The light in the middle of the tunnel...

Just the other day, I finished writing the third Rona Shively book, Keeping the Faith. It will be my first full-length novel and I am very excited about this. The process was just as other authors have described; very emotionally charged and much like giving birth. Unfortunately, at 2 a.m., I had no one available with whom I could share my overwhelming enthusiasm. My husband and daughter had long been asleep and I didn't dare wake them. It was a little anti-climactic in a sense, but the important thing is; it's finished!

As I set about the task of editing this monster, I will also be working on a couple of new projects. By the end of this year, I hope to have finished a story that I have been working on in a hit-or-miss fashion over the last ten to fifteen years. It is a combination Sci-Fi/Historical Fiction piece that I am eager to get back into writing. I think you'll enjoy it! I'm also going to begin writing the next installment in the Rona Shively series, but I'm going to keep details about that one under wraps for now.

In addition, there are a number of contests and other projects I am going to be working on throughout the end of the year. My big goal, however, is to get this Rona Shively story into a new publisher's hands. I'm absolutely thrilled at the prospects here, but I know that the bulk of my work still lies ahead. So, armed with about twenty of my library's finest style manuals, publishing guides and writing books, I'm setting about the task of getting my newest book into your hands.

Keep watching for more status reports...you know how I love to update everyone...

Until next time...



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Time for new things

It feels like it's time for a change. Not a change of location or a change of jobs or anything like that, but a change of perspective. I've spent a great deal of time worrying over the past year. This time last year, we were moving back to Springfield and I was worried about money and how all of the changes of the previous months would impact my family. Today, it feels like we've tied up alot of the loose ends that were strangling me. I finally feel comfortable with our choices and am motivated to go forward.

The first thing on my list of things to do is to finish the third installment in the Rona Shively series. I've been working on it here and there, but I keep getting sidetracked by one thing or another. I'm about sixty pages into it and I'm not sure I like the direction it has taken. I'll most likely end up going back through and deleting the things I don't like before I can write another page.

The second thing on the list is to start compiling the data I've collected for the Women's Self-Esteem book. This project is very important to me and I'm hoping to make more of it than just another title on my list. Not that my other books aren't important to me, but I have a real interest in doing something that will be helpful to other women. So far, the responses I've gotten to my surveys have been wonderful and I can't wait to start writing.

The last big project I have planned for this year (mind you, my year is running from September to August for some reason) is a semi-autobiographical book that I have wanted to write for many years. I have some great ideas for it including some interesting information from my father's childhood home in Beattyville, KY. This one's a huge project, so it will take a while to get it going.

I'm excited about the prospect of getting these stories on paper. It will make the struggles seem worthwhile. All of this and for the first time in a long time, I feel content. The only thing I'm worried about now is losing my bad attitude. Whatever will I do without my negativity?

Until next time...