A story that touches on anything Alzheimer’s might seem too heavy from the get-go, but PERFECT LITTLE WORLDS by Clifford Mae Henderson injects so much humor and humanity that I found myself alternately smiling and tearing up. In 1989, Lucy Mustin, a middle-aged lesbian cake baker from Portland, gets a call from her possibly autistic, and definitely neurodiverse sister, Alice, who says she needs help with their dementia-affected mother. Lucy reluctantly makes the long drive

Buy NOW! I’m sure all of you know that while Amazon makes purchasing convenient, the corporation often takes a big chunk of the profit from independent authors and small presses. My publisher, Vine Leaves Press , did something about it! The press made it easy for you to buy ebook copies of my books, and those of the many other authors at the press, that can be used on any ereader. Please share this post and encourage friends and families to buy direct from VLP and other smal

Buy NOW! Valentine's Day has never seemed like a fair holiday: if you don't have a love interest, too bad for you. So Valentine’s Day has become, for me, a day about loving yourself. And if you're like Mary Donahue does in SCATTERED LIGHT , you might have to learn to love yourself. Because it’s hard to love others if we don’t love ourselves! ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com . SCATTERED LIGHT , a n

Buy Now To find out you don’t have the same father as your siblings is one thing. To find out your beloved grandma took part in a Nazi secret eugenics program that encouraged healthy women to have babies by men with Aryan features in order to purify the race is a whole other thing. The author of this fascinating memoir, ILLEGITIMATE , does a wonderful job of showing her very young years in the care of her grandmother in Germany, until, that is, her mother returns with an Amer

Here’s a funny/not so funny thing about the writing/authoring/book business: many unscrupulous people understand how desperate authors are to get traction for their books and guarantee a winning promo campaign for the low, low price of ___. Here’s the newest spin, thanks to ChatGPT and AI in general: Those same scammers now send highly polished AI-generated letters filled with promises of overnight bestseller lists to authors in hopes they’ll send money. This trend started ab

Jazz greats Ella Fitzgerald , Sarah Vaughan , John Coltrane , Miles Davis and Duke Ellington When I was a junior in college for broadcast journalism, I was hungry for all of the experience I could get, so I volunteered for a shift as a DJ for the school-owned, professionally run radio station at the University of Missouri - Columbia . The director made sure all students took a first shift for the classical music show, primarily because he had trouble filling that spot. I did

My son isn’t much of a social media guy, but I’m posting this poignant cartoon in honor of his birthday today. A sharp guy, he’s got a good sense of humor, training in philosophy, and a good grip on the state of the human species. To a wonderful man who takes great care of his family, friends, clients and chinchillas and strums to his own tune. I love you. ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com . SCATTE

Do you know any Dungeons & Dragons fans? If so, share this post, because the creators of this new D&D module deserve a shoutout for their unique twist on a traditionally very male game. Specifically, my friend and fellow writer, Cathy Thrush, and her husband, Tom, have just published their FOURTH ROMANTIC MODULE FOR COUPLES! Yes, the Thrushes , who own Urban Realms , have created a series called Date Night Dungeons and this module is titled Heroes of the Henge . The descrip

Today 10 internet bookish gals — dedicated readers all — are going to start a monthlong read-along of SCATTERED LIGHT , the sequel to WINTER LIGHT . If you want to join, DM me! Out of curiosity, how many of you are in book clubs? Thank you Kelly Lacey and Love Book Tours for organizing this read-fest! ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com . SCATTERED LIGHT , a novel, sequel to WINTER LIGHT , (Nov. 202

Buy NOW! I started researching THE WIND THIEF in 1995, the story of Madina, a strange, young Sahara Desert woman who believes she can stop a forthcoming war of winds, and Ajay, the young male thief from Mumbai who tries to dissuade her. The concept of climate change had been a thing for some thirty years already. What inspired me more than any news reports about a warming globe and more severe weather, however, was experiencing nature while backpacking. Standing atop a snow-

Though 13th , the Academy Award-winning documentary by Ava DuVernay , premiered 10 years ago, I’ll suggest the movie is worth watching, and re-watching, for all of the reasons I state in my essay, “13th: A Tough Movie Worth Watching,” which I posted on my uniting Americans blog, VigilantPositivity . I’m posting a link on MLK Day, not because I think we should be laying blame. Instead, it’s an opportunity for our country to make positive change. I take my hat off to Ava DuVe

FLOATING IN THE MIDDLE sings about nature like no other! Set on the gorgeous, but rough California coast north of San Francisco, seven friends unite for a weekend in a remote beach house. Rather than just fun and games, however, Tam, the protagonist, has come to find out if, after long separation from her husband, Jamie, he’s willing to try again. Because she is. Tension continues to build via the feisty dynamics of people who’ve known one another for a long time, and from n

Buy BLISS ROAD now! When writing BLISS ROAD , my memoir about being the daughter of an undiagnosed autistic dad, I found almost no resources to help me understand and heal from the emotional distance that can occur between neurotypical kids and their neurodiverse parents. Then I found the Adult Children of Autistic Parents Facebook page. Run by a caring, sensitive moderator, there are now over 500 members from around the world. If you know of anyone who might be struggling

I do so much weird research for my books that I thought I’d start sharing some with you. The above fish knife is made by a company called Maestro Wu , which claims its knives are made “from salvaged artillery shells fired on Taiwan by mainland China since the early 1900s.” I found the detail when looking for the knife that one of my OCEAN LIGHT (due out January 2028) characters would use: a Chinese American woman who does surf fishing in SoCal (Malibu area). Out of curiosit

Buy SCATTERED LIGHT! Even when writing WINTER LIGHT , my YA book about Mary Donahue as a teen, I already had the ghost of an idea: to show her life in a trilogy. Now that SCATTERED LIGHT , the second book, was just published, I’m hard at work on the third book, OCEAN LIGHT. This has always been my thinking: we all have points in our life where we change, and change big because of what happens to us. After my mom died, I changed, and changed big. Big enough to write my memoir

What’s on your wish list for this year? For me: A happy, healthy year of growth for my grandson and family Finishing the manuscript for the third Mary Donahue book Kindness Kindness Kindness ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com . SCATTERED LIGHT , a novel, sequel to WINTER LIGHT , (Nov. 2025) THE FALCON, THE WOLF AND THE HUMMINGBIRD a historical novel BLISS ROAD , a memoir WINTER LIGHT , a novel, in

Yes, my grandson, August, was born at 6:30 p.m. on Thurs., Dec. 23! At 10 lbs and 2 0z, he’s a sturdy little dude! Mom and baby are healthy and our entire family is thrilled at this new addition. While I’ve only been a grandma for a minute, I know this is true based on my own grandmas: “Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting.” Are you a grandparent? ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com . SCATTERED L

However you choose to celebrate, and with whomever, is the way to go. Happy holidays! ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com . SCATTERED LIGHT , a novel, sequel to WINTER LIGHT , (Nov. 2025) THE FALCON, THE WOLF AND THE HUMMINGBIRD a historical novel BLISS ROAD , a memoir WINTER LIGHT , a novel, in paperback and audiobook THE WIND THIEF , a novel GROWING GREAT CHARACTERS , a resource for writers #holi

Honestly, I think latkes should be on the menu every week at my house. If you haven’t tried them, DO! Pick an easy recipe and make sure to at least try the sour cream and applesauce toppings. Are you a latke fan?! Do you have a great recipe? The photo is from the Light & Crispy Potato Latkes! from the Well Seasoned Studio. ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com . SCATTERED LIGHT , a novel, sequel to WIN

I’ve never done an Instagram Live interview before, but I know Elaina Battista-Parsons is going to make it fun! 3:30 Pacific/5:30 Central/6:30 Eastern TONIGHT, Nov. 10, 2025 IG @WritingInThe.Winter To get your name is the drawing for the 2-book set giveaway of WINTER LIGHT and SCATTERED LIGHT … Do as the video says: leave a question or comment below regarding protag Mary Donahue, or on Elaina’s IG profile during the event. I hope to see you there! ___ For updates about Mart