Top 5 HA books : Part 2

Kyleigh Dunn ~ Top 5 HA Books I read this summer:

Heart of Arcrea

Forged Steel

Rose of Prophecy

A Knight on the Old North Shore

Gift from the Storm

To be honest, I started the summer only planning to read 5! But as I started reading them found that 1, I had more time to read on my phone than I thought I did (and it keeps me from wasting time on Facebook!), and 2, reading “peer” books was something I hadn’t done much before but I found that it’s a really good thing to do as well as being very enjoyable.

Nicole Sager ~ Reading & writing usually slow down for me this time of year, so I'm not sure I got 5 books total read this summer! I have, however, read some HA works this year, and you can read my reviews by clicking the titles below. Some of these are fairly new, so if you've never heard of them, do these authors a favor and check them out!

Honor, Rachel Rossano

The Making of A Man, Rachel Rossano

Waltz Into the Waves, Sarah Holman

Rainland, Sarah Allerding

Happy reading!

Kate Willis ~ My favorite HA books this summer have been...

Song of the Sword by Hope Ann
Water Princess, Fire Prince by Kendra Ardnek

A Different Kind of Courage by Sarah Holman

You'll Be Like Faye by J.C. Buchanan

Implant by J. Grace Pennington

Jenelle Schmidt ~ However... I do have favorite HA authors, whose books I own and have read. My favorites are: Kaycee Browning, author of Ember Flame and Esprit de la Rose (the first story in Five Enchanted Roses) I love this author not only because she writes exceptionally well, but also because she is a dear friend. Kendra E. Ardnek and her Bookania series - I really need to read her other books, too, because I really enjoy her style.  Anne Elisabeth Stengl - became a fan a few years back when I met her at her book signing for Dragonwitch and have enjoyed everything she's written so far. Gillian Adams - I have only read Orphan's Song so far, but I enjoyed it and look forward to reading the further adventures of Birdie and company.

And there are various others on the list whose blogs I read and love, and their books are most decidedly on my list of books to buy and read!

Have Books, Will Travel: Part 2

Rebekah Morris ~ We haven't done a lot of traveling this summer, so I haven't had a chance to take my HA books on many outings. But a shady front porch in a comfortable chair with stacks of good books to read sounds delightful to me, no matter where that porch is! I only grabbed a few of our many HA books to join me in this photo, but my kindle is holding many more than you can see!!!

Kyleigh Dunn ~ All but one of my Homeschooled Authors books are on my phone, and I kept forgetting to take a picture on our recent Japan adventures, but here’s a photo of us at the safari park at the base of Mount Fuji, taken with my phone, which I was using to read a HA book on the bus to the park! 

Just Like Me: Part 3

Sarah Brown ~ This was a hard question.... I suppose the easy answer would be to choose the character from my own books that is most like me: The little girl in Learning Lessons From Furry Friends and the young lady from Cheeper named Sarah Brown! But that's too much like cheating. I'm trying to think of a character who actually isn't me, but whom I related to the most..... Hmmmm.... I've got it! That would be Virginia from Janette Oke's Prairie Legacy series. She has her struggles, she wants so badly to be accepted and popular, but ultimately it's most important to her surrender to Jesus, live for Him, and share Him with her closest friends (even if she never sees fruit from her labors). I related to Virginia, and I saw a lot of myself in her struggles, and her triumphs.

Kyleigh Dunn ~ I’m sure there’s someone better, but off the top of my head one of the characters I have identified with most in any book I’ve read is Eowyn from Lord of the Rings. I was a bit of a tomboy growing up and her struggles and desires and path to marriage to Faramir was something that I often thought “that’s me!” about while reading.

Writing Resources: Part 3

Kyleigh Dunn ~ I honestly don’t read as much as I should about writing. But I really like The Editor’s Blog, “Whose Grammar Book is this Anyway?”, “How to Read a Sentence (And How to Write One),” and then I love the community on www.apricotpie.com for early feedback on my writing. But my biggest and most favorite writing resource is my husband! He’s put a lot more thought and study into creative writing than I have and his comments and editing is always the most helpful to me.

Claire Banschbach ~ I think I’m a terrible writer since I won’t have a great answer for this one. I have several books about writing on my list of books to get, and one blog on writing advice that I frequent (K.M. Weiland’s blog). But other than that, most of what has developed me as a writer is critiques from beta readers and actually reading other stories and paying attention to the way a particular author writes.

Jenelle Schmidt ~ I love the Clean Indie Reads group on facebook, they are marvelous encouragers, as well as a treasure trove of helpful information.
Also highly helpful, and also entertaining, Lynne Trusse’s book “Eats, Shoots, and Leaves” on how to correctly use punctuation. One of my all-time favorite books.

Sarah Holman ~ Reading. Honestly, if I have a question about how to do something, I pick up books that I know do whatever it is I am struggling with well. However, if I need a pick-up-up, Month of the Novel is my go to source.

That's a Good Book: Part 1

Kendra Ardnek ~ I'd like to just read all day long, but sometimes I don't have the time or the gumption to read, at which times it takes a special book to break through my meh and keep me glued. Usually, these books have certain things in common, including:

High Concept World or Plot. I want to read stuff that's out of the box and different. I want to read a book and know that I can't get the same experience reading twelve other books. I don't mind a bit of cliche, though, as long as the cliche is handled properly.

Humor. I want to laugh - but it has to be tasteful humor. I don't like slapstick, preferring plays on words, irony, and friendly banter. 

A main character that I can care about. If I don't care, I don't read. 'Nuff said.

Aubrey Hansen ~ As an editor and publisher, I’m always on the lookout for quality.  I have my favorite plots and archetypes, of course,  but regardless of the genre I’m always searching for new talent.  Not only can I learn from their successes, but discovering a new gem gives me hope that a new generation of talented authors is about to rise, and there is a future for independent publishing.

Kyleigh Dunn ~ While I love adventure and description in books, what I look for most is something that will make me think or impact my life in some way. I don’t like finishing a book thinking “That was nice, but it didn’t change me/I didn’t learn anything/take anything away from it.” If I’m going to put the time into reading, I want to get more than relaxation in return.

J. Grace Pennington ~ I think I most hope to find characters that are real, that I can get to know and feel close with, live through their eyes, and be inspired by.  I want to find something in their choices and actions that impacts my mindset or how I live my life for the better.

Sarah Brazytis ~ What I desire most in a book is realism. For me, that takes in two major areas.
I love historical books – fiction and non-fiction. But I have serious problems with the modern ‘historical’ novel these days! Not many people seem to know the basics of life long ago, and proceed to either make it up or take it from their favorite movie. I am also turned off when the characters present ideas, thoughts and attitudes that would not be current to the times. Of course there have always been individualists, but researching for a historical book means more than just finding out what they wore or what they ate. It also includes what most people would have thought and believed.
Then there is just ordinary realism: I like characters to act ‘in character’. I want them to act like ‘real people’! When characters are unreliable and unrealistic, I simply can’t connect with them and find myself uninterested in their future.
And in general? I want a good story – one that leaves you feeling good, glad that right won over wrong, happy for your favorite characters…and wishing for just a little more. Because that’s what a good story is all about!

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Top 5 Favorite Authors: Part 1

Sarah Brazytis

Only five?! Oh, all right, here goes…

Constance Savery 

~ She’s incredible! If you haven’t read any of her books, treat yourself (starting with her amazing Enemy Brothers!)!

A. A. Milne 

~ What more can I say? He has the skill of putting words together in a way not many can. Besides, you can never outgrow Pooh!

Patricia St. John 

~ She paints pictures with words. And I love the spiritual messages in her books. The Lord gave her a special gift!

Elizabeth Yates 

~ Historical fiction that absolutely shines! Elizabeth Yates has a way of bringing the past alive. I love her respectful, faithful presentation of the people of old.

Hilda Van Stockum 

~ Children. Adults. Elderly. Pets. The personalities in her stories simply shine! Because of her wide exposure to different cultures – Dutch, Irish, English, American, Canadian – she has the ability to introduce you to so many countries and their people in an unforgettable manner.

J. Grace Pennington

Such a hard question!  I'll try to pick just five... I'd have to say C. S. Lewis, Louisa May Alcott, Daniel Schwabauer, Frank Peretti, and L. M. Montgomery.  I love all their books!

Amber Schamel

Boy, picking my top 5 is a tough one, but I think I’ve narrowed it down. Here’s five of my favorites...not in any particular order.

Stephanie Grace Whitson

Carrie Turanski

Francine Rivers

Julie Klassen

Susan J. Reinhardt

Kyleigh Dunn

My top 5 authors are: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Elisabeth Elliot, Michael Card, and John Piper. 

Claire Banschbach

In no particular order…

• K.M. Shea

• Andre Norton

• Brian Jacques

• Stephen Lawhead

• K.M. Weiland 

Find the rules and the full list of books here

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Faith Factor: Part 2

Amber Schamel ~ Because of my faith, I am very picky about the books I read. More picky than most people. In fact, I’ve been called extreme. But I’ve been called extreme in my lifestyle too. LOL.

I usually only read in the Christian genre, and since I do, I expect them to reflect a Biblical worldview. I enjoy a flawed character, but I expect that the flaws and sins are portrayed as what they are...flaws and sins. According to the Scripture, sins and flaws should be repented of, and I expect that in my Christian literature.

I’m especially picky when it comes to the Romance genre. As a single Christian, I have certain standards of modesty and chastity that I hold to, and it bothers me when Christian authors do not hold their characters to such standards. Paul said, “It is good for a man not to touch a woman.” so I’m not okay with a lot of touchy-feelies before the couple is married. When I find a Romance that maintains respectful contact between the Hero and Heroine, I’ve found a keeper! Stephanie Grace Whitson’s A Stitch in Time was really good.

Kyleigh Dunn ~ One of the biggest differences I’ve found in the way my husband and I read or watch movies is that he tends to interpret worldviews and such from where the character is coming from, whereas I tend to interpret what characters say from my definitions and worldview, reading into it what I believe. I think that makes it easier for me to read and watch things that I don’t agree with all the way, but it can also lead to me not always being aware of things that are wrong, so that also means I have to be more careful than he does about consuming media that doesn’t have a Christian worldview.

Rebekah Morris ~ As a child of the King, I want to be careful what I put into my mind. This doesn’t mean I only read biographies of missionaries or overtly Christian books, but it does mean that I won’t read certain things. The Bible says to think of things that are true, so I stay away from fantasy and science fiction because they “can’t” be true. Whatsoever things are lovely means I’m going to stay away from horror, thrillers, and such genres. Whatsoever things are pure keeps me from most of the romance books out there or other graphic books that give too much information that could be defiling. My standard may not be what someone else’s is, but that is what I personally strive for. I know that what I put into my mind comes out in my behavior and my writings.

Nicole Sager ~ My faith definitely influences what I choose to read or not read. Every person has a worldview, and every author's worldview will be presented in their work whether or not they are trying to drive home a specific point. I try to steer clear of books (Christian or non-) that very obviously support issues I do not (divorce, immorality, alcohol, etc.). Reading is something I do for leisure time, and I just don't want to spend that time trying to root for a hero/heroine that I don't agree with!

Kate Willis ~ Scanning the shelves of the library, I pass over books that mock God and His people. I leave books with an emphasis on violence, strong romance, or witches to collect dust on the shelves. (Which usually leaves me with middle-grader books!) No matter what I'm reading, I discuss the worldview with my family or set the book aside if conscience dictates.

Favorite Summer Films: Part 1

Read the rules here

Books taking part:

Water Princess, Fire Prince - Kendra E. Ardnek

Adela's Curse - Claire Banschbach

The Apprentices - Sarah Brazytis

Cheeper - Sarah E. Brown

The Christian Musician - Kyleigh Dunn

Red Rain -Aubrey Hansen

Kate's innocence - Sarah Holman

Creighton Hill - Morgan Elizabeth Huneke

Gift from the Storm - Rebekah Morris

Implant - J. Grace Pennington

The Heart of Arcrea - Nicole Sager

The Master's Calling - Amber Schamel

King's Warrior - Jenelle Leanne Schmidt

The Treasure Hunt - Kate Willis

Nicole Sager ~ My favorite TV series is Signed, Sealed, Delivered from the Hallmark Channel! So much depth, fun, emotion, and nearly always a biblical application, this show can bring the tears as well as the laughs. Of course no show is 100% perfect, but this has been one incredibly clean and enjoyable experience after another! I even bought the T-shirt!! Go Postables! ;)

Rebekah Morris ~ My favorite TV series of all time is Sue Thomas, F.B.Eye. The first year we got these, we ended up watching the entire series four times. While I wouldn’t recommend these for younger children, teens and adults will probably enjoy them. As for movies, it is so hard to pick a favorite. I’ll settle for two or three. Follow Me, Boys, Destination Tokyo and Sound of Music.

Kyleigh Dunn ~ We live in Japan right now, and the anime company Studio Ghibli is very popular. My Neighbor Totoro is one set in the summer that we find fun for the whole family... and is quoted a lot in our house as our toddler reminds us a lot of Mei, one of the main characters.

Amber Schamel ~ My family doesn’t have TV, and we don’t watch many movies, especially in the summer time. Summer on the ranch is work from sunrise to sunset, so that doesn’t leave much time for entertainment. :) We did watch Risen the other day though, and I enjoyed it.

Morgan Huneke ~ No matter what the season, my favorite movie is the same. After all, it contains every season. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005), as a relatively faithful adaptation of the first book of my childhood favorite series, never ceases to amaze me. There’s so much depth of theological meaning in it, just as in all the Narnia stories. I notice new elements of the allegory every time, despite having the movie memorized, and it gives me a new appreciation for what Jesus did for me.

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Celebrating the 4th: Part 2

Kyleigh Dunn ~ Having grown up overseas, the 4th of July wasn’t something we celebrated a whole lot, but we had to read a lot from this book for school and it’s probably my favorite “patriotic” book.

Sarah Holman ~ This 4th we are using to remodel our kitchen, but most years we invite people over and grill out celebrate our freedom. I love dressing up in patriotic colors. This is a picture of me and my youngest sister in 2015.

Amber Schamel ~ This year I'm celebrating the 240th Independence Day with Samuel Adams! This collection of short stories just released in June. One of my favorite parts of the July 4th celebration is the patriotic t-shirts. :D

J. Grace Pennington ~ I absolutely love the children's series American Adventure.  I've read thirty or so of the forty-eight books, and they are really good stories following one family through American history.  Even as an adult I enjoy them, and since my fourteen-year-old brother loves them, it's fun to help him collect them and to discuss them with him.

Our Book Shelves: Part 2

Kyleigh Dunn

 Kate Willis

I actually share this bookshelf with my sister, but the bottom two shelves are exclusively mine. Like my nerd scarf?

Kendra Ardnek

 Sarah Brazytis

 

And there are at least two more less photogenic! Yes, it sometimes feels like living in a library, but to me nothing replaces the feel of a real book in my hand.

Reading Traditions Part 1

Kyleigh Dunn ~ Most often I am sitting or lying down on this corner of our futon, with the window open, and drinking water or iced herbal tea.

Sarah Brown ~ Now that it's summer, I love to sit out in the sunshine and cool or warm breezes at our picnic table or out on a blanket in the shade, especially just after the lawn has been mowed. Also, it's technically not reading, but I love to listen to audiobooks while I'm driving in the car to and from work, and also while I am doing monotonous office work, like addressing envelopes for our database mailing advertising (I help with our family-owned carpet cleaning business)

Amber Schamel ~ My favorite place to read is laying on my bed with natural sunlight streaming in my Eastern-facing window, but that ideal is not always possible, so I end up with the Booknerd Backache...You know the one. That ache you get  from reading in strange positions, even though you keep changing that position to try to be more comfortable. LOL. I love to find a soundtrack to listen to as I read as well.

Kate Willis ~ My favorite place to read right now is behind our couch. It’s not as crazy as it sounds since there’s about three feet of space between it and the windows to our dining room. I’d say it’s the perfect place for being a halfway introvert since I can monitor the conversation around me while still disappearing into my book. ; ) Other places I enjoy reading are our treehouse, my bed, and sometimes even an honest-to-goodness chair or the couch. I don’t usually like to eat anything while I’m reading, but sometimes a cup of Chai tea is just perfect to set the mood.

Claire Banschbach ~ When I read I usually just curl up in a corner of the couch, or spread out over the entire couch if I have the room. Maybe a position change every few hours. Haha! Just kidding. I don’t have a lot of time to dedicate to reading these days with grad school taking up most of my time.  But if I’m on break or have a weekend off, I’ll grab a book and set up camp on the couch.  But I don’t typically eat anything while I read because I don’t want grubby fingerprints all over the book. For that reason I don’t really read during lunch anymore. 

From the Authors #2

Sarah Holman has a book free on Kindle!

From Kyleigh Dunn:

An excerpt from her book, The Christian Musician 

He Surprised Me Part 3

Kyleigh Dunn ~ Since I don’t think my toddler’s devotional book really counts as unexpected, I’ll go with one of my favorite children’s books that I loved as a young child and whose comments on glorifying God with “secular” talents has really impacted me: The Clown of God.

Sarah Brown ~ I had to think for a while on this one. Most every book I've read, I've been able to anticipate in advance whether I would be impacted by it or not. The book that I finally remembered having this experience with was Lessons on Faith by A.T. Jones and E.J. Wagoner. Usually I do not really look forward to reading books that are not storybooks. I have a hard time paying attention, and they just do not capture my interest. That's why I was so surprised when I found myself fascinated with this non-fiction theology-style book. Each page, it seemed, answered questions I had held for years about righteousness by faith and kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire book.

Kendra Ardnek ~ This was a tricky question that has taken me a while to think about, because most of what I read is Christian Fantasy, and I expect to meet God there, discover new, rich truths. However, I have, at last, called a story to mind. The Light Princess by George MacDonald. MacDonald was one of C. S. Lewis's inspirations, and most of his books hold great, profound truths, but The Light Princess starts off as a silly fairy tale. It's not until the very end that you're suddenly struck with a rich allegory that is surprisingly serious.

Aubrey Hansen ~ While a lot of Kevin DeYoung’s books are good, I didn’t expect Just Do Something to be as revolutionary as it was.  I had spent my life wandering under the bad theology of viewing God’s will as a “corn maze,” where it was up to us humans to find the mysterious “right path” or be zapped by lightning.  DeYoung’s easy-to-understand but blunt explanation of God’s will liberated me and set me on the path to getting married, finding a better job, and, ultimately, writing more books!  Highly recommended.

Impactful Books part 3

Jenelle Schmidt ~ I would have to say that the fiction book that most impacted my life has been The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. It was The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings that ushered me into both my love of reading and my love of fantasy... and molded much of my desire to write my own adventure tales.

Kendra Ardnek ~ This was not an easy decision for me, because I've read a lot of books that have impacted my life in some degree or another. However, at risk of being cliche, I've boiled it down to the Chronicles of Narnia. You see it was Narnia that inspired my Rizkaland Legends, the series that taught me how to write, no matter how hard it may be. Rizkaland has been such a huge chapter in my life, and I have no idea where I might be if I hadn't undertaken it ten years ago, but I do know that I wouldn't have started its journey if I'd never read Narnia to begin with.

Sarah Brazytis ~ I honestly can’t say that there is one fiction book that impacted me more than another. At many times during my life, God has brought just the right phrase, paragraph or conversation in a particular book I was enjoying then, and it helped me to understand a truth, cement a principle, or endure a difficult situation. From my first supplementary reader (On Yonder Mountain) to the historical novels I read now (Enemy Brothers; That Girl of Pierre’s), there are so many books that have met, and continue to meet, exactly the need or desire I have at that moment.

J. Grace Pennington ~ I was very strongly impacted in my faith by Isabella McDonald Alden's books, both her Ester Reid series and her Chautauqua Girls series.  I don't think I've read any other blatantly Christian books with characters so real and relatable.  I've read some of her books several times and every time they revitalize my walk with God.

Kyleigh Dunn ~ The fiction book that most impacted my life. I can’t decide between Brian Jacques’s Redwall series and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Both were instrumental in sparking my writing,
which has in turn led to so many other things. Redwall also shaped a lot of my childhood friendships, and Lord of the Rings many of my early teen years, as well as being something I continue to love!

Read-to-Win 2016

Welcome to this year’s Read-to-Win Challenge!

You read a book, write a review, and hopefully win some awesome prizes. This year, there will be even more winners!

Grand prize: $100 Amazon gift card

First Prize ~ Six signed paperback books from various authors

Second Prize ~ One signed paperback and three e-books from various authors

Third Prize ~ Three e-books from various authors

New this year!

~ All the books that are part of the challenge will be $0.99 for the whole summer! Now you won't books because you forgot to check which book was on sale that week. It will also give you more time to read. (See the full list below!)

~ Each Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, responses to the weekly challenge by the fourteen authors will be posted. On Friday, we will have a link up because we want you to take part. Post your answer to the weekly challenge and then add it to the link-up. You never know, your favorite author Homeschooled Author might stop by and comment!

~ Every Saturday, we will be posting about other deals that the authors are running.

~ Reviews can be posted on Goodreads and Blogs


As always: new reviews on Read-to-Win books are the only ways to earn an entry. This year, you have fourteen books to choose from. That can means you could have fourteen entries this year! So, what makes a valid entry? Good question as we will be weeding out the spam and incorrectly submitted entries.  Here is how it goes:

Buy one of the books

Post review on Goodreads or your blog.

It must be a new review

It must be posted between June 1 and August 31

While not required, Amazon reviews are very helpful to all our authors. Please consider posting your review on Amazon as well.

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Who is going taking part?

Water Princess, Fire Prince - Kendra E. Ardnek

Adela's Curse - Claire Banschbach

The Apprentices - Sarah Brazytis

Cheeper - Sarah E. Brown

The Christian Musician - Kyleigh Dunn

Red Rain -Aubrey Hansen

Kate's innocence - Sarah Holman

Creighton Hill - Morgan Elizabeth Huneke

Gift from the Storm - Rebekah Morris

Implant - J. Grace Pennington

The Heart of Arcrea - Nicole Sager

The Master's Calling - Amber Schamel

King's Warrior - Jenelle Leanne Schmidt

The Treasure Hunt - Kate Willis

Interview with Kyleigh Dunn

Kyleigh, welcome to Homeschool Authors! Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I am a homeschool graduate currently living in Japan with my husband and 1 year old. In addition to writing, I love playing, composing, and listening to music, photography, cooking, and being outside.


Everyone’s homeschooling experience is different. What do you think made yours unique?
I think two things gave me a one-of-a-kind homeschool experience. My dad is a pilot, so his schedule changed every day. This meant that he could be more involved in our schooling and that we could travel for very little cost.

Then the summer before I started high school, we moved to Dubai, where my dad continued to work for a commercial airline – similar benefits as before, but now the cheap flights could include anywhere in the world, so “field trips” could be actual historical sites in Greece and Rome. It also meant that we were daily being involved in cross-cultural experiences that shaped who we are and how we view the world around us.

How did being homeschooled prepare you to write?
The one-on-one critique and discussion of writing assignments played a huge role, as did having free time to devote to my writing. My family, like most homeschooling families, also had a large library with plenty of good writing for me to read and learn from!

What caused you to start writing?
 In 6th grade I did a correspondence course on creative writing. That, along with books like Redwall and friends who were also starting to write, inspired my first stories. When we moved to Dubai I started a blog, which has now grown from simple updates on what I was doing to a place to share everything from daily life to story excerpts, theological musings, and articles on varied topics. Nanowrimo in 2006 was the starting point for my first non-fan-fiction stories.

What inspired The Christian Musician?
In 2013, I began to struggle with unsurety of what role music should play in my life as someone who was not pursuing it professionally yet still wanted to devote a lot of time to it. This led to numerous general questions about glorifying God, dealing with musical pride, and using private practice time to worship.

Would you give us a synopsis?
”The Christian Musician” is a discussion of the purpose of music, life lessons music teaches us, grace, pride, identity, worship, and the effect music can have on our lives. Although the focus is on secular, instrumental music, "The Christian Musician" will also touch on vocal and church music, drawing from the personal experience and struggles of the author. While these thoughts center on musicianship, they may be applied to any pursuit requiring practice and skill, be it writing, dancing, nursing, or engineering.

Who will enjoy The Christian Musician?
I believe any artist will be encouraged by my book, but especially classically-trained musicians who are trying to determine what place music has in their life, whether they are preparing for college or sorting out what activities to take on in the coming school year.

Do you plan to write more books?
Yes! I am currently in the process of editing one of four novels I have written over the past ten years. It’s the first in a fantastical, allegorical trilogy, set in the world of Edaled. If the Lord wills and the toddler behaves, I hope to release it in the second half of 2016.

Where can people connect with you online?
Blog: www.drumofadifferentbeat.wordpress.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/athousanddailydeaths
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/ladykyleian
Apricotpie, a writing website for homeschoolers: www.apricotpie.com/kyleigh

Do you have any final thoughts?
One thing I often struggled with (and still struggle with, at times!) was trying to decide if I should drop a hobby, always feeling that there wasn’t enough time for writing, music, sewing, photography, cooking, etc. While juggling it all can be tricky, it’s been so wonderful to see how God has brought some of those passions together in The Christian Musician, and even in my other writing, as skills I have and things I learn in my daily life find their way into stories and blog posts. All that to say: while there are times to leave something behind, you never know how God will use something you have been involved with! Keep writing!