Featured Genius: Meet Jacqlyn and Lissa Part 1

Lissa Belcher (left) and Jacqlyn Belcher (right) circa 1976). Sitting together at a table playing scrabble. An early love of words is evident.

Today's interview is Part 1 of a two-part series featuring sisters and authors. Having recently published their first book together and with sequels planned and in progress, they let me into their world.

Apr 10, 2026 7 min read

Jacqlyn Belcher Crosby and Lissa Belcher Murray

An Every Day Genius Interview

This week, I wanted to do something different, AGAIN! Last week, I brought my butterfly mascot and brand image to life in an interview.

This week, I am conducting a dual interview (in two parts) with two sisters who have just published their first novel together. We met online when one of the sisters, Jacqui, messaged me on Facebook asking to use a poem I wrote in a book they were writing. Jacqui later introduced me to her counterpart, Lissa, and while we haven't known each other long, I can feel the "kindred" in our spirits.

Jacqlyn Belcher Crosby and Lissa Belcher Murray are the authors of The Piper and the Prophecy, a work of historical fiction that connects families across time and circumstance.

In this interview, we go backstage, behind the scenes into the very lives of the two women that brought much of themselves into the book.

This is a two-part series as the addition of a second person increased the length considerably. Watch for the second part to publish next week.

Our voices will be named but also differentiated by text type.

Michele Jennae: BOLD
Jacqlyn: Regular type
Lissa: Italics

The Interview

1. What is your "work" in the world currently?

Michele Jennae: What is your "work" in the world currently? Please elaborate.

Lissa Murray: I am a writer and a full- time abuela. Since retiring, I actually have time to focus on my writing. When my grand-daughter, Sundance, moved to Charleston, I was able to spend more time with her and help out since both of her parents work. We've had beach excursions, mountain trips, historical adventures, tea parties, and travelled the Oregon Trail in a book I wrote for her, "Sundance on the Prairie."

Jacqlyn Belcher Crosby: My sister and I just completed our first book in the Sweetgrass, Sage & Sassafras series. Now, on to the next two books! But mostly my work is getting up in the morning to create an interesting place of beauty and peace for anyone who might drop into my world.

Michele Jennae: Congratulations! I’ve loved it, and I am looking forward to the sequels.

2. What is your dream?

Michele Jennae: What is your BIG dream? The one you'll regret if you don't pursue it. What does it mean to you to have it?

Jacqlyn: The only thing I think I'd regret is not staying true to my beliefs. However, my dream of doing a book tour kept me in the ballgame. LHL. <light hearted laughter>

Lissa: One of my oldest dreams is to write and publish a novel. I look at it as a legacy that can be given to our kids and grandkids. It would mean that a little less of us would be left behind for our family if it did not get published.

Michele Jennae: And look at you both now. The novel is published. The book tour is in the works?

Jacqlyn: Michele, you are my book tour. <grinning>

Michele Jennae: Oh Jacqui, I wish I had a larger audience! <wink and a smile>

3. What do you wake up for?

Michele Jennae: What do you wake up for? What thread runs through your days?

Jacqlyn: I refer you to Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem 'Flower in a Crannied Wall'. We are treasure hunters in the constant search for beauty and truth. Creator has sprinkled our cosmos with magic. Ours is to discover the magic... or become the magician for someone else.

I'm happy if I show up and the little green tree frog comes to visit my front door again. Or if we see our dolphins when Jerry and I go walking on the beach. Or when something causes me to belly laugh. When grandson Ayden was like 5 years old, he said to my daughter, "Nona (my grandmom name) thinks there's magic in everything." Summer (my daughter) came right back with "That's because there is magic in everything." We are the family who believes.

Lissa: I wake every morning to see what adventure each day brings. God, my family, and friends make up the thread that gives meaning to each adventure.

Michele Jennae: I love those threads! Magic, belief, faith, adventure. I can tell it’s a family thing.

4. What's the hardest thing you've ever done?

Michele Jennae: What's the hardest thing you've ever done? Please tell me about it.

Jacqlyn: Helping my parents cross over. My mom was 87 when we heard 'cancer' and 6 weeks. Mom was the constant in the family, while Dad was our rock. We moved in with them to provide care 24-7.

On the last night of her life, I had the thought that we were in the actively dying stage, and the only thing left to do was to tell Mom it was ok to move on... that we would take care of Dad. As I left at midnight, I encouraged my sister to do the same. Mom slipped away peacefully within the hour.

Then we became Dad's 24-7 caregivers. We moved in with him rather than make him change his life to move in with one of us. Learning to respect and care for our elders was something Mom and Dad showed us daily. Because Dad's world changed abruptly, we wanted to do what was best for him and not simply what was easiest for us.

When I told him that he had options, and one option was that Lissa and I would stay with him, he chose to stay in his home with us living with him. But I will never forget what he said to me afterwards. He said, "Jacqlyn, I know what I'm asking from you and your sister, and I'm a little ashamed of myself." This so broke my heart that the line made it into the novel.

The toll of stepping into the role as my parents' caregiver years ago has left its mark. The stress of being constantly aware of everything going on with both of them left me dealing with panic attacks and insomnia. Our family has chosen to use natural supplementation over medication any time we can, so I wanted Mom and Dad to feel comfortable telling me what they were going through daily so that I could try to figure out a way to ease their symptoms.

We all worked so well with each other. However, my adrenals were shot when it was all said and done. I still deal with adrenal depletion. But, there is only one thing that would have been costlier... not to show up and give it everything I had.

We are different because we believe in taking care of family. We are grounded because we know that the meaning of life at the end is as sweet and vital and as meaningful as it is in the beginning. We are content in knowing we did everything in our power to make the last few years of Mom and Dad good years. It was mine that they never feel bereft, alone, or scared.

Michele Jennae: Jacqui, thank you for sharing that. What you and your sister did for your parents isn't so common, and when it happens, it's not the same as it used to be. You're lucky to have each other, and your families.

Lissa: Writing this book was probably the hardest thing I have ever done. The idea began during COVID when I was staying at Mom and Dad's, taking care of them with my sister Jaqlyn. She came by after work every afternoon and stayed until way after dark.

I was the big picture person, and she was the one that took care of the details. It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.

Michele Jennae: I love that Dickens quote. A Tale of Two Cities. The dichotomy of that statement gets lost on most people.

Lissa: During the writing of the book, both our mom and dad died which was absolutely devastating. Jaqlyn struggled with an illness that entire summer, and the cab company that her husband, Jerry, ran and where my husband, Guy, worked went out of business.

When things settled a bit, Jaqlyn and I started writing seriously several times a week at her house. And then, I got sick. My kidneys shut down, and I had to go on dialysis for a short time. We still were working as much as we could together online. Last year she had a horrible bout with the flu which again slowed us down.

In January of this year, as we were finalizing everything, I was in bed for two weeks with the flu. So, writing this book has been quite the process.

Michele Jennae: This moving through, the good with the bad, that really resonates. You were both dealing with more than seems humanly possible to deal with.

5. How did you succeed at that hard thing?

Michele Jennae: How did you succeed at that hard thing? What inner and outer resources did you access?

Lissa: We kept at it, little by little. Working hard when we could and taking breaks as we needed them. Our parents were the living example that one never gives up. Quitting was not an option.

Mom's favorite saying was, "You can stand anything for_____" Fill in the amount of time that it was going to take you to succeed.

Our families were supportive and encouraging. Jaqlyn's husband, Jerry, became our sounding board and biggest fan.

Jacqlyn: For me, it is always my faith. It's moving from simply believing in something to trusting your life to it. Once my faith takes hold, there's this thing inside me that won't let me quit. I have an excellent support system from my husband and my family. That is huge. Two books that I channel: The Holy Bible and The Power of Now (Eckhart Tolle)

Michele Jennae: You definitely have some support, both human and divine.

Watch for part 2, where Jacqlyn, Lissa and I continue the conversation!