Three Things I Do Well and A Bit More

 Hi, I’m Judith Ashley, author of The Sacred Women’s Circle series, soul nourishing romantic women’s fiction with light paranormal elements. My stories show you what life could be like if you had a place like The Circle where you are unconditionally accepted, supported and loved. And where, with this support, you make choices to overcome the darkest nights of your life to choose love and light.

One might think this would be an easy-peasy topic but for someone who was raised with the message it was WRONG to toot one’s own horn, it can be a struggle. So I asked my Very Best Friend in the Whole World what she thought were three things I do well.

Well, she didn’t want to tell me three things I DO well. So instead she told me three things/traits she thinks I have in abundance.

Her list:

Loyal
    Since I consider loyalty a non-negotiable trait in my close relationships, I totally agree with her on this one.

Honest
     I vividly remember the few times I lied in my younger years. I got caught. Needless to say, the embarrassment was worse than the consequences. It just isn’t worth it. Having said that there are times when I emphasize something beyond what’s the actual fact in my life. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve done that.

Gratitude
     I look for the best, the brightside, the upside. For the most part, I give people the benefit of the doubt. I’ve found that a Gratitude practice helps me deal with those days that are more challenging.

I don’t disagree with that list and am not surprised to Not See patience. I may not be totally lacking in that trait however I do not have anywhere near an abundance of it. In fact, right now as in today, it is in Short Supply. Does it help? No, being impatient doesn’t help nor does it speed things up. The saying “Accepting Life on Life’s Terms” is a daily challenge for me.

I have worked diligently over the decades to be able to toot my own horn so here are mine.

1.     Planning, Organizing and Implementing
Disorganization is painful especially now when a health issue or two prevents me from getting in and getting it done. The sense of accomplishment at the end of a project is a euphoric high for me.

2.     Seeing the other side of an issue
This ‘skill’, while it serves me well, also gets me into a bit of trouble at times because it is extremely easy for me to play “Devil’s Advocate” and sometimes my friends just want to vent.

3.     Regularly checking in with myself on my efforts to live by my Core Values/Beliefs.
There have been times in my life when I’m not as ‘on purpose’ with this one and it shows up in all phases of my life including a good night’s sleep. My Core Beliefs are about living a mindful life and include such things as

“We each have our own path and have the right to traverse it   without righteous interference from others.”

“There is enough ~ I have enough and always will.”

Whether it is the list my friend made or my own, when I look at one accomplishment that brings me great joy – my writing – I can see these traits and deeds in each of the stories. A Sacred Women’s Circle is founded on the traits of loyalty, honesty, abundance (enough) and acceptance (the other side of an issue) among others.

How do you organize your life?
How do you deal with difficult situations?
Where do you rely on your Core Values to see you through a tough time?

You can find my books at your favorite e-book vendor as well as through my website www.JudithAshley.net and Windtree Press. Print books are available at Jan’s Paperbacks in Beaverton, OR and Arte Soleil in Portland, OR. Get the addresses from my website. And be sure to ask your library if you’d prefer to read my books through that resource.

Learn more about Judith's The Sacred Women’s Circle series at JudithAshley.net

Check out Judith’s Windtree Press author page.

You can also find Judith on FB! 

© 2024 Judith Ashley

It's That Time of Life

by Courtney Pierce

When I try to recall the best book that I read in 2018, I laughed out loud. I didn’t even finish one besides my own. Indigo Legacy took a full three years to complete, along with multiple read-throughs from both my editor and so many from me I stopped counting. But that doesn’t count, does it? Editing a novel is hard, hard work.

There were two books I attempted to read in order to give myself distance from my manuscript. Both were supremely disappointing: Mississippi Blood by Greg Iles and Origin by Dan Brown. I had a Missus-Bitchy-Face at every turn of the page. Greg Iles is one of my favorites, but a courtroom rehash of the first two books of a trilogy bored me to tears. I wanted to love this book, but it felt like a throw-away to keep Greg's publisher happy. In similar fashion, Dan Brown’s writing has gone downhill with the pressure to crank out a controversial story. Even at 200 pages into Dan Brown’s book, Origin, and I still didn’t know the "big discovery" that was teased in the Prologue. Give me the guts of the real problem upfront, and then play out the obstacles for finding the solution. Schlock. . . pure schlock.

Ugh…sorry guys, but I’m getting so picky. The new traditional publishing machine messed with my leisure reading. I’ve never not previously finished a book, but these two books made me shove them under the nightstand for an evening of staring at the ceiling. I can do better. I can write better.

I did read a fabulous non-fiction book about bears. Bears: Their Life and Behavior by Art Wolfe. It rung my chimes in a big way. His photography was second to none, and Mr. Wolfe captured the expressions, actions, and emotion that I wanted to embrace. I learned so much good stuff. After I read it for my research, I was so juiced to work on my new book that I couldn't stand it. My clairvoyant character has a spiritual communication with a grizzly. With a little Native American magical realism, I'm off and running with themes of aging, love, and reconciling the past. More on that later.

The “machine” of traditional publishing is being eclipsed by Indies, those of us who choose to own and control our work. We fearlessly defend the integrity of our stories and celebrate our ownership. We are so bonded with our characters that our readers, too, consider them part of their families.

I’m happy for this shift. My readers know who I am. I have a personal relationship with them, and I share the details of my life to these strangers who have become my friends. Could I ever imagine this with a traditional publisher who only cares about the dollar return for each press of the “Add to Cart” button?

I’m in this writing business for a different reason: I need to write the story ideas that I obsess over. I can’t not write them. I don’t really care about being famous and rich from my writing. That’s not why I do it. I write about what resonates inside of me. And if it connects with others who experience the same emotions, then Hallelujah! I love you guys. 

Fame and success are complicated topics. We authors want to make a living from the heart of what we do. However, many writers chase fame like a phantom in the night. They lunge for the next trend and hold a cup under the guillotine of an author who gets interviewed as Oprah’s “Book of the Year.” That doesn't personify most of the authors I know. I can’t bond with those who spend more money on their author photo than on what they spend on editing their book.

I write with private abandon and come up for air with fluttery eyelashes. Sometimes I have no idea what happened in the world while I was away in my fiction-crafted existence. A raw humor covers my discomfort at being public, but I do enjoy my anonymity when I want it. And when I’m done, my work will have a life of its own . . .  Equally as important is being a wife, a mother, a sister, and a daughter to a Mom who was at the center of three of my books.

I’m not unique, although my generation of Baby Boomers is quite singular in the way we think and feel. We still believe in so much possibility, no matter what our age. I’m that little girl of ten with too much experience, hurt, wisdom, pride, and work ethic. I’m that little girl who meets her obligations and strives for the moon. With a lasso, I will reach that goal of retirement where I can write full-time. Until then, everything that happens I’ll think of as life-fuel for stories, imagination, and the hope that what I write will connect with birds of my feather.

This weekend I will be transitioning my Mom into a senior living community, but before I leave I'll tell my twelve-year-old that eating junk has long-term consequences, My husband will keep the porch light burning for me when I get home on Sunday. After I arrive, he'll wrap me in his arms to fall asleep, only for us both to go to work on Monday. Not for too much longer, this work routine. But I will miss going by Mom's house every morning and evening, picking up her prescriptions, and receiving her daily hugs. It tears me up, really. But now she will be closer to my older sister, who is also getting ready to retire.

In the meantime, I write this article in an oh-so-quiet house with a glass of wine. Our cat, Princeton, is in my lap, purring away without a care in the world. The food dehydrator whirs to make dried fruit and veggies for my Mom and I to snack on while I drive her to her new home, a long four hours away. I'm not sure if the transition will be harder for her, me, my husband, my stepdaughter, or Princeton.

It's a five-way tie.

Courtney Pierce is a fiction writer living in Milwaukie, Oregon, with her husband. stepdaughter, and their brainiac cat, Princeton. Courtney writes for the baby boomer audience. By day, she is an executive in the entertainment industry and uses her time in a theater seat to create stories that are filled with heart, humor and mystery. She has studied craft and storytelling at the Attic Institute and has completed the Hawthorne Fellows Program for writing and publishing. Active in the writing community, Courtney is a board member of the Northwest Independent Writers Association and on the Advisory Council of the Independent Publishing Resource Center. She is a member of Willamette Writers, Pacific Northwest Writers Association, and She Writes. The Executrix received the Library Journal Self-E recommendation seal.

Audiobook now Available!

Check out all of Courtney's books: 

courtney-pierce.com and

windtreepress.com 

Print and E-books are available through most major online retailers, including Amazon.com.

Available Now!
Book 3 of the
Dushane Sisters
Trilogy

The Dushane Sisters Trilogy concludes with Indigo Legacy, available now. There's love in the air for Olivia and Woody, but will family intrigue get in the way? Ride along for the wild trip that starts in a New York auction house and peaks in a mansion on Boston's Beacon Hill. 

The Dushane sisters finally get to the truth about their mother.

New York Times best-selling author Karen Karbo says, "Courtney Pierce spins a madcap tale of family grudges, sisterly love, unexpected romance, mysterious mobsters and dog love. Reading Indigo Lake is like drinking champagne with a chaser of Mountain Dew. Pure Delight."