Did you know that there’s hope?
As in real hope that you’re going to get through whatever stormy skies might be surrounding you right now.
As author Rosalie Glemann shows in her book A House of Hope, enjoying a hopeful state of being does require some effort. But the results are well worth it, complete with comfort, security and that sense of peace we all crave.
A House of Hope might not be a big book, but it does deliver. Thought-provoking and life-improving, it’s a great addition to Innovative Editing’s Author of the Month collection.
If you’d like to take your shot at the spotlight as well, reach out right here. This platform is all about supporting and promoting writers with worthwhile messages to share.
October's Author of the Month: Rosalie Glemann
Featured Title: A House of Hope
Genre: Self-help Motivational/Inspirational
Age Appropriate: All
Bio: Rosalie comes from a mostly-published writers' family, with works including romantic novels, American history works, a thesis on East Indian art, poetry, and plays.
She's had poetry published, studied guitar and taught it for decades, and is a pro-Christian songwriter with some CDs available at CDBaby.com. She self-published her first small book in 2016, Life-Changing Love: The Overlooked Biblical Choice.
Jeannette: Rosalie, thanks so much for being Innovative Editing’s October feature. Your book, A House of Hope, has such an attention-grabbing title for a number of reasons. What made you decide to write about the topic in the first place?
Rosalie: So many people I know struggle with thinking issues that make life difficult for them. As that great philosopher Pogo once said, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” So I wanted to share some positive ideas that have worked to help me in this area.
Jeannette: That’s a great quote to associate with your work. It fits perfectly and gives even more food for thought. Or maybe I should say “more music to the ears” since I’ve heard that the poetry you include in A House of Hope is actually meant to be put to music.
Rosalie: Yes, actually the "poems" are song lyrics of mine. Most of the ones here have been recorded on a few of the CDs mentioned in my bio. One is called Mental Rehab, and it has some of my favorite “battle for the mind” songs on it.
Jeannette: “Battle for the mind.” I love it, particularly when placed up against the song lyrics you list on page 4. “Hope-Colored Glasses” just jumped right out at me as being so insightful and telling. Can you describe it and its meaning for readers?
Rosalie: Of course. Essentially, we all see the world through the "glasses" of our personal feelings and experiences. But hope is a critical attitude! If we let go of it, we're in serious trouble. We're in danger of quitting or giving up.
My question is, can we look forward to a good future without hope influencing our life vision? I don't think so...
Jeannette: Not to fixate on your song lyrics, because there’s obviously more to A House of Hope than that, but you have another one that, I believe, is called “Cheatin’ on Myself.” Could you delve into that one a bit too?
Rosalie: Well, it took me years of trial and error to discover that a lot of my personal failures could be chalked up to errors in cause-and-effect reasoning.
All too often, I'd start with an incomplete or imagined fact, and hastily take action on it, resulting in a faulty conclusion, confusion and disappointment. I was hurting myself and others doing this.
I wrote this song to help people become aware of this problem so they could work at avoiding it...
Jeannette: I know I’ve been guilty of doing that a time or two – probably much more than I even know. So that’s a good message to get out there. Everything in A House of Hope is good advice though. Hope itself is good advice!
So let’s say a person has been despairing lately. They’re going through a very hard time for some reason. How can they get back into a house of hope – or start building one for the first time?
Rosalie: My answer would basically be to become aware of what brings you down, and trade in that negative thinking for a positive outlook. You have the power to direct your own thinking; use your will to practice focusing on good things. Shelve the dark side; let the light in!
Jeannette: Since you use a Bible verse or two to back your points in this latest book of yours, what would you say is your favorite “hopeful” Bible verse?
Rosalie: It’s one I actually mention in A House of Hope: God's good advice on mental health, found in Philippians 4:8.
Jeannette: Perfect! And last but not least, where can readers find you online?
Rosalie: I have an Amazon page for each of my two books, a CD Baby page with access to my seven albums, and three links to YouTube videos a friend of mine uploaded of me singing my own songs in a church service. The list is below: