a picture is worth a thousand words

Christmas morning arrived with a soft fog hanging over my neighbor’s pasture—I can’t resist a foggy morning. So, at about 5:30 am, I threw on my robe, grabbed my camera and made my way to the fence, closer to where the cows grazed. Have you ever noticed that it always seems quieter when the fog moves in? This was the kind of fog that you know won”t last long—the hint of pink and mauve reflected from the rising sun is the give-a-way.

After I got the shots I wanted—and photographs never capture the real beauty of nature—I enjoyed my rural habitat as I meandered back to the house. The soft sky, the trees all bare for winter and just as beautiful as when in full spring foliage. I remembered what one of my long-ago art teachers used to say—”This is a watercolor day.” I knew what she meant.

I breathed the same words while gazing around me—this was gonna be a watercolor day. Suddenly I had the urge to capture this watercolor morning on paper. I warn you, if the camera’s eye falls short of nature’s real beauty, my watercolor ability is way beneath the camera’s ability! I normally paint in oils ( W/C is much more difficult for me ) but lately I’m turning more and more to my first love, watercolor.

Difficult or not, I resolved to give it a try. In my defense, the painting looks better in real life than in this photo … really. With a new year coming up, I’ll just consider it practicing for the many new challenges of 2018. Here’s hope you get at least a tiny feel of the beauty I experienced on Christmas morning.

Misty Morn

Hope your Christmas was good and that the new year brings everything you wish for!

Thanks for stopping by! Until next time, keep God in your plans and give thanks for all the good things you enjoy! MaryJ 🙂 🙂 🙂

Up-date on the new book I’m working on ( number 4 ), same characters, new setting. I’m having fun at Max’s ranch in Colorado! Max is the new person introduced in book three. Her ranch in Colorado is a nice change of setting, although New York was fun too. There’s a bit of mystery, a cabin in the mountains and … oh well, more on that later. 🙂

Haven’t we all heard how important a good cover is in attracting readers? The theory being that a person has to first notice the cover, or pick the book up before the thought of purchasing even enters their thoughts.

And haven’t we all heard how a picture is worth a thousand words? Or, to a writer, perhaps thousands of book sales. And that’s where a good cover comes in.

I received these photos in an email with the message that the young reader in the photo discovered a copy of Trespassing On His Heart on her great-grandmother’s coffee table. ( We won’t discuss the quality of the iPhone pic’s )

The cover image caught her eye—that’s good, right? What follows is the ideal scenario to a writer. Miss Baylee is our young bookworm with the inquiring mind—and while a picture is worth a thousand words, actions speak even louder than words. Watch.

♥ The cover catches her eye . . . she reaches for the book. “May I?” she asks.