Well I’m home for a month. The booktour was loads of fun. Of course anytime I get together with my writing friends–no matter who–no matter where, we inevitably have a great time.

I was with Judy Miller and Cathy Marie Hake this time. Bethany House’s extremely talented marketing directeor, Steve Oates, drove us from place to place. We visited Amish County in Ohio and Bill and Gloria Gaither’s store in Indiana. We saw Colleen Coble in Wabash, Indiana (here we all are)
and visited a carousel factory in Mansfield, OH, but Judy no doubt will tell you more about that. We ate Amish butter cheese – yum. We had a wonderful baked chicken meal shared with two of the sweetest bookstore (The Gospel Shop) owners Vesta and Small at Der Dutchman in Berlin, Ohio. It was definitely a whirlwind tour. We did 12 signings in 4 1/2 days.

One of the things that really blessed me on the tour, besides the fellowship, was the fall colors. Ohio and Indiana were gorgeous. Another was the kindness of the people we met. I was blessed by so many who shared their stories and told me how much they enjoyed our books. We spoke at most of the occasions and I witnessed God truly touching lives for Him.

I am very happy to announce that I just finished the first book in a Texas triology and I’m working on a Texas booktour for next year – probably late August or early September.

Now for the introduction portion. As I mentioned I enjoyed the booktour with our own Judith Miller and her carousel passion. Now we get to share Cathy Marie Hake with you as well. Cathy is an awesome gal who writes with a great deal of humor in her books. I was priviledged to get to meet her years ago when she first proposed a story to Heartsong Presents and I was working in the acquisition process. I think you’re going to enjoy Cathy’s way of looking at the world. So without further ado – Cathy! Here are some photos to show you just what fun she can be.

Oh, and I had to share just a fun little thing. Here’s Simon – our daughter Jen’s cat who lives with us – in his festive Halloween costume.

God Bless!
Tracie