Friendly Friday on Thursday - Stephanie Humphreys

Stephanie Humphreys was born in Utah, to an American mother and Canadian father. The family moved often when she was young and by the time she celebrated her thirtieth birthday, she had moved thirty times. All those different locations gave her ample opportunity to observe people and discover interesting characters for her stories. At an early age, Stephanie discovered the joy of the written word. The oldest of six children she had many opportunities to practise her storytelling skills on her siblings. She filled notebooks with poetry and her brothers, sisters, and the neighborhood kids all took turns participating in plays she wrote. But her biggest dream was to be a novelist.
She and her husband Rick have a combined family of six children. She still stays involved with the theatre by serving on her community’s cultural arts board, and she supports literacy by serving on the public library board. She has always used books to escape the pressures of life, explore far-away places, and learn new things. When she isn't writing she loves to spend time with her family, sew, embroidery and read. Stephanie lives in Alberta, Canada.

Stephanie wrote:

With the release of my first book this past August, I thought I would sit down, dash out the next book and I'd be on my way. The next book is coming along, but not as quickly as I had first hoped. There are so many other things in a day that have to be dealt with, I never seem to have enough time. Everyone I talk to complains of the same thing. It got me thinking about writing in all aspects of my life. I used to be a prolific journal keeper, I filled pages and pages with poetry, and I had notebooks jam packed with stories. I also would send out at least five letters a week. Of course, in those days we didn't have email, and long distance phone calls were expensive and best made after 8:00 p.m.

 

Yesterday at work, one of my co-workers said she had to get her Christmas cards in the mail. She said she used to mail over sixty, but now just sends out a handful. I also used to send out dozens of Christmas cards, but every year I send out fewer. Last year we only received one card in the mail.

 

Writing letters was a great way to communicate. The best part of writing letters was getting another one in return. I remember reading letters from my grandmother and being transported into her home as she shared some of the things that she had been accomplishing When a letter arrived, it always made me feel special, like I was worth a little of someone's valuable time. Over the years my own letter writing has dwindled to nothing and I can count on one hand the number of personal letters and Christmas cards I receive in a year.

The ease-of-use and popularity of the internet has almost made a good old-fashioned letter obsolete. Most people I know just write a quick email if they want to communicate something, or even better (or worse), they just say it on Facebook or Twitter. I remember when we used to receive so many Christmas cards there wasn't room to display them all. We loved looking at the beautiful pictures and reading the personal notes or family letters that were enclosed. It helped us feel connected to people we didn't get to see very often.Now we are lucky if we get one or two. I think we have lost something because of this. A handwritten note or letter is so much more personal than a few words on Facebook. It shows some thought and consideration on the part of the letter writer. It helps the recipient feel important. I challenge you to take a few minutes and write a letter or Christmas card this year. Use some nice stationary, write something  meaningful. I have a few to write myself.

Stephanie is my guest today instead of on Friday because I've posted a review on her book tomorrow. Please come back and read more about Stephanie and check out my review.  See you there!!