About Valorie

Words have intrigued me since I was quite young. I was blessed to have parents who encouraged me to love a good story, especially my father who read books aloud to my brothers and me in the evenings at bedtime. We were enthralled as he worked his way through stories both classic and cute, old and new.

As a middle-school student, I recall getting my first library card for the Argie Cooper Public Library in Shelbyville, Tennessee. What a thrill to lay that stack of books on the desk and watch the librarian punch those cream-colored cards with the return date. It was there in that stately building adorned with oil paintings and Victorian-esque chairs that I came to love the smell of old books – pages worn with age but vibrant still with adventure. To this day, I enjoy browsing shelves in the library, but nothing will ever quite equal those childhood days when books became a beloved pastime.

I began writing at a young age with such masterpieces as “The Adventures of Munster Mouse” and “Ode to a Worm” to my credit. It was in high school though, that I learned I could put words together to impact someone else’s thoughts. My English teacher, Mrs. Charlotte Hawkins, encouraged me to enter an essay competition. I chose one of the suggested topics, wrote the paper, and placed in the top three. And I found I loved persuasive speech. From then on, I entered the competition every year, enjoying the feel of words as I sifted through them to find the right way to phrase my composition.

In college, I loved the literature segment of Freshman English – Dr. Marcia Davis opened up the vistas of symbolism in the study of The Scarlet Letter. I can still recall my anticipation of those classes. For another class assignment, I submitted a character piece featuring my mother and was honored to be published in the college magazine. During the rest of my college days, I wrote – for classes mostly, and a few pieces on topics that interested me.

And then, I married my sweetheart, graduated college, began ministry alongside my husband, and was blessed with four amazing children. It was while I was expecting my second child that I became interested in writing again and, along with another writer friend, started producing a small newsletter-type publication for Christian women called The Ladies Companion which enjoyed a small circulation of devoted readers for around 25 years.

In 2008, my husband encouraged me to attend a writer’s conference in Indianapolis. God used that event to open further writing opportunities for me in the areas of women’s study books. I especially enjoy addressing topics which help women understand God’s design of femininity, His magnificent creation of the genders and the way they’re meant to complement each other.

Since I love a good story with a generous amount of adventure and romance thrown in, I enjoy writing fiction and recently self-published my first novel, The Eagle and the Star. I am currently working on the sequel. I also really like the short story format and have written many of those which I plan to compile into an anthology.

I couldn’t do what I do without my family – their love, encouragement, and ideas inspire me. My life right now is packed with life’s routines – ministry life with my husband, spending time with my now-grown children and their wonderful spouses and our amazing grandchildren and taking on as many writing projects as my schedule and creative brain can manage. When I have down time, I have a short list of things I like to do: trying a new breakfast place with my husband, shopping with my daughters, scoring finds at thrift/resale shops, browsing books on history and discovering vintage post cards, and invariably visiting a coffee shop for a flat white made with heavy cream. These are the happy things, friends.