January 3, 2024
New year ahoy! Well… look… I would dearly love to say that 2023 saw the release of my second book, and that I’m ever so close to releasing my third… but. Yeah. I’m not going to mince words here: [content warning for grief and loss] my mom passed away a couple weeks after my last news update. That said, my book pretty much went on the back-burner, though I did still continue to work on it when I could. My lofty ambition for this year is to see “TLB” (the magical story) published by mid-year and to see “TO” published by year-end. If I can leave 2024 with three books out in the world, I’ll feel a little better about the bonkers amount of time that’s passed between Ashes Swept and now. So, back to the ol’ keyboard…
March 8, 2023
Best laid plans, etc., etc. September of 2022 marked the five year anniversary of the release of Ashes Swept. It was a bittersweet anniversary, because I never, EVER, thought I wouldn’t have a second or even third book out five years after its release. And I don’t really know what to say about that except that I’m trying. I have two really, really good books that both deserve to have their day in the sun. The last five years have just been fraught with a lot of hard things that haven’t been particularly conducive to consistent momentum. But, sometimes life is like that, and sometimes writing is like that. I’ll just keep plugging away until I get one or both of these stories out into the world.
February 2, 2022
Last year was sort of a wash progress-wise, but I did really enjoy doing some “just for fun” writing and working on my magical story. Over the next few months, I plan to buckle down and make serious progress on my magical story, with the hope of releasing it into the world sometime this year.
June 4, 2021
The first half of this year was a rough ride. Both of our sweet pups crossed the Rainbow Bridge, one of them unexpectedly, and so writing didn’t happen much. By the time I came back to The Outpost, I realized there are still major structural issues to work out, and I became aware of some other potential issues that need to be tackled. After much thought, I made the difficult decision to shelf TO for the time being and am going to shift focus to my magical story. And, tbh, I’m really really excited about that!
November 7, 2020
Best laid plans… I fully expected “TO” to be out by now, but between the pandemic, political stress, the loss of my beloved 24-year-old cat, and competing writing projects, I just haven’t been able to pull it off. I’m well into Act II of draft three now, though I’m pausing at the moment for my 11th consecutive NaNoWriMo, where I’m writing my first genuine fantasy novel AND IT HAS MAGIC! So, we’ll see what the coming year brings, but I’m optimistic that The Outpost will be a tangible thing by spring or summer. At least I can say, just like with Ashes Swept, I’ve poured my heart and soul into this book.
September 21, 2019
The Outpost has thrown me several curve balls this past year, which ultimately led to a major structural overhaul. I’m almost finished with the second draft now, then I’ll pull back a bit to participate in my tenth consecutive NaNoWriMo. When I dive back into “TO” in December, I’ll be writing all-new chapters for the beginning of draft three. This draft will be read as written by my CP, Shannon, and with any luck I’ll finish before the spring. It’s taking a lot of time, but it will be worth it!
January 2, 2019
It’s been an interesting year. Ashes Swept is continuing to do well and has been reviewed on various blogs and in digital magazines. In July I was interviewed at The Educated Writer blog, and last month I wrote a post for the Alliance of Independent Authors self-publishing advice blog. I’m still plugging away on my next book, The Outpost, which I hope to release sometime this year. I’m still tinkering with the possible reference book.
January 10, 2018
I took a short break from my WIP in December, and now I’m working on finishing up the story, refining the plot, and fleshing out the story’s world. I’m also thinking about putting together a reference book, but that’s on the back-burner for now. I definitely think my idea could add to the amazing reference books already out there–so we’ll see what happens!
December 17, 2017
It’s been eleven weeks since the launch of Ashes Swept, and I couldn’t be happier with the response. So many lovely reviews have come in, and people are already asking about my next release. While I had originally planned to revise a novel I wrote in 2009, I liked this year’s NaNoWriMo novel so much, I’ve decided to publish that next instead. I’m still aiming for the second half of 2018 for release.
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