By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Do you know the next phrase in the classic Western ballad that begins, “Oh, give me a home”? It has something to do with buffalo, deer, and antelope. However, the line after that is the best one, in my opinion, and no doubt became …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Fifteen years ago, I was not writing Western romance but teaching sixth-grade Ancient-World History and Language Arts in a central California farming community. I was also writing a slice-of-life column for a daily newspaper in a larger, nearby city. This Father’s Day, I want …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer (Excerpted from Always Before Me) American lyricist, Oscar Hammerstein II, said the hills were alive with the sound of music. Where I once lived, that music played against spring-green hillsides. Black angus cattle dotted the scene like quarter notes on a musical score. In …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Have you heard of the two-week rule? I often refer to it when deciding how I like a new purchase, the rearrangement of furniture, or a questionable repair job. The rule goes like this: “Give it two weeks. If you don’t notice it …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer While I am away this Memorial Day weekend, I’d like to share the inspirational work of fellow author and friend, LoRee Peery. Peery has written four devotional books in a series titled Worship Through Verse. The first, Shelter in the Night, speaks beautifully in …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer With spring on its way into summer next month, I want to ask: Do you have a favorite tree? Aspens are mine, beautiful all through the year, regardless of the season. In winter they stand bare and white against evergreen forests. In spring they …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Not everyone has a living mother to hug, call, or send flowers to on Mother’s Day. And not every mothering woman has a child. Many of those women are aunts, neighbors, sisters, or friends. Like that little lady at church who always knows exactly …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Mothers are good at giving advice. (I see some of you rolling your eyes.) Mom would say, “Don’t roll your eyes, they’ll fall out of your head.” Well, a few Moms would say that. But honestly, some of the best advice I’ve received came …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer This two-word query is one of the most important questions a novelist asks while writing a book. Various answers propel characters into riveting plot twists or brain-throbbing conflicts. But for those seeking to live faith-led lives of obedience in the real world, “What if?” can be …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer In a scene from one of my Western romance novels, the heroine struggles with memories of her Christian mother’s favorite counsel: “All things work together for good.” She struggles because things are not going well. Bad things have happened. A lot of bad things, …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Wind and water have two-sided natures. When used in creative writing, wind whispers as a cooling breeze or roars like a tornado. Water sings in a trickling stream or crashes through canyons as a flood. Winds along Colorado’s Front Range flutter through golden aspen …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Most people in the U.S. are aware of the total solar eclipse occurring in North America on April 8, 2024. NASA Eclipse Explorer website states: “The total solar eclipse will be visible along a narrow track stretching from Texas to Maine on April 8, …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer I imagine Jesus’ resurrection from the garden tomb was a quiet miracle—aside from the earthquake and fainting guards that Matthew records in his gospel. The other three Gospel writers—Mark, Luke, and John—tell us, like Matthew, that women arrived early at the site to care …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer The mob can turn. One day you’re the favorite, the next day you’re not. It happened a couple thousand years ago as Jerusalem was getting ready for a big event called Passover. Everyone was busy preparing, anticipating, and rushing around when a man rode …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer As spring approaches, I’m inclined to envy the vibrant, living metaphors of renewal sprouting in the bulb garden and singing from the trees. Oh for a fresh start, a do-over, new growth. Is it possible? Can we rejuvenate like the flowers and trees in …