Hello, friend. I’m thrilled to introduce you to my new Christmas book, Behold the Light.

I’m sitting in a coffeeshop, sipping a Salted Caramel in the middle of this hot October afternoon and trying to figure out just why this project means so much to me that tears spring to my eyes with those words. Maybe some backstory will help…

One Christmas Eve many years ago, I lay in bed wondering how to impress on my children the true meaning of Christmas. They knew the story of Jesus’ birth. They’d already been in countless church plays as a shy Mary, a fidgeting Joseph, and even a hesitant wise man. Still, it seemed more of our family’s holiday was swallowed up every year in the commercial trappings that surround it. I was amazed at my kids’ abilities to recall every jingle on television, and they could practically recite Rudolph backwards. I longed to give them words as age appropriate and easy to remember about the true Christmas story.

Those italicized words are part of an introduction to a little book that was born during that season. This was a dozen books ago, long before I began traveling and speaking, back when I couldn’t fathom having an agent or signing a publishing contract! At the time I was coaching girls’ basketball, running my own interior design business, and writing endless words in notebooks that never saw the light of day. One of my talented ball-players contributed pencil drawings to that story, and I self-published it. (Thank you, Leslee Gallant! I’ll always appreciate you!)

Fast forward. Time passed. Somehow, the files of those original drawings were lost, and the little book went out of print. And yet, I’ve never stopped dreaming of bringing it back.  Last summer, my author friend and brilliant artist, Nicole Seitz caught the vision with me and I knew the time was right to bring you this piece of my heart. 

Generations have grown up with images of Clement Clark Moore’s classic telling of the night before Christmas. In this fresh new holiday offering, I use that very recognizable cadence to engage readers with the wonder of our Savior’s birth. This little story has been a part of my family for years. I’m hoping Behold the Light will find a place in yours.  

Hugs,
Shellie

P.S. I’m selling a limited number of Behold the Light Christmas Bundles to raise money for a family who lost everything in Hurricane Helene. You can find the bundles here.