Dear Readers, Good morning (or whatever time of day you're reading this.:) Please help me welcome my good friend and chapter member, Laurie Larsen.   Introduce yourself—name, where you’re from, and something people notice when they meet you. Hi!  I’m so happy to join you here and I thank Christina for reaching out to me.  My name is Laurie Larsen and I am a writer in the beautiful Lowcountry of South Carolina – specifically the “Grand Strand” area of Murrells Inlet.  I grew up landlocked in the center of the USA – Illinois, specifically.  But I was always an ocean lover and vowed that as soon as I could, I would relocate to my favorite place in the world – right on a beach! 

They say, “All good things come to those who wait.”  And that’s exactly what happened to me.  I finally got my chance to move here when I had completed a 34-year career with the “big day job.”  By this time I’d been writing books for close to twenty years and I fulfilled my dream of moving to the beach to write novels.  Which brings me to your question about what people notice when they meet me – probably my big happy smile because I’m living the life I always dreamed of!   Tell us about your book—title and back cover blurb. My latest book is my foray into writing nonfiction.  It’s called The Year I Read the Bible.  Here’s the blurb:

A life-long Christian, I've read the Bible several times. But this time was different. My goal wasn't to just journey from cover to cover and consider it done. You know, cross it off my list and move on. I wanted to actually learn something that would impact my life. So for a year, I read my chronological Bible. And when something confused me or interested me or I wanted to learn more, I jotted it down. During Year 2, I went back and did just that -- I researched, asked questions, strived to reach understanding. And I shared what I learned, hoping that someone out there would want to learn it too. I started a weekly blog called The Year I Read the Bible. I started a video channel on which I read the weekly blogs. And as this book goes to print, my next project is to start a podcast -- all to share what I learned. 40 essays. Forty opportunities to learn more about that big book on your shelf. Maybe you'll be inspired to follow me into a year when you read your own Bible. If you do, I'd love to see what grabbed at your own curiosity. Share one thing that you found difficult or challenging about writing this book. The challenge came because it was so completely different than what I normally write!  I’m a writer of inspirational romance novels.  I tell heartwarming love stories that take place on the beach and end up sharing faithful messages of God’s love for the love-struck couple. But after writing over twenty novels, I was starting to run out of creative ideas.  My next book idea wasn’t another romance novel.  It was this!  I feel strongly that God reached out and tapped me on the shoulder and said, “I have a new idea for you.” This multi-year project has been so fun and rejuvenating to my muse and my enthusiasm.  But it’s also been hard!  I’m NOT a Bible scholar.  I can read a chapter and shrug and nod and move on, but a knowledgeable Bible teacher can dig so much insight and clarification out of that same passage. I admired those teachers – and I’m lucky to have several of them in my life right now!  I wanted to dig deeper into this big book that sits on all of our shelves and we pull out occasionally.  I wanted to learn and understand – and maybe God would begin to speak to me through those ancient words that are still so relevant today! It wasn’t easy but I stuck with it, and I’m not done. I’m continuing on to read additional Bible translations, to return to my list of questions of topics I want to research.  In other words, The Year I Read the Bible project is continuing despite publishing the book! Ask the blog reader a quirky question or two.? Okay I’m feeling a little quirky so here are some questions for you, dear reader: If you could travel anywhere in the world, (cost and availability of time being NO issue), where would you go, and why did you choose it? – My answer:  Bora Bora.  Why? Because my grandparents were huge travelers, going all over the world and they seemed to love beaches as much as I do.  I had a treasured weekend with my grandma about a year before she died and I asked her which beach she would recommend I not miss.  And she replied without hesitation:  Bora Bora.  If she was that sure about it, then I know it’s a “Do Not Miss!” Give me two truths and a lie about yourself and make ‘em good! – My answer: 1) I’ve lived in five states and two different countries.  2) My grandfather was the inventor of the solar battery.  and 3) I love cats and currently have three. True.  I’ve lived in Ohio, Illinois, Delaware, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.  I’ve lived in Mexico and of course, the US. True!  My grandfather was Gerald Lee Pearson who worked on a team of physicists at Bell Labs and together, they invented the solar cell in 1954.  Check him out on Wikipedia!  (And no, I did not get ANY of his scientific genius!) False.  I’m much more of a dog person than a cat person. I’ve had two cats in my life and they were both stand-offish and grumpy.   Share your social media and buy links! It’s been a pleasure visiting with you today!  If you’d like to learn more about me or follow me, you may do so here: Website/newsletter subscription:  Author Laurie Larsen | heartwarming Christian fiction Facebook: Facebook Amazon: Amazon.com: Laurie Larsen: books, biography, latest update Bookbub: Laurie Larsen Books - BookBub Goodreads:  Laurie Larsen (Author of Sanctuary) | Goodreads Purchase links for The Year I Read the Bible: https://books2read.com/u/b60650  Thank you, Laurie, for being our guest!