God knows. God sees.

Ever feel like God doesn't know what you're going through? Oftentimes, my cries are met by;

Nothing.

Silence.

Pain.

I was convinced He had no clue. Nor did He care.

Until . . .

Healing Stones: A Sullivan Crisp Novel by Nancy Rue & Stephen Arterburn.

Christians can be some of the cruelest people on the planet.

Not all.

But way too many.

Zora & Nicky by Claudia Mair Burney, rocked my world as I knew it, giving me the courage to be authentic. Burney's book was the first addition to the new genre I've coined: Transformative Fiction. It sat alone until now.

Healing Stones pulls out a plot so powerful no one can read it and remain the same. Rue and Arterburn shatter the illusion enveloping many Christian institutional settings, while infusing healing, hope and a plan toward authenticity.

EVERY pain, fear, hurt, doubt I'm experiencing now, showed up on the pages. Main character, Sullivan Crisp and secondary character Dr. Ethan Kaye rolled together ARE me.

Just change some genders, settings and details but keep the basic plot the same - except for the affair part and you've got my life. Down to the Breast Nazi.

Nancy Rue and Steve Arterburn pulled me out of my tiny little world, placing the puzzle piece called "The Adventurous Life of Darcie" into The Big Picture.

God sees. God knows. God grieves. God heals.

Healing Stones offers way more than a fantastic read. My opinion is that the book should be a handbook for any person wanting to do more than warm 3 square feet of sitting space in a church building once a week. It should be read by people who've been hurt by folks claiming the name of Jesus. It should be read by pastors, professors, Sunday School teachers and ministry leaders who yearn for expanding the Kingdom.

Okay. Go. Buy. It. Now.

What happens at the Colordo Christian Writers Conference. . .

The Colorado Christian Writer's Conference is held every year in Estes Park, Colorado.

I've got some before, during and after pix to share . . .

Okay, I give up! I'm a writer not a 'puter programer for Pete's Snakes!

Let the stinkin' photos fall where they may on Blogger's format.

Ain't they perty?

The person with the tie around her head is me in between Nancy Rue (on the left) and Angela Hunt (on my right). Together we make a NangeDwich! If you've never read either one, um... I'm trying to be nice here...

Angie wrote The Elevator which may cause bouts of agoraphobia in claustrophobic folks. Nancy Rue wrote Healing Stones which is so far an amazing piece of prose (not done yet).

Between them, they've written over 200 books!

Also included in the photos are my Words For The Journey Christian Writers' Guild buddies. Believe it or not, they LIKE my weirdness.

Boogin' Out

Musical Toddler

First impressions are everything

See Darcie procrastinate.
(she's supposed to be writing)

See Darcie blog surf and comment on agents' blogs.
(she's supposed to be writing)

See Darcie's poem described by agent Chip MacGregor as "really bad"...
(she's supposed to be writing her NOVEL not poems)

and...

PUTRID!

I'm saving that e-mail in my archives. Sigh!

FYI - it's a bad poetry contest.

My poem is about the 42nd comment. Check it out!

(for non-procrastinators, here's my Awfully Bad Poem)

To all the poet laureates out there making billions of dollars writing better nonsense than this little ODE (not to be confused with ODOR)

Bad poetry.
Like, really, really bad.
Airplanes buzz around my cranium -
....with tootsie roll thoughts.

Poet laureates.
Say lor-ee-ates in the containium.
I mean continuum.

Free the monkeys!
Now!
I mean it!

And methinks poetry rots
with all those itty-bitty knots

(empty space)
(nothingness)
(Eckhart Tolle and Oprah)
(vast void)

of garlic bread

Will Someone Get This Litterbox Off My Head?

Poetry so bad - YOU all/ y'all want me...
...dead.

by Darcie Gudger
Who probably makes more sense than that dude in New Jersey.

Yeah.

I'm not dead!

I'm just trying to get my novel manuscript wrapped up. Figures the characters would do things I never expected making things more complicated! It's like they are alive! That's a good thing from an author's standpoint... It doen't mean I'm schitzophrenic.

I haven't forgotten about the Oprah thing. Need to do a little research on Existentialism and Nihilism first.

Booger's MRI was normal (yeah!). The Neuro gave him a diagnosis of mild Cerebal Palsey. The good news is that CP is what it is and won't get worse. Kyle's is mild, and with continuing physical therapy, his muscle weakness won't be noticeable to the untrained eye. As for the sensory stuff? Still a mystery.

To be investigated someday in the distant future.

Me?

Not one, not two, but THREE surgeries loom over me. The knee surgery (torn meniscus) is in June. Found out I have a ganglial cyst in my right palm which if can't be drained, has to be surgically removed. AND since so many folks are getting LASIKed, contact companies are narrowing their prescriptions. High powers like mine are being abandoned so contacts may not be available to me in a few years. My eye doc referred me to investigate lens implants. What they do for people w/ cataracts, but I'd get a corrective lens. Hey, I may see 20/20 yet this side of Heaven. Who knows?