What a Difference a Decade Makes by Mary Manners

Being published has definitely made my life much busier and fuller, and I always try to remember my roots when frustration strikes. It took me decades to get published, and I am so thrilled that my dream has come true. Here’s a little glimpse into the journey…

I was born in Chicago, Illinois, the second of five children, and I began writing at birth. (*smile) No, really, my earliest memories are of writing (or "scribbling" as it was in the beginning). I knew I wanted to write from a very early age. It has always been a passion of mine—like breathing. I was one of those kids who squealed with excitement over pads of paper and pencils in my Christmas stocking. I used to ‘write’ stories in my head as a teenager, while I delivered newspapers in the predawn hours along the streets of Chicago. Even now, I love to get up super-early when the rest of the world is sleeping. My best writing is done then, and by eight o’clock when everyone is just beginning to wake, I feel like I still have a full day ahead of me—and I do.               

Most of my earliest childhood memories are centered on writing (or "pretending" to write). I attended the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana and received a teaching degree in Special Education, then moved to East Tennessee where I spent thirty years as a middle school teacher and then as an intermediate school administrator. (What fertile ground for story ideas)!

A decade ago I had the opportunity to attend my first RWA conference. I was unpublished and starry-eyed over meeting all of the "famous authors" there. It was an incredible opportunity to make connections and learn more about the craft. When I returned home I was so fired up that I wrote with new-found energy, submitting my work to every contest I could find. Just a few weeks before I got "the call" my daughter said—out of the blue as we were driving home from school one afternoon—“Mama, I know you’re gonna get published soon.” Wow, that just warmed me from my heart to my toes!

This July I will attend my second RWA conference as a retired-from-my-day-job, full-time published author. It is my hope that I can pass on a bit of my knowledge and experience to unpublished writers setting out on their journey. I have been richly blessed. What a difference a decade makes!

~~~~~

Beyond the Storm (Honeysuckle Cove #2)

Recreational Therapist Ava Kennedy is in charge of Valentine’s Day festivities for shut-in patients at Honeysuckle Cove Children’s Hospital. When a winter storm threatens to derail planned events and steal the children’s joy, Ava calls on longtime friend and firefighter Nick Jones for rescue. The two have been close, platonic friends since kindergarten, but Ava soon finds her heart whirling like the drifting snowflakes outside her office window.

Nick Jones is skilled at extinguishing fires, so he doesn’t count on kindling a flame with lifelong friend Ava Kennedy. But he’s got a sweet spot for kids and women…especially when one particular woman—Ava—possesses a soft heart and laughter that draws like an electron magnet. Despite Nick’s valiant efforts to resist, he finds himself caught up in the attraction.

Will these friends’ new feelings weather the shifting tempest…or is this simply a passing storm?

~~~~~

Mary Manners is a country girl at heart who has spent a lifetime exploring her joy of writing. She has two sons and a daughter, as well as three beautiful grandchildren. She currently lives along the sunny shores of Jacksonville Beach with her husband Tim.

A former teacher as well an intermediate school principal, Mary spent three decades sharing her love of learning with students from kindergarten through middle grades. While growing up in Chicago and as an undergraduate at the University of Illinois, Mary worked her way through a variety of jobs including paper girl, figure skating instructor, pizza chef, and nanny. Many of these enriching and challenging experiences led to adventures that bring laughs and insight to her stories. Mary loves long sunrise runs, ocean sunsets, and flavored coffee.

Connect with Mary at her website: www.MaryMannersRomance.com. “Like” her author page on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.



Author By Night by Mary Manners



Author By Night

By Mary Manners

Often during the course of conversation the inevitable question arises, “How long have you been writing?” Well, I’m quick to respond that I was born this way…with a pencil in my hand.

I cannot remember a time when I didn’t write. In fact, my earliest memory consists of me sitting on the floor beside the washing machine in my family’s laundry room and scribbling (I didn’t yet know how to read or form words, but I could certainly scratch across the paper) because I had a story in my head that just had to come out and be shared.

Since that day, I have never stopped writing. To me, writing is as essential to life as breathing. I am convinced that, prior to the use of my trusty laptop, I killed a forest of trees on my quest to record all of the stories woven through my brain and my heart.

I wrote my first full-length novel in the sixth grade. Thanks to my supportive parents and a few wonderful teachers who encouraged me along the way, my fledgling confidence flourished and I figured I’d be published by the time I turned thirteen (after all, S.E. Hinton had managed a similar feat with her acclaimed and edgy young adult novel, The Outsiders). God had other plans, though, and many years (and countless edits) would pass before that first novel finally became published as Wisdom Tree.

My life journey has led me to many destinations, including a three-decade career in education. I first spent several years working with special needs children before settling into teaching middle school math (go figure…the writer teaching algebra and loving it) and am currently seated as an intermediate school principal with six-hundred adorable and rambunctious children in my care. Add to that a loyal husband and beautiful daughter, and to say I juggle daily responsibilities is a gross understatement. But, what’s life without a boxcar’s worth of adventure tossed into the mix?

So, when do I manage to write? I pen my stories in the morning, when the rest of the world is sleeping and at night…when the rest of the world is sleeping. My official work day begins at six A.M., so I wake at three to write. My day-job ends at five (on a good day) and I’m happy to say my husband loves just about everything sports-related, so following a daily walk together and then dinner, I write while he yells at the TV. We have fun while we make it work and I’m blessed by his support.

Along the way, day-by-day, I keep writing and breathing…and writing some more. I never leave home without a pad of paper and a pencil. I am a walking, juggling journal. Thirty-six books later, the journey continues. Along with the writing has come on-the-job training in editing (love it) and marketing (not so much). I have decided that sleep is overrated and coffee should be certified as a food group.

All joking aside, God has been good to me and I pray that my writing glorifies Him. I strive to share the message of hope and grace in all I write. Does that mean my characters never struggle? No. Does it mean they are human? Yes (um, really…they are). Does it mean through God all things are possible? Yes, I truly believe it is so.

So, I write and I will continue writing as long as I am breathing. After all, the two go hand-in-hand.

~~~~~

 

Mary Manners is an award-winning romance writer who lives in the beautiful foothills of East Tennessee with her husband Tim and the cherished cats they've rescued from local animal shelters...Neyland and Gus. She loves swimming, running, flavored coffee and Smoky Mountain sunsets.

Mary believes everyone has a story to tell, and she loves to share hers. She writes inspirational romances of all lengths, from short stories to novels—something for everyone.

 

Learn more about Mary Manners at her website: www.MaryMannersRomance.com.

 

~~~~~



Wisdom Tree

Sometimes the last thing we think we need is exactly what God has planned...

After the death of his parents, Jake Samuels has enough on his plate—including a fledgling church to lead and a mischievous younger brother to raise. The last thing he needs is a rambunctious woman to contend with.

Carin O'Malley is dealing with the death of her brother and a new job as an English teacher at East Ridge Middle School where Corey Samuels reigns as King of Chaos. The last thing she needs is to fall in love with a man...especially a handsome and complicated preacher like Corey’s brother Jake.

But when Corey's antics toss Carin and Jake together, the two must draw from God’s wisdom to find refuge in His perfect plan for them.

Reflection is a Beautiful Thing

Reflection is a Beautiful Thing

By Mary Manners

 

"This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it."

~ Psalms 118:24 ~

 

Today is a new day...the first day of my Christmas vacation and a time to breathe and reflect. The house is quiet; my daughter is at college and my husband is working. So I sit here with my laptop, a steaming cup of hazelnut coffee, Christmas music softly playing in the background, and my jumbled thoughts. Ah, peace...what a beautiful thing.

 

As my thoughts begin to slowly untangle and become coherent, I realize what a blessing it is to have the time to reflect. This year has been a gathering of long, stressful work days punctuated by treks to a faraway rehabilitation center to visit my mom, who's recovering from multiple foot surgeries. In between nestled juggled trips to the grocery store, loads and loads of laundry (how do two people create so much laundry), hurried visits with friends, a few college football games and long walks with my husband, and...writing.

 

Thank God for the gift of writing, for this simple act has kept me sane in impossibly busy times. As I reflect on the everyday stresses of life I realize that one activity has remained constant through the years...penning stories. I often joke to co-workers as well as my husband that I am traveling off to my writing bubble where the world is sane, there's an abundance of time to pursue every dream, justice always triumphs, and love prevails.

 

So, as the year comes to a close and I consider where I've been as well as where I'm heading in life, I realize that I need more of my writing bubble and less of the stress. That said, as I head into the New Year my strength is renewed by the realization that the laundry can wait and surely my husband and I can survive on dinners consisting of simple sandwiches accompanied by warm bowls of soup. Mom will soon be nestled back in her close-by apartment and the weather will warm, inviting more long walks with my husband, less football, and more hours of sanity in my writing bubble.

 

I'm feeling better already...reflection is a beautiful thing.

 

~~~~~

 

Mary Manners is an award-winning romance writer who lives in the beautiful foothills of East Tennessee with her husband Tim and the cherished cats they've rescued from local animal shelters...Lucky and Gus. She loves swimming, running, flavored coffee and Smoky Mountain sunsets.

 

Mary believes everyone has a story to tell, and she loves to share hers. She writes inspirational romances of all lengths, from short stories to novels—something for everyone.

 

Learn more about Mary Manners at her website: www.MaryMannersRomance.com.

 

~~~~~

 

A Boulder Creek Christmas

Lani O'Dwyer offered her heart to Ryan Connolly years ago, and he tossed it aside without so much as a backward glance. Though the town of Boulder Creek dubs him a hero, she vows she'll never again fall victim to his charms.

Ryan Connolly captains a raucous crew of firefighters at the Boulder Creek Fire Department, yet he's unprepared for the adventure of falling in love with beautiful and headstrong Lani O'Dwyer.

But when a meddling angel at the annual Fighters for Hire charity auction brings Ryan and Lani together, even regrets from the past can't thwart Ryan's plans to make Lani his own.



It's All in the Perspective

It's All in the Perspective

By Mary Manners

 

 

Isn't it funny how the many experiences of life impact our perspective? I am reminded of this each time I have a conversation with my daughter. As a young teenager, she used to wonder at my exhaustion following a full week of teaching, caring for my family, and midnight hours spent writing. My only intermission from the daily chaos was piloting the family taxi as I carted Danni to dance lessons, band practice, and chorus recitals. I used to warn her that her 'time' would come and...lo and behold, that season of life has made its grand entrance as my daughter winds her way toward college graduation and the grand old age of twenty-two.

 

"Mom, I'm tired," Danni told me this week as we spoke on the phone. "I have four projects due over the next few days, a twenty-hour work week, and I went to a concert with my friend last night to help celebrate her birthday." I chuckled to myself as I listened, thinking...And she hasn't even begun her student teaching, worked her first day at a 'real job', cooked her first Thanksgiving meal, or changed her first diaper.

It's all in the perspective.



In the meantime, I'm heading toward retirement from my 'day job' and enjoying the task of penning the ultimate bucket list. What fun it's going to be to check off the adventures that equate to a lifetime of dreams as my husband and I meander through the next several decades together! As I travel down this uncharted road, I'll remind my daughter to stay positive and to always look for the wishes in her everyday tasks instead of the weeds, even when she's tired.

It's true that perseverance and a job well-done pay off in the end, and when the days are tough simply remember...it's all in the perspective. 

  

~~~~~

 

 

Mended Heart

 

 





They say time heals all wounds…have the years taught them how to trust—and to love again?

Jade McAllister returns home to Pineyville, Tennessee to help nurse her estranged mother back to health. She's grateful her friend found her a job as an administrative assistant at Pineyville Church. That is, until she runs into Shane Calkin, the bad-boy-wannabe who broke her heart.

Shane's job as Youth Director at the church is a far cry from his high school days as the town's privileged rich kid. The death of his sister has left him with a young niece to raise and a rambunctious puppy to tame. He's not the self-centered person who once hurt Jade, and all he wants now is a second chance to love her. But how can he prove it to her?

~~~~~

Mary Manners is an award-winning romance writer who lives in the beautiful foothills of East Tennessee with her husband Tim and the cherished cats they've rescued from local animal shelters...Lucky and Gus. She loves swimming, running, flavored coffee and Smoky Mountain sunsets.

 

Mary believes everyone has a story to tell, and she loves to share hers. She writes inspirational romances of all lengths, from short stories to novels—something for everyone.

 

Learn more about Mary Manners at her website: www.MaryMannersRomance.com.