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Dear Gracie Lee Fan Club Members,

April 14, 2016 By Talya Tate Boerner

Dear Gracie Lee Fan Club Members,

I like the way this is going so far.

Gracie Lee's Fan Club

I am so blown away by the way friends and family and people I’ve never met have embraced The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee. I don’t know what I expected, but I certainly didn’t expect such excitement. The fact that anyone takes time out of a beautiful spring day to attend a book signing makes me happy. But the number of people who have been to two and three books signings is astounding!

That’s a fan club, I think.

A wonderful surprise waited for me when I returned home to Fayetteville yesterdayContinue Reading

These Students at Blytheville Middle School…

April 5, 2016 By Talya Tate Boerner

Accidental Salvation at Blytheville Middle School

Y’all, these students at Blytheville Middle School…this is what it’s all about. You never know where this crazy life will take you, and how one decision can change you in ways you never anticipated, but that’s how writing has been for me. The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee has led me to doors I would have otherwise never opened. Beyond those doors? The road I almost completely missed. For me, it’s about so much more than the book itself. It’s about the people and the relationships and the surprises along the way.

My own accidental salvation…

I was invited to Blytheville Middle School by Amy Harmon who teaches there. She’d been reading Accidental Salvation to her class and they were enjoying it. Literacy is my thing, so I was happy to go and provide a few books for her classroom. I read from a particular chapter I thought the students might relate to—Gracie Lee was at school, bored, unable to concentrate on her assignment, thinking about how she’d been grounded at the end of summer. We’ve all been there, right?Continue Reading

The whole television thing…

March 30, 2016 By Talya Tate Boerner

Yesterday I was invited to talk about The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee with Alyse Eady, local THV11 Little Rock news anchor, and food blogger Debbie Arnold (Dining with Debbie). The whole television thing was interesting and fun and completely new to me. I had no idea what to expect which was a good thing because I didn’t have a chance to overthink it or stress too much. Our segment was live. No do-overs.

THV11 - Yes, I travel with cotton

Why, yes, I travel with cotton.

If you haven’t had a chance to watch it, CLICK HERE.

WHV11 The WholeTelevisionThing

When it was over, I had no idea what I said. All I could think about was the smell of that meatloaf right underneath my nose. Continue Reading

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Hi! I'm Talya Tate Boerner. Writer, Reader, Arkansas Master Naturalist / Master Gardener, Author of:

THE ACCIDENTAL SALVATION OF GRACIE LEE (2016)

GENE, EVERYWHERE: a life-changing visit from my father-in-law (2020)

BERNICE RUNS AWAY (2022)

THE THIRD ACT OF THEO GRUENE (2025)

Recent Ramblings:

  • Why a Rainy Day Is the Best Time to Visit a Botanical Garden
  • Happy Birthday, Theo Gruene!
  • Sunday Letter~ 05.17.26
  • Sunday Letter: 03.29.26
  • Sunday Letter: February 22, 2026

Novels:

Coloring Books:

Fiction-Themed Coloring Books

Backyard Phenology:

Children’s Nature Book:

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