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The Journey

The Journey General Grace & Grit Writing Craft

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I’ve been working on my manuscript since September 2013, when I sat down with…

Lia January 26, 2021
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I Don’t Want to Die Before I Do This

I dared to dream. You may have seen my posts on Facebook about my…

Lia July 7, 2019
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Recent Posts

  • Resistance is the Medicine. Flow is the Cure.

    • January 30, 2026

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    • September 26, 2024

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liakcook

📖 Fiction Writer
❤️ Grace & Grit Blog
Wife | Mom ❤️❤️❤️🐾| 🚜 Farmhouse life
Do you know something? #shitisabouttogetreal #dee Do you know something? #shitisabouttogetreal #deepdive2026 #the_shit_about_writing
Present with peace … I love to get up before the Present with peace … I love to get up before the sun and dive into my devotionals in the quiet stillness of the early morning. It’s an intention I’m really focusing on making a practice this year. I have about 10-15 devotionals. I don’t read all of them everyday, but EVERY day I do feel like the divine is speaking to me through them. This morning, that small still voice came through @everydayspirit1 EVERY DAY SPIRIT: A DAYBOOK OF WISDOM, JOY AND PEACE. Today’s devotional was about being present with peace, not regrets of the past or worries of the future but the peace that lives in this very moment. It made me think of the monks the other day. How we were all waiting and waiting, and watching the live app wondering why it was taking so long for them to arrive from what the app was showing. At one point one couple went running to their car. They heard the monks turned off on another street. Another lady received a call from someone further up the road telling her the monks stopped for a bathroom break. Still another heard the monks were stopping and praying with people. Then the police cars came over the hill where we were standing. They stopped at the crest of the hill. We all knew the monks were close. Peace settled over the crowd. The monks walked by in silence. It was over just like that. We waited almost two hours. The monks passed by—full of peace, full of presence—in less than a few minutes. Present with peace. That is my intention for more than just a few minutes today. #presence #peace #graceandgritblog #mindset
What an honor and blessing to witness these smiles What an honor and blessing to witness these smiles, this mission, these hearts. May we all shine our light just as brightly. #walkforpeace #peace #love #bethelight✨
New year. New standards. I’m setting a new stand New year. New standards. I’m setting a new standard this year and focusing my time and energy on people, places, and spaces that bring me More Joy ✨ More Peace ✌️ More Presence 👁️👂 Divine Flow ✨ More Awe 💫 Opportunities for Deeper Self-Awareness ❤️ I’m spending less time with guilt and doubt, unless these emotions are pointing me back to my standards. I’m no longer tolerating shame, judgement, and overthinking which spiral me away from the experiences I want. These new standards are a daily practice of noticing when I FEEL aligned and when I’ve returned to old habits that keep me miles away from the life I want to be living. What new standards are you setting this year? #selfawareness #selflove❤️ #graceandgritblog #mindset #mindfulness
That’s a wrap!! What a year 2025 has been. A year That’s a wrap!! What a year 2025 has been. A year full of experiences and memories I will cherish. A year of hardship and trials that tested my faith and tried to wipe out all hope. And still here I am on the threshold of a new year ready to make it the best one yet. Happy New Year, my friend! May this new year bring joy, abundance, expansion, and awe. Let’s never stop striving to create a magical & meaningful life. ♥️ #happynewyear #2025 #thatsawrap #memories #graceandgritblog
This is 53! To celebrate our birthdays, Dwayne pl This is 53! To celebrate our birthdays, Dwayne planned a special birthday trip to Vegas so we could experience The Wizard of Oz at The Sphere. The Sphere is an experience inside & out, with the changing colors and pictures on the outside, and special effects like vibrating seats, wind, and falling apples during the show on the inside. It was definitely a highlight of our trip. We also rented a car and visited The Valley of Fire to see God’s wonders up close and personal. We hiked over six miles (almost died), and said “look at that” and “wow” at least a hundred times. And of course we took in all the sights and entertainment in Vegas. That was an experience! #myguy #memories #vegas #thespherelasvegas #valleyoffirestatepark
I am grateful for these smiling faces who entertai I am grateful for these smiling faces who entertain my crazy onesie ideas in the name of a FUN holiday card. May this holiday season be filled with FUN & JOY! 📸credits: @aydenrook_ #thanksgiving2026 #christmas #joy #familytime❤️ #myheartbeats
My bonus mom was laid to rest yesterday. I met her My bonus mom was laid to rest yesterday. I met her when I was five, through my forever friend, her oldest daughter, Christy. Her husband gave everyone the opportunity at the service to share a memory, a story, whatever was on their heart. Words of love flowed about her hugs, her cooking, her green thumb, her love of snow, & The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. A common theme resounded about the mom she was and the unconditional love and grace she gave to all she met. Birthdays and holidays were important to Kay and she always made them special - another repeated message yesterday. She’s sent me a card or texted me happy birthday every year, even though time and life kept our in-person encounters too few and too far between. I went searching for one text in particular. It’s from 2020 where she mentions why she called me “daughter of my heart.” In the text it says: born to others but loved deeply by me as their heart mother. Kay was a heart mother to so many. We blew bubbles for her before the casket was loaded into the hearse. It felt so fitting for a woman so easygoing and full of love and light. We will carry her love in our heart. ❤️ #bonusmom #grace #mommaslove #alegacytofollow
Today, October 10th, is World Mental Health Day. A Today, October 10th, is World Mental Health Day. A day to educate and spread awareness around the stigma of mental health. There is a strong link between mental health challenges and substance use, as many people with mental illness turn to substances to cope, and substance use can trigger or worsen mental health disorders. Addiction is a mental health issue near and dear to my heart. Addiction is a disease that is met with shame, not casseroles and cards full of empathy and compassion. Unfortunately, the stigma surrounding addiction is real. No, the disease is not pretty, but the people and the families battling it are real and they deserve love and hope and healing. Addiction is a diagnosable disease that can be managed. Individuals battling this disease, along with their loved ones, need connection, not shame and isolation. They need a framework for self-reflection, accountability, and support. Hope and community are available. No one needs to battle this disease alone. Words hold power! Sharing our battles helps someone else find the courage and strength in their own personal battle. A smile, a cup of coffee, a hug, a kind listening ear works wonders too. Love - not shame - is where we come together and start to take on this disease and mental health. #mentalhealth #addiction #recovery #loveistheanswer #wedorecover💜
I’ve been married to this guy for 33 years, and bo I’ve been married to this guy for 33 years, and boy what a life we’ve made! From kiddos, endless home renovations, a business, grand adventures, and all the various highs and lows a life brings we keep sticking together. 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨 Relationships are never easy. They take lots of work and effort. Lots of I’m sorry and I was an a**. Lord knows we have put in the work and effort and apologies to make this the best life it can be. I’m forever grateful that we keep showing up to figure it out together. He is still the one for me and I’m excited to see what new adventures we’ll map out together over our next 33 years. #theone #anniversay #myguy #ourlife
I love a book that challenges my perspective and m I love a book that challenges my perspective and my beliefs, and this book did just that. I’ve heard several respected teachers and coaches talk about Mary Magdalene and her spiritual power to guide them in their present-day life. My jam is finding awe and magic in the mundane, synchronicities and unexplainable events in the day-to-day, events that point to the possibility there is something more than we are seeing. Not ghosts, mind you. Though I love a good ghost story told by someone else!  I heard Meggan on a podcast talking about her latest release THE GIRL WHO BAPTISED HERSELF and was fascinated by the discussion of Mary Magdalene and Christianity, especially the history of the Bible and who decided which texts were included, the lost gospel of Mary Magdalene, and Mary Magdalene’s relationship with Christ (which was different than what I had been taught and believed).  Meggan’s book reads as a memoir, filled with synchronicities on her spiritual journey to the heart of Mary Magdalene and herself, while also discussing the gospel of Mary Magalene. So many of my beliefs were challenged, even debunked within this book. I called my mom (a Lutheran Church Secretary for 54 years), my girlfriend who knows her Bible, and my Pastor to discuss all my questions: Did Jesus have a relationship with Mary? Why was her gospel left out of the original canon? Did you know several gospels have been found that were omitted? You mean to tell me there is a whole list of feminist theology that is overlooked and not discussed? Their answers pointed me to a historical system that I’ve lived in blissful ignorance to, but now I’m eager to learn more about the woman Jesus kissed on the mouth, the woman who anointed Jesus’ feet, the woman Jesus came to first, the woman whose gospel speaks of the kind of grace and love I can get behind. I highly recommend this book!  What do you know about the Gospel of Mary Magdalene? Please tell me all the things.  #graceandgritblog #marymagdalene #thoughtprovoking #newpossibilities #whatareyoureading
What do you desire? Peace, deep conversations, co What do you desire? Peace, deep conversations, connection, confidence, compassion, love, rest, laughter, to scream, to cry … What do you desire? From what we eat and drink. To how we move our bodies. To the words and opinions we let fill our ears, our minds, and our hearts. To who we hang around. To how often we say no. To how often we say yes. Your desires are your guide - an invitation to a choice. A choice about how you spend your days, weeks, months, years. A choice about how you live this one life. What do you desire? #selfawareness #yourneedsmatter #selfcarematters #gritandgrace #graceandgritblog
I had my first Akashic reading last fall. One of t I had my first Akashic reading last fall. One of the things that came up was my relationship with comfort and control, and boy was it a wake-up call. I didn’t realize how much of an attachment I had to comfort and control and how that dynamic was showing up in my relationships. I didn’t realize how my perceived control was bringing me comfort. I’ve been working on surrendering and releasing, trusting and allowing, and even accepting what is mine to change and what isn’t. This is big work for a fixer like me. Awareness was the beginning of an unraveling and untangling process. It’s a process of discerning when I’m doing too much, when I’m robbing someone of their experience because my discomfort is getting in the way of allowing life and choice to mold and shape someone. We all need our own autonomy. Everyone is on their own journey and they need to be able to do things their way and in their own time to learn and grow. What is your relationship with control and comfort? Did you even realize how comfort and control worked together or is this new to you like it was me? #selfawareness #selfgrowth #mindset #growth
I started a prayer journal years ago. I found it t I started a prayer journal years ago. I found it the other day before driving to Raleigh for a writing group gathering. This little pocket-size journal was tucked away in a drawer with all my other pretty half-filled journals. Prayer journaling was a practice I was trying out in that journal after reading Priscilla Shirer’s FERVENT, where she mentions her grandmother writing down prayers for her, which led to her own process of writing down prayers, dating them, and then confidently waiting for those prayers to come true. It was a form of manifestation that intrigued me, a way to seek out awe, and it worked!! Years later now, there were BIG prayers for my kids and family and myself in that little forgotten journal that have come true and needed revisiting... dating and marking as received. I needed to see, or maybe just be reminded that the rough patches in life work out eventually. Maybe finding that journal was a divine nudge to get back to prayer journaling - faithfully manifesting a beautiful life. Journaling is a self-reflective practice that has numerous health benefits, like reducing stress and anxiety, regulating mood and emotions, and journaling has even been found to boost our immune system. Journaling is my go-to in my writing practice for working out characters and plot. I have a whole stack of spiral bound notebooks that have served as journals for that. In this moment, I am grateful for where I am in my life, but life does life HARD sometimes. This phrase of “life has been lifing” is a phrase I’ve been hearing a lot lately. I even heard it at that writer’s group in Raleigh. So many people are struggling with some piece of life. Journaling is a tool that has helped me navigate difficult seasons in my life - when life is lifing hard. Journaling brings me back to that deep inner knowing that I too often forget lies within me and whispers to me when I get still and tune in. Do you journal? Are you obsessed with all the cute journals too? #journaling #soulwhispers #tuningin #selfhelptools #selfawareness
I have been working on some version of this book f I have been working on some version of this book for years!! It has morphed and expanded — and tested my grit & determination time & time again. Writing a novel is a difficult endeavor. Bringing together 80,000 words of plot, character development, narrative drive, story development and story structure IS NO EASY TASK. Add the complexity of multiple povs, a dual timeline, and a mystery on top of that and 🤯 Today I’m documenting and celebrating this milestone of bringing FOUR POVs together! My persistence is paying off. I have a vision and I’m determined to see it through. I shared this milestone with my editor/book coach. She has been an amazing resource on this journey. She’ll celebrate with me AND give me honest feedback on where the story is and isn’t working in her opinion. Then I’ll return to the work. But for now, I’m celebrating!!! 🎉 🎉 #writethebook #graceandgritblog #writer #writersofinstagram #dothedamnthing
I spent a few days at the OKI with these ladies fo I spent a few days at the OKI with these ladies for my mother-in-law’s birthday. They decided they were the Golden Girls (GG). They each claimed their roles and named me Betty White’s character because they claimed all the other characters. It was quite a comical few days with these GG’s. We ate a ton of food and made some unforgettable memories sightseeing and staying up late talking. The best memory will always be when the batteries on the golf cart died and my neighbor had to pick the GG’s up while I figured out how to get the golf cart home (my neighbor helped with that too). I will be talking about this trip & the Golden Girls for years to come. #goodtimes #memories #goldengirls #oakislandnc
I spent the day at Biltmore with my guys. #makin I spent the day at Biltmore with my guys. #makingmemories❤️ #myfavoritepeople❤️ #biltmore #kingtutexhibit #asheville
Annual girls trip with @johnandjulie35 . We starte Annual girls trip with @johnandjulie35 . We started this tradition around 15 years ago, always including books in our plans (of course!), attending Wilmington’s Azalea Festival, and talking and laughing the whole weekend. This year we saw Colleen Oakley’s funny and inspiring author talk at Litchfield Books’ Author Luncheon. We toured several homes and plantations with Georgetown’s Tour of Plantations and Homes. We caught some beautiful sunsets and ate some tasty food. And, of course, we laughed and talked and sang off key - and tried to solve all the problems in the world and our lives. #girlstrip #beachtime #booklover #georgetown #making memories
Cheryl Strayed’s Wild Awakenings Retreat was just Cheryl Strayed’s Wild Awakenings Retreat was just as amazing as her book WILD. I was one of 300 writers that were in attendance. Cheryl encouraged us to be brave and share our writing with each other. The only rule was we couldn’t say we were sorry our writing wasn’t good or didn’t make sense. There were stories of grief, loss, cancer, trauma, violence, heartbreak, unwise decisions made in our twenties, the effects from the lentils on the buffet, and so many other stories. Stories of the experiences that broke us and transformed us and that connect us all together in the human experience. The Art of Living Center was just as amazing. The venue serves all vegetarian meals and offers numerous yoga and meditation classes. There is also a Shankara Ayurveda Wellness spa on the property that offers a range of services. At just over 3000 feet the views are phenomenal. #whatareyouwaitingfor #bethelight✨ #shareyourstory #writers #writethebook
This book is a beautiful reckoning with grief. I f This book is a beautiful reckoning with grief. I felt like I was right there on the Pacific Crest Trail with Cheryl, hiking and uncovering layers of time and experience surrounding the loss of her mom, her marriage, and her childhood. I felt like I met the other hikers she met along the way. I felt like I could see and feel the terrain. I felt like I transformed with her. WILD is praised in writing circles. I’ve heard about this book and its power for years, and now I’ve experienced it, too. This book has become one of my all-time favorite reads. I’m attending Cheryl’s WILD AWAKENINGS Writing Workshop in a few weeks @artoflivingboone in Boone. So now was the perfect time to dive into this book. Cheryl is a talented writer who brought me along on her healing journey in WILD. I can’t wait to see what she does at this retreat. #amazingread #amazingbook #cherylstrayed #wild #fivestarbook
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