Julie Morrill

One of my favorite parts of researching Kita's Courage, my historical novel set in Fort Jones, California, in 1898, is discovering the everyday details that help bring the past to life. Food is one of those details. In my story, Kita's mother owns a bakery and café in Fort Jones. She is a Swiss-German immigrant who brings recipes and baking traditions from her homeland to California. But her bakery isn't just a place where she makes the foods she grew up with. She also enjoys trying recipes...

One of my favorite parts of researching Kita's Courage, my historical novel set in Fort Jones, California, in 1898, is discovering what music people listened to—and what they might have heard drifting through the windows of a home, church, dance hall, or saloon. I've been looking into the music of the 1890s: popular hymns, love songs, sentimental ballads, dance music, and lively ragtime tunes. I'm not sure all my discoveries will end up within the pages of one of my books, but I'm curious...

Five years ago, I gave away my beloved upright piano. I had played it for years, but we were preparing to move, and I wasn't playing it as often anymore. Rather than move it with us, I advertised it for free to anyone willing to pick it up. I was away when a couple came to get it, and I remember feeling a little sad when it was gone. After we moved, I bought a keyboard and began playing again. Over time, though, I played less and less. I didn't know then that God was quietly writing another...