bathroom when I could barely walk. I thank Him for loving family & church members who believe in the power of prayer. I thank Him for life!
Obviously, my work here isn’t done, and that’s cool with me. Hopefully, I’ll get it right so when my heavenly Father does call me home, He will say, “Well done, my daughter. Well done.”

Profanity in Young Adult Novels

There was a time when just about every novel I read had profanity; some books had quite a bit of it. So when I wrote the first draft of Choices, I set out to write like the authors whose books I read at that time, and included profanity. And I used a lot of it. After all, there are a lot of teens who use bad language, I told myself. And the novels I read were selling pretty good, so assuming there were a whole lot of readers out there who wanted profanity in the books they bought, that's what I tried to give them. However, through the years I changed, and as I changed the content in my manuscript changed. In other words, as I grew in the Lord it became more important to be true to myself and to honor God with the gift He has given me. I needed to put a novel out there I felt He'd be pleased with.

Even though the character, Randy, would have a mouth on him if I wrote him exactly how I pictured him (and I'm talkin' f*** this and f*** that and s*** all over the place), there is very little profanity in Choices. The more rewrites I did -and there were a lot of rewrites -the more I pictured teens reading the story, and, not that they haven't seen, heard, and maybe spoken them, I didn’t want to fill their minds with the obscene f***, s***, and a** words. However, the d*** word is mentioned, I believe twice, because, okay, I was thinking that even though Shauntice, LaKeeta, Bridgette and Hope are Christians, it wasn't really realistic that they never heard anyone else use bad language. And the b**** word is mentioned in "The Fight" chapter so a lesson about that word could be taught, and hopefully, learned.

When teens read Choices and notice that the characters they can relate to are engaging in conversations without lots of bad language, hopefully they'll begin to care more about what they allow to come out of their mouths. Even if the choice to not use lots of profanity in my story only affects a few, that's better than none.

As for my own choices today, whether I’m reading a book or watching a movie, I’d rather not be subjected to the most obscene f***, s*** and a** (if the donkey is being referred to, fine, but I still don't like the word) words. But when they pop up, I do my best to overlook them.

The Simple Truth

I could be reading a novel or watching a television show and one person does something bad, and then another person makes a remark something like, “You’re going to hell for sure.” Or a person does something good and another person says something like, “That’ll get you into Heaven.”
I hear this and I think, “Oh my goodness, people please don’t be deceived.” Whether the words are spoken in jest or the person really believes what he/she is saying, these remarks are so far from the truth. God will not open the pearly gates of Heaven for you just because you’ve been “good” during your time on the earth. And you won’t go to Hell just because you’ve done things bad. If the latter were the case, nobody would go to Heaven, because even Christians don’t do good all of the time.
God gave us His Son, Jesus Christ, and if we believe in Him, we will not perish but will have everlasting life (John 3:16). In other words, anyone who receives Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior will go to Heaven when their time here on earth is done.
Now, according God’s Word – the Bible, which is full of wisdom to help us to walk in His ways - to be saved is the only way to get to Heaven, and the only way to make sure we don’t end up in Hell.
Do good things for others; acts of kindness that can lift a person’s spirits or even make this world a better place in some way big or small? Yes, most definitely. What would the state of this world be if we didn’t have people who care? But please don’t do these good works because you think God is keeping score and if yours is high enough, then you’ll earn a place in Heaven, because the simple truth is it really doesn’t work that way.

Settling For Less, Young Ladies?

Choices is an entertaining, emotional read that will definitely get the reader thinking. In fact, I’ve been thinking about something lately… Out of all of the female characters in Choices, Angel is the one I created to make the biggest impact. I'm sure there are teenage girls who can relate to her and I'm hoping each of them will be touched so deeply by the story that a change for the better takes place in their lives.

Feisty Angel is my girl. She has a mouth on her and she can back it up. She’s strong. She’s confident. She says what she means, means what she says, and does not care what anybody thinks. Until it comes to Randy, that is. Although she wants to demand respect from him, the thought of being without a boyfriend stifles her efforts. In Randy’s presence, Angel’s strong personality fades away and it is replaced by pitiful indigence.

When I was younger there were people who made me feel like I wasn't okay because I didn't have a boyfriend. So there were times when I considered certain guys to be boyfriends, when I really didn't like them as much as I made myself believe. Today, I would like to say to the young ladies out there that each of you can make it just fine in this world without a boyfriend. Not that you shouldn't have one, but if your boyfriend isn't a guy who treats you with love and respect, then you are settling for less. Not sure if you're settling? Let me help you out, okay? If you answer “yes” to most of the questions below, you might want to give serious thought to what kind of relationship you and your boyfriend really have.

1. Does he come around only when he wants to have sex?
2. Are you having sex with him because you’re afraid he’ll leave you if you don’t?
3. Have you told him that you’re not ready to have sex, but he keeps pressuring you?
4. Does he talk down to you; belittle you with his words, insult you, call you names?
5. Has he raised a hand to you? Or worse, has he brought it back down, striking any part of your body?
6. Have other girls been in your face about him, or have you wanted to have the
‘he’s my man’ argument with another girl?
7. Have you seen with your own eyes that he spends time with another girl? Or maybe even more than one?
8. Does he make you feel like everything that matters to you doesn’t matter at all to him?

I hope your answer to every question was "no", but if there was even one "yes", you really do deserve better. And if you answered “yes” to the fifth question, I suggest that you make your parents or guardians aware of the situation. I also suggest that you distance yourself from your boyfriend; especially if it has happened more than once. If he tells you with utmost sincerity that he knows he has a problem and he wants help to control it, then good because he needs help, but still distance yourself. You are God’s unique creation, not someone’s punching bag.

It might not seem like it, but that one special guy the heavenly Father created just for you is out there. If you haven’t already met him, don’t be in a hurry. I know it can be difficult to wait; everyone needs attention and affection, but when the time is right the one you are meant to be with will find you. In the meantime, focus on improving yourself and reaching your goals.

God Bless :)

Those Sneaky Little Typos

Lately I have read novels with quite a few typos. These good reads weren’t published by the authors, but by established publishing companies, so it wasn’t the authors fault that the typos weren’t caught; it was up to the proofreaders to catch them. Still, I wonder how the authors felt when they noticed these mistakes in their published works.
As the author/publisher/proofreader of Choices it was up to me to make sure there were no typos in my finished product. And I did my best to do just that. My book designer sent me the pdfs, and I read through them more than once. (I’m very happy with the story I wrote, but for a while there it was getting on my nerves. The proofreading process can be tedious.) I even found someone else to proofread the galleys the printer sent. But still, after all of that proofreading, my YA Novel went through the printing process with those sneaky little typos undetected. These minor flaws in Choices did a real good job hiding, and, let me tell you, it was like a smack in the face when I noticed them after the book was printed. I was so disappointed; my first published novel and it's not the flawless product I wanted it to be.
I know I don’t have to draw attention to these typos, but a book sale is a show of support that I appreciate very much, so I feel the need to confess that I messed up… just a little bit:
Typo #1 - One day I was working on my next novel, A Mom’s Life, where I include Roscoe’s last name. For those of you who haven't read Choices yet, Roscoe is Randy’s brother. Neither one of them knows how to treat a girl with even an ounce of respect. Randy is the boyfriend Angel puts up with until she comes to her senses, and Roscoe, well, he’s just not a likable guy. Their family life will be revealed in A Mom’s Life, so readers can fully understand why they behave the way they do. Anyway, I remembered mentioning Randy’s last name in Choices, but I didn't remember what it was. So I skimmed the pages of my first novel to find Randy’s last name. That is when I came to the conclusion that no matter how many times a story is proofread some small inconsistency can still be overlooked.
Not that this takes anything away from the story, but in Choices it seems Randy has two last names. On page 28 he’s Randy Morris, but on page 56 he’s Randy Brister. It’s been a while, but if I remember correctly, his last name was Brister when I first wrote the novel, but before it went to the printer I changed it to Morris on the page where he is first introduced –I don’t know what in the world I was thinking - but, in doing so, I forgot that I mentioned the last name Brister in chapter seven entitled “The Question”, so that didn’t get changed to Morris.
Typo #2 - And then, days later, I noticed that on page 60 I didn’t change ‘an hour and a half’ to ‘hours’ as I had intended. The first sentence in the chapter begins with ‘After church’, so most people would think it’s afternoon, but on page 61 I make it clear that it is evening when Shauntice gets home. I write –She put her keys into her pocketbook and made her way through the darkness of the kitchen and into the livingroom, where a lamp on the couch table lit her path.
So, to my readers – present and future - I’d like to apologize for the little inconsistencies in Choices.