Author: Dora Hiers

Adding a VIP to my blog!

/ Dora Hiers / 23 Comments

Yesterday, I blogged about how my husband encourages me to step out of my comfort zone to prepare you for some exciting news.

I am THRILLED to announce that my husband, Ernie Hiers, will be contributing to this blog on a regular basis. He’ll be sharing foodie events and adventures along with reviews of eateries in a new series, Excited about Eating, on Saturdays. Journey along with us as we visit eateries around Charlotte and all over the world.

With over thirty five years in the fire service, Fire Chief Ernie Hiers looks forward to the next phase of his life, cruising and cooking. Besides being a huge NASCAR fan, Ernie also enjoys judging Kansas City Barbeque Society competitions, smoking barbeque on the back deck, hanging out in a mountain cabin, and his latest hobby…eating through Charlotte.

You’ll still find devotionals and book reviews here, but as my writing evolves, so must my blog. In the past I’ve limited my reviews to primarily inspirational romance, but soon I’ll be featuring reviews of other genres as well.

My life is so much more than books and writing, and I want this blog to reflect that. And a major shift like this deserves a new name ~ Fiction, Faith and Foodies.

Are you excited about this change? Weigh in and let us know! I hope you’ll stick with us and make yourself right at home here.

Step Out of Your Comfort Zone

/ Dora Hiers / 2 Comments
It may come as a surprise to you, but I’m a routine kinda gal. I eat the same cereal for breakfast and wake up and go to bed every day about the same time. Wait staff from our favorite restaurants don’t bother asking for my order; they just confirm it. I write only from my quiet office, and I take breaks in regular intervals. Interruptions throw me off kilter, and it takes a while to regain my balance.
But being a writer is slowly eroding my routine. That, or my husband is. 🙂
He’s always encouraging me to step out of my comfort zone. He prodded me to write my first book, even when I doubted, and encouraged me to join a writers group. When our local librarian invited me to address their readers, hubby rattled off a list of possible topics and practically shoved me into the public speaking arena when I would have been perfectly content to hide out in the obscurity of my office, pecking away at my laptop. Eventually, readers would find my stories, right?
Now, he’s at it again. Prodding me to expand my horizons. Travel. Food. Where does it stop?
Three years ago, he convinced me that a European cruise was cheaper than some of our US vacations, and we’ve cruised there every year since. We’ve craned our necks to stare up at the Eiffel Tower, climbed the Colosseum in Rome, and explored ancient walled cities in Tuscany and volcanoes in Iceland. We devoured pizza in Belfast, gobbled down granitas and cannoli’s in Sicily, guzzled espresso in Barcelona, and tasted authentic fish and chips in London.
And you know what? I actually enjoyed it. Not necessarily every new meal or city, but the experience. He doesn’t have to sell me on it anymore. When he mentions a European cruise, I’m totally on board.
We all need someone like that, don’t we? A friend or spouse to push us to achieve more, to reach for our dreams, to fill a hole with something that we’re passionate about, or to force us to face our fears. For me, it was fear of the unknown.     
What are you afraid of?

Embrace life. Surround yourself with people who love you enough to shove you out of your comfort zone. Give your dreams wings to become reality and discover yourself.
Just wait until he starts messing with my bedtime. Or leaving brochures for Antarctica on the kitchen counter…

“Risk, then, is not just part of life. It is life. The place between your comfort zone and your dream is where life takes place. It’s the high-anxiety zone, but it’s also where you discover who you are.” ~Nick Vujicic