Goodbye to an old series, hello to a new one!

Hello, everybody! Mary Jane here and I have to share some delicious desserts I've made recently.

Well, it's not really a dish but since it's over 105F here, nobody wants to eat real food! So we made this yummy homemade almond milk with frozen mango chunks and a little bit of honey and some mint. DELICIOUS!

And it's fresh peach season! Our blueberry farm lost most of his crop this year so we were really sad not to have fresh blueberries. But the peaches arrived and we're happy again!
What's growing in your area? Are you surviving the heat??
In other news, I wrote the sixth book of my Cane River series and as much as I love them, I think that might be the last of By the Book and my wonderful friends in Natchitoches! But good things are ahead.
I've been working on a new series with some great authors. The first installment of SIX brand new novellas is FREE!!


The very next book in the series is my first in the Seasons of Faith series, called Summer's Glory.

 

Violet Tam thinks she's escaped the boy who made her teen years a perfect misery, but when Silas Black comes back to town, she finds herself falling for the one guy she’s always hated. 

After his mother passes away, master carpenter Silas Black returned to Arcadia Valley to help his sister run their small farm. He was the town’s bad boy as a teen and it wasn’t just an image. But although the rest of Arcadia Valley has accepted that his juvenile delinquent years are behind him, there’s one woman who can’t accept that he’s really changed.
When Violet Tam reluctantly asks him to join forces to help out a friend in need, they discover there is more to each other than meets the eye, and certainly more than who they were in high school. Silas soon realizes he’s in danger of losing his heart to the strong, intelligent middle school teacher. Add in a shocking robbery, an emergency surgery, and a surprise litter of puppies, and the two former enemies must face the possibility that true love was waiting to bloom for them all along.

Summer's Glory is a story of humor, grace, and forgiveness set in the fictional farming town of Arcadia Valley, Idaho. Mary Jane Hathaway's newest installment is sure to delight fans of inspirational novels who enjoy thought-provoking and laugh-out-loud romances that expose the beauty of everyday life and the folly of the human heart. Full of quirky characters, friendship, recipes, and faith, Summer’s Glory is an irresistible beginning to a brand new series.

 

You can click the link to the right ---------------------------->>>>> to pick up your own copy!

 

Autumn's Majesty is the next in my series and it was soooo fun to write!

Can the town busybody learn to keep a secret? Vivacious Jamie Lawson has a lot in common with her first grade students. She’s bright, curious, energetic, has a big heart… and lacks any kind of filter. Her friends laugh about how she can’t help sharing what’s on her mind, but her mother warns her that trouble will find a woman who can’t hold her tongue.

The day Jamie accidentally breaks her best friend’s trust, she finally realizes that what is charming in a six year old, just isn’t as adorable in an adult. She vows that with God’s help, she’s going to listen more and talk less, especially around handsome Theo Delis. He’ll be helping her run the Lawson Family Blueberry Farm for the summer, and it will be the perfect time for Jamie to learn a little introspection. His serious, no-nonsense demeanor is the polar opposite of her gabby personality, and she’s sure he’ll be drawn to her new, aloof personality.

But as the heat of an Arcadia Valley summer settles in, Jamie discovers there’s more to wisdom than silence and more to love than mystery.
When an old friend needs confidential support can Jamie finally learn to lead with her heart, and not her mouth?
A story of deep friendship, laughter, and learning to listen to grace.

 

 

Again, you can pick up your copy by clicking the link here------------->>>>>

 

 

 

I hope you enjoy this new series and try to stay cool! I hope you're all having a wondering summer!

 

 

Ballooning time!

Hi, everybody! I've just received the edits for A Star to Steer by and I'm excited to release it at the end of the month!

Our plucky heroine spends most of her time in a big foam cupcake costume. It's one of those stories where someone has an awesome secret identity, except hers isn't so awesome. Coming Oct 31st!

                      And as for us, it's that time of the year. Not grape time, but balloon time.

                                           

                      We get up at 4AM (some of us are more perky at that hour than others),

                                            and drive out to the vineyards or the fields. The major festival is this weekend and there will be launches every morning and then a night festival, but today they were filming a move for an IMAX-type Disney ride. It was an interesting experience because as they filmed, we had to duck and run, or hide behind trees as the camera flew by (on a drone). So, instead of just the usual ground crew tasks, we also had to play hide and seek from the camera. Of course, the little people loved it.

                                        

Usually three balloons this size would take a crew of thirty, but they needed it to be small (because of the camera and not being able to hide that many people) so fifteen people doing the work of thirty was quite a work out.

                                                   

Here, after unrolling, attaching ropes and the top vent, they're opening the envelope, getting the fan running.

 When it all checks out, they attach the basket and light it up. Cue Fall Out Boys, except we try not to light anything on fire, especially ourselves.

 The first one standing up is always a special moment.

 We got good exercise running up and down the hill. The second balloon went up and was tethered.

 The third balloon needed a lot of heat to stay upright and out of the nearby trees, which means it needed more weight before they could safely rise any higher. My older boys had to be "dead weight", haha, but they also had to duck out of the way when the camera flew by. Pretty funny to watch them. They looked like groundhogs, up and down, up and down.

My favorite moment: I was holding  the lead rope (which guides the balloon upright as it's filling). You have to be very strong and run whichever direction at any moment and it might be the only time you ever wished you weighed more than you actually do. 

Anyway, I really wanted a picture of the sunrise and so I asked my ten year old to grab the rope... and he worked like a champ! Right before he slipped and got dragged down the field. Fifty thousand cubic feet of hot air will show you who's the boss. We're still laughing about it. (This is also why you wear leather gloves and all your gear.) 

 

Feel free to stop by my facebook page Pride, Prejudice, Cheese Grits !

Super catch up post... and a new release coming soon!

Hello, everybody! I'm recently back from a vacation and I was so excited to go camping. No, I don't usually love camping but I've fallen in love with cast iron cooking and I was dying to try some recipes.  Let's just say nobody starved but we sure were glad to get back to civilization. I don't mean the picture below. That's where we live. 

Sort of civilized.

                                       
                                          Sort of not when it's 106 and above! (Someone asked me if this was real temp or heat index. I don't know what that means. It's the temperature. I guess in some areas the temperature isn't really the temperature but much hotter? Yuck. I'll stick with our 100-110F in the summer.)

 I love vacations. I really do. I like planning and plotting and packing and getting the kids all prepped with studying the sights we'll see. But then by the time we come home, we all feel like this.
                                                                     DONE.

 So, after a good twelve hours (no, it doesn't really take that long but we wandered a bit to get there  and small people have small bladders, so lots of stops) we made it to our first destination, a campground on the coast, way down south, nearly to California. (I love these shoes. My friend sent them to me from Texas because they're teal. ha! My favorite color.)
                                     
I already talked about the yurt, so here is our cast iron cooking action. Waffles, a sandwich, a pan heating for hashbrowns, and a hot dog. (Can't remember who was eating a hot dog for breakfast. Probably the picky eater of the bunch.) The kids loved cooking their own food but it did require a lot of supervision. We didn't want anyone branded.
                                                    
My mom has a home on the coast a few hours from there and she brought us this cast iron oven and these berries from their property. YUMMY. So glad they weren't in Arizona! But like us, with the summer heat you look for cooler climes. (This shot is of blueberries, marionberries, raspberries, strawberries, and a gold raspberry hybrid.)
                                                    
And that recipe worked! It was absolutely delicious! Berry buckle for the win.
                                         
We spent the first week in the camp, on Eel Lake, with the Dunes in the other direction. There's a whole long story about getting lost there at sunset but I won't bore you with that.

(stateparks.com I had my own pictures but... well... that story is coming up)

Let me just say... never separate! Even if a five year old is discovered to be holding only one of his shoes and you let the faster people walk ahead because the five year old holding your hand is slower and it's really lovely with the frogs croaking and the sun setting and the breeze on your sunburn. There's a reason people die in the Sahara and a reason you do not take three hours to stop wandering and start yelling.  Enough said. Moving on!
                                         
After that, I told my husband I needed a day to sit on the beach and drink coffee while the kids played in the tide pools. So I did. He, of course, scaled the cliffs and I pretended not to notice (and worry).
                                              
Living in the land of tumbleweeds and 100F temps, I forgot how normal it is to see rhododendrons and other water-loving plants just growing naturally. And moss. And ferns. It was a feast for the eyes. Ahhhh.
                                    
Our town has a few big trees in the main park. But in the forest they're everywhere. The kids get a kick out of them every time.
                                                      
Speaking of flora, we had to stop at the Darlingtonia Preserve. (That link is the wiki article. So interesting.) My kids think I'm crazy but I keep insisting these carnivorous cobra lilies are cool. I mean, giant pitcher plants that are only found in a few places in the world? YES, we have to stop and look! Also, they remind me of Little Shop of Horrors, so they make me smile.
                                                                  
We tried to throw in a few kids but they fought back.
                                      
So, we finally said good bye to the yurt (some of us were more happy than others) and headed up the coast to Florence. There's a seafood chain there called Mo's.

It's loud, crowded and full of tourists. And we love it.

Remember we'd been living off  s'mores and grilled cheese sandwiches...
                                                    
Slumgullion was like food from heaven. We were ALL SO HAPPY not to be camping. OK, maybe the little kids would have preferred marshmallows for lunch but the rest of us were thrilled.
                                    
There are a lot of commercial fisherman, right alongside some funny people who dock their pirate boats. I've never wanted a pirate ship, but it's apparently a thing. We met the sweetest older couple who sold their home after retirement and... built a pirate ship to sail up and down the coast. Funny!
                              
Once we made it to the beach house, we hit the farmer's markets. Wow, these onions are much bigger than ours. But not as sweet.
                                           
I was loving civilization but my hair wasn't loving the humidity. Good thing I brought my hairdressers! They're spendy, but worth it.

We met up with some friends and they took us crabbing. We caught lots of crabs... and none were big enough to keep. Which was probably good since I don't think my kids would have eaten them anyway. but it was super fun and ended with ice cream!

At low tide we walked down and gathered mussels for paella (recipe in the link, it's delicious!) We also found a purple starfish! The last few years there haven't been any starfish because of a virus that swept the coast so we were thrilled to see them on the rocks!

We also steamed at enjoyed them straight, but you can imagine a few of the kids preferred hot dogs. And that was fine as long as I didn't have to build a fire! (Unless it was on the beach. Then I was up for it.)

We also went clamming but I don't have any pictures of that because at this point, I fell into Yaquina Bay. It wasn't too bad. Nice and warm. I decided to go with it and swim toward the bank until I realized MY PHONE was in my pocket. Ah well... Luckily I'd been sending pictures to a private album on facebook so I had a few. 

We thought we might travel up north even farther after the week in the beach house but I was tired. Actually, I wanted to come home after two days. I missed my desk, my coffee just the way I like it, my kitchen. I've become a homebody. Even though the yurt was doable and the beach house (we've been there before) was lovely.... it's just not home. The kids are already planning the next trip (maybe to Lake Louise in Banff National Park in Calgary?) but I'm content in my little town... even if it is 90F at 8AM. 

 Until next time!

 BOOKS! 
My newest release, These Sheltering Walls!

This is my newest book.... 

Coming July 30th, Only Through Love!

New releases!!

Hello everybody!!

  I'm sorry for the lapse there, but I've been BUSY! I just had a new book release, called A Home for Her Family and I'm sooo glad to see this book finally out and on the shelves!

And then....

  I also just finished a NEW Mary Jane Hathaway book and I love it SO MUCH! (To be released on the 28th of October!) It's probably my favoritest book EVAH. It's packed full of rare books, poetry, cats, Southern food, books, Creole speakers, books and a hunky, hi-tech hero.  *sigh*

Did you catch that it was a romance written around BOOKS??
Here's the blurb:

  "Alice Augustine runs the oldest bookstore in the historic district of Natchitoches and believes technology is the root of most problems. If only more people would  turn off the Tv and shut down the computer, the world wouldn't be in the mess it's in. If only she can get the teens she loves to step away from the screens and hold on to their Creole culture.

    Paul Olivier comes back to his home town determined to show the people of Cane River that he's not the poor, nerdy kid he once was. He's made a fortune designing video games and opening a giant electronics store right in the snooty historic district will be the crowning glory of his career.

   Alice and Paul clash from the start, but nothing is ever quite as it seems. When secrets are revealed, will there be a second chance- for both of them?

   A romance that brings the humor of You've Got Mail and the deep friendships of 84, Charring Cross Road, this story will touch the classic literature lover in everyone."

I loved writing this story because I've always wanted to write a modern secret identity story(I've written one in my historical, Purple Like the West).

You know, like You've Got Mail? But set in the South with lots of good food! As always, the book includes recipes (Natchitoches Meat Pies and Gumbo) and lots of ROMANCE. It's not up on Amazon yet but you can add it to your 'want to read' list here!

So, to celebrate this almost-very-soon release, I'm giving away one $25 Amazon gift card because I know you all need more BOOKS! To enter you can leave a comment and let me know you added it to your goodreads 'want to read' list, OR you can share this post!  (It shows up under the "invent your own option" but you know what I mean. And thank you for helping me celebrate!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What is a successful writing career? (And a tiny announcement.)

Hello, everybody!

 Don't worry, this won't be a long (long, long, long, LONG) post parsing the various terms and definitions of success, and backing it up with convoluted allegories or metaphors.

I'm not going to beat you over the head with my personal views on what makes a successful writer or how to achieve success (my way or no way, of course). I won't be debating traditional publishing, self publishing, indie publishing, rankings, reviews, writing styles or whether goodreads is stupiculous and should be shut down completely.

Aw, look at the wee ickle puffer fish. She must be lecturing about how her way is best.

Because, frankly, nobody wants to hear it. The world is filled with opinions and we've all had enough of the debates. So, let me just jump to the chase: for me, a successful writing career means that I can read my own books.
 I can hear the head-scratching... But bear with me. (Not a metaphor, I promise!) I heard once that Johnny Depp doesn't watch his own films because as he's sitting there, all he can think is how he should have moved just a bit differently, or inflected a different word, or paused a bit longer. It's torturous for him to watch what's already been set, and wish he could do it just a bit differently. As he matures, he said he's getting better at trusting his craft and being patient with his own work, but it's been a hard road.

 That is success. Not the millions he makes from every movie, but being comfortable in his own skin.

For me, even though I've got four books on the top of the genre lists, I don't feel successful. Don't get me wrong. I'm happy with how everything has gone lately. It's been a super fun experiment and I'd do it all over in a heartbeat. But I can't read my own books. Sure, I can see a funny line or think a plot point worked well, but it's not writing that makes me swoon.

I'm not a jealous person. You have a huge house? (Great!) You are a perfect size 4? (Great!) You love to do physics problems in your head? (What is wrong with you!? Oh, sorry... wrong response.)

 Jealousy isn't one of my main emotions. But when I read Diana Wynne Jones,  Holly Black, Frank McCourt, Franny Billingsley, George MacDonald, Barbara Kingsolver, John Updike, Suzanne Collins, Mary Ann Shaffer, Scott Westerfeld, Neil Gaiman, Maya Angelou, Jeanne Ray, Jonathon Stroud, Laura Whitcomb, Eion Colfer, Nick Hornby, etc., etc., etc.
I turn a bit green.
I want to do what they do.

But how?   There are a hundred competing voices in the writing community, from agents to publishers to bloggers, all yelling for attention. There are a million writing books, writing blogs, and writing groups out there. A thousand different views on voice, structure, and characterization. And if you took a hundred years and read through it all, it still wouldn't be what I need. Because what success means to me, is to be able to trust my craft and be comfortable with my work. I need someone to look at my writing and show me what needs work.

I've taken bad writing advice before. I've cut where I needed to add, I've worked on prose instead of plot, I've bowed to current opinion on what is 'too much' or 'too scary' or 'too honest'. I don't want to sign up for another round of 'let's not offend the reader'. I don't want to write what's already been written, just so it can be marketed while interest is high in Amish or vampires or Downtown Abbey-era England.

So, I need to work hard on my craft, but not lose my creativity. I need someone I can trust, someone I admire. But it's not like you can find brilliant authors just waiting around to teach new writers. Know why? Because they're busy. They're writing, plotting, crafting. They also are not typically teachers. We all know teaching is a calling, a vocation. If you've ever been taught by a teacher who didn't want to teach, you know exactly what I'm saying.

For a long time now I've been playing like a pirate, putting out ebooks and fulfilling contracts to the best of my ability. But I want to work like a captain. I want to be able to sail this ship without being hounded by the suspicion that I'm coasting along the Great Barrier Reef, skimming against the sharp edges of coral and tearing jagged holes in the hull.

It goes against popular wisdom to try and fix what's not broken. I mean, my books are selling hundreds of copies a day! I'm juggling so many projects I don't hardly have time to sleep! But then I read one of those really beautiful books again, find that phrase that speaks so clearly to what I've wanted to say but couldn't find the words, and I know that an Amazon ranking is not success to me. It's the ability to write, and reach, a reader with a story that I know is the very best it can be.

I'd like to spend my days like this... but in the end I would have wasted the precious time I've been given.

So, I'm stepping back and taking a chance. I'm signing up for some serious hard labor. It won't be all fluff and hugs, high points and flashes of brilliance. (Please God, just one flash of brilliance?) It won't be ladybugs riding a perfect dandelion puff to the other side of the garden.

It will be a combination of this...

and this...

and this.

 

Starting in October, I'll be diving into a four month course with Franny Billingsley, National Book Award Finalist for 'Chime'. You can visit her web page here. I never thought I'd be able to find a writer I admire so much, who actually teaches writing, one on one, to beginning writers. It's an opportunity I can't pass up. It's now or never. If I put it off for some other time, some other year, because my schedule is too packed with churning out books, I will regret it forever.

I remember when I was in college, the more I admired a professor, the harder it was for me to write a paper for him or her. I was controlled by the fear of not being good enough, of what they would think of my very rudimentary ideas on the subject they knew so well. It paralyzed me to the point that I would begin papers just days before they were due. Now that I'm older (and wiser, supposedly) I can see that I was constructing a little escape hatch for my pride. If the paper was bad, it wasn't because I didn't know the subject. It was because I wrote it in five hours.

Fear of failure, fear of success, they're both not worth my energy. I want to write and I want to write well. No matter how many contracts I sign or copies I sell, if I crack open a book and cringe, then I'm not feel 'successful'.

I admit I'm a little nervous. I haven't been in school for 17 years. I've had deadlines and some self-imposed dates, but nothing that came close to homework. I'm committed to learning how to craft a story in a way that makes me proud of my work. It's not magic and I'm not expecting miracles but I'm ready to dive in.

 Wishing you all the best success in the coming months. Whatever it means to you, I hope you get the chance to step away from the rat race for just a bit and commit to creating something uniquely your own.