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 December 16, 2001 -- December 9, 2001 -- October 7, 2001 -- June 24, 2001 -- April 17, 2001 -- February 25, 2001  --  Archives 2004  -- 
Archives 2003 -- Archives 2002 --  Archives 2000

December 16, 2001

Dear Friends and Fans,

Thank you so much for the wonderful response to my last newsletter. Your condolences on my losses were very appreciated. I wish I could respond to every one of you but that is impossible to do so I just want to say thanks here for taking the time to write me. You are the best fans a writer could ask for. I did read every letter sent to me and printed them out to save and read when I need an uplift. May God bless every one of you.

Just a quick answer to a question that many of you have been asking. Unfortunately, I cannot sell the San Celina Police Department Tshirts. First, I don't have that many (nor the room to store them) and getting involved in the whole retail business (which would include a resell license and more complicated taxes) is something I just don't have time for right now. We plan on continuing the contests for at least the next year so keep trying. You might be the next winner!

For those who don't know about the contest, check out my website -- http://www.earlenefowler.com for details.

Again, have a very blessed and safe Christmas and Hanukkah,
Earlene

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December 9, 2001

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to you all!

Here in South California we've been having more rain and cloudy weather than normal for us.  But I'm not complaining!  I like any weather that allows me to wear snuggly sweaters and write with a flannel quilt wrapped around my legs.  I hope all of you are enjoying some crisp, but not too crisp, winter weather.  It is definitely time to get out the hot chocolate and marshmallows.  Allen and I had our first hot chocolate of the season only last week.

It will be a bit of a melancholy season for me this year, as it will be for many people, I imagine.  A few months ago I lost one of my oldest and most treasured friends to cancer.  Kandi Bradley and I knew each other for twenty-four years.  We worked together in Pasadena, California when we were both young married women.  Our job, typing insurance applications into computer terminals, forced us to work side-by-side for five years.  During that time we probably discussed every problem you could imagine from mothers to husbands to siblings to cranky bosses.  We laughed, cried, got in fights and loved each other.  When we'd go out to eat on Fridays we always ordered hamburgers and I'd give her my pickles and she'd give me her tomatoes.  She was a fighter and struggled hard to beat the cancer.  I was able to visit with her a few days before she died.  One of the last things I was able to do was feed her a Krispy Kreme donut.  She never lost her spirit or her sense of humor.  I will miss her for the rest of my life.

On November 27th, my gramma, Muriel Harper Webb Phillips, died in her sleep in Gilbert, Arizona.  She was 96 years old.  She was my mother's mother, my Arkansas gramma and some of the inspiration for Dove Ramsey.  She lived on her own until she was 92 and then lived in assisted living homes until the last few weeks of her life.  She was buried next to my grampa, George Washington Webb, in the cemetery in Ajo, Arizona, where they ended up living in 1946 when they left Arkansas on their way to California to find work.  Her funeral was at Ajo Calvary Baptist Church on December 1st.  She'd been a member of the church for many years.  The church was filled with her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren.  Her three favorite songs were sung--"Mansion Over the Hilltop," "Rock of Ages," and "Beulah Land."  Afterwards, six wonderfully kind ladies of the church provided a real, down home Baptist potluck dinner for the family with ham, potato salad, biscuits, Jell-O, scalloped potatoes, salad, green bean salad, dressing and chocolate cake.  We took pictures and recalled our favorite stories about Gramma.  I was told her last request for food before she passed away was for ice cream.  That was not hard to believe since Gramma always believed and taught us to eat dessert first.  She played a cutthroat game of dominos (often with her own rules that only she understood), made the best peach cobbler in the world, loved her family, loved to laugh and loved the Lord.  She left me her last quilt, a Lone Star made in the brightest yellows, pinks, reds, blues and greens you can imagine.  It is faded now and worn bare in spots because Gramma always believed in using quilts not hanging them on the wall like I do.  I will treasure it always.

I hope you all have had fun with the first contest.  We've started another one with the questions taken from Irish Chain this time.  Again, I'll draw three winners from the entries with the correct answers.

I'll close with the wish that you all have a wonderful holiday full of God's richest blessings and you experience His infinite grace during these troubled times.  Our stay on this earth is short and if we've learned nothing else from September 11th, I hope it's that today is the day you need to tell your loved ones how much they mean to you.

Happy Holiday Trails, Earlene

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October 7, 2001

Dear Friends,

Like everyone else I was horrified, shocked, dismayed and saddened by the September 11th terrorist attack on America.  Though there is nothing I can write that hasn't already been said more articulately or profoundly by someone else, I just have to say that I have never been more proud of the citizens of our country, of their courage, their generosity, their love and their concern for the fellow human beings.  Americans have shown their true heart and, I believe, will continue to do so.  As for the complex and frightening situation we are forced to live in now, I believe we must trust in God, in His power, His sovereignty, His eternal justice and most of all, His infinite love.  Though we don't always know what will happen, it is my belief that, ultimately, God is in control.  And that He tells us not to destroy, but to love.

I've spent the summer writing and doing a few signings here and there, but took some time off in August to visit my dear friend, Jo-Ann Mapson, who has moved to Anchorage, Alaska.  She was my writing buddy down here in Southern California and I miss her!

We went to the Alaska State Fair where I saw some of the breathtaking quilts made by Alaska quilters.  And we took a trip down to Seward, about two hours out of Anchorage, to take a glacier/wildlife boat tour.  The town of Seward looks like something straight out of that old television show Northern Exposure.  From our boat we saw eagles, bears, hundreds of birds and a couple of humpback whales.  But the crowning moment was the glacier itself.  I was awestruck.  It was immense and bright blue in spots and, to my surprise, made noise.  While we stood on the deck of the boat, the glacier cracked and groaned and dropped huge chunks of ice into the gray ocean.  When the chunks dropped, a few seconds later, a sound similar to thunder swept over us.  The experience makes a person truly comprehend how small a human being is in this vast, beautiful planet created by God.  And I looked for moose.  My hunt for moose became a running joke with everyone I met in Alaska.  I was told that moose were like cockroaches in Alaska, that they were everywhere.  Jo-Ann even claimed that a mother moose and her babies hang out in her backyard.  

Well, I came to believe that moose sightings in Alaska are rather like snipe-hunting in the South...a joke played on gullible tourists.  Except for the moose in the Alaska Zoo, I only saw two others at great distance off the highway.  So my moose experience in Alaska left me wanting, but I guess that just means I'll have to go back.

To pass the time while you all are waiting for Steps to the Altar to come out in April, I have decided to have a contest.  It'll be pretty easy. There'll be three questions from Fool's Puzzle.  All you have to do is answer them and send your name and email address.  We'll have a drawing from the correct answers and three people will win an official 'San Celina Police Department/Chief Gabe Ortiz' T-shirt.   They are all size large (because that's what Gabe would wear!) and are very neat.   If there's enough interest, we'll try to have a contest every couple of months with questions from one of the books.

I'm home now and working on my next Benni Harper novel.  It's number ten in the series and is called Sunshine and Shadow...an appropriate pattern for what we are all feeling.  When life is in shadows, as it is right now for many people, it is often hard to imagine there will ever be any sunshine again.  But there always is light above.  We just have to keep looking.

That's all for now.  I hope all of you are safe and well and reading every day.  For me, reading has always been how I cope with fear and uncertainty. That and prayer.  If I haven't said it before, I want to say how much I appreciate the letters and support you all have given me over the years.  So often your words to me are the sunshine I need on a shadowy day.

Happy trails until we meet again,
Earlene

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June 24, 2001

Dear Friends and Fans, 

It's been an exhilarating and exhausting two months and as much fun as it's been traveling around the country, I'm glad to be home and writing again.  It was exciting and humbling to meet so many of Benni's long time fans as well as her new ones.  I sure do appreciate all of you who took the time to come to one of my signings, buy books and chat.  I spend so much time alone that it is refreshing to crawl out of my cave and see who it is I've been writing for all those months. 

My eleven-city tour didn't have too many hitches in the rope, as Dove might say.  I drove myself on some of the tour since I'm an airplane-weenie and won't fly any planes with propellers.  Thanks to my wonderful publicist, Julia, for accommodating my fears.  I've had some wonderful author escorts and still use them some (such as in Chicago) but I'm a tad independent and like controlling some of my own schedule.  Driving myself enabled me to see a little of the country between signings and also gave me mental time alone to plan the next Benni Harper adventure. 

Things were hot (literally and fictionally) in Scottsdale and Tucson where I had fun, as I always do, with my faithful Southwest fans.  Arizona always feels like home to me, probably because I have so many relatives there!  In Little Rock, I was able to eat one of my favorite foods--deep fried corn-on-the-cob--and hear my mother's syrupy accent echoed in the voices of the people in the Natural state.  Memphis and Nashville are two of my absolute favorite places on earth. Friendly people, outstanding food (like heavenly pulled pork barbecue) and gorgeous, green-that-hurts-your-eyes scenery.  If I could pick somewhere I'd love to live besides California's Central Coast, it would be Nashville.  It's a fascinating city where I never had any trouble finding a country/western station on the radio.  I resisted and didn't buy any more boots...this time!  I drove to Ohio where the gracious people there always give me a warm reception.  Ohio is full of book lovers and has great pizza too!  I only got lost two times there--once in Cincinnati, once in Dayton.  In Cincinnati I was helped by a kindly US mail carrier and in Dayton I stopped at a Highway Patrol office and was given, of course, very accurate directions to my hotel.  My deepest thanks to the helpful citizens of Ohio!  In Chicago, I was awestruck by the beauty of the city.  It is truly one of the cleanest large cities I've ever seen.  It was the first time I'd ever seen one of the great lakes up close and it reminded me of the Pacific Ocean without the big waves.  The folks there and in Milwaukee were very welcoming.  They both have incredible shorelines that anyone would envy.  While I was eating my dinner in my Milwaukee hotel's dining room that was filled with a convention of engineers, I was treated to a very interesting karaoke rendition of Garth Brooks' "The Thunder Rolls" sung by a drunken engineer (the bar's stage was visible from the dining room).  I have a feeling Benni is going to have that experience in a future book.  It was definitely one of the more amusing moments of my tour.  In Madison, I was greeted by a huge gathering of readers who were articulate, supportive and lots of fun.  I got lost again trying to find a television studio but I stopped by a firehouse and was pointed in the right direction by two very helpful firemen.  Thanks, guys!  I ended my tour in Minneapolis seeing some readers I'd first met a few tours ago and enjoying weather that was thirty degrees cooler than that of Scottsdale and Tucson ten days earlier.  As with all my book signings, the booksellers were gracious and helpful.  Thanks to you all.  I arrived home with a suitcase full of dirty clothes and five extra pounds from too many French toast breakfasts.  The clothes are washed but I'm still trying to lose that five pounds. 

I was home five days then off to Malice Domestic convention in Washington DC.  It was very special to me this year because my friend and Webmaster, Tina Davis, and her husband, Tom, met Allen and me there.  I was able to introduce her to many of her favorite authors and generally chauffeur her around the convention.  She told me she had a wonderful time.  I was on a panel called "Dear Author" where me and four other authors read and discussed our most interesting, weird and touching email (no names of fans were revealed, I promise!).  I was able to read out loud (with her permission) Tina's first letter to me where she told me my books helped her get through some cancer treatments.  I then told how she made me a quilt, we eventually met and then I introduced her.  Of course she received a huge round of applause.  She started out a fan and became a friend.  That has happened with many of my fans and it is truly among the richest blessings I have experienced with the publication of my books. 

When I got home from Malice Domestic, I drove up to San Luis Obispo where I did more book signings and spoke at the Central Coast Book and Author fair.  If any place is my second home, it is the Central Coast.  It is always fun for me there visiting friends and meeting fans.  I'm always in a bit of a daze walking around the county because often I'm half Earlene Fowler, half Benni Harper--the memories and experiences of the Central Coast are both hers and mine. 

So, except for a quick trip up to the San Francisco area (Albany) for a talk, I'm home until August when I travel to Alaska to visit my friend, author Jo-Ann Mapson.  She's having a wonderful time living in Alaska, but I sure miss our shopping trips where we solved our writing problems sitting on the floor of one of Macy's dressing rooms.  We're going to eat, talk, read each other manuscripts and, of course, shop.  I'll be signing on August 23rd at Twice Told Tales in Anchorage and hopefully Jo-Ann and I will do a joint book signing/talk at a local bookstore.  More on that when we iron out the details. 

Traveling around the country, seeing all these beautiful places and meeting the incredible people who live there made me want to live in each place if only for a little while.  But it also made me appreciate home, even if it is smack dab in the middle of one of the most crowded urban areas in the United States.  Even here though, nature does her best to assert herself.  As I look out the window over my kitchen sink I have been observing these last few weeks a dove who has built a nest in one of our hanging redwood flower pots.  Hidden among the yellow impatiens, she has been patiently nurturing two little eggs.  It reminds me somewhat of the patience it takes to let a book gestate, something I've been dealing with while working on this mainstream book.  The babies were born about three days ago and it amazes me every day how quickly they grow.  They are the second family of doves to use this nest this spring and we think our small patio might be on its way to becoming a dove sanctuary.  Allen saw them first since he is the person who does the dishes in our family and he commented, "Look, a dove in the window."  I couldn't have said it better.  Have a glorious and healthy summer. 

Happy trails until we meet again,
Earlene

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April 17, 2001

Dear Friends and Fans, 

Well, when you read this I'll be somewhere on the road...hopefully in your neighborhood! I'll be on tour 11 days and going to 11 cities. If I'm in one of your towns (check my tour schedule), please come on down and say hi. I'll be glad to sign any of my books so feel free to bring them with you. 

When I get back, I'll tell you all about what it's like to go on such a whirlwind tour. And I'm sure I'll have some great road stories to tell. Until then, find a good book (like maybe, Arkansas Traveler?), pour yourself a nice cup of coffee or tea or maybe an RC cola and disappear into an imaginary land somewhere. I can guarantee if it's Sugartree, Arkansas there'll be lots of food, plenty of laughs and maybe a few tears. Eat a Moonpie for me! 

Happy trails, 
Earlene 

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February 25, 2001  

Dear Friends and Fans, 

Happy belated Valentine's Day!  I hope you all received all the chocolates and flowers you so richly deserve.  I apologize for this newsletter being a little late, but I've been busy rewriting Steps to the Altar.  I sent it Monday to my publisher so have a few days now to catch up on paperwork, correspondence, lunch dates and of course, laundry! 

In January, I had a marvelous time at the Ojai Quilt festival in Ojai, California where I met a lot of new people and caught up with lots of old friends.  One of the many interesting new "couples" I met were Stephanie and Socrates, her pet goose.  They came all the way from San Diego to the quilt show and when Stephanie and I were chatting she told me the story of Socrates, a goose literally rescued from the stew pot when he "adopted" her at a girl scout camp in Temecula.  They've been together six years now (longer than Benni and Gabe!) and he travels with her everywhere causing quite a scene on the freeway when people pass by them.  Socrates is a true quilter's friend.  He waits outside of fabric stores for her as she shops and he knows the difference between all cotton fabric and blends and he prefers cotton.  That's one smart goose.  When I went outside to meet him (he had acquired quite a large fan group out there...I was jealous), he dipped his head when I stooped down to talk to him which according to Stephanie is goose flirting.  He loves women, she says, and especially redheads.  I'm here to tell you, the people I meet at booksignings is the best thing about my job. 

The first week of February I went up to San Luis Obispo to do some research where I spent the weekend in Parkfield at a quilt retreat.  These twenty or so women have been meeting yearly since the mid 1980's to spend the weekend quilting, talking, eating and more quilting!  Thanks to my friend, Pam Munns, Highway Patrol officer extraordinaire and Mary Russell, who is the creator and grand dame of the retreat, I was allowed to watch and eavesdrop for the entire weekend.  Parkfield is a small town that I mention in Mariner's Compass.  It is the earthquake capital of the world so there is, apparently, all sorts of complex techie earthquake detecting equipment up there (though I never saw any of it).  The only establishments in town are the Parkfield Inn (a wonderful log cabin inn that is open to the public), the Parkfield Cafe (delicious food...especially the tri-tip steak sandwich and dynamite French fries) and a small western-style gift shop in the old post office.  Other than the rodeo grounds which hosts a once-a-year ranch rodeo, there isn't much to do out there except hike and ride, so these women really got a lot of quilting done.  It was amazing to watch the creativity of all the Parkfield ladies as well as the touching and genuine rapport they had with each other.   I could write three novels with all I heard and saw that weekend. 

Parkfield is lovely in February with brilliant green hills and just a hint of wildflowers starting to bloom.  It was very cold at night so we all wore our flannel PJs...mine had cowboys on them, of course.  We played fabric bingo and took turns hiding the rubber chicken in each other's possessions (no one wants to be the one who has to take it home for the year--this time Christine won when someone slipped it into the back window of her car right before she drove away on Sunday).  We ate like razorback hogs and laughed about all the things women find funny like men and kids and dieting and the pros and cons of thong underwear (quite a debate on that subject!)  You will definitely see some of my experiences in a future book.   

Under a new category--Coming Attractions--there will be pictures of my Parkfield quilting pals and of the Parkfield Inn which has, of course, a quilt on every handmade bed.  In this section we'll try and put pictures of things that don't actually fit under the category of one of my novels. 

A special announcement!  Banderanda, Churn Dash's mama, just had another baby. February 20, 2001, she gave birth to a filly who is, as yet, unnamed.  For those of you who aren't familiar with Churn Dash, look under Seven Sisters and you can see and read about him.  He and Unnamed Filly are actually half-siblings as UF has a different daddy.  Clare and Tom Bazley (Clare's alias is The Button Lady) are the proud adoptive parents.  As soon as I get a picture of the new baby, I'll post it under Coming Attractions. 

My schedule for booksignings has been firmed up so check out the booksigning section.  More information will be added as I get it up until the last minute so check once a week to make sure something hasn't changed.  A snail mail postcard mailing with identical information will be sent around the end of March.  If you know of someone who needs the information but isn't online, send me their address and I'll add them. 

Hope to see some of you while I'm out on the road promoting Arkansas Traveler.  Take care and see you soon! 

Happy Trails, 

Earlene and Benni

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December 10, 2000

Dear Friends and Fans,

Hope you're all having a holiday season that's not too stressful.  Don't forget to take a few minutes off and make some hot chocolate with some Van Houten cocoa (Benni's favorite) with a little whipped cream on top.  That's what Dove would suggest as a sure way to ease any holiday tiredness or blues!  As she would say, "A little bit of sugar never hurt nobody."

As I'm writing this, I'm watching "It's a Wonderful Life" and envying all of you who are having a snowy December.  Make a snow angel for me!  I hope, before I die, to experience at least one Christmas with snow.

I'm working hard on Steps to the Altar.  The manuscript is due at my publisher in mid-February.  It takes me about a year to write a book and my publisher about a year to do their thing.  After it's turned in, my personal appearances start again.  Actually, I have a couple in January--a talk at the Rancho Mirage library (near Palm Springs) and a two-day book signing at the Ojai Quilt Festival in Ojai, California.  I'll be signing in Clare Bazley's booth (aka The Button Lady).  The Ojai Quilt Festival is a wonderful experience--the whole town gets in the spirit displaying quilts everywhere, even in the local tavern!  It's three days--Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I'll be there Friday afternoon and Saturday.  More information is located in my appearances column.

My tour hasn't been firmed up yet by my publisher, so I'm still as much in the dark as you as to where I'll be appearing besides my usual Southern California and Central Coast spots.  My whole schedule will be posted on the website as soon as we know it.  I'm really looking forward to visiting with some of my longtime friends and fans...and to meeting some new ones.  I'll be sending a snail mail postcard some time in March announcing Arkansas Traveler and giving my book signing schedule.  If you know of someone who wants to know my schedule but doesn't have a computer, please feel free to sign them up.  You can do that on the website's homepage.

Now, as promised, I'll tell you the story about Tina (esteemed webmaster) and how she inspired an additional scene for Arkansas Traveler.  While we were in Nashville at the American Quilter's Society quilt show we, of course, had to eat every meal out.  Every time, Tina, in complete innocence and sincerity, asked our waiters and waitresses, "What kinds of herbal teas do you carry?"  Now, Nashville is the home to all kinds of wonderful foods--pulled pork barbecue, fried chicken, ribs, peach cobbler (my personal favorite), turnip greens (not my favorite...or Benni's), but apparently herbal teas haven't quite become a staple in most of the restaurants (one helpful waiter did tell us he thought there might be one restaurant in Nashville where they served it but he couldn't remember where).  Tina, ever the optimist, never gave up asking, even at the Loveless Cafe, a Nashville tradition, where the biscuits would have made Aunt Garnet sigh with envy.  They also only served Lipton tea.  Seeing the waitress' "Is she serious?" expression when Tina asked again for herbal tea inspired me to write a scene between Benni and Elvia in a Waffle House restaurant (also a famous Southern hot spot).  It's in the first chapter and now you know where an author's ideas come from!

That's all for now.  We wish for all of you a Happy Hanukkah, a Blessed Christmas and a New Year full of good health, happy horses, faithful friends and all the fabric you can carry!

Happy Holiday Trails,

Earlene and Benni

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October 15, 2000

Dear friends and fans of San Celina,

    Well, its fall and though it doesn't feel much like it here in South California where it is still seventy degrees, I'm sure most of you are experiencing cooler days and nights.  It's hard to believe my website has been going since May.  I hope you've enjoyed Tina and Tom's creative design talents and hard work.  Trust me, this website would not exist without them!  I only supply the pictures and text and they pull them together.  Tina coordinated the connection with Electric Quilt (I met Penny McMorris in Nashville in September--lovely lady) and is also the designer of the quilt patterns each month.  Tom, her husband, has provided all the technical support and expertise (and makes dynamite biscotti too).  We have lots of fun new things coming up in the next six months including a peek at the new Arkansas Traveler cover and my upcoming 2001 book signing and speaking schedule.

    So, what's new in my life and in Benni and Gabe's?  First, them.  In Arkansas Traveler (on sale April 10, 2001), Benni, Gabe, Dove, Isaac, Elvia and Emory head back to Sugartree, Arkansas, to attend the 100th anniversary and homecoming of Sugartree Baptist Church.  Elvia goes along to meet Emory's dad because her and Emory's relationship is finally getting serious.  Since they all stay at Aunt Garnet's house, you know things will also heat up between Dove and Garnet.  Benni and Emory visit many old friends and family, but also get embroiled in a local race for mayor which is tainted by crooked politics and racism. Running against the incumbent mayor, a powerful local man, is Benni and Emory's childhood friend, Amen Tolliver.  And you'll have to read the book to find out why she was named Amen!  

    My husband, Allen, and I, had a great time two years ago on a research trip to Arkansas, my mother's home state (she was born near McCaskill).  It's a beautiful state with lots of trees, heavenly pulled pork barbecue and friendly, helpful people.

    Labor Day weekend Tina and I went to Nashville to the American Quilter's Society Millennium quilt show at the Opryland Hotel.  At the Fabric Patch booth I signed books for four days, visiting with more of Benni and Gabe's fans.  The quilts were breathtaking and vendor booths (400 I heard) were equally impressive.  Tina and I had a memorable time swooning over Collin Raye at the Grand Ole Opry and eating at the Loveless Cafe where she inspired an additional scene for Arkansas Traveler (which I'll tell you about in a future newsletter).

    Happy trails, 
    Earlene and Benni

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