An Author's Visit Across the Pond

I had the privilege of visiting England the last week of February -- one of my favorite destinations. Since I am a historical fiction author, are you surprised? My purpose was threefold. First, to do a bit of research and sightseeing in Bath, where my latest WIP takes place, although many centuries ago. Second, to do an author's talk at the Bristol homeschool coop near my host's town.

But the bulk of my week was to be spent digging deep in the Biblical book of John, which I consider as "God's Love Letter". I and 9 other women spent the time marking words and phrases, which helped us to slow down and observe the text carefully. And what we discovered was transformational!

We have a God who is relational. He wants to know us deeply. The Father loves His Son, and the Son loved us enough to pay the penalty for all the deeds that have hurt His Father's heart. Wow! Who wouldn't want to be loved like that?

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The day after I arrived in the UK, my teen friend Mariah and I headed to Bath on a local train to do a bit of research at Sally Lunn's. The buns (the size of large hamburger buns, but with the texture of brioche) were excellent -- worth risking a reaction to my gluten intolerance. Below is the shop and museum, where I discovered five years ago that Sally Lunn was probably a Huguenot girl named Solange Luyon, who eventually began a bun shop near the Abbey. That tidbit of information is all I needed to let my imagination run wild! Hopefully, some day, you will read Soli's story in print.

Next, we visited Bath Abbey, where my character, Soli, flees for refuge. Amazing architecture, and poignant grave markers characterize this historic building. Read them with admiration -- for the love family had for their departed, and for the character the artfully worded engraving represents . I'll let you take it in below. For a more in depth look at the city of Bath see my blogpost. 

Here is my dear friend, Mariah who guided me through the streets of Bath!

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Last, but certainly not least, was my author's talk at the Bristol Homeschool Coop. What a fantastic group of kids! Many of them (and their Mums) had already read my book, and were ready with comments! Look at this lovely group:

My little friend, Kaylah, read my book twice in 24 hours, and we chatted a bit about the parts that touched her enough to make her teary-eyed. Writing this last sentence brings a tear to my eye, too. Look at this touching note she gave me -- I miss her as well!

So that ends my England adventures. What a blessing it was to spend the time with precious friends - old and new!

Before I finish, I want to give my readers an opportunity to win a free audiobook of The Heart Changer. . . it's easy! Just tell me below in the comments (or respond to the email you received) which of the three activities I was involved in (research, Bible Study or Homeschool visit) you have done, or would like to do in the near future. I'll put your name in a drawing and you might just be a winner!