A Season for Grace Countdown Week Post #5

 

Some of My Favorite Mug Shots

by Beth Collins

        Stacy's books, sign, and Rosie the Riveter mug

My last two posts focused on sentimental objects that appear in my sister Stacy’s Briar Creek Love books. Continuing that theme, I want to talk about the role the title character’s mugs play in A Season for Grace. 

Stacy’s friends and readers know she was a coffee lover who was “Fueled by Faith and Caffeine.” Her writing desk was covered with inspirational signs and coasters heralding the hot beverage's inspirational benefits. Several of these treasured items now grace my writing space. 

I brought some of Stacy’s favorite mugs back from Texas after I helped her family go through her things. As I struggled (and believe me, it was a struggle) to finish writing A Season for Grace, I drank mass quantities of coffee from my sweet sister’s mugs. It made me feel closer to Stacy as I sought to find her voice and script prose worthy of her name.

        Three of Stacy’s mugs 

My most-treasured mug from her collection is a souvenir from Phantom of the Opera. Going to musicals was one of our favorite experiences, and we saw Phantom together in December 2014. Our relationship with this tortured masked man (some would say menace) was long and fulfilling. 

If you haven’t seen the show, I highly suggest you do! Fans of romance will swoon when the Phantom whisks Christine to his lair in a gondola surrounded by swirling mist and rising candelabras. While Phantom isn’t a traditional romance (and the ending is less than happy for the Opera Ghost), its Music of the Night will take you Past the Point of No Return. (If you can’t make it to the theater, Gerard Butler’s film version will do quite nicely.) 

Stacy’s Rosie the Riveter mug also holds a special place in my heart. She purchased it from the World War II Museum gift shop during our July 2022 trip to New Orleans. Stacy wanted to visit the museum because she planned to write a novel set during the WWII era. We had a great time viewing the exhibits (and Stacy even struck her own Rosie the Riveter pose)!

        Stacy at the WWII Museum 

Stacy’s Lawler Elementary mug also graces my kitchen cabinet. Working as a special education paraprofessional filled her with joy, and she was beloved by her students and fellow teachers. Looking at her Lawler mug reminds me of Stacy’s kind and generous nature and the impact she had on so many young lives. 

Fledgling author Grace also finds comfort in caffeine, and Stacy’s draft highlighted several of her protagonist’s favorite mugs. As I continued writing A Season for Grace, I followed my sister’s lead (and added a special mug in her honor). If you want to know what it says, order a copy of the book today!

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You can still buy the ebook version of A Season for Grace for the preorder price of $2.99. Be sure to claim your preorder gift by filling out the form on the publisher’s website. Just have your Amazon order number handy. If you prefer the paperback version, it will be available on August 20th.