The Magic of Visions

Hi, I’m Judith Ashley, author of The Sacred Women’s Circle series, romantic women’s fiction that honors pagan spiritual practices that nourish the soul. 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 you do overcome obstacles and find your happily-ever-after.

When I started writing The Sacred Women’s Circle series, I clearly saw seven women coming together to form their own special place where they were unconditionally accepted, supported and loved and where they created their own spiritual practices drawing from various religions. The visions were clear and I eagerly wrote these stories while learning more about the craft of writing and then the process of publishing.

Initially I pitched my series to traditional publishers but the changes they wanted me to make (have the women fight among themselves) would change a core principle at the very foundation of the stories.

The sixth and seventh books Gabriella and Sophia were published in October and November 2017. In each of the books there were secondary characters I thought might have their own stories to tell but I stayed focused on the original seven.

Before Sophia was published I began to have the lucid day and night dreams as well as hear bits of dialogue that marked the beginning of my writing these books. I was not surprised to hear Mark Parker and his son, Ethan but who was the woman and little girl?

Visions of Happiness was published in 2018. And while it isn’t one of the original Sacred Women’s Circle series books, it is a part of a larger circle of women.

And now? I started Visions of Ireland (may end up being a working title) in December but a series of health problems have curtailed my writing for the past four months. Set in Ireland, Vision of Ireland’s hero is a major secondary character from Elizabeth (Book 2 in the series) and the heroine is barely mentioned in Visions of Happiness. But here she is in Ireland seeking her to enhance her spiritual practice with dogged, determined, purpose—you get the picture.

Here’s the back cover blurb for Visions of Happiness.

Dr. Mark Parker and his foster son face a social worker who is prejudiced against single parent adoptions.

Jocelyn Edwards and her step-daughter flee the little girl’s abusive father ending their cross-country ordeal in Fremont, OR.

When a mutual friend brings them together, it is love at first sight for the battered little boy and broken little girl.

But the path to love between Jocelyn and Mark is fraught with nightmares from the past and fears of future loss.

To have the future they both desire, Mark and Jocelyn must persevere through the terror of loss to find love and claim their future.

You can find all of my books at your favorite e-book vendor. Be sure to ask your local library if you’d prefer to read my books through that resource. 

Learn more about Judith's The Sacred Women’s Circle series at JudithAshleyRomance.com

Follow Judith on Twitter: JudithAshley19

Check out Judith’s Windtree Press author page.

You can also find Judith on FB! 

© 2019 Judith Ashley

Once Upon A...Never Again!

Hi, I’m Judith Ashley, author of The Sacred Women’s Circle series, romantic women’s fiction that honors pagan spiritual practices that nourish the soul. 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 you do overcome obstacles and find your happily-ever-after.

Living for a week in another time period is our monthly suggested Genre-istas topic. What I’ve learned over the span of my life is that, while I wouldn’t mind spending a few hours talking to someone I’m interested in who lived in another time period, the idea of being somewhere without the amenities of a flush toilet has no appeal.

Over my lifetime, I’ve camped out using trees and bushes for cover as well as a Port-A-Potty.

Never Again!

Growing up my family stayed at a lovely place along the Oregon Coast that had a wood stove and the hot water pipes ran through the back of the stove so, if one wanted hot water one kept the stove stoked. Even in August!

Never Again!

Oh, and we also cooked all our meals on the wood stove as this was before electric frying pans, microwaves, etc.

Never Again!

I remember when I was a child we had a wringer washing machine and washboard for those stubborn stains. The basement ceiling was crossed with clothes line for those wet days when the wash still needed to be done. There was an agitator in the washing part but it didn't spin. The knob on top adjusted the rollers. A hand crank is off on the right. (See picture below). Floors were cleaned with a bucket of water, bar of soap and a scrub brush---on one’s hands and knees or maybe with a string mop if doing a quickie clean. Either method required rinsing at least twice after the initial cleaning

Never Again!

Wringer Washing Machine

When I was married and my son was an infant (in the days before disposable diapers), we had no washing machine - wringer or otherwise. I packed up the  week's laundry, drove the 3 miles into town when I could get the car (only one and my husband needed it for work) to the laundromat. However, since we only had money to Wash the clothes, I lugged wet clothes home and hung them from the wooden drying rack and every other available surface to dry.

I counted myself fairly lucky as the other option was a wash tub, washboard, squeezing water out by hand. I cringe even now thinking of laundering filthy work jeans that way. And even when we had a washing machine, I hand washed my more delicate items in the kitchen sink and hung them up to dry.

Never Again!

Now I will admit that I live in the Pacific Northwest where the geologist have said it’s only a matter of time before we have a major earthquake that will destroy our coastline and decimate the city where I live. I’m fortunate that I have a house, I’ve done the earthquake retro-fitting (well, had it done by professionals). I’ve an emergency stash of medications, candles, flashlights, batteries, etc. I’ve a backyard and a shovel and I’ve an outdoor fireplace and some wood.

Now available!

While I say “Never Again!”, because of my life experiences, should the earthquake happen or the Cascade Mountain volcanoes erupt, I have those early life experiences so I know how to cook over an in-door or outdoor fireplace (or at least heat things up) and I can make some type of a (hopefully temporary) outside port-a-potty.

Now if the question was who would I like to spend a week with in person, maybe job-shadow? My list would include people like Queen Victoria, Abraham Lincoln, William Shakespeare, one of the Egyptian Pharaohs’ like maybe one of the female ones like Cleopatra. I’d like to sit and talk to one of the High Priestess in one of the temples dedicated to one of the Goddesses. I’d like to spend an hour or two visiting with Mary, mother of Jesus. Eleanor Roosevelt would be another person. Attending a meeting with the early suffragettes? Yes, count me in.

In the meantime, I’ll stick to spending time with people already a part of my life; make an effort to add new people; all while enjoying the amenities of the 21^st century.

Learn more about Judith's The Sacred Women’s Circle series at JudithAshleyRomance.com

Follow Judith on Twitter: JudithAshley19

Check out Judith’s Windtree Press author page.

You can also find Judith on FB! 

 © 2019 Judith Ashley

My Sanctuaries and Safe Havens: Writing and Spiritual Practices

By Judith Ashley

Writing has been a refuge, a safe haven for me since I started writing fiction in 2002. At that point, I didn’t even have a writing process nor did I have any idea of things like genres or tropes.

What I did have were stories that infiltrated my night and day dreams. Scenes so real I could hear, see, smell and taste the people and food in the stories. My body recognized the emotions of my characters so I laughed and I cried. My jaw clenched, my stomach churned, my lungs seized right along with my characters. And when all seemed lost, the prayers for strength, for guidance, for protection appeared on the page.

The Sacred Women’s Circle series shows the power of spiritual practices to support us on our life’s journey.

What do we do when we are no longer comforted by the religious customs in which we were raised?

Like myself, my characters created their own spiritual path. They took bits and pieces from the religions they grew up with that still brought them peace. But they went a step further and created their own path. Because they are all equal in this sacred circle, they respected each other’s individual practice while forming The Circle’s foundational traditions.

As you read their stories, you’ll see the differences between them, what they rely on during difficult times. You will also have a road map if you want to create your own sacred circle.

What’s the difference between a sacred women’s circle and a women’s circle? Answer this question and you’ll know:

What would your life be like if you were unconditionally accepted, unconditionally supported and unconditionally loved?

What happened to me when I first talked to traditional publishers about my series? The feedback I got that was consistent was that I needed to build conflict in The Circle. In other words, the women had to have disagreements between them. A good old-fashioned fight, with members taking sides, etc. I was told there wasn’t a market for a story where women got along, believed in each other, supported, accepted and encouraged each other. All stories needed conflict. The reality that each of the women had a major life conflict going on in their personal life outside The Circle wasn’t enough.

Stonehenge

The good thing about that feedback is that I stopped and really took a look at my stories. The core principle or foundation in a sacred women’s circle is that we will always be accepted, always be safe no matter what. The Circle is our Haven, our Sanctuary, our place to rest, to heal, to restore ourselves before going forth to do battle in the world once again.

What battles do these women face? Domestic violence, recurrent breast cancer, spousal abandonment, custodial interference aka child stealing, death of a spouse, conflicted core values, etc. Most of us have dealt with these issues or know someone who has. With that assessment my choice was clear. I became an Indie Published Author.

So I ask again: What would your life be like if, when facing one of these major life events, you had a place where you were unconditionally accepted, unconditionally supported and unconditionally loved?

My large crystal altar

One of my 2019 goals is to spend more time reaching out to those people who’d like to experience being in that space. What that means is claiming the Pagan Spiritual practices that are an integral part of each book.

Yes, my heroine’s find their happily-ever-after but what’s as important is they come to rely on, to find strength in their spiritual practices and their relationships with each other. That’s why I write what I believe is best called Contemporary Romantic Women’s Fiction or for even more clarity: Contemporary Romantic Pagan Women’s Fiction.

Another of my 2019 goals is to change out the Keywords, etc. on the on-line vendors and my website by the end of January 2019 to more clearly reflect the Pagan Inspirational theme in my books.

Also on my 2019 radar is publishing Ceremonies, Prayers and Resources. CPS is a short booklet of the prayers and ceremonies from this series as well as Visions of Ireland (working title) which is the 9^th book in the series. And if all falls into place, I’ll have the 10^th book at least in draft form or actually published before the end of this year.

What suggestions do you have for the best way to let people know about my books? And, do contact me at Judith@JudithAshleyRomance.com if you are interested in my doing presentations or workshops on the various practices and concepts included in these stories.

Judith Ashley is the author of The Sacred Women’s Circle series, romantic women’s fiction that honors pagan spiritual practices that nourish the soul. The Circle is the haven where each heroine has the support of the others to sustain them as they overcome obstacles and find their happily-ever-after.

Learn more about Judith's The Sacred Women’s Circle series at JudithAshleyRomance.com

Follow Judith on Twitter: JudithAshley19

Check out Judith’s Windtree Press author page.

You can also find Judith on FB! 

© 2019 Judith Ashley

Best Book(s) I've Read in 2018 by Judith Ashley

Starting off 2019 with a blog post on The Best Book I’ve Read in 2018 has been harder for me than it might appear. All I need to do is write about the book I most remember reading. Right?

However as an author, I write first and read second. There are times, especially at the end of a day at the computer, I don’t really remember the gist of the story or even the author’s name. Another issue is I can get stuck in “editor” mode which means I lose the story because I’m focused on story structure or things like grammar, punctuation, etc.

And then when I try to remember what I’ve read, those fiction books most likely in the romance genre, even though I’ve read at least fifty of them… .

So, I’m throwing all that out the window because there is one book I do clearly remember reading. Non-fiction Verbalize by Damon Suede. Mr. Suede gave a Master Class before the Emerald City Writer’s Conference. He is a dynamic, energized presenter and I’ve always learned something useful to me when I’ve heard him before.

This Master Class did not disappoint. When I learned that his book Verbalize was based almost verbatim on the Class, I snatched it up. Yep, that was me brushing past people in order to grab one of the remaining copies he still had.

If you have a chance to attend a Damon Suede workshop for writers, do. His style is fast paced and that is usually a turn off for me. But, and that’s a big “but” I always come away with something that is a gift to my writer-self.

What were those gifts from his ECWC Master Class?

Gift #1: Being true to myself and what I write. Readers can’t find my books if I don’t clearly tell them what I write. And I write in a sub-genre of romance that isn’t listed on any of the search engine. Pagan Spirituality is a core theme in my books.

Gift #2: Defining myself. A question Mr. Suede asked us had to do with the energy that is our essence. A bit paraphrased the question was what verb describes you? My answer was immediate “teaching.”  At one point in my life I was a public school’s classroom teacher. I’ve a long history of presenting workshops at conferences both national and internationally. I’m on the Senior Teaching Faculty of The William GlasserInstitute – International. And the characters in my stories are always learning something to ease their path to that happily-ever-after. Of course the process of learning isn’t necessarily easy. But where would the joy of overcoming an obstacle be if it was all easy and effortless.

Fiction? In writing Visions of Happiness a character that first shows up in Diana: The Queen of Swords and The Knight of Pentacles actually becomes a recurring character a couple of years earlier in Visions. That fact prompted me to reread all of the original series, rewrite the paragraph or two in Diana to show Ms. Lawford was someone they all knew.

To my delight, I found myself emotionally involved with these seven women. I still laughed and cried along with them and I was the one who’d written their stores and read the drafts more than once!

A fiction reading first for me was Blindsight by Sarah Raplee. Blindsight is a paranormal romantic suspense and not a sub-genre of romance I read. However, I know Sarah and had listened to her talk about writing this book. I can highly recommend Blindsight. Well-written, enough suspense to keep me engaged but not so much I had nightmares. The paranormal elements were well-done and, to me at least, possible.

Another author I read is Paty Jager. I’ve read several of her Shandra Higheagle mysteries and many of her other books. Paty is meticulous in her research which is one fact that draws me to her stories.

And I’m ending this post with a swing back to non-fiction. Maggie Lynch’s “Author Secrets” series is a Must Read for any author who is independently published or for any author who is struggling with the decision to publish independently. In clear language Ms. Lynch guides authors through the plethora of options and challenges they face to get their books published and to optimize their discoverability and thus their visibility. Ms. Lynch stays abreast of publishing trends and updates readers through her newsletter, blog posts and workshops.

Judith Ashley is the author of The Sacred Women’s Circle series, romantic women’s fiction that honors pagan spiritual practices that nourish the soul. Sacred women’s circles are havens where each of us have the support of the  unconditional acceptance, support and love of the others that sustain us as we overcome obstacles on our life's journey.

Learn more about Judith's The Sacred Women’s Circle series at JudithAshleyRomance.com

Follow Judith on Twitter: JudithAshley19

Check out Judith’s Windtree Press author page.

You can also find Judith on FB! 

© 2019 Judith Ashley