Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Kindred is…as Kindred is...With Anne Love

“Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think. It's splendid to find out there are so many of them in the world.” ~ L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables 
 
Today I'm thrilled to invite my writing friend and kindred spirit, Anne Love, to the blog! Anne is one of those people I instantly loved. We immediately knew we had much in common, and when we started to talk it was as if we had known each other for years.
 
I'm also excited to announce I have joined Anne, Jaime Wright, and Erica Vetsch on the Coffee Cups & Camisoles Blog as a weekly contributor (you can see my introduction post here). The blog is focused on history, romance, and community--three things I adore. I hope you'll join me there on Thursdays, and be sure to stop by on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays to get to know my blogging buddies, too. :)
 
Without further ado, here's Anne.
 
Anne and me at the 2013 ACFW
Genre Dinner Night

The fun of growing older isn’t sagging shapes, getting wrinkles , or being told you need glasses, and then bifocals eventually.

Nope.

Each decade brings more and more opportunity to discover that life is full of kindred spirits. You just have to find them. You have to look for them. And the fun thing about finding kindred spirits is not only the bond of friendship, but learning about yourself in the process.

Kindred spirits aren’t just dopplegangers who show you a reflection of yourself. They aren’t just a mini-me. But they do “get you” in a special way that no one else quite can, and it’s mutual.

The word kindred can mean:  allied, similar, suitable, fitted, family, folks, tribe, clan, or “of the same blood.”

When you meet a kindred, though you may never have met before, you just “know” each other easily.

So it is with writers. Especially historical writers.

I first met Gabe at ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) Conference in Indianapolis, 2013. A whole group of writers who had connected in cyberspace met in the lobby as a group for the first time and went out for dinner. I was sitting across from Gabe and we struck up a fun conversation about history. I was hooked. I knew of all the wonderful new friends, Gabe was the one I’d love to have more time to chat with later.

Turns out we exchanged some writing and helped each other with some critiques in the following months. Since then, we’ve met again in 2014 in St. Louis, and shared phone calls and private messages.

Meeting literally hundreds of other Christian writers over the last seven years has truly been better than pen pals on steroids for me. Gabe and I are both in love with history and storytelling. We love it that we’ll never bore each other talking about historical events, museums, or fiction. So, this week at the blog I share with historical romance writers, Jaime Wright and Erica Vetsch, we are beyond thrilled to add Gabe as a weekly contributor at www.coffeecupsandcamisoles.blogspot.com.

Because Jaime, Erica, Gabe, and I are a tribe. We are a clan. We are of “the same blood.” We love history, all things vintage, Jesus, romance, and coffee. If you love those things too, we welcome you to stop by the blog and find your fit with us as we lift a cup of dark brewed coffee at our cyber café!

Me and Anne at the 2014 ACFW
Gala Awards Dinner

...Writer of Love Notes...
 Anne Love writes full length Christian Historical Romance novels from rural settings of the 19th century. She works full-time in Northern Indiana as a Family Nurse Practitioner, and balances out her life as a wife and mother with writing, blogging, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads and of course strong black coffee. She is a member of ACFW, has participated in Scribes critique groups and has attended ACFW conferences where she met her fellow bloggers and dearest critique partners ever. Her roots and faith are Mennonite, but neither she nor her heroines wear bonnets. In her spare time she enjoys reading, gardening, music, science, worship, and historical research. She is represented by Sarah Freese of WordServe Literary.
 
You can email her at loveae1967 at live dot com
Find her on Pinterest
Friend her on Facebook
Connect at Goodreads
Read old blogs at Love Notes
Follow her on Twitter
 
YOUR TURN: Who are your kindred spirits? Have you ever met someone you've connected with immediately? Do you believe in friendship at first sight? :)

10 comments:

  1. Yay, Anne! Happy to see my dear critique partner's face here. I love that you all have each other as kindred spirits and will be working together at CCC!

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    1. Aww, Laurie, another kindred! Thanks for stopping by dear friend. :)

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    2. Hi, Laurie! Thank you for stopping by. :) I'm so excited to join the ladies at CC&C blog! Our writing community is blessed with so many kindred spirits.

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  2. I so agree about Anne being a kindred spirit 💙 - & I feel the same way about Gabe! Though we've never met (yet), I'm so thankful the Lord interwove our publishing paths. One thing that struck me in these photos is how tiny Anne is when she is larger than life on the web, so to speak:) Or maybe our Gabe is model tall! Anyway, love you both and have a beautiful Wednesday!

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    1. I agree, Laura! Anne is larger than life on the web (and in person), but she's much more petite than me. :) It always strikes me when I meet someone in person for the first time, after getting to know them on the web, they're often taller or shorter than I imagined. :) Looking forward to the day we can meet in person, Laura! Thank you for stopping by to say hello.

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    2. So sweet, both of you. It's all too true, kindredness is a matter of the heart, not size. But I totally look forward to the day I'll meet you too, Laura! Some day it will happen!

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    3. ...and yes, Gabe is model-lovely-tall... ;)

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  3. Great post Anne! Since we are Spiritual beings, we are drawn to those like us. I am grateful to the Lord for the ones He has placed in my life. Have a wonderful Wednesday.

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    1. Thank you for stopping by, Caryl! I love when our spirits are drawn to others--it's a connection unlike any other. I'm so thankful for all my kindred spirits. :) They are truly a gift from God.

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    2. I agree Caryl, and I think if you and I had an hour to visit about spiritual things over tea or coffee, it wouldn't be long enough! ;)

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