To better understand the storyline of Escape from Amsterdam, the author shares a very brief history of the German invasion of the Netherlands and its aftermath. The Netherlands managed to stay out of World War I by claiming neutrality. At the outbreak of World War II when Germany began invading other countries, the Dutch believedContinue Reading
Birth of a Book – The Research
When writing a historical novel, research is paramount. Of course, one usually flocks to Wikipedia to do research, but that can be a vague starting point. It’s vital to find good sources and confirm the information you receive (I was told by a good writing friend to confirm with at least three sources). Hence itContinue Reading
Birth of a Book – Symbols of a Culture
In this blog, I explore some of the symbols of the novel which I enjoyed on my trip to the Netherlands. When an author sets a novel in a foreign country as I did, it requires a good deal of research, not only in the setting and the language arts but also in the culturalContinue Reading
The Birth of a Book…How It Came Into Being
Welcome to a series of blogs as I count down the days to the release of “Escape from Amsterdam”. Wherever I travel, I think about my writing. And I wonder in the travel if there’s a way I can write a book about what I experience. So it was when my husband earned a tripContinue Reading
Planning for the Unexpected – When Trip Plans Go Awry
In my last blog, I talked about the excitement of my summer trip and preparing for it. But who knows that even when one prepares, it may not go off as planned. That’s exactly what happened to me. I traveled as far as Missouri to see my son and then I found out about theContinue Reading
Planning for an Adventure
One of the great things about being a writer and a hiker is the adventure. I’ve planned multiple hiking excursions that have taken me over 10,000 miles (yeah that’s a lot!) along trails in the east from Florida to Maine and, as of this writing, as far west as Colorado. But I also like toContinue Reading
The Unexpected Way of God
Over 25 years. Yes…that many years had passed since I had darkened the doorstep of attending a writers’ small group. I’d been publishing fairly regularly, doing my own thing, until about eight years ago when any form of novel writing came to a screeching halt. Or rather publishing full-length novels. I still wrote on occasion,Continue Reading
Welcome to Adventure, the Bliss Way!
Blissful Adventures encompasses novel adventures and trail adventures.
Westminster Abbey – A Place of Kings and Queens and Great Importance in American History
A trip I made in the fall of 2019 to England yielded a wondrous lesson in history and awe-inspiring events. Long ago I researched the founding of the American Colonies for various written works, of which England is its natural birthright. A visit here brought to light much in the area of historical facts asContinue Reading
The Hiking Adventure Series!
National Scenic Trails Adventures! Get outside with the National Scenic Trails “Hiking Adventure Series” on the Appalachian Trail and the Florida Trail. Journey with Blissful as she hikes over 5,000 miles of trail in all kinds of terrain and situations! Makes a great gift for the wanderer in all of us – and you don’t have toContinue Reading
Honoring World War II with the Pumpkin
Celebrate the Victory gardens of World War II and my novella, “Only Forever” in the historical romance collection Homefront Heroines and a tasty pumpkin bread recipe with a secret filling, passed down to me by my aunt. It became a tradition in the Bliss house to receive a still warm and fragrant loaf every ChristmasContinue Reading
Gators, Guts, and Glory Florida Trail Adventure!
What does the state of Florida give visions of? Beaches? Ocean waves? Walt Disney World? What could it possibly give to the interest of a hiker? Blissful the Hiker takes you on a wild and wonder-laden trek on the Florida Trail through pristine cathedral palms, thick woods of palmettos, sky high scrub pine, LordContinue Reading