

“Have you ever felt like you just absolutely HAD to do something?
That’s the way I was feeling when I began writing my books.”
One of my childhood dreams was to write books. But I also wanted to write songs and be an actress. All of these dreams were set aside when I got older, went to college and got married soon after.
My decade of column writing was brought to a sudden halt by health problems. After recuperating from a scary surgery and overcoming my own fears of death, I knew it was time to fulfill my writing childhood dream. And I hoped that my years of column writing had built a foundation from which I could draw upon.
Rereading all of my columns while recuperating, I realized that many of my columns were inspired by lessons learned from my very southern, sassy mamma. So it was natural for this to be the basis of my first memoir book, The Gospel According to Mamma.
My writings take readers on a journey to find deeper meaning in their own lives. My books are a compilation of my personal discoveries and I sincerely believe we should share our life lessons with one another. That this is how we can become somebody’s angel.
“Whatever else I do myself as a writer, my mission is to help every woman realize HER STORY is extraordinary, valuable and noteworthy.”
Herstory is written one woman at a time. This is a huge missing element in our American History, so says my historian daughter. She says it’s sometimes difficult to do women’s history research because many women in our past did not record their memoirs.
I can’t help but wonder if women have not always believed their lives, their experiences, their opinions and their lessons learned were of value, significant and worthy of being recorded. Without this belief, it’s understandable that women would not invest in the time to journal their memoirs.
I encourage every woman to write her story whether or not you ever dream of making them public. Your experiences, wisdom, knowledge, insights and inspirations will be a resource treasure to your family.
And the fact is, even if you never share your memoirs with your family in your lifetime, the process of reminiscing and reviewing your stories of struggles and triumphs will serve as a guidepost to your self. Even simply the process of writing your memoirs down can be healing, therapeutic and rejuvenating.
This has been true for me as I shared my life lessons and experiences in columns and books. All of my writing began as journal entries, then as newspaper and magazine columns and eventually as a collection of my memoirs grouped into books.
Ranch House Press was formed to publish my books, journals and coloring books but I hope to help other women publish their “herstories” in any way I can!
“As I move forward with my life, I will continue to journal my memoirs and perhaps will publish more of my own stories. But I really want to help other women publish their herstories! As CEO of Ranch House Press, I can tell you that this is one of my big goals!”