Another Blog update at last.

                  Sincere apologies for not updating  here for so long. 

So, programmes like Blogspot and Google change. My problem of being able to create updates has been very frustrating - and too time-consuming. Once again, despite hours trying to work out email addresses and passwords to create this "New Post" had to get help from a fellow writer, Paula Roe. Paula created my website and once again has been wonderful. She spent a lot of her own precious time this morning helping me so that here I am again at long last.

THANK YOU, PAULA ROE  Do check out her website by clicking on her name. 

The days have been so busy, it is hard to believe it is now almost 12 months since publishing my last post. Last year was a great year filled with visits from family and friends - some not seen for far too long.   Afraid it did become so busy with other commitments, it left little time to even think about posting here on my blog - especially when it took so long just finding the "New Post" so could publish one.

Earlier in 2015 there were a lot of trips from our beautiful Beauty Point to Launceston health specialists for Ray and dental appointments for myself. We are thankful all is under control now. Although slowing down of course, taking longer to do things and sometimes the memory not as sharp, my husband and I are very grateful to have the health we do at this time of our lives. 

The busy year did interfere with our writing schedules. At last Ray's new book, the seventh in his themed 31 Day Devotional series has just been published and will soon be on the bookshelves.  

My two manuscripts, Her Outback Cowboy and Delayed Dreams (A follow-on from my 1994 Damaged Dreams with Barbour Publishing) are still needing final revisions.  It has been exciting to see Damaged Dreams and all my back list from Barbour now out again as e-books. The plan is still to have eight more of my back list also available as e-books.

When possible, I still enjoy sharing with other writers online, but especially face to face at Conferences and writer events. 

At a special monthly SWWT meeting a few years ago.

 I am still very involved with activities of the Society Women Writers Tasmania. This year we are hosting the national society's Alice Award Event in August. 

AND NOW, 2016?

 Poatina Faith and the Arts with writers

It commenced in January with me at the Poatina Faith and Arts week. It was a privilege to again host the Creative Writing elective. It was the fore-runner of what is already looking like another very busy year. 

Ray and I at long last are going on our Indian Pacific Train trip to Perth. We have a book-signing there at Mt Lawley Koorong bookshop on April 30^th and other speaking and meeting appointments are being scheduled in April and May. In June we are taking our car to the mainland for our next trip. Besides seeing friends and family, we have accepted an invitation to the three day Christian High Schools Writing Retreat at Tahlee in NSW. We are looking forward to this but know it will be a challenge to share with keen young writers some of the things learnt over the years about writing,

It has thrilled me to see books now published by authors I have shared with over the years at conferences, workshops and mentoring programmes. Perhaps more of that in future blog posts. 

PART TWO - MY JOURNEY LAST OCTOBER

Do hope you have read Part One before this where I shared a little of our time in Melbourne, with friends at Orange and Tamworth in New South Wales. The main focus of our time on the Australian mainland was the Omega Writers’ CALEB conference in Brisbane, Queensland.

Our home until I was nine on
the black soil plains of the Darling Downs.

However, our next appointments after Tamworth were near and in Dalby on the Darling Downs, over 200 kilometres west of Brisbane. This was the black soil pains area where I grew up and still have extended family on several large farms.  On our old farm on the eastern Downs near Bongeen (the setting of my Search book series now e-books), Dad grew mainly grain crops like wheat, barley and sorghum.  The landscape has changed tremendously, especially with large numbers of much larger dams for irrigating cotton and a variety of other seasonal crops.

 

Bruce organised our time at Dalby

We were booked to stay several days with my brother Stan Pedler on a farm some distance from Dalby. The minister at the church in Dalby was an old friend of ours and a great organiser of a dinner where we spoke and Ray preached at their church the next day. 
It was our first experience doing a book-signing for a general market bookshop. Collins Bookshop was in a large shopping complex and a great experience.

I also enjoyed very much meeting old friends and family, some who live in Dalby and others out on farms I remember visiting many years ago with my own family.



As I mentioned in the last blog post, we were concerned about the “sore” on Ray’s face. The day we arrived at Stan’s, my brother mentioned he had a very painful knee. He lived close to an hour’s drive from Dalby so made an appointment to see his doctor while we were at the book-signing. It was too good an opportunity to miss, so while I stayed with our books for a brief while, Ray went with Stan hoping to be able to also see a doctor at the clinic. I have no doubt God was organising us even more than our friend could have control of. 



My big brother, Stan.

Stan’s doctor took one look and booked Ray in to have it cut out in the surgery the next afternoon. Only later did we discover he was concerned enough to give up his day off to do that. Family and friends have told us this doctor Ray “happened” to see is very highly thought of in the area as the doctor with a great deal of experience at the local Skin Cancer Clinic. Yes, it was a Squamous Cell Carcinoma - still nasty but not as vicious as a melanoma. So for nearly a fortnight during the conference and speaking appointments, Ray had that dressing on his face. 

Oh, need I mention the pain in Stan’s knee also stopped quickly over the next few days? God is good and His mercies endure forever. 

Ruth Bonetti, Anne Hamilton
 and Jo Wanmer

 

We could only spend a brief few hours with family and friends in my home town of Toowoomba on the way to Brisbane and the wonderful CALEB writers’ conference.

Hard working CALEB members who worked hard organising our conference our great conference.

 

 

The Omega Writers organise the Award dinner and fiction finalists wait to be told the dinner.

The few days were a wonderful time of fellowship with other writers. This input to my writing was something I regret very much not having for over ten years in those early days of
trying to write that first book, Search for Tomorrow.

 


The writers in the master class I  presented doing an exercise about point of view and dialogue - while I had a break from speaking.


    

The publisher of Wombat/Even Before Publishing with most of her published authors - except my husband, Ray, who had sneaked off too soon after the dinner.

I am so thrilled and proud of our Aussie writers. May we all continue to try and improve our efforts to give readers more challenging and entertaining books. I am only sorry my camera was not working properly so could have more photos.

 

Currently I am trying very hard to get to what I hope wil be the final revisions for my new single title, Her Outback Cowboy.

When I do get time, afraid I am too slow preparing my blog posts and now Christmas Day has come and gone as I type this on Boxing Day. I do hope all reading this have had a great time yesterday and a restful time today. May you know personally the true wonder of how God has shown His love for us by giving us His only Son.

 

I am afraid I did not think to get my camera out yesterday when at Craig and Rachelle's for our Christmas time together. Those six grandchildren had a wonderful time today with their presents. I stayed with them for a few hours while Mum and Dad - and Grandad too - had to work at Seahorse World and Seahorse Australia breeding farm. Like all farms, the animals - and fish! - still have to be cared for on holidays. 

 

And now the rest of our trip - already over too long ago - has to wait until I have time to prepare PART THREE - especially some more photos I hope you might enjoy.

Would love anyone who is in the above photos to let me know in a comment. 

 

I also have a post last Monday and the next two on some of the basics of writing Christian Romance - Click on this:- Australasian Christian Writers 

 

MY JOURNEY SINCE LAST AUGUST (Part One)

I wonder how many times over the years I’ve said something like, ‘Where has all the time gone?’ The older I get the faster ‘time’ rushes by. I just checked back and to my horror realised it is nearly four months since I posted a blog here that was not a review of a fellow author’s book.

So much has happened since then I hardly know where to start. Last August here, I renewed some old memories of the wonderful American Christian Fiction Writers conference Ray and I were so privileged to share. Some of my Aussie writer friends were off to this year’s conference so I had to get out some of my old photos. Since then I have tried to keep my Facebook friends up to date on some of my journey. Today am sharing more, including photographs I hope tell more of our time with family, old friends and making new friendships. As always though, we did miss taking photos of some events.

It was a busy time over several months organising our six week trip on the mainland for September and October. Thankfully at the very beginning of our travels neither of us were sea-sick this time on the Spirit of Tasmania ferry to Melbourne. We drove up to Queensland from Melbourne through the inland, back home down the coast from Brisbane to Sydney and then inland again back to Melbourne. By the time we arrived home to our lovely Tasmania, we had travelled 5,124 kilometres and did take some time of course to recover!

First stop Melbourne and a much needed rest with our daughter who took us to the beautiful Rhododendron gardens in the Dandenong mountains:

 

 

 Then we drove through Victoria, stopping at Christian bookshops in towns on the way up to Central West New South Wales to Orange. We once lived in this beautiful city where two of our children were born and where we commenced a new church. Couldn't resist taking a photo of this house. This was the old church manse we lived in and where the first meetings of the church began way back in 1968.

 

 

During those years I was on the committee which commenced the first Christian bookshop in Orange. It was a wonderful privilege to do a book-signing in the shop now known as Pilgrim Christian bookshop.

We stayed with the current minister and his wife, lovely John and Patricia Shuttleworth. 
Ray preached at their Sunday service where we were delighted how many folk filled the chapel and how many bought our books too of course. It was a great time renewing friendship with some old friends still there as well as seeing how God has blessed and grown the ministry of the fellowship we helped commence. We had a lovely evening with the Abel family. My, how the numbers there have grown oven these many years.

 

 

 

Out next overnight stop was Tamworth where we renewed memories again with special friends we had known in Maitland in the Hunter Valley. Merrilyn and Glenn Rose.

 

 

 

Our friends organised a meeting for us. Again wonderful to meet old friends not seen for too many years. I roped Ray in at this meeting to share also about how he had at last given in to his wife's nagging - oops, encouragement of course! - to write devotional books. As well as his first self-published 'Neurotic Rooster', Ray now has four of his themed 31 Day Devotional Book series published by Wombat Books in their Even Before Publishing division. 'Dynamic Ageing' is scheduled for release this coming February and his 'Signpost To Happiness' in May. 


It was in Tamworth we became concerned about
a lesion on Ray's face that was getting worse instead of better from his Tasmanian doctor's treatment.

It is so wonderful to look back and see how God was in control of our scheduling on this trip. That lesion turned out to need urgent treatment....

But that will have to be told in my next blog post:-

                         MY JOURNEY SINCE LAST AUGUST - PART TWO  



MEMORIES OF MY AMERICAN CHRISTIAN FICTION WRITERS CONFERENCE

This morning I received an email from the American Christian Fiction Writers Beyond the Borders Zone chapter asking for a photo to be included in a slide show at the Zone breakfast for this years conference. It has been quite a while since I looked at my old photos of that awesome conference Ray and I were so privileged to go to. Memories of that 2009 ACFW in Denver flooded back, especially as I started looking for a photo. Simply can't resist sharing a few here of the many we took that year. 

This photo shows the generosity and friendliness shown by everyone to this rather nervous Aussie intruder. What a thrill it was to listen to these great folk share in the sessions. (L-R) Karen Ball, Allen Arnold and with Debbie Macomber who was the Keynote Speaker that year as well as joining Karen and Allen in these published author sessions. 

Ray enjoyed helping at the Beyond the Border zone table and handing out some of the Aussie goodies at the book-signing  

 Lisa Harris and I first met in Johannesburg four years before and enjoyed meeting her again so very much.

Colleen Coble and I had exchanged emails over the years and how exciting to meet another of my all-time favourite authors.

 Perhaps of all the authors I met, Lena and I have been in touch the longest since the early days of the Barbour Heartsong Presents book club. Who can resist her smile and loving hugs!

 Margaret Daley was kind enough to endorse my Outback From Baragula. She was president of ACFW operating board in 2012.
As well as writing great books, Cheryl Wyatt has since become very involved also on the ACFW board 

Kim Vogel Sawyer too so generously endorsed my Outback From Baragula novel. Like so many of the great authors I met in Denver, many of her beautiful stories are "keepers" on my book shelves. 








And now I'll have to put some of my other photos sometime on my Facebook page instead of here. 
How I would love to be able to go to the ACFW conference this year when other Aussies are going. I know they will be wonderfully blessed and I look forward to seeing their photos and hearing about their experiences.

MY HUSBAND'S NIGHTMARE - AND MY CHUCKLE

After my "Catch Up" blog last week, Ray took pity on me. This priceless story suddenly landed on my desk. After a good laugh, knew I had to share it with you.

I think Ray should be a novelist as well as a devotional writer!

A Husband’s Greatest Fear - Or

("I was swallowed by my Wife’s Handbag.")

I had seen it. Mouth open with zipper pulled right back. Here was a monster waiting a victim. Mary’s handbag had been placed on my favourite seat. As I moved towards it my eyes and mind became distracted by a television news item. Suffering short term memory loss, I decided to sit down. Then the nightmare began.

As my rump squashed the handbag it came alive. It grabbed me. I resisted but the suction was too strong. Down, down, down I went past a forest of paper. I glimpsed such things as a car license, shopping list, an invitation to our grand-daughter’s children tea party and a shopper docket. Trying to cling onto of one was fruitless. In fact I cut my fingers on the sharp edges of the papers. At least my fall was softened by a moist tissue.

There at the base of the bag I realised I was a captive in a fake leather, slightly faded voluminous and crowded bag. Cramped, confused and feeling claustrophobic, panic tried to ride roughshod over me. Being a man however I knew how to cope. I screamed! Unfortunately the soft sides of the bag muffled my cries. Taking a hold of myself I did what any self respecting, self controlled man would do. I lashed out and kicked the nearest item.

“Ouch!” That was silly; now I had a slight gash on my shin from a collection of keys lurking in the crevices like a metal spider.

Only one thing to do, climb! Light seemed to trickle down from above, casting shadows due to Mary’s wallet and credit card holder. Still I realised I had to escape. Loose change made my footing unstable as I searched for the comb I knew she carried. I fell. My face hit something hard yet sweet. A cough lolly. As I licked it I felt a renewed sense of vigour, found the comb under a piece of Lego. This was probably taken from our small grandson who had a habit of putting things in his mouth. I placed the comb, with much effort, against the bag’s side. Comb tooth, by comb tooth, I made my way upwards.

What the…? What was wrapping itself around my leg? What had fallen on my head? A sense of unease was only overcome when, in the dim light, I saw it was strands of grey hair. I never realised Mary’s hair was so strong. It was like Tarzan’s swinging vines. I kicked, shook and finally pulled my way clear.

Who would have thought all those jokes about a woman’s handbag would prove so true? So much stuff closeted away in what I could now believe was similar to Dr. Who’s Tardis. Nervously I continued my climb.

“Careful now,” I said to myself, “don’t fall over the edge into the secret compartment or you’ll never be found.”

Drawing near to the top, I sighed with relief which soon gave way to despair. Fingers had hold of the zipper. Mary was home but danger lurked for me as she began to close the bag’s mouth. Was I about to be devoured? Would Mary ever wonder what had happened to me? And I hadn’t even kissed her that morning!

Tears of fear and frustration joined in a torrential outburst of anger. Too late! I was doomed to wander forever in Mary’s handbag. As I sank down in misery, a cry shattered my sorrow. My eyes flickered. Light penetrated.

A voice spoke to me “Are you alright my darling? What’s happened to you? Why is the chair upside down? How did my bag become squashed and things scattered over the floor? Look at you, you’re a mess and that bruise on your head will need some ice.”

Uh oh! How could I ever tell her the truth?

-----------------------------------------------

We are so grateful to God for over 48 years of sharing fun, ministry, rearing our beautiful family and now writing together.

Do check out Ray's published devotional books - print and e-books.

If you cannot find a printed copy in your bookshop he can sell them direct. 
See the contact page on: http://www.mary-hawkins.com  

These Many Years



         

A long time ago a nurse met a handsome young man at  Bible college. They soon fell in love and married.

Over the years they shared many things and today they are both writers. She writes romance novels, he writes devotional meditation books but also poetry that often brings tears of delight and tremendous thanks to the Giver of all wonderful gifts to her. Here is another example of these love poems. It was handed to her today.

These Many Years

Many years have flown

Since our very first kiss

That fateful Friday night

When water and moonlight

Met on Sydney harbour

And I was filled with awe

As our love was born

Those many years ago

Fifty years have sown

Many memories

To colour our testimony

Of two lives becoming one

Creating our history

With Jesus, God’s Son

Within His ministry

Those many years ago

Many years have flown

Light through shadows still shone

In them both we have stood

Knowing bitter and the good

Sharing God’s providence

Believing with confidence

His promises are true

Those many years ago

Fifty years have sown

A love for you alone

You’re my joy, my crown

And this I would make known

Before our Lord I bow

There to renew my vow

To love and cherish you

Those many years to come

©Raymond N. Hawkins May 2013.

Christmas blessings

I do want to wish all my followers and readers all that Jesus Christ offers us this Christmas.
Because life is crazier than ever in the Hawkins' household right now and I still have "stuff" to do before tomorrow, I'm just going to direct you to Ray's post with greetings from us both. He has included his poem "Mary's First Christmas Ponderings" which I read at our church service last night.
I pray it challenges you as it has this "Mary".

Click HERE 

The Bethlehem Warrior Baby book

My apologies for being late with this to the Blog Alliance and especially this Ray Hawkins!

"Life" - which includes putting writing on my current manuscript first - has meant new blog posts will have to wait for those hours when the story of Dave and Jenny is stalled in "Her Outback Cowboy".

Ray's writing has blessed me so very much for almost 48 years of him being not only my wonderful husband but also my "minister" at church. In fact, the Christian life he lives day by day has taught me equally as much by seeing what he preaches and teaches in action in his own life.
This ministry to me now continues also with his 31 Day devotional book series.

9 - 23 November

Australian Christian Readers Blog Alliance

is introducing

Bethlehem's Warrior (31 Day Devotional)

(Even Before Publishing November 2012)

by Ray Hawkins

Available from Light the dark this week for $7.95

About the Author:

Ray Hawkins

Ray Hawkins, retired after over 40 years as a Churches of Christ minister, enjoys sharing themes from the Scriptures through Devotional writing.

Married to Mary, multi-published inspirational romance author, they have three children and five grandchildren.

Ray shares his insights in his first two books on Marriage and Children with more ideas to come about ministry and much more.

Living in Beauty Point Tasmania, Ray heads up a new Christian Fellowship as well as doing relief preaching, community work and writing.

Book Description:

Bethlehem's Warrior (31 Day Devotional)

Short Book Description: In 31 daily devotional meditations Bethlehem's Warrior
Baby takes you out of a sentimental nativity scene and into a contest with
eternal significance.

It walks you through God's promise in Genesis 3:15 of Someone coming and the
clues to His identity in the old Testament. You become aware that in the
Christmas event that 'Someone' has come.

I believe Christmas is the culmination of Heaven's countdown to reclaim men,
women and creation from the tyranny of sin, death and Satan. The cost involved
to God to achieve this should make the reader bow in awe and gratitude.

Website - http://rayhawkinsauthor.blogspot.com.au/

Getting back into higher “Gears”

Hard to believe it is a month since my last post here. It was an effort to write that one but I did have to share the important news of my Return to Baragula being featured first on the new Australian Christian Readers Blog alliance. Apologies to my followers and those who have viewed my blog since then.

Ever driven one of those small cars years ago you had to put the gear lever to that very lowest gear to climb up that steep mountain road? My little Hillman sedan did make it all the way from Toowoomba to Sydney back in the mid 1960s. It chugged up those steep mountains and raced down valleys in the highest gear only to face another mountain. Today’s cars and improved highways make that trip much faster now. This last month I’ve discovered that as our bodies get older they too need to be in “low gear” and it takes longer to make it up some mountains. That rotten large kidney stone which blocked the pipe caused a rotten abscess that gave me rotten blood-poisoning.

The second trip to hospital for over 24 hours got rid of the stone and stent from the last surgery but I still have to chug up some mountains in low gear again. I am very thankful that each day I am managing to do more and puff and pant less - in fact change to higher and higher gears!

Today I managed to help Ray to join Facebook. He is now a reluctant “Facebooker”, still adding to his Timeline page but is there at last!  Despite his two hour round trips to visit me each day I was in hospital and spoiling me wonderfully since I’ve been home, he has still managed to post on his blog and continue to write more devotional thoughts for more books in his 31 Day Devotional series of books.

His latest book will be officially released to shops in November in time for Christmas.

These devotional meditations will open your eyes:
The baby born with a sword.
The conquering Lord.
The wonder of Christmas.
His victory in your life.

However we do now have copies of Bethlehem’s Warrior Baby he is selling at half price, $5.00 (plus postage). Do let us know if you would like copies. And you can use PayPal - see my website (which still needs updating!). 

  We are both looking forward to sharing with other writers in Qld at the Word Writers Getaway next week. This is sponsored by Omega Writers. They have just commenced an email group for members. If you are a member do join this Yahoo group.