She makes her home in southeast Oklahoma, in the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains, where life is anything but quiet. Her days are shared with four spoiled dogs, a crippled rooster with more attitude than feathers, a noisy guinea who believes it runs the place, a couple of flighty hens, and a watchful roo who keeps an eye on everything that moves. This lively little farm—equal parts sanctuary and circus—provides endless inspiration, companionship, and the kind of grounding only God’s creation can offer.
Whether she’s crafting a tender love story, guiding readers through Scripture, or bringing the Bible to life for children through animal characters, Marie writes with a voice shaped by faith, loss, healing, and the stubborn hope that refuses to let go. Her work reflects the heart of a woman who has walked through fire and come out carrying stories worth telling.
You can also join her for daily devotionals on YouTube at @HeReignsChurch, where she shares encouragement, Scripture, and the steady reminder that hope is still alive. You can contact her by email: church.hereigns@gmail.com.
Marie’s latest book is Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain.
Visit her blog at authormariemcgaha.blogspot.com.
Connect with her on social media at:
╰┈➤ Facebook: www.facebook.com/AuthorMarieMcGaha
╰┈➤ LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/in/mariemcgaha
Can you tell us about your creative process for writing your new book Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain? How did you come up with the idea to turn it into a book?
Which specific chapter or scene was the hardest for you to write, and why?
What is the primary emotional truth you want readers to take away?
Losing your spouse, your life partner, the one who made the world make sense is the hardest thing we can go through and even when it feels like you’re not going to survive, you will. One day, one moment, one breath at a time.
How has completing this book changed you as a writer or a person?
The book didn’t change me, losing my husband did. The book is just an extension of grief that I hope will help someone else.
How did you decide what secrets or details were too private to share with the world?
When you’re a writer, there really are no secrets. Even in fiction, you still bare a part of yourself in your work. In this book, I laid my soul bare and hid nothing. It’s raw, it’s personal, and it’s honest.
Were there any memories you recalled during the writing process that you had completely repressed?
All of it. I bawled through the entire process. It also brought to mind the love we had, the things we shared—like watching a movie of the past 30 years. The pain is still raw and I miss him so much.
Loss is not linear, grief is not linear. It is jumbled, it is up and down, sideways, pear shaped, and can turn you inside out. The stages of grief slam into you one day, pull back on other days, hits you one at a time, or they roll over you all at once and you are at their mercy. There is no pattern in grief. No way to tell someone how to get through it, how to survive it—you just roll with it and try to keep breathing and try to not completely lose yourself. Grief has no middle or ending, it is something you learn to co-exist with. And I hope, if nothing else, readers will at least know they aren’t alone and they aren’t crazy.
Where can we pick up copies of 'Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain'?
Readers can find Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain here:
- Amazon: https://a.co/d/0ioxQy4s
