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Sticky Note Queen

I’m a pantster. (I don’t know if pantster is even a word, but it describes me. I fly by the seat of my pants.) I can see in my mind all you wonderfully organized folks out their shaking your heads in dismay, and rightfully so. But may I just say in my defense I’ve been like this all my life, and it seems to work for me.

I’ve raised three boys and never lost one. Okay, there was one time in Phoenix that one of them got away from me into an elevator, but his cries soon led me to him. Every time the elevator doors opened i could hear him. I also managed to speak publicly for many years without totally embarrassing myself, and I even have a clean house with laundry folded right out of the dryer. I’ve traveled, managed an office, was a bookkeeper, (with books that balanced) and have written ten novels. Whatever you call my style it works for me.

Although, I’m impressed with and in awe of people who plan out every step of their project; those who know what they are going to create from the beginning all the way to the end; organized before they start. I’ve attempted to do the same, but oh how quickly I stray from the path. I don’t just stray, I color outside the lines, and go a completely different direction, I can’t tell you how many wonderful, amazing planners I’ve bought over the years and never used one of them past the first week. And yet, I somehow planned many social events including a major city- wide one. My claim to fame is the bright, neon sticky note.

I’m a pants-ter. Maybe I should have been a hippie because I tend go with the flow or it’s because I’m married to an old hippie. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Life can get a little chaotic at times, but hey I don’t need therapy for deviating from my lists. Yep, you’ve got it, I’m a pantster and a sticky note queen. The key is to stick them in places that make sense to me and that’s another story.

Sticky notes please!

Finding A New Avenue

I am proof that it’s never too late to change course and find a new avenue for life. After circumstances changed in our lives during the last recession, I found myself scrambling to reinvent myself. I stumbled upon a writing class through the University of Connecticut where I lost myself in writing and found myself there too.

Even though my books are fantasy fiction I have a real method for why I write the stories I do. In my own strange way, I answer the question through my heroines what would happen if we were aware of what really is happening around us. In the process I touch upon subjects that are important to me in a hopefully entertaining way.

When I’m tempted to believe I haven’t accomplished anything I remember a few things and it brings a smile to my face. Today was a time for me to pause and reflect. I have eleven books and one novella published. Each one accomplished later in my life. All of them have finished in the top ten in the Critters Readers Poll. Key To The Past, and As The Page Turns were both finalists in the CAL Awards in 2021 and 2022 respectfully. Searching For Closure, won a Book Excellence Award, was a CAL Award Winner this year and received a Firebird Book Award. I’ve made the Amazon Best Seller List which is a short window in time.

I’m no diva when it comes to my work, I’m grateful for any recognition I get, but most of all I’m thankful for you the readers who read them and tell me what you think. I have enjoyed meeting you and talking to you in person and through social media.

I have lots of room to grow, especially in the area of commas and showing and not telling. I may have more to learn about my craft and about marketing, but when all is said and done, writing has allowed me to find another way to be who I am even after life threw me a curve.

Key to The Past
As The Page Turns
Searching For Closure.

I received a Book Excellence Award

I am incredibly excited to announce that I have been recognized as a Book Excellence Award Winner for my book, Searching for Closure in the Mystery Category.

Out of thousands of books that were entered into the Book Excellence Awards competition, my book was selected for its high quality writing, design and overall market appeal.

To view my complete award listing, you can visit: Searching For Closure – Mystery (bookexcellenceawards.com)

The book was released in February of 2021.

The book is perfect for adults who like a mystery with a touch of paranormal and romance.

You can get a copy for yourself at Amazon.com: Searching for Closure (A Blue Cove Mystery Book 9) eBook : Morrison, Iona: Books

Ancestral Math

When I was younger, I didn’t pay attention to the stories my grandparents and parents shared about family, but the older I get the more I wished I had. I’ve come to appreciate all the generations of people who came together to make me who I am. Reading this chart on Ancestral Mathematics was a great reminder.

Not only did it get me thinking about my immediate family but about those who are nameless to me. I started looking through some old photos, which I love to do. I wish I knew all the stories behind the pictures.

The conclusion that I came to was that a lot of people are part of my story. It’s a bit mind bending.

Wedding Photo
My Parents engaged
Grandfather (Mother’s Side)
Grandparents (Dad’s side)
Grandmother (Mother’s side.

The next part gets a bit trickier with eight great-grand parents. I have photos of two and several great aunts. I’ve learned my great grandfather on my dad’s side owned a large ranch in Texas. The rest of those numbers are names only for me.

Great-grandparents on my dad’s side.
Great-grandfather on
my mom’s side.

No matter how I look at it I didn’t just happen. A lot of unique individuals went into the possibility for me to exist. And just because I love old photos here are few more of family and those I love.

My mom and dad as kids.

My dad and his sisters
My mom’s sister, my mom, and best friend.
My mom

My great grandfather, his wife and two daughters and son who is the baby. He was my dad’s father. I think you get the general idea.

Which brings me to me, my siblings, and the math goes on.

My older brother and sister.
Sister, me, and my younger brother.
Me (second grade)

Seniors in high school and yet to meet.

Me as a Senior
How he looked when I met him
Hubby as a Senior
The math continues.

You’ve got to love the magic of life. We are all connected and not as different as we like to think. In a world that often can be mean kindness matters and love wins.

Learning to Balance

I found myself walking into 2022 with nervous trepidation, feeling exhausted, and bruised, Yet at the same time, more in touch with who I am. Who would have thought that lockdowns, the loss of several friends from a virus that is relentless, and a couple of scary health issues in my family would change my ideas about what normal should look like? It changed everything.

I’m amazed by the strength of human resolve in fighting the battle to live. I know a few people waging that war right now, and I’m inspired by their courage. They remind me of the fragile, precious gifts of living, loving, and being loved. And that life is more about how we treat others than having the most possessions. Our real legacy is leaving our world a better place because of how we lived. Be kind to others, life’s battles are often tough.

Life is short even when it’s long. And though we often pay more attention to the externals it is the internals of the heart that we memorialize. People are remembered most for those qualities that are seen beneath the surface only visible in how they walk among us. It is those qualities that invite us to honor and applaud a life well lived.

I’ve chosen to slow down, breathe in the wonder, and not let my love for someone go unsaid. In an often angry, but grieving world, I want to practice kindness, gratitude, and listening. And I also want to learn to savor life’s little surprises when they come my way.

“Step with care and great tact and remember that life’s a great balancing act.”~*~ Dr. Seuss ~*~

Hope to See

My year ended with a memorial service for a couple who died from Covid two weeks apart. It seemed befitting in some ways that they died so close together. You couldn’t say one of their names without saying the other in the same sentence. I’m sad to say that the new year has started off the same way with the loss of two special people who share their own space in my heart. I feel richer for knowing them even if for the moment I must grieve their loss.

There is a strange tension that pervades human life. On the one hand, we are encouraged to open our lives to people and to love and be loved but on the other hand with that openness comes great loss and a deep void when they are gone. It makes for some happy and sad times in life. Times when we must ask questions and be reminded again of what is important and what’s not.

The older I get the more I understand how fragile life is. Every day is a gift to be lived with all the gratefulness we have. Some days are harder than others, but it’s nice to know that love is always present and to be loved is one of the greatest gifts. Love brings hope with it; hope that though weeping may endure for a season that joy will come again.

From the beginning of our life to the end so many people, moments, and circumstances come together to help make us who we are. All the things we have experienced are woven into who we are and are becoming. We can’t go back, we can only move forward one day at a time, one step at a time. Hope is what propels us forward and keeps us from giving up.

In the end, hope has helped me to see that though my heart is broken at the moment I will continue to dance even if it’s with a limp in honor of their lives.

Pause and Enjoy

I love this time of year. What’s not to like about Christmas lights, festive decorations, and family gatherings? Several of the ornaments on my tree have many memories attached to them. Some of my favorites were made by kids and grandkids. A few were made by my sister who is no longer living, and others belonged to my mother and grandmother and were passed down to me. I love the memories that come to mind when I bring out the boxes and hang each one on the tree.

After the past couple of years, this year has me cherishing these memories more than ever. I lost two friends recently to Covid which came as a stark reminder of how fragile life can be. I’ve made a choice this holiday season to pause and enjoy those memories as they come even if they come with tears.

This Santa music box was a gift from my sister. Every time I see this little guy, it gives me hope that love always wins in the end. We shared a room growing up that literally had a line drawn down the center of it. The only free area was a path to the door and the closet that we shared. She couldn’t come on my side and visa-versa. Doing dishes every night was a test of my parent’s patience. We fought over everything. I don’t remember how it happened, but at some point, we became best friends. We talked each day though she lived in Missouri, and I live in Colorado. Love can truly break down the walls we build, and now I miss her every day.

I think this statement by Bianca Sparacino sums life up well. “You will hurt, and you will be hurt. However, you will also love, and you will be loved in the most magnificent ways. To live life is to understand that together these extremes thrive within us.”

Life can be hard, and messy, but equally amazing and wonderful. At times it is a roller coaster ride of ups and downs, but I’m grateful for each day that I get. Though life has led me down many different paths, some full of light and happiness, and some dark and sad, I haven’t forgot those who I have loved along the way. Their place is etched in my memories and their footprints are in my heart.

Every day is a gift. Loss and separation are not easy. This quote by W. S. Merwin has given words to very real emotions. “Your absence has gone through me, like thread through a needle. Everything I do is stitched with its color.”

“It is in the shelter of each other that people live.” Irish Proverb. Wishing you each a joyous Holiday Season filled with moments to savor and a very Happy New Year.

Watch What They do

There are many voices that clamor for our attention. Not all of them have our best interests in mind. As a matter of fact, I doubt that many even think about us at all when they make their often outrageous claims about their products, or beliefs. Or even what the impact of their words might be upon on our lives. It took me many years to understand that I needed to watch what they do and not just what they say.

Growing up I was one part sunshine and another white tornado. I gave my mom all she could handle. Her actions showed me every single day what real love looked liked. Even when I wasn’t the easiest of kids to raise she never gave up on me or wavered in her love. I was strong willed, which is an understatement. Because of my mother’s actions I tend to look beyond mere words to what a person does. She tried her best to convince me through her actions that I was enough.

I admit for a few years I got lost in other peoples’ ideas and expectations of how I should act and live. Wanting to fit in or at times to lead the way I learned to play a part. Over time it was eye-opening when I began to see that most of those telling me what I should do didn’t believe or live their own words. Often I didn’t either.

Having spent many years of my life being told who I was, who I should be, and how I should act it was a great moment when I awakened. Not an easy task by any means. It meant deconstructing who I’m not, so I could simply become who I am.

Being honest with yourself is never easy, but it has simplified my life, and my faith. I’m happy to show by my actions or in some cases my characters actions who I am. You will find a part of me in every book that I write. I won’t tell you where but maybe you can guess when you watch what I do.

Christmas Novella

I’m excited about my Christmas novella and I hope you’ll like it as much as I do. I had fun writing this one, and I might try my hand at another novella soon. This short read is a part of a Christmas Cookie Series done with other authors at The Wild Rose Press. Now you can read your way through the holiday season with some great stories and get some tasty cookie recipes too.

Here’s a small taste of Magic and Midnight Mint Bars and how I imagine Blue Cove at Christmas time.

“Sally was warming to her, but she had to make changes gingerly. She didn’t want to scare the girl with
an overt use of magic. Sally’s life had more than enough drama to last a lifetime. Gentle reminders were
best in her case. The first rule in the Intermediary Manual on page one in bold letters under line one-A
says, “the case subject has to believe that any decision made is their own idea.” Sally couldn’t feel
manipulated. Hundreds of years made Elida a pro at her job. Heck, she even taught classes on how it should be done, but occasionally even the best could mess up. In her guise as Holly, she wouldn’t leave anything to chance. All her hard work over the years had paid off with many inches added to her stature. She had always been on the tiny size from day one, known among her peers as Little Sprite quite lovingly. But with perseverance and her present rate of growth, she could be human size before long. She smiled wistfully. She hopped into Sally’s coat pocket while she dressed. Oh, how she loved the thrill of a case. Making people see the possibilities in their own life was exhilarating.”

Blue Cove at Christmas

Highs, Lows, and In-betweens

There is nothing like seeing my finished book and holding it in mine hands for the first time. Getting the first peek at a new cover is awesome too. ‘As The Page Turns’ release date is August 8th. ‘Magic and Midnight Mint Bars’ is my first attempt at a Christmas story. It’s a novella and I had a lot of fun writing this one.

For me, these are a few of the small joys of life not to be confused with the most important and key times with family and those you love. After a year of losing some folks I love, I was once again reminded people are what really matter. Their presence fills life with something truly irreplaceable.

Life is often a roller coaster ride of highs and lows. Some highs are amazingly hard to beat moments, and some lows are tough to slog your way through. Thankfully most of life is routine, everydayness, and simply living. There are times when you can experience them all in a single day. Some weeks are filled with special activities and some have nothing new at all. Or as we all now know, a pandemic can change a year and the way we think of normal.

Yesterday I celebrated a milestone of years upon the earth. One that my mother never got to see. It made me grateful to experience this particular birthday. At some point in my life, it may be different for each of us, I quit worrying about getting older and became grateful for each birthday I get to see. This one was especially nice surrounded by people who are important to me. Laughter was the order of the evening, and for a time life was serving up memories and joy all the way around. Add to that a book release, and new cover, grandkids, and a special wedding anniversary coming up and I would say this is one of those high times after several lows.

At times like this I can breathe, take my foot of the gas, and rest being grateful to enjoy the moment before the ride begins again. I still find life beautiful, at times perplexing, and amazing. A wild ride, which I’m grateful to have survived, endured, and enjoyed surrounded by highs, the ordinary, and yes those pesky lows that have a way of changing me. Today I’m taking time to smell my birthday flowers.

A birthday bouquet from my brother. I love flowers.