Halloween fun…

It’s Halloween! I know this year has been a challenge, but let’s eat a little, well, maybe a lot of candy and drink hot chocolate. Don’t forget to carve that pumpkin and put it outside to ward off the spooks. Spooks? Yes, spooks.

Tonight I’ll be dressed as Princess Lollipop and will be participating in our annual Trunk or Treat at the church. It’s an amazingly fun time to let your hair down and just enjoy life. And to be silly.

In honor of the day, let’s get a little spooky… Have you ever walked through a graveyard at night? Or went to the old covered bridge to call out to the spooks that live inside? Maybe you’ve driven to the old train trestle and listened for the headless conductor. Yes, I’ve done all of these things. It’s that tingle that runs up your spine. The rush of adrenaline as every sound sets your spook-o-meter off. Sometimes you just have to give in to the child inside and go to the unknown.

And let’s not forget the ghosts that roam free on this night. Say hello to a few while you’re out and about. When the bump in the night begins to take form, just hold your breath and cover your head.

It’s just after midnight and you hear a sound. Is it the dog or is it something else? The door squeaks, the floor creaks, and the hair on the back of your neck rise. Don’t turn out the light…

Corny… Maybe… True… Most definitely.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Despair…Hope…Publish

The life of a writer…

How do you explain it to someone that’s never written or published anything? In three words, DESPAIR…HOPE…PUBLISH. It’s the three stages that most writers go through. And sometimes they repeat themselves as though on a reel.

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Despair – The moment you’re so excited about getting the words on paper, but then you hit a wall. We all do at some point in the writing process. It’s like a given that the wall will show up and sometimes you hit it so hard that you worry about a concussion. Then despair can hit again when you put your work out there and get rejected at every turn. Or sales don’t seem to do as well as you’d hoped.

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Hope – That moment when the idea comes into your head. You have the hope of a book that will astound the world. Also, the feeling you get after you bust through the wall of despair. And then again when you send your work to a prospective publisher and you wait. It’s the hope that keeps you moving forward.

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Publish – Ahhhhh…. That moment when you hit the publish button and all is good with the world, then all three emotions run rampant. But there’s a relief in publishing your work. And if you’re luck enough to get an amazing publishing contract with a big publisher, then true relief takes over.

It’s amazing the emotions that run through your mind as you start, work on and finish your manuscript. So, let them run, but never let them run you off from your dream.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Saying goodbye is never easy!

It’s hard to believe that I’m finishing the last book of the Wishful Harbor Series. I’ve enjoyed every moment of writing this series. The characters will always hold a special place in my heart. And the town of Wishful Harbor will draw me in and send me on a journey where the scent of sea air and the sound of sea gulls overhead fill the air.

Saying goodbye to anything isn’t easy. In life, there’s so many things we have to say goodbye to. But with a book series, even though the series has come to a close, the books will be there to read over and over. The memories will be there too.

Over the years of my writing career, I’ve said goodbye to many series. The Five Oaks Ranch Series is still one of my bestselling series and it continues to gain momentum. I’ve had so many people write to me about adding more books to that series. Maybe one day, but for now, it’s just a dream…

In January I’ll publish the last Mistletoe Ranch book. And I just published the last book from The Journal Series. With each new series, there has to be an end. New things need to start and life goes on. But the memories will forever be there along with the laughter, tears and thought that went into each word.

Starting in 2021 I’ll be starting a whole new series, one that will pull everything out of me. I’m so excited about it. I’ve not spoken much about it, but in the coming weeks, I’ll post some snippets and info on it. But for now, let’s just say, 2021 will be filled with mystery, intrigue, and romance.

For now, I’ll go back to my writing and the cup of coffee that’s growing cool. But I’ll ask one question, how do you handle saying goodbye?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Preorder today!

Monday Rough Draft…

Monday! After a crazy busy weekend, all I wanted was a Pumpkin Spice Latte, but the Espresso machine was down at the coffee shop, so I had to get a Pumpkin Spice Coffee. Yep, not what I needed this Monday morning. So, pushing through the tired fog.

Rough draft… It’s the nemesis of a writer. How many rough drafts do you go through? Me? Several. The first round of writing on my manuscript is usually unreadable. My editor laughs when she gets one of my rough drafts. Often there is a question posed to me of ‘what the heck did you mean by that sentence?’ It actually makes me giggle when I go back in to see what she’s talking about.

But, are rough drafts essential when writing? No… Maybe… Yes! It gives you a chance to go back over what you’ve written. The rough draft also gives you the freedom to get the words on the paper. That’s why it’s called a rough draft. It’s the flow straight from your brain. There is no rhyme or reason to that first draft, it’s just pure writing at it’s roughest. I love getting that raw first draft on paper. There’s such a sense of freedom.

So, posing the above question again, how many drafts do you go through to get to the finished product?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Check out my newest release, Time Love – Marina’s Story… It’s on sale for a limited time only!

Thursday Cowboy Throwback…

In a world of corporations, concrete, and business suits, there are still cowboys. I love writing about them because to me, they are a dying breed. As long as time can remember, there was cowboys.

With every cowboy I write, I try to make them as real as possible. Since I personally know a lot of cowboys, I have lots of examples of what a true cowboy is. It’s more than the jeans, cowboy boots and Stetson. They are true men that are hard workers, rough handed, and down right tough guys. That’s the ones that are the real thing.

Each one of my cowboys that I’ve written has encompassed one of the cowboys I know. One cowboy I knew was an older man with that weathered skin, keen eye, and cowboy swagger. He was the epitome of an old world cowboy. There was never a conversation that we had that didn’t involve a horse. I loved every minute of each conversation. But now he’s gone, and I long for those conversations.

So, do you love cowboys? Maybe you know one, or even married to one. Let’s give it up for cowboys this Thursday!

As always, Good writing and May God Bless You…

Writing through Menopause brain…

Alright ladies, who can raise their hand on this one? If you’re already at that age where your brain is fuzzy at best, then you’re aware of the effects it has on your writing. Some days my mind just doesn’t want to function, which can cause quite a disturbance in my daily word count. What to do?

For me, I caffeine up and take something naturally, which does help, but there are days when none of this makes a difference. I feel sluggish, irritable and just uninterested. That makes me crazy since writing is my happy place.

I’ve been reading a lot lately on how to combat this. One of the things is I make sure that I write everyday, even through the fuzzy edged mind. My editor laughs sometimes when she gets the first draft because, well, the menopause brain makes me stumble over my words, quite literally. Some of my words get ahead of themselves, but thank goodness she understands me, so she plows through it.

Another thing that has helped is a painting app on my phone. When the fuzziness starts creeping in, I pull out my phone and begin to paint. It’s paint by numbers and very relaxing. I’ve also found that while I’m painting, I can work through plots and scenes in my head. So, this is helping.

How many of you have these issues? Let’s work through them together and get to the next stage in our lives. Yes, I’m proud to be almost 52. My life has been an amazing adventure and I know this season will be another adventure that I will laugh at when I get past it. But for now, I’ll just do everything in my power to keep up my work.

As always, May God Bless You…

And while you’re working through it, give Marina a read. It’s a short story to finish out my The Journal Series.

https://books.apple.com/us/book/id1535894983

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/marinas-story-timeless-love-stephanie-hurt/1137860225?ean=2940162731931

It’s Thursday, let’s Throwback!

Today I want to throw it back to 2015 I wrote a book that would change so many things in my writing adventure. Check out this nice little emblem I was honored with for Tuscany.

Tuscany then led me down the traditional publishing route with a great publisher, Solstice Publishing. I was so excited as I signed that contract and began that part of my publishing journey.

Then in 2019, I took the ownership of my manuscript back and started a new journey. As you can see, Tuscany has taken me so many places, not to mention to Italy in my writing. I discovered so much through writing this novel and added a strong item to my bucket list, a trip to Tuscany. One day… But for now, I’ll stay rooted to the ground.

Tuscany

***Tuscany made it to the top 55 of 985 books in the SYTYCW contest through Harlequin***

Sometimes life leads us on a different path… Fall in love with Tuscany as you follow Lana on the adventure of a lifetime… When Lana Daniels, a simple girl from Georgia inherits a large olive farm in Tuscany, her world is turned upside down. Then she meets Romeo Russo, the farm’s foreman, the most handsome and infuriating man she had ever met. Romeo loves the farm and is afraid that Lana will ruin everything if she stays. But as he gets to know her, he can’t imagine the place without her. Just when he thinks that they can have something together, she finds out that she has three months to decide whether to stay in Italy or sell her grandmother’s legacy.
As accidents start to happen on the farm, Romeo and Lana try to figure out who is behind it all. The more they work together, the closer they get. When a lie tears Lana and Romeo apart, Lana disappears leaving Romeo confused. Can she stay away or will she sell the farm and never look back?.
Tuscany made it to the Top 55 out of 905 of Harlequin’s 2015 So You Think You Can Write Contest…

So, I hope you fall in love with a bit of Tuscany in this novel. I know I did!

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Deadlines or Procrastination!

Deadlines… A writers nemesis, but necessary. As an Accountant I have many deadlines to meet, and as a writer, I also have them. They surround me and some days I feel overwhelmed. But I love what I do on both fronts, so I push toward the next deadline with zeal.

But, procrastination also plays a part. As I’m procrastinating now by writing this blog. Sometimes I work best with a looming deadline. Then other times, a chill runs up my spine as the anxiety fills me.

As writers, we set release dates for our work, then work toward them. It’s like a means to an end. If we don’t set a deadline, then where will our work go? I do a schedule every year that sets deadlines for the draft, the editing, and the release. This is setup by evaluating the work itself. Is it to be a full length novel or a short novella? I calculate the words per day, but I manage to add some empty days that allow for procrastination, but still have me meeting my deadline.

What about you? How do you handle deadlines?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You!

When writing is hard… Push through it!

Hit a wall with your current project? At a loss for words, literally? Yep, I’ve been there and other writers have too. The words stop… The creative juices reach a dam and stop… It’s like your internal hard drive crashes…

Push past that wall…

Everyone hits a wall, it’s only human. It’s how you react to that sudden wall standing in front of you that counts. So, here’s a couple of things I do when that wall jumps out and blocks my path.

1: Step back… Yes, step back. If you’re at a wall, then you need to clear your head, and redirect back to the project. When this happens to me, I’ll put that project aside and bring out an upcoming project to outline or even create some ads to inspire me.

2: Go back and read from the beginning of the project. Reintroduce yourself to the characters… Fall back in love with the story…

3: Don’t give up! Even though it seems like you’ve lost the battle, you haven’t. You’ve hit a wall that all writers hit. Push past it! Don’t let it control you. You’ve got this.

Now, get to writing and know that there will be obstacles, but you have the power to push through them. You’re a writer and that’s what you do. So write!

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

P.S.: Don’t forget that Marina’s Story is coming out on Saturday.

Love-Marinas-Story-Journal-ebook/dp/B08DFGK8JB