Shyla's Initiative

Winner of an 2003 IPPY Award in the Romance category!

Thirty-five-year-old novelist, Shyla Wishon, fears that her life is spinning out of control since her recent marriage to Carl Cores. First, her overbearing new mother-in-law moves from New Jersey to Florida to be close to her son, followed by a steady stream of visiting relatives who become a constant intrusion on what was once her time to write. To make matters worse, Carl’s two grown daughters refuse to have anything to do with her, his former wife is still making demands, and even though Carl has a good job, bills are starting to pile up.

While she is in Naples, Florida, teaching a creative writing course, Shyla becomes intrigued with a student’s manuscript, The Immigrant, about Cuban refugees that bring the ancient beliefs of Regla de Ocha to America. Then the ideas in the manuscript start influencing her life.

Will Shyla need to lose her life to regain her Self?

Originally from Carrolton, Illinois, Barbara Casey attended the University of North Carolina, North Carolina State University, and Wesleyan College, where she received a B.A. degree, summa cum laude, with a double major in English and history. In 1978, she left her position as Director of Public Relations and Vice President of Development at North Carolina Wesleyan College to write full-time and develop her own manuscript evaluation and editorial service.

Since that time, her articles, short stories, and poetry have appeared in several publications. She has appeared as a guest speaker and panelist at BookFest of the Palm Beaches, Florida. She also serves as a judge for the Pathfinder Literary Awards in Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida, and is the Florida Regional Advisor for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

Ms. Casey’s award-winning science fiction short story was featured in the anthology The Cosmic Unicorn. Her essays appear in The Chrysalis Reader, the international literary journal of the Swedenborg Foundation. Two middle grade/young adult novels, Leilani Zan and Grandma Jock and Christabelle (James C. Winston Publishing Co., Trade Division), were both nominated for awards of excellence by the SCBWI Golden Kite Award, the National Association of University Women Literary Award, and the Sir Walter Raleigh Literary Award.

Shyla’s Initiative is her first novel for adult readers.