Cerella Sechrist's Blog

TESSA’S GIFT, the final Findlay Roads Story

Fri, 22 Mar 2019 04:00:23 -0700

They say all good things must come to an end. And I knew, when I first started my Findlay Roads Story series with the story of Harper Worth and her romance with Irish restaurateur, Connor Callahan, in ,that the series would end with Harper’s sister, Tessa, and how she found love with a broken doctor in need of his own healing.

In celebration of my newest release, I was interviewed about my inspirations behind this final Findlay Roads Story. Out of all the journeys...

posted by Cerella Sechrist on March, 22

Behind the Story: The Way Back to Erin

Sat, 10 Mar 2018 06:00:27 -0800

I’ve been celebrating the release of , my third novel in A Findlay Roads Story ��,��Ի�� some of my inspirations and challenges in the creation of the stories. While each has some difficult, true-to-life element at their core, The Way Back to Erin carried a lingering weight given all the grief shared by the two main characters, Burke and Erin.

I didn’t expect this third book to be quite as challenging, on an emotional level, as

posted by Cerella Sechrist on March, 23

Please, judge my book’s cover!

Sat, 03 Mar 2018 08:00:26 -0800

They say not to judge a book by its cover, but I’d love for you to do just that in the Cover of the Month contest on AllAuthor.com. has been nominated for the March contest, but only the top book covers will move on to Round Two. Please vote by Tuesday, March 6, at

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posted by Cerella Sechrist on July, 31

Ode to a Lighthouse

Sat, 24 Feb 2018 00:00:13 -0800

Concord Point Lighthouse in Havre de Grace, Maryland | photo by Cerella Sechrist

may be the third book in my Findlay Roads Story series, but it was actually the first story I envisioned for the series.

I had a very clear vision of the opening scene: a groom, left standing in the rain, after his fiancée failed to appear, and a single mother taking pity on him and offering him a temporary place to stay at her bed and breakfast. That story eventually became Erin’s, a charact...

posted by Cerella Sechrist on July, 04

Finding Faith in the Dark [one word: faith]

Thu, 31 Aug 2017 14:15:06 -0700

One of my favorite blog series, both on my last blog and on others, has always been “one word�� posts. My friend, , introduced me to these several years ago. Jules first borrowed the idea from craft and creative entrepreneur, . Jules and I have made a practice of choosing “one word�� as our focus and mantra each year, but additionally, we’ve both blogged about particular words and the meaning and power behind them. Ever since I conceived the idea of this blog, I’ve been excited...

posted by Cerella Sechrist on July, 02

The Golden Years of a Love Story

Sun, 06 Aug 2017 17:30:10 -0700

August is a good month for romance.

For one thing, it’s National Romance Awareness month, which Loree Lough and I will be talking about more this Friday on the blog. Plus, today is my grandparents�� 68th wedding anniversary, which is pretty romantic, to my way of thinking.

My grandparents, Orville and Irene, met when my grandma was fifteen, and Grandpa was twenty-one. Though there is only six years�� difference between them, Grandma kept her age a secret, fearing Gramps...

posted by Cerella Sechrist on February, 23

Finding Positives in the Midst of Negativity

Mon, 17 Jul 2017 11:13:10 -0700

There’s a lot of negativity in the world. I don’t need to tell you this. You don’t even need to walk out your front door to be assaulted by pessimistic views on the economy to health scares and every little thing in between.

I struggle with confronting negativity as much as anyone else. Which is why one of my earliest pins to was a quote: “The words you speak become the house you live in.�� In fact, this pin is still the cover of one of my quotes boards on

Why does this sa...

posted by Cerella Sechrist on September, 23

My 3 Favorite Things About Being a Barista

Sun, 09 Jul 2017 15:04:10 -0700

For over six years, I’ve worked as a part-time barista for Starbucks, juggling a crazy schedule that includes writing, working another job in my family’s construction business, and, more recently, attending college online as part of the Starbucks College Achievement Plan. Despite the hectic pace, I have loved my time as a barista, and over the years, I’ve come to really appreciate certain aspects of it.

At the end of this month, I’m leaving my role in the Starbucks stores for a different job...

posted by Cerella Sechrist on July, 10

A Story Life: An Introduction

Sat, 01 Jul 2017 12:01:08 -0700

Stories matter.

This is my life’s refrain. From the time I was a child, I recognized the power behind a well-told story. I decided to become a writer at the age of ten, when I watched a movie where the main character was a novelist. It was at that moment I realized all stories begin with an author, and I knew I wanted to focus my life on stories, both real and imagined. But additionally, even at that young age, I recognized the value behind such narratives.

The thing I am most passionate abo...

posted by Cerella Sechrist on March, 12