The Heart of the Matter

With Father's Day coming soon, wanted to share a couple of links.   I created this book, simply called My Dad Loves Me, a bunch of years ago. Recently, however, it's had a surge in popularity where it's now the 5th best-selling title in the “Children's Parents Books” category on Amazon.   Put me in the Story, offers a personalized version of My Dad Loves Me (above). Today.com recently included it in an article called 12 Sappy Father's Day gifts that dad will actually love!  Some fun ideas in there.    As you know, I'm a big fan of gifts that come from the...

My friend Deb left me a voicemail.  Deb’s college-aged daughter, Sam, was sad. Sam's roommate, Morgan, had just lost her dad. (l to r: Morgan, MC, KatBart and Sam)  Sam and her friends wanted to let Morgan know how much they cared about her and didn’t know exactly how to do that. “Will you mail Sam a copy of your Gift of a Memory book?” Deb asked me on voicemail.   I mailed Sam my book. And Sam, a typical teen who loves Instagram and SnapChat, carried the book around and asked people write notes to Morgan.   And they did.  Things like,...

I was scheduled for a pre-mother's day book event at The Book Passage, an amazing and popular bookstore just over the Golden Gate Bridge. This beautiful and vibrant bookstore did everything right. They made flyers. Promoted me on their website.  Shared me online. Readied the room with chairs and a microphone and a book display.   I did everything right, too. I gathered my supplies. Set aside the time. Drove the 90 minutes from my house, ready to read and create and connect. Then, no one showed up. Not one person. Not one mother, dad or cute kid. Johanna, the event host, and I waited in...

Hello and welcome to The Great Giveaway Day!  Today I’m celebrating 20 years of authorship, 20 years of making my way in the world through my words and creativity. In the beginning, it was me creating in a spare bedroom and the knee-knocking courage to put my ideas into the marketplace. For the next 16 years, it was co-running with my husband a multi-million dollar publishing company with 12 employees and ALL the ups and downs included. And now, for the past couple years, I'm back to solo as an independent author in partnership with Sourcebooks, my book publisher and Shade Tree Greetings, my...

Hello friends! It’s been 20 years since I self-published my first book, The Gift of an Angel for parents welcoming a new child. To honor this milestone, I’m hosting a giveaway — cards, signed books, jewelry ... and I’d love for you to join in!   Check back here on April 24, 2017 for all the details!