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In Searching for a Starry Night, Samantha Ann Carlton would rather spend her summer vacation anywhere but a spooky old house in Wisconsin…like Lake Geneva! Somehow Sam knows it's going to take more than a few days to find a missing painting no bigger than her hand. Maybe things won't be so bad, she thinks, since she gets to take a friend's lovable but mischievous Dachshund, Petey, and her best friend Lita. If they're lucky, the three of them can find the miniature replica of Van Gogh's "Starry Night" and help Sam's mother get it to the museum where it belongs. It's not going to be easy, Sam realizes, when she discovers her own family has some spooky secrets. Then Petey digs up an ancient curse, and Sam fears her friendship with Lita is doomed... Will they find the miniature masterpiece in time? Will Sam and Lita go home friends -- or enemies? Continue reading →

I began collecting quite a few years ago (yes it's more than 10, no, I'm not saying how many-ha!), and I've stuck with it. Usually when I'm not writing, (when is that?) I'm dreaming up some new miniature project. Guess what? The process isn't all that much different. While I have to sometimes struggle to find the words I want, or to get a story to go in the direction I had in mind, working in miniature works much the same way. I'm still planning and creating except with paper, clay, wood, paints and other materials instead of on the computer. The one drawback is doing something in miniature often requires measuring and math, which I'm really not good at. Terrible; it took me several tries to get some wood framing cut right. I think the best thing about having a hobby is it can actually improve your writing (or at least your well-being!) I can stew over my writing subconsciously while I concentrate on something else. Often the problem, or the solution I'm looking for, comes to mind once I'm not obsessing over it. Continue reading →