Nan Rinella
A Hobbit in Narnia
What?
If you’re a J. R. R. Tolkien & C. S. Lewis fan, you get the gist. A Hobbit is a small down-to-earth being, like Bilbo Baggins, who loves his creature comforts. Once upon a time, in The Hobbit, a wizard knocked on Bilbo’s door inviting him on an adventure, way out of his comfort zone, often in the company of exceptional men and elves— elegant other-worldly intellectual beings. Then Bilbo returned to write his book.
Once upon a time (2004 to be exact), Nan, a petite down-to-earth journalist, ventured into “The Fantastic Worlds of C. S. Lewis & J. R. R. Tolkien” (a C. S. Lewis Foundation, CSLF, event). After reading the academic tomes of some of those speakers, she went forth in fear and trembling.
During that retreat, Nan found her own personal Narnia (a world inhabited with academic scholars—you know, the elves). It became her home-away-from-home. With her indomitable spirit, before long she began directing the CSLF Texas retreats. Soon, she introduced a writer’s track.
The quintessential late bloomer, Nan became a journalist and a Washington D.C. intern at age 50. During the next decade, she began speaking, directed a local writers conference, and after 9/11 wrote her first nonfiction book: Smart Steps for Safe Travel.
Though she enjoyed journalism, Nan always had a burgeoning desire to write fiction. An author in search of an idea—a concept with significance, substance, and staying power—inspiration struck in 2004 while reading The Last Battle, the final volume of The Chronicles of Narnia.
In that book, Lewis mirrored the 8 October, 1952, London train crash that took the lives of his characters and ushered them into Aslan’s Country—all except for Susan Pevensie. But what happened to her? Readers still don’t know.
The plight of a young English woman losing her family in that tragic railway accident ignited Nan’s imagination. Consumed by the question, “What would happen to a girl who lost those she loved in such a tragic manner?” THE CHOICE Series was born. Smitten with developing her own characters, Nan entered their world and the rest is, shall we say, history.
The quintessential late bloomer, I began a second career going back to college to be a journalist and was a Washington D.C. intern at age 50. During the next decade I began speaking, directed our local writers conference, and after 9/11 wrote my first nonfiction book: Smart Steps for Safe Travel.
Though I enjoyed journalism, always in the back of my mind was a burgeoning desire to write fiction. An author in search of an idea—a concept with significance, substance, and staying power—inspiration struck in 2004. While reading The Last Battle, the final volume of The Chronicles of Narnia, the idea of a young English woman losing her family in a tragic railway accident ignited my imagination. What would happen to her? The idea for The Choice series was born.
Nan is:
- a child of the Father, a follower of Jesus, and a temple of the Holy Spirit
- a wife to her Prince Charming of fifty-three years. Joe is retired from the USAF, and they live in Texas with three cantankerous cats.
- a mother by the miracle and grace of God to a son who took longer to raise but was easier than giving birth to a book—but, oh how rewarding both endeavors.
- a mother-in-law to a lovely, intelligent, talented daughter-in-love.
- a nana to a darling granddaughter.
- a Sanguine /Choleric personality
- wowed by her signature color, turquoise.
- the regional representative for the C. S. Lewis Foundation in Texas.
- a writer and speaker on writing, personalities, networking, inspirational subjects, and C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien.
- a graduate of Bible Study Fellowship, Christian Leaders, Authors & Speakers Services Seminar, and Personality Training Workshop.
She was:
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- born Nancy Gene Dublin in Hollywood, California
- raised in Arizona, but also lived in Chicago, Seattle, Honolulu, Los Angeles, and Amarillo
- a flight attendant for twenty years, including Military Airlift Command crew member, inflight coordinator for seven years.
- for a decade, an editor of newsletters.
- on the board of Panhandle Professional Writers—now Texas High Plains Writers—for twelve years, serving as program chair, publicity chair, and president. She also served as the director of Frontiers in Writing, their annual conference.
- 1995 Senior Fellow at the National Journalism Center and intern for Human Events in Washington D.C.
- a student at the University of Colorado, UCLA, Amarillo College, and West Texas A & M.
- published in the Amarillo Globe-News, Canyon News, Amarillo Observer, Accent West, and Focus on the Family Magazine, Human Events, and Consumer Resource, with over 200 articles in print. Contributor to Daily Devotions for Writers.
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- Program chair, publicity chair, president
- Director of Frontiers in Writing, our annual conference
- 1995 Senior Fellow at the National Journalism Center and intern for Human Events in Washington D.C
- Student at the University of Colorado, UCLA, Amarillo College, and West Texas A&M
- Published in the Amarillo Globe-News, Canyon News, Amarillo Observer, Accent West, and Focus on the Family Magazine, Human Events, andConsumer Resource, with over 200 articles in print. Contributor to Daily Devotions for Writers.
- Graduate of Bible Study Fellowship, Christian Leaders, Authors & Speakers Services Seminar, and Personality Training Workshop
Meet Patti Townley-Covert
Somewhere in time, many years ago, Patti stood on the bridge of Royal Caribbean’s Nordic Prince with the Chief Officer Senior and felt like she’d come home. A year later, she watched him perform a rescue at sea, and in some ways, he rescued her, too. But it was on the third cruise, where she met a Norwegian navigator, who sailed his way into her heart.
Determined to tell their story, Patti dismissed the voices of Fear and Insecurity and started attending writer’s conferences, one after another. Learning powerful techniques led to award-winning writing. Her devotions began appearing in books alongside her heroes: Edith Schaeffer, Elisabeth Elliott, and Corrie ten Boom.
It took over three decades and four drafts before her book The Windblown Girl: A Memoir about Self, Sexuality, and Social Issues became available on Amazon. She wrote it with the intent of replacing cultural lies with biblical truth to help readers stand strong when life’s fierce winds blow.
Prior to her book’s release in 2021, she wrote magazine articles for “Focus on the Family,” Billy Graham’s “Decision” magazine, “Life Beautiful” and many others. Twice, she’s won first place for freelancers in the Evangelical Press Association’s Higher Grounds Awards. For almost a decade, she had developed editing and leadership skills while giving oversight to the Communications Department at Reasons To Believe. While there, she gave oversight to the award-winning “Facts for Faith” magazine and performed developmental edits on numerous books by an astronomer, a biochemist, and a philosopher/theologian.
Now, she helps Nan turn the books of THE CHOICE Series into page turners, refining the writing and putting her project management and promotion skills to use. She also writes the free monthly e-newsletter about the voices that influence our choices. You can find out more about Patti and see some of her fun pics at ptcovert.com
Meet Andrei and Paul Trif
Once upon a time, there were twin brothers, Andrei and Paul. They had a talent for drawing so they spent their childhood doodling and sketching. As they grew older, their passion for art intensified. Deciding to pursue their dreams, they attended an art high school and later, a prestigious art college.
Throughout their studies, Andrei and Paul honed their skills and experimented with different art forms. They discovered a shared love for creating book covers that capture the essence of the stories within. Inspired by their mutual passion, the brothers started their own company.
TrifBookDesign quickly gained recognition for their unique and captivating book covers. Their designs are a perfect blend of creativity, imagination, and storytelling. Authors from all over the world seek Andrei and Paul’s expertise to bring their stories to life visually.
Working tirelessly, the twins pour their hearts into each project, ensuring that every book cover that they create is a work of art. Their dedication and talent make TrifbookDesign a go-to destination for authors and publishers alike.
With their combined skills and unwavering passion, the brothers have turned their childhood love for drawing into a successful career. With talent, hard work, and a little bit of magic from above (like Nan Rinella’s THE CHOICE Series), dreams can become reality. To be continued . . .