Emotional Roller Coaster…I don’t like roller coasters!

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Good Friday morning to all of you. I hope you’ve had a great week. I’ve been a little unplugged mentally this week. Let’s just say my emotional state has gone up the hill, then dropped to rock bottom and then back up again. My brain hurts! I’ve gone from one extreme to the other so fast that I feel like maybe I have whiplash.

My week started with the revisions for Ridge. Yes it releases February 14th so the clock is ticking. Thank goodness the first draft went well and now it’s in the editors hands so, fingers crossed it’ll be ready for print next week.

On the hills of all of the reading, red markers and such, I lost a dear friend to cancer. That hit me in the gut and left me breathless. It’s hard when you see someone often and then you go to not seeing them. At least I know he’s in a better place and cancer free now. Heaven gained a true cowboy on Monday… He asked me one day if any of my cowboy characters were inspired by him. I smiled and said ‘you know it’. Will miss him…

As I trudged through the IRS released tax preparers to start tax filing. If you don’t know it, I’m an Accountant so my busy season officially started on Tuesday. I get excited when tax season starts and wait for the adrenaline to kick in, but I have to say, the older I get the less adrenaline that pumps through my brain.

The highest point of my week and the most exciting thing is that the date has been set for my book signing. What better day for a romance author to have a book signing than Valentine’s Day. It will be February 14th from 3 -5 in Zebulon, Georgia at A Novel Experience Bookstore on the square, I will debuting ‘Ridge’ on that day which is really exciting. So if you’re in this area on Valentine’s Day come by and see me, I’d love to meet you. Stay tuned for more details to come next week!

So as you can tell I’ve been otherwise occupied this week, but hope to be back to normal on Monday. Well, whatever normal is…

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Monday morning…back to normal…probably not…

I’ll just say this morning it was hard to get up with an alarm clock. Since my son has been out on Christmas break for two weeks I definitely got spoiled. But after I’ve been up for a little while I’m getting back in the groove. Now back to a normal schedule which feels refreshing.

Things always look clearer after a holiday, well mostly… Today I’m working on goals and release dates for the year. My year will consist of four cowboys and a cowgirl. My new series ‘Five Oaks Ranch’ will start releasing February 14th and continue throughout the year, ending with Maggie’s story near Christmas. It’s refreshing to know where you’re headed and what you’re working on. Of course you know me, I’ll have other books sprinkled in, but this series will be my 2015 spotlight.

With the release of Ridge coming up really quickly, I’m waiting on the date to be announced for my upcoming book signing. That’s exciting in itself and to be premiering Ridge at the same time, well that’s just icing on the cake. My paperbacks will be installed on the store shelves at that time also, which makes me just giddy.

As for normalcy, well that’s not in the cards for me. I’m a writer and we’re just not normal. I mean think about it, we sit and write stories that flow through our head. A lot of these stories are gained from people watching. Nobody is safe around a writer.

So,what are your goals for 2015? Are you getting back to normal today, or have you decided to take one more day off?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

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Five Oaks Ranch Series

bookmark designMake sure to go follow the Five Oaks Ranch Series Facebook page at facebook.com/FiveOaksRanchBooks

and on twitter @5oaksranchbooks for opportunities to win copies and keep up with publishing dates, book

signings, and so much more!

Christmas Eve excitement…

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I love Christmas and everything that goes with it. This is my favorite time of year. It’s the time of year when families get together and celebrate their love. We remember our past Christmas’s and those that are not with us any longer. But most of all we celebrate the Birth of Jesus!

For me Christmas came a little early. Yesterday I received a call from a local bookstore. All of my books will be available starting in 2015 in that store. And they asked me to do an author signing for my new book that will be released on Valentine’s Day. So exciting. Yes I’m still smiling and giggling like a little girl. I will be letting you know more information as it comes in like dates and times, but for now I can say this is an exciting time.

Did anyone catch the release announcement in the last paragraph? If not, let me say it again. Ridge, the first book in the Five Oaks Ranch Series will be officially released on Valentine’s Day. This book has been a wonderful adventure for me. Since my last couple of books have not been about cowboys, it’s nice to come back to what I really love. I will be releasing excerpts periodically over the next month as the release date officially draws closer. Let’s just say this will be a new era in my writing. I’m stepping a little out of my usual box with this one, but I think my fans will be pleasantly surprised.

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I love this cover and all the covers for the series which have already been designed. The other four books will be announced soon as they’re finished and ready for release. Get to know the Cauthen family as this series unfolds into a series to remember. I think you’ll fall in love with the four brothers and their sister. Each one is different and full of struggles, love, laughter, family and most of all cowboys!

So, as I finish this post I want to wish each and everyone of you a very Merry Christmas! I hope you have a family filled night and that Santa visits with a smile. If things go well I’ll be publishing a Christmas Day post. Don’t forget the Reason for the Season…

As always, good writing and May God Bless You on this Christmas Eve…

Monday Thoughts and Writing…

Good Monday morning to you all… I hope you had a wonderful weekend. As for me it was a busy one. Saturday I spent the day at the Church decorating for Christmas with friends and then Sunday was the Children’s Ministry Christmas party. Let’s just say it was busy but satisfying. I’m pleasantly tired this morning…

As for my writing, I’ve grabbed a few minutes here and there this weekend to work on Ridge, but not as much as I would’ve liked. Ridge has been prodding my brain all weekend wanting his story told. For those of you that have messaged me about the upcoming release, let’s just say I’m working on a specific date, but as of now no release date yet. I’m thrilled that others are as excited as I am to have Ridge’s story published. It’s turning out to be quite a story and I can’t wait for you to read it.

Make sure you go to my website and enter the Rafflecopter to win a audiobook copy of Faith Through The Tears. Enter everyday if you want to. The response to this story has been really wonderful. On Audible.com I’ve had so many beautifully sweet reviews and some made me cry. This story tore at my heart one moment and made me giggle the next. One woman wrote to me and said that I should give away a box of tissues with every copy.

What are you doing on this fine Monday morning?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Wednesday Inspirations…

As I sit here sipping my coffee and looking at the twinkling Christmas tree I’m inspired to write. This is the time of day that I sit and write. The hubby is off to work and my son off to school. I have a little time to contemplate my newest WIP and work on edits, not to mention blog posts and social media catch-up.

This morning I’m working on Ridge. I’m already madly in love with him and his ornery ways. He’s pulled at my heart strings for weeks because he’s such a deep person with real problems. I can’t wait for all of you to fall in love with him. It won’t be hard and then of course he has three brothers and a sister that will pull you into their lives. Since I love cowboy romance it’s nice to be back to writing what I really love.

Unfortunately my brain is already wanting to write another Christmas romance, but no I refuse to jump into the frying pan. I just hope I can keep it all at bay for a little while. I do have something in the works for release before Christmas, but we’ll see how that goes.

What are you working on today?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Saturday morning writing…

Good morning all! It’s really cold here in Georgia. I’m sitting by the fire with my second cup of coffee and checking my posts. I love this time when I’ve got a little time to write posts, post on sites and work on my writing.

Today I’m working on Ridge, which is the first installment of the 5 Oaks Ranch series. I can’t help but smile as I write each part. As you know me well, I’ve got the outline completed and know basically where the story is headed. Some days I’m so excited that I go ahead of myself. No actually I do. If a certain part is calling out to me, I’ll create a separate word document and get it down. When I actually get to that part, just copy and paste. It helps keep the overcrowding of my brain from completely taking over.

Ridge is a special character to me. He’s got this rough edge that just makes him pure cowboy. The time he spent in Iraq during his two tours of duty have given him a edge that will cut the most unwilling intruder into his world. His only soft spot is his little sister Maggie. The smile she gives him makes some of the stone around his heart chisel away. But the fun part starts the minute he meets Mallory, the new ranch vet. Their sparring will keep you wondering where it’s headed. The fun part is how Ridge avoids things that are unavoidable. Can she break the ice that’s totally Ridge?

For the next couple of weeks I’ll be working on his story. If everything goes well you’ll be able to meet Ridge before New Year’s but let’s just see how it goes.

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As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Thursday Morning Shout Out…

Good Thursday morning everyone. I know I’ve been a little lax in my posts, but I’ve been on a deadline with Her Wish For Christmas. It had to be downloaded by midnight Monday and I met that deadline with six hours left over. That book took a lot out of me because of the emotionally charged content. When I typed the last words and finished the edits I was tickled pink with the results. My editor finished the final read and when she was done, the smile that spread across her face was priceless.

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It’s been a crazy couple of weeks around here. Of course with my other job as an Accountant, I had end of month, end of quarter and end of tax year. Also had Fall Festival and Trunk or Treat at Church. SO I’ve been a busy little bee lately, but if you’ve read many of my posts you know this is how I like it. The busier the better I always say.

Now that the Christmas book is in Amazon’s hands, I can focus on Ridge. It’s the first book in the new series that’s about a family owned ranch and it’s five children. Each one of them has their own special issues and personalities. Since I’m a cowboy romance writer at heart, this one is exciting. What can I say, I love cowboys and getting to write about them is fun. All I’m planning to say is I can’t wait for you to meet Ridge, the oldest brother. He’s my favorite sibling so far, but once I get into the other’s I’m sure I’ll fall in love with them too. Keep watching for updates on The Five Oaks Ranch series.

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The article that I wrote for Southern Writer’s Magazine is out in their Nov/Dec issue. I’m really happy with the results and can’t wait to see the results. If you don’t already subscribe to this magazine, then I suggest you run, don’t walk over to their website and subscribe. It’s a must have for writers. Here’s a little snippet of the article.

Stephanie Hurt - SW teaser 2014.

Hope all is well with everyone and here’s a little shout out for my publishing service which is having a Christmas sale. We’re offering 10% off all services offered through our company. Find out more at our new website: horseshoe-publishing.com.

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As always great writing and May God Bless You…