As Olivia works to celebrate the Mexican community in Verde County, the Texas Historical Commision (THC) has compiled a list of resources for exploring Hispanic heritage across Texas. The collection includes videos, an interactive map (for an unforgettable road trip) and lesson plans.
The details in the Verde County Courthouse may be fictional, but THC has a video on Hispanic architecture in Texas. Staying in the actual Hill Country, the agency's compiled a list of little known Hispanic sites...
I wanted to place a Rosenwald school in Madison, since Texas was one of the states that received funding from Julius Rosenwald to build schools for African- American communities in rural areas of the state. The Texas Historical Commission has resources for finding (and listing) schools in Texas, and other state...
Andrew Kim may be a figment of my own imagination, but Preservation Architects do exist. Listen along as an architect describes his path towards a career in prserving and restoring the past.
How do you become a preservation architect? Without calling in the sponsered ads, I'll give you a quick tour of programs available here in Texas:
The University of Houston offers a Masters of Science in Architecture with a concentration in Historic Preservation. Actually, I didn't know that until today...
Some counties in Texas use their renovations to help adjust with the times. When I started sketching out what Verde County and Madison would look like, I wanted to portray a small town with potential, not one that time and progress had sped by. Still, when money gets passed out, the facilities are sometimes the last things to receive much needed attention.
Some courthouses in smaller, more rural counties had no hot water. Others were decades behind when it came to technology. It's hard to...
Taken from the Texas Association of Counties (TAC) podcast.
My County Commissioners are a mixed bag of local Texans. Commissioner Santos is the most vocal of the Verde County Commissioners. In real life things aren't always that acrimonious. I do love using poetic license, and at least you don't have to worry if any Open Records laws were voilated.
The program is now over twenty- five years old, signed into law in 1999. Since then, a majority of the historic buildings across the state that are eligible for the grant have already applied for or received funding. I've personally sat in the room stuffed with County Judges and County Commissioners and heard their stories about the process. I can tell you from experience that the process was...
The process is long and expensive, but it's worth it in the end. Mason County's courthouse was in the midst of renovation when an arsonist targeted the building. See, really bad things happen sometimes during a renovation.
In Mason County's case, they had already engaged engineering and preservation experts to start their renovation. The prep turned out to be fortuitous when the building burned down in 2021. Court records, which are a crucial part of restoration, had already been removed by...
The first part of the long renovation process starts with assessing the damage.
In Verde County's case, if there was damage to the building, Andrew Kim would be called in to consult with engineers to do an assessment. Having the largest workspace available for a county's government out of commission means that the staff and services would have to be moved to temporary quarters. Many counties have their emergency services located in a courthouse building, and that could lead to nightmares in...
The Texas Courthouse resoration program has been going strong for over twenty years. But sometimes the restoration kicks off with loss or even tragedy.
Follow along as one Texas County starts their journey with loss.
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In my Restoring Madison series, the long suffering people of Verde County encounter obstacle after obstacle as they work to restore their own courthouse. Personally, I didn't go with arson as a challenge, but there are any number of factors...
With no training whatsoever thanks to my horrible former employer. I cried like a baby when I got to Washington Avenue because I knew I could make it the entire way if I kept going at my slow pace.
Then I had to sober up because I worried if the officials saw me crying they'd worry I was injured and I'd get pulled from the course anyway.
Truth be told, The Texas Historical Comission, (or THC, or "the Hysterical Commission) has been doing this "help you get your (court)house in order" thing for a while. In my Restoring Madison, TX series, however, our fictional Verde County is just going through the hoops to get the funding from the state.
I put those poor people through the wringer because it's fiction, but the actual program features slightly less drama.
Welcome to Madison, Texas—where restoration reveals truth
You've just discovered the Restoring Madison, TX series—women's fiction set in a small Texas town where a courthouse restoration project becomes the catalyst for personal and community transformation.
Each book follows a different woman whose story intersects with a phase of the preservation project. An innkeeper confronting gentrification. A county clerk trapped by family legacy. A real estate agent watching her...
It's finally here! My final romace book, A Very Texas Christmas, is finally available in ebook, print and audiobook versions. It's been a long process, but I can take a quick break during the holidays.
Coming in 2026, the Restoring Madison, Texas series debuts. Check your inboxes in March. Coming Texas Independence Day, 2026!
Judge Cavanaugh makes a short appearance in Saving Madison, TX. Even if you're a native Texan, you may not know what a County Judge does. Does she actually preside over a courtroom? Can he issue verdicts? As with everything in Texas: yes and no.
Don't miss out on this chance to grab a bunch of FREE books this September. I've teamed up with several other authors who LOVE to write spicy romance to offer their books for free.
Nerd squeal confession time: Yesterday I bought a book for researching an upcoming series I'm outlining. I read a sample on Kindle yesterday, and since it's a university press (UT), the Kindle price is SCANDALOUS! And not in a juicy interesting way.
Naturally, I looked for the hardback/ paperback version, and with shipping and tax it was a third of the price. This book will give me some great inspiration for at least two characters in the series.
