CHRISTMAS JELLY

My short story collection, Christmas Jelly, was written in 32 chapters.  This allows you (the reader) to enjoy one chapter per day beginning on December 1 and ending on January 1. Here’s your fourth helping of Christmas Jelly. Enjoy! December 3 Chapter 4 Stolen Christmas Trees     “I know I tagged a tree in this area.” My neighbor Mitzi Foreman walks through …

  From now until New Year’s Day,  we’ll be featuring stories from our short story collection, Christmas Jelly.   My prayer is that you and your family will enjoy a wonderful Christmas, and you’ll feel the personal presence of Jesus, the King of all Kings. This blog post contains two stories,  “Christmas Jelly”  (Dec. 1) and “My Grandpas’ Boots” (Dec. …

December 28 The 100-Foot Line     There’s a fine stand of young slash pine at Dead Man’s curve on the Longville Road. I’ve watched the growth of this forest since it was clear cut, then replanted in straight rows. The following year, the pines began to poke their heads above the grass. They’ve emerged above the surrounding bushes and …

Click here to order. Scroll down to learn more. Uncle Sam and Christmas Jelly are reader favorites and make great stocking stuffers. _________________________________________ You have a problem:  hard to buy for Christmas gifts. We have a problem:  Stacks of Christmas Jelly and Uncle Sam. I have the solution: a $5 per book Christmas sale. We published two of our thirteen …

Wow!  I wrote my first book, Stories from the Creekbank, in 2000. Not only is it still in print, but it’s a steady seller. I’m so grateful for friends and readers like you who’ve kept my thirteen books “evergreen.” Evergreen is the book-selling term for a title that continues to sell long after its publication. We’ve been blessed in this. …

Merry Christmas from the Iles Clan. I wish the very best for you and yours during this Christmas season. Living Gratefully, Curt     The Hay’s in the Barn It’s “Christmas Eve-Eve.” Two days until Christmas. It’s close but there’s still time for planning and dreaming. A strong cold front is blowing in as I arrive at Foreman’s Meat Market. …

Don’t miss Curt on these book events:  Grant Christmas Tree Farm this Saturday (December 2) as well as next Saturday, December 9.  We’ll also make our final Christmas book signings on Saturday, December 26 at Nichol’s in DeQuincy and Thrifty Way-DeRidder. _______________________ A word from Curt My theme for December continues with a Thanksgiving motif:  Living Gratefully. I want my …

  I love Christmas.  I really do. I’d glad it occurs yearly. And glad it only occurs yearly. I call the week after Christmas,  Dec. 26-Jan.1, “Bah Humbug Week.” It’s a week to recover.  It’s a week to reflect.  I use this week to look back over the past year with gratitude and as a springboard to think about and …

  An Easy Mark   “I’m a thousand miles from anywhere, waiting for a train.” -Jimmy Rodgers “Waiting for a Train”   Calling someone an “easy mark” is normally not a compliment. We use it in the context of taking advantage of someone and associate it with weakness. I have a story that explains the term’s origin. I’ll let you—the …

Merry Christmas to you and your kin from all of us at the Creekbank. This new short story, “Midnight Chicken”, is our gift to you. May its theme of It is more blessed to give than to receive resonate and bless your Christmas. Curt and DeDe Iles Midnight Chicken   Dec. 23, 1943 Bundick, Louisiana   Elizabeth Miller awoke to …

A Gift from DQ   Christmas is a time for gifts and there are all types of gifts. The best gifts come from hands, hearts and are created from love and skill. As Christmas 2011 approaches, I’m obsessed with a gift I saw last week.  I call it a gift from DQ. DQ. I’m not referring to Dairy Queen. I’m …

This is chapter 16 from my short story book, Christmas Jelly. There’s still time for you to order copies of Christmas Jelly in time for Christmas stocking stuffers. Scroll down to learn more or click here. We are also offering a special Christmas price on a set of all twelve of our books: $100 for the entire set.  Learn more here.  …

First Christmas in Dry Creek J.J. Miller had set up camp where he had a good view of the surrounding area. There were no signs of any settlers in the last mile he’d come, and he had scouted down to the nearby creek and seen no recent signs of human habitation. It was December 24, 1853 and he didn’t expect …

  It’s Christmas and time for a full helping of Christmas Jelly, our popular holiday short story collection. From now until Christmas, you can order copies for $10.00 each. In addition, we’re giving additional discounts for bulk stocking stuffers. (5 copies for $40 and 10 copies for $80). Shipping is $5.00 per order.  We’re making it super easy to order …