A huge THANK YOU to WNC WOMAN Magazine for including my article, "On Finding Yourself Where You Need to Be." Read it here:

http://tinyurl.com/prcspxt

I'm often asked why I wanted to become an author. Here's my answer, along with three tips on finding your life's calling. Finding Your Calling

I'm grateful to Southern Writers Magazine for posting my blog on writing great characters (such as Britt Jordan in A Higher Voice and Hunter Kittrell in A Deeper Cut. Check it out:

Write Your Character to Life

Stories from Unknown Authors

Confession time: I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing.

While on a recent retreat with a group of sweet, closely-knit ladies, we were each sharing the details of this particular season in our lives. When it came my turn, I just shook my head and said, "I have a dog."

And they all know me well enough to laugh and nod their heads in understanding. What those ladies understood was, "I have a dog," was another way of saying, "My life is so upside down right now!"

Because this is SOOO unexpected and REALLY not part of my plan. We named our new pup "Cercie," meaning, "a surprise gift." Who knew a little furry tyke could bring so much joy?

And who could have ever guessed that writing a little suspense novel, which I thought might entertain about a hundred of my closest friends and relatives, would ever land me on a radio talk show or two?

I'm sitting here looking at my living room strewn about with dog toys and asking myself, "What happened to my quiet, orderly life?"

So here we are. The queen of the short answer, the gal whose mind will wander if you don't get to your point quickly because she has the attention span of a gnat--will be chatting on the radio tomorrow at 1 p.m. Or so they say.

Tune in to Renee Hand's show, "Stories from Unknown Authors," and find out! I'll be as surprised as anyone.

Here's the link:  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/storiesfromunknownauthors/2013/11/12/interview-with-sheri-wren-haymore-for-a-higher-voice

Wish me luck!

Elizabeth Westmark's Experience Reading A Higher Voice

Thank you, Beth Westmark, for sharing your thoughts! Here's what she had to say about A Higher Voice.

READING FOR PLEASURE:

How do you select the next book you’re going to read?

I’m at a stage of life where, in theory, I can spend all day and all night, too, if I want, tossing back bon-bons and reading books for pleasure. I’m retired from working for other people, don’t have any kids, have a healthy self and a healthy spouse — all the time in the world, right? Except for this pesky fairy godmother writing monster that pushes me 24/7 to learn and write as though I were on some externally-imposed deadline.

I race through writing craft books, highlighting and making furious notes.  I read books outside of my favorite fiction genres because an author of a writing craft book has suggested a particular writer for “voice” or “dialogue” or “plotting.” Well, that’s cool, because as a result I’ve discovered Donald Bartheleme, Graham Green, Elmore Leonard, Marjorie Stoneman Douglas, Neal Stephenson, and a long list of others.  It’s a thrilling treasure hunt, with plenty of pleasure in the learning.
So, I’m reading more widely than ever before, but it’s not sitting in a lawn chair in the shade of an old oak tree kind of reading. It’s reading while brushing my teeth, getting in a few more chapters stolen from sleep, you know the kind of reading I mean. You probably all do it, too. There’s a sense of urgency, a sense of “I should be finishing my own novel instead of reading someone else’s!”
When Sheri Wren Haymore’s novel, A Higher Voice, surfaced on my radar screen, it was a moment of serendipity. You see, Sheri’s sister, Patsy Conrad, is a good friend of mine, and when she told me about Sheri’s book, I ordered it as much out of solidarity with my friend than because I thought it would be a good book. When it came in the mail, my first thought was, “Wow, nice cover.”

Sometime later that day, or the next, I started the first chapter while sitting at my desk. Then, without thinking about what I was doing, I took the book and slipped quietly upstairs to the guest bedroom, where I sat for several hours in my late mother-in-law’s blue upholstered rocking chair, and read for pure pleasure. This is a novel that strives to explore themes of hope, gratitude, and forgiveness within a Christian context. Not, however, as Sheri explains, in a “shove-it-down-your-neck, you have to believe what I believe” kind of way. Instead, she weaves a tale about Britt, a tormented rock musician who is losing his voice and struggling with inner demons and a brother out for vengeance, and Dena, his new-found true love, whose faith and devotion represent a kind of woman new to his experience. Are they too different to sustain a lasting relationship? Will they triumph over previous lives and dark forces that threaten to tear them apart?  A Higher Voice explores their struggle within the framework of romantic suspense.

A Higher Voice is a good story, well-written, with an ending that satisfies.  It is Haymore’s debut novel. Her second, A Deeper Cut, will be out this November. It will also be published by Wisdom House Books.
When you’re ready for a good old-fashioned read that will have you pulling for the main characters, I recommend A Higher Voice. Details about upcoming book signings and other projects can be found at Sheri’s website.

Funny Story Gets Funnier

Now that A Higher Voice is in print, every witty comment by a friend is followed by, "Is this going to turn up in your next book?" Finally I was asked, "Do you get tired of hearing that?" and I answered, "No, I don't pay any attention to it."

Until this week.

We were traveling in Maine with our friends Don and Carolyn, and Carolyn noticed that the man at the next table in a Searsport restaurant had begun to cry. She wondered what could possibly be wrong. And Don answered with a story that began something like this...

As Redding Pearce waited in line at the toll booth, he flicked his lighter over and over. An old habit, from his smoking years, but it helped him think. In the backseat of his dark blue '76 BMW convertible was a body zipped up in a black bag, and he needed to dispose of it quickly. When he reached the window, his eyes took in the wavy red hair of the voluptuous operator, and her name tag, which read Gwendolyn.

"Gwendolyn," said Redding, "I can tell you are a beautiful woman. I know I only have twelve seconds, but would you consider meeting me for a cup of coffee after your shift?" ...

Don's story continued throughout the evening, involving the fact that Redding was a chiropractor, Gwendolyn only had one leg, and something about a partially burned body and a mad dash for Shreveport. His tale fizzled at the end of Chapter Five with this sentence: Redding paused, mesmerized by the blue light flashing in his rear view mirror.

Fun, huh? But that's not the end of it. Our last night, in Bangor, we pulled in to a restaurant on the river, and there sat this '76 BMW:

"Redding painted his car so he wouldn't attract suspicion," said Don.

A man caught me snapping this photo after the others had gone inside, and he and I had a brief conversation about why I was taking the picture. That same man sat at a table near us, and Don said it was Redding. "Notice the shoes; he's definitely a chiropractor," Don declared.

After the meal, the man got up and left. Carolyn excused herself to go to the loo and came back. In a minute, the man came up to our table, put his hand on Don's shoulder, and said, "Excuse me, but I couldn't help but notice that your back is unbalanced. I'm a chiropractor, and I can help you with that." We all looked at each other--Don's eyes were huge. "Really, I am a chiropractor. Remember, you took a picture of my car?" I burst into laughter. He continued, "My name is John Redding," By then we were all laughing.

It seems Carolyn punked us. When she said she was going to the loo, she actually followed the man and talked him into the prank.

Good one, huh? Now if I can get Redding and Gwendolyn out of Shreveport, I might have a story...

Live Alive Book Club

Thank you to the Live Alive Book Club in High Point, NC! This lively bunch of ladies was most attentive while I read from A Higher Voice, and they asked super questions. A great time!