Kelly Irvin
Strong Women. Powerful Stories.
Recently I’ve been bothered by posts on social media by people I respect that have disparaged the songwriting abilities of certain Christian artists. “Listen to other Christian artists besides X and Y,” others have posted. These posts left a bad taste in my mouth, and I’ve been trying to figure out why. It’s no different …
On Election night I went to bed without having watched any of the coverage. It seemed like a good strategy, given that I have steroid-induced insomnia on chemo days as it is. As I write this I still don’t know who won. But the things I do know are brighter, clearer, and more hopeful than …
Sometimes life lessons take time to learn. We often have to learn them the hard way. My favorite oncology medical assistant for the past five years had to leave because her husband is in the military and he’s been transferred. She was a sweet, extraordinarily kind, knowledgeable health care professional who jumped through hoops to …
Much joy rang out in Whoville recently when churches were able to open their doors again for services in sanctuaries. Music rang out again. Hallelujah! Like many churches, prior to the pandemic, mine had adapted a two-pronged approach to style of worship—contemporary and traditional—to accommodate the different tastes of our congregation. Strong feelings abounded on …
To say it’s been a difficult, troubling season for all of us would be an understatement. More than 100,000 loved ones dead in the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States alone and many more affected in a multitude of ways. Sheltering at home. Businesses closed. Schools closed. Church buildings closed. Jobs lost. The world has …
One of the many blessings of being a writer is how much I learn when I write books. How I’m stretched as a person. How much I learn about myself and what I believe as a Christian. I know what you’re thinking. Kelly, you write Amish romances and romantic suspense. Fluffy stuff. And it’s true, …
As usual, time sprang a new year on us right after Christmas. I knew it was coming, but I was so busy writing in 2019, I couldn’t really give 2020 much thought. Today, I’m forcing myself to take a short breather to assess what I accomplished last year and what this crazy writer’s life might …
Recently while perusing Facebook—procrastinating instead of writing—I came across a reader’s query regarding Amish fiction. How realistic is it, she asked? Does it accurately reflect how the Amish really live? It’s a great question and one I’m sure many readers ask themselves. It’s also one I’ve longed to answer for myself as the author of …
I arrived at church recently to find a shiny new addition nestled near the stairs that lead from the sanctuary building to the education building. Since I started using a walker ninety percent of the time, I rarely look that direction because I can’t navigate the steps necessary to access the breezeway that leads to …
Some people like me who grew up going to church tend to think of Sunday school as something we did as kids. I have vivid memories of walking to church with my four brothers and sisters every Sunday. We’d stop and pick up the newspaper at the Arcade on our way home and buy some …
One of the aspects of doing research for my novels that I really love is finding a story line that hasn’t occurred to me. That’s exactly what happened when I went to Montana last summer to research my Amish of Sky Country series. I intended to write three books, each about a different Amish friend …
One of the most challenging parts of being a novelist is writing authentically and with detail on topics about which I know nothing. It’s like being a newspaper reporter again. Which means doing my research. Readers rightly expect writers to create a fictional world based on accurate details. So I do my best and learn …
Recently, my Christian fiction writing group had a discussion, trying to decide if we should have a session to discuss the pros and cons of using social media as a platform for what we believe as Christians. When important social issues are discussed, should we sit on the fence, remain silent, or attempt to influence …
I can’t count the number of times over the past year I’ve heard someone start a sentence with “the younger generation today” or “today’s kids” followed by something negative. They don’t want to work. They’re lazy. They have short attention spans. They’re all about immediate gratification. Each time it’s so jarring, it feels like a …
As the year winds down, it’s naturally a time of retrospection. At the beginning of the year I chose as “my” word reconciliation. I vowed to reconcile myself to my limited mobility and the changes in my body caused by chronic illness. With only a few weeks left in 2018, I decided to see how …
If I recorded my prayer conversations with God, they would sound something like this: Hey God, how’s it going? Yeah, I know. I forgot our appointment yesterday. Go ahead and put it on my tab. I’ll pay up one of these days. It’s already paid for? Cool. Thanks. I’m fine. Of course, you know that’s …
In 1998, my son Nicholas attended the second grade. He loved playing Olly Olly Oxen Free with a posse of neighborhood kids. Our daughter Erin was in third grade. She and the little girl who lived next door, Morgan Cotter, were best friends. She wore only dresses and climbed over the back fence to play …
As we celebrate this thanksgiving season, I look back on this year and find that I have so much for which to be thankful, I’m not even sure where to begin. The last few years have been difficult, but the blessings have been many. I practice giving thanks every day, all year long. It’s a …
I’ve never been one to choose a word for the year. I love words so picking one would be a huge chore. Recently, however, I had an epiphany during a Sunday school class discussion of the word “reconciliation.” This is my word. Not only for 2018 but for my life. I need reconciliation. I need …
Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas season and a blessed new year celebration. 2018 promises to be a busy year for everyone, but readers always make time for their favorite activity—reading. That’s why I’m excited to share with you my great news. I’ll have two new books release in 2018, as …
For such a small, insubstantial piece of plastic, the little lamb sure packed an emotional wallop just a few days into this year’s Christmas season. Tim was digging around under the couch trying to find one of our cats’ toys, when he came up with a plastic lamb instead. The lamb made me teary-eyed. Fortunately, …
My dual journey with two challenging medical diagnoses took a new turn recently when I traveled for the first time using my walker, affectionately known as “the Cadillac.” My destination was a writers’ conference, but I learned just as much about myself and the challenges of having a disability. Understand that it took me two …
“One church. One faith. One Lord. Not Baptist, not Methodist, not Adventist. Just Christians. No denominations. No hierarchies. No traditions. Just Christ.” Max Lucado’s devotional for August 17 in Grace for the Moment poses this question. Would this be impossible to achieve? One church in Christ with no denomination. Instead of groups of two thousand …
The latest pea under my mattress is self-help books on how to pray. I recently saw an advertisement for a book on how to pray “authentically.” Prayer can be hard for many of us, and I worry about putting more pressure on folks to “do it right.” The fact is we already have the book …
