Tag: Writing Links

This Week at Story Empire

Published on by Joan Hall

What a difference a week makes! Only a few days ago we were enjoying the beautiful fall foliage. We live in the country, and across the road behind our neighbor’s house, the trees were brilliant reds and golds. I had an excellent view from my writing desk.

Twilight had fallen one evening, and I hadn’t closed the blinds yet. Even then, the colors were ablaze. Amazing. This week is another story. Most of the trees are now bare and our front yard is evidence of that. But it’s to be expected as the first day of winter is less than two weeks away.

And now for the weekly wrap-up at Story Empire

Another week on the books. Here’s a photo of my front yard. Although you can’t see it, there’s a sidewalk between the lights and the green plant. Looks like a lot of work is ahead.

See you next week!

This Week at Story Empire

Published on by Joan Hall2 Comments

Hey, everyone. I planned to write a post this week and show some of the photos I took in Oklahoma last week. However, two days after our trip, tornadoes ripped through several towns in northeast Texas and southeastern Oklahoma.

Some of those towns, including Idabel, Oklahoma, and Powderly, Texas, suffered major damage. Hard to believe just two days prior we traveled through both places. Ironically, while driving through Paris, Texas, my husband and I talked about a major tornado that happened there in the early 80s. Powderly is a tiny community just north of Paris.

In Idabel, at least one person died, and a school and one church were destroyed. Somehow, it didn’t seem fitting to write about our adventure (which was wonderful) in the aftermath of such devastation. Never in a million years would I have dreamed that would happen so soon after we were there. It goes to show we should never take life for granted.

Now on to more cheerful things. We had another great week at Story Empire. If you missed any of the posts, here are the topics and links:

Today is Veteran’s Day in the United States and Remembrance Day in the United Kingdom and several other countries. Both mark the end of World War I on November 11, 1918. If you see a veteran today, take a moment to thank them for their service.

Veteran’s Memorial in my hometown.

This Week at Story Empire

Published on by Joan Hall

Hey, everyone! Are you ready for ghosts and goblins? Halloween is just around the corner. Time for me to watch the all-time classic, It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown.

Yes, there are still some things from my childhood that I enjoy. I even reread The Incredible Journey this month, one of my favorite childhood books. It used to be an annual tradition for me to read it in the fall. Several years had passed since the last time, but it was still as enjoyable as I remembered.

At Story Empire, we featured a variety of topics. In case you missed them, here are the links.

Another week on the books. My husband and I plan to take a day trip to Oklahoma to see some fall foliage. Looking for good weather and determining when the colors will peak is tricky, but we hope to hit the road soon. And when we do, I hope to have lots of photos to share here and on Instagram.

In the meantime, I took this photo several years ago at a nearby park. This area was the inspiration for the opening scene of my book, Unknown Reasons.

Hope everyone has a great weekend! On October 31, I’ll have a bonus Mystery Monday post. See you then.

Week in Review

Published on by Joan Hall29 Comments

Hey, Everyone. Happy Friday the 13th! Thirteen is a number surrounded by superstition. While I come from a long line of superstitious people, I’m not one of them. I’ll purposely do things such as walk under a ladder, open an umbrella in the house, or cross a black cat’s path.

I have a cousin who claims she isn’t superstitious but “just cautious.” Once when I visited her, I made the mistake of placing a hat on the bed. She promptly removed it, saying it was “bad luck.” Another time when she visited us, she tipped the salt shaker, spilling some on the table. Immediately she sprinkled salt in her hand and threw it over her shoulder. On the floor, mind you! Ridiculous.

However, I do enjoy hearing the stories behind the superstitions. Oh and speaking of black cats (I’ve owned several in my lifetime) I haven’t posted a photo of my Little Bit in a while. I took this one a few years back. He was less than a year old then.

Cute, isn’t he? How could anyone believe something so adorable could bring bad luck? For now, it’s time for this week’s links. Sorry the list is shorter this week, but it’s been a crazy one and I haven’t had time to read as much.

On this site:

On Story Empire:

On Other Sites:

Week in Review

Published on by Joan Hall34 Comments

Hey, everyone. Happy first Friday of March. When Bob Dylan wrote The Times They Are a Changin, he spoke the truth. Changes are inevitable. Some good, others not so good.

But change is in the air. We are moving from winter into spring (for which I am happy).

When the weather permits, I enjoy sitting on my front porch. It’s quite and peaceful – a great place to relax, read, or just sit and think. But my view recently changed.

Our new neighbors cleared out the underbrush from their property line and trimmed trees. So now, I have an even better view than before. I took this photo of the sunrise early last Saturday. A few months ago, I wouldn’t have been able to see the sun peaking over the horizon. This is a good change.

Speaking of change, are you ready for Daylight Saving Time? I don’t mind the extra light in the evenings, but it means once again I’ll be leaving the house when it’s still dark. Not only that it takes my body weeks to adjust to losing an hour.

Why can’t more states be like Arizona and refuse to participate in the change? In reality, we’re not “saving” anything. There’s still the same amount of light and darkness each day.

But enough of my ranting. Are you ready for this week’s links?

On this site:

On Story Empire

On Other Sites: