The hearth

Here is a place of shelter. My readers are often the outsiders of the modern world in one way or another--whether you're earth-centered, social justice activists, urban homesteaders, people of diverse and mixed ethnic, religious and racial backgrounds, people with disabilities or just the people who didn't quite fit into the typical crowds in high school. That is why I have made this site to be a safe zone for outsiders, a place where you can speak freely and be respected. Most importantly a place were you belong.

Here is a place of shelter.

I am a writer living happily outside the established lines of society in a quiet corner of the country of Bohemia. Here I put down my hearth stone and offer comfort to wanderers.

My readers are likewise often the outsiders of the modern world in one way or another - whether you're earth-centered, social justice activists, urban homesteaders, people of diverse and mixed ethnic, religious and racial backgrounds, people with disabilities, people with non-standard gender and sexual orientation or just the people who didn't quite fit into the typical crowds in high school (or in adulthood for that matter). That is why I have made this site to be a safe zone for outsiders, a place where you can speak freely and be respected. Most importantly a place where you simply belong.

Welcome, sojourners, eclectics, gentle misfits and wounded souls!

Here there will be no attacks, no put-downs, no micro-aggressions and no spam. I tend my hearth actively and I pledge to work to make it safe, even when that means admitting my own mistakes. I'm here to write and also to listen.

Come in by my fire. Here is hope in dark times and a circle of warmth.

Join my hearth-side email circle to get a weekly virtual cup of tea and links to my latest posts.

I'll be your friend on Facebook and Twitter too.

What are your interests?

Rebel with a Pen: A blog where I discuss social justice and inclusion issues of all types and welcome comments and guest posts from others.

Practical Herb Lore: A collection of my methods of growing, processing and using herbal medicinals at home, plus the techniques for taking back one's own health in a world of terrifying disease and hit-and-miss medical expertise.

The Book Nerd: Many of us sojourners are bookworms, even book nerds. This is the blog where I post all things literary, whether it's about writing or reading, book reviews or rants on the publishing industry. For the love of books! Come and join the discussion.

Pagan Notes: This is where I put all my Pagan-specific stuff. I'm inter-culturally and internationally eclectic, hands-on, ecologically mouthy and often interested in building lasting family traditions.

Join my hearth-side email circle to get a weekly virtual cup of tea and updates from these blogs.

Otherwise here's what's new from my side:

Code of the Outcast (Book 4 of the Kyrennei Series) is out!

Code of the Outcast, the long-awaited next installment in the series, is live on Amazon. This book departs a bit from the first three, focusing on new characters, but it is more of the same desperate adventure in the world ruled by the Addin. The series is best if read in order. If you're new to it and looking for a gripping read, try The Soul and the Seed.

Please don't be shy and drop a review of Code of the Outcast on Amazon. Reviews matter. They don't need to be long or convoluted, but they're a big part of what keeps your favorite authors writing.

join my hearth-side email circle and get one book free

I would like to invite you to my hearth-side email circle. This is a small group of readers with whom I share the occasional virtual cup of tea and links to my latest writing. This is my protected, spam-free corner of the internet, so that's all you'll receive.

FREE BOOK: Just for fun, everyone who joins my hearth-side email circle these days gets a free ebook in Kindle, Epub or PDF format. Here's how:

Sign up for my hearth-side email circle here.
Take a look at my contemporary dystopian fantasy The Soul and the Seed (which has a 4.8 or of 5 stars average in reviews, by the way).
Then go to my contact page and send me an email. Include your email address and your preferred format and I'll send you either The Soul and the Seed or the next book in the series, if you prefer.

Book Nerd

If you like The Kyrennei Series and you can't wait for the Book II to come out, there are plenty of other fantastic books to read. Here is where you can find my lists of awesome books, ramblings on the love of books and juicy tidbits about writing.

Herbs often play a part in fantasy stories but we also have to get by in the non-fantasy world. With the rise of antibiotic resistant bacteria and unexplained systemic illnesses, more and more people are using herbs in self-defense. Find out here about herbs that really work.

What if there was a clear reason for the hatred, cruelty and greed in the world? The Kyrennei Series puts this question into fantasy. But the issues raised in the series are real enough. Here is where I put my real-world commentary.

R ead more