About

Janet Morris Belvin is a lifelong Southerner, a storyteller, a former English teacher, and a woman who has never quite lost her fascination with the people, places, and stories that shape our lives.

Born in Gaffney, South Carolina, Janet was the first-born of twins and grew up in Savannah, Georgia. She graduated from Chowan University and Meredith College, majoring in English with double minors in Speech and Spanish. Her love of words eventually led her to the classroom, where she taught secondary school English for nineteen years, and to writing for magazines and newspapers before turning her attention to books.

Janet is the author of seven books—one memoir and six novels: Southern Stories from the Porch Swing, The Refuge, The Bookshop on Beach Road, Sycamore Hill, The Amazing Grace, Fog, and Shelter at Cherry Grove. Her stories reflect many of the things that matter most to her: faith, family, the South, the pull of the past, and the grace that can be found in second chances.

Her life away from the writing desk has provided plenty of stories of its own. She once owned a farm where corn, soybeans, and peanuts were raised, and she still loves horseback riding, old houses and antiques, reading, and discovering the lives of her ancestors through genealogy.

Janet is married to Paul, an attorney, and is the mother of three—a son and two daughters, all of whom married spouses she considers wonderful additions to the family. She is also the grandmother of nine—six boys and three girls—a role she treasures above nearly everything else.

There are a few things you should probably know about Janet. She does not love to cook. She owns a banjo but can play only one song, “Buffalo Gals,” although she remains optimistic that someday there will be a second. Her musical tastes run from Motown to bluegrass to the old hymns she has known most of her life.

And if you ask her what she loves most, the answer is easy: her family, the South that has always been home, a good story well told—and Jesus, whose grace and faithfulness have accompanied her through every chapter of her own story.