3 Cup Friday!!!

It’s Friday, I’m three cups of coffee in and I think I’m going for the whole pot. Why is it that I can’t get awake this morning? I’ve completed my 2-mile morning walk, ate breakfast, had a shower, but still, I’m foggy. So much for the 2 thousand word goal for the morning…

This has been one of those weeks. As an accountant, the end of a quarter and the end of the month means extra work, but on top of that, I’m a writer, so… To say I’m a little overwhelmed, well, that would be the understatement of the year. Oh, did I say I’m going on vacation tomorrow and haven’t packed a thing, not a thing! Usually, I’m the one that packs three days before vacation, but not this time. Ugh!!!

But other than that I’m totally pumped that the first three chapters of Tuscany edits have been sent to me and I’ve completed them and sent back to my Solstice Publishing editor. I was really glad it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. So, we’re one step closer to the publishing of Tuscany!

So, have another cup of coffee and enjoy your day, but remember, it’s Friday!

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Throwback Thursday! Tender Flames…

Tender Flames revised cover

It’s hard to believe this book came out in May 2012. Wow, times flies when you’re having fun. Since this release so much has happened in my writing career. I’ve been featured in Southern Writers Magazine multiple times, I’ve published over 20 books, I made it to the top 55 in the 2015 Harlequin So You Think You Can Write contest, and this year I signed a publishing contract with Solstice Publishing. It’s been such an amazing ride.

Tender Flames is the 2nd book I published and the first one to make me ugly cry while I was writing it. I actually had to stop and compose myself so that I could finish one part. This book will take you on a roller coaster of emotions, from laughter, grief, excitement, anger and so on. I revised it last year and reinvented the cover, which by the way I love. I’ve had a lot of response from this book, which makes me smile.

Get your copy of Tender Flames and start the journey of the love triangle that will leave you smiling… https://www.amazon.com/Tender-Flames-Revised-Love-Book-ebook/dp/B0084USOE2

Book Trailer:

Hope you enjoyed the trailer!

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Sunday Morning Reflections…

Zee Monodee

Yeah, I wish I was sitting here right now, but I’m not. Here in Georgia, it’s really hot and humid, which means you go outside for just a few minutes and you feel sticky. So, I choose to stay in as much as possible.

SO, on to today’s post. I’m working on the last book in my ‘Lean on Him’ series and it’s hard. As a writer, I become comfortable with my characters and my series. Although most of this series doesn’t contain the same characters, but it does contain the same message about Faith and how it can heal you. This one is like a soul searching piece of work and sometimes when we dig too deep, it reveals something about us.

Have you ever written a manuscript and it made you think, really think? I love when a manuscript touches your heart. That means it will touch the reader and that makes me smile.

I hope you have a wonderful Sunday and stay cool.

As always, good writing and May God Bless you…

Friday Ramblings…

So, it’s Friday! It’s a three day weekend!!! Everybody is excited about three days off work, but as a writer, we get excited that it’s a three-day writing palooza. Yes, I said palooza!

I sat down at 5:30 this morning, yes, I was up that early. Menopause will be the death of me, but anyhoo, I was up looking at my writing schedule and figuring out my word count for the three day weekend. Well, let’s just say I’m behind on one and ahead on another. So what does that tell you? Yep, I got so into writing on one manuscript that I totally avoided the other one. That’s not good because that puts me behind schedule. Of course, after I thought about it, if I finish one of them early, I’ll have time to finish the one lacking in word count. Yea!!!

Ok, so I’m a little giddy about the thought of writing for three days straight. It’s a writer thing. When we get a chance to write without our day job getting in the way, it makes us writers smile.

And if you wonder if I have holiday plans, yes I do. I’m heading to my mom’s lake house for the 4th, but I’ll be home writing and outlining for two days!

What are you up to on this long weekend? Working on anything exciting?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

My Characters are fighting me!

Ok fellow writers, you know what I mean when I say, ‘My characters are fighting me!’ It’s the craziest thing. You’ve got the outline, it seems to flow pretty well. The middle and ending are completely figured out in my head, but my characters are not flowing well in the front.

What do I mean? Well, let me explain myself. I’ve worked on the first couple of chapters, but they don’t seem to work. My characters are very familiar to me because this is the 2nd book in a series, so it’s not that. It’s having all the characters together at one time. Which is crazy, right? Every time I start working on it, everything seems off.

So, what do I do? One thing I’ve done is put it out of my mind completely, well not completely but out of sight. I’m taking a little break from it, then will go back fresh and start in the middle where the story is the strongest for me. Let’s just hope the front part comes to me as I write the middle and ending. Thank goodness for Scrivener!

Do your characters give you problems? How do you handle them?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

But one good thing about this one, the cover is beautiful and completed! Here’s a sneak peak!

Lacey's Choice front cover

Sunday morning thoughts…

series ad

As I sit here sipping my coffee, waiting to dress for Church, I need to be working on my latest WIP, but this morning, just thinking about it is enough. Then my thoughts went to my two pirates. With a full publishing schedule through the end of the year, writing another pirate book is not on that list, but what if…

So, what does this mean, well, it means that if the pirate that’s niggling my writer brain wants to come out, I’ll have to work really hard to squeeze him in. As always, I’ll figure it out. Maybe I’ll finish one of my projects early, then I’ll start a new pirate romance. My fans seem to fall in love with my pirates, so I have exciting news for my pirating loving friends. These two pirates will be coming out in one book soon, really soon and here’s the cover for that book union.

Full Cover

Yeah, I’m loving this cover for the series compilation. It’s so gorgeous! So, for my fans that love my two favorite pirates, here’s a special edition.

I hope you enjoy your Sunday. Go out and do something fun.

As always, great writing and May god Bless You…

Feeling the heat…

26777605083_4323e8fd6d_m

Good Thursday morning! I hope that you’re staying cool in the heat that has moved in. Summer is coming in like a lion. Here in Georgia, it is hot and humid. I call it murky. So, stay inside if you can and ride it out.

Now on to today’s post. Have you ever been working on a manuscript and it just wasn’t coming together? I’m in that spot at the moment. The manuscript is at a dead stop. The strange thing is, I can see the middle and the end just fine, it’s the first part that’s giving me the hiccups. I don’t know why, but it’s making me feel the heat in more ways than one. I have to say that this is the first manuscript that’s baffled me.

You may be saying, maybe it’s time to put it aside, but I can feel this one deep in my heart. It’s driving me crazy. If I couldn’t see the middle and last, then I’d give up for a while, but the characters are pulling at me. This book is totally outlined, but the first say four chapters just don’t sound right. So, today I’m starting work on the middle and end, hoping for some inspiration for the problems plaguing the first part. Let’s hope it helps. I just can’t see dropping it totally.

I wouldn’t call it totally ‘writer’s block’, but maybe ‘partial block’. Has this ever happened to you?

Some of you have been asking about the publishing contract I signed last week. Well, it’s going well. The manuscript is in editing and will be returned to me shortly for my side of the process. I have to tell you, Solstice is on the ball. They’ve already created the cover, which I’ll post as soon as the time draws near. It’s a great cover and I can’t wait to start posting it everywhere. The blurb is in their hands now. All that’s left is my author photo, which will be taken today, and the acknowledgements page along with the dedication page. I’m working on those. It’s been a busy couple of days as I’ve worked on getting everything to them on time. And yes, I’m still smiling broadly.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

How many words?

Good Wednesday morning! It’s looking to be a warm one here in Georgia. Thank goodness I’m working inside.

As for my writing, one of the things I struggle with is how long should my manuscript be. When I set up my writing schedule, it was important to know what count I was shooting for. As I looked at the work in question and worked on the outline, my mind went to many questions and I’ll share them with you now.

Can my plot sustain itself into a 50k+ book or only a 25K novella?
Will my story hold together and is it long book worthy? (Some books are best left short and sweet)
Do I have enough of the book in my head to make the book work?

I know the questions sound similar, but they’re totally different. My plot has to be strong enough to sustain a book. If not, all I have is a couple of pages of short story. Then you have the story that goes into expanding the plot, is it strong enough to make a big book or a novella. I’ve had manuscripts before that I started out wanting a 50K+ book to come out of it, but soon I figured out that if I went past say 25K it would lose some of its strength. And who wants to read fluffy filler that is only used to expand the word count.

The biggie, and of course, if you’ve read my blogs long enough, then you’ve seen me talk about this before, is the story in my head strong? Most of my books come to me start, middle and finish style. If I can’t see the end of the book, most of the time I won’t schedule it until I do. If I can see the end, then I pretty much know the story has some merit, for one reason, then I know where it’s head and what it will take to get it there.

So, when you sit down to start a manuscript, do you have an idea on word count or is it a fly by the pants sort of thing? Since I’ve started scheduling my books and my writing time, I have to keep the status quo, but I was one of the pantser’s for several years.

As always, good writing and May God Bless you…

TBT – Moonbeam & Roses

Moonbeam & Roses New Cover

Moonbeam & Roses came out in July 2012! So I’m throwing back four years… This book pulled at my heart strings. It includes romance, drama, and healing of the spirit all in one book. As I wrote this book, I wondered how I would take the traumatic injuries that the heroine had.

Here’s a little excerpt to give you an insight into Moonbeam & Roses:

As Wes came up behind her, she suddenly felt different. Her heart was suddenly fluttering wildly. It had to be the beauty of the night sky and the scent of the honeysuckle vines growing along the fence outside the barn. He put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it affectionately. “What’s on your mind? You have been unusually quiet tonight.” She turned and smiled up at him. “I guess my mind is on this beautiful night. The stars are so bright.” She leaned her head against his chest, thinking how nice it was to be here with him. She looked up into his dark eyes. He was devastatingly handsome, with his dark hair and rugged face, not to mention the black Stetson. He was definitely a cowboy to the bone.

Wes was also studying her face. She was a beautiful young woman. Her blonde hair was just past her shoulders. The moonlight reflected off it like moonbeams. She had hazel eyes so gentle; a man could drown in their depths. For the first time he was focusing on her like a man for a woman, not just a friend. He looked deep into her eyes. Slowly he lowered his mouth to hers and gently kissed her lips, careful not to linger for fear of losing control. When he lifted his head, she was smiling. “That was nice, but what did I do to deserve that?”

He laughed and hugged her close. “That was for being my friend and listening to my problems. I need to talk to you. Let’s walk down to the house, I need a drink.” He took her hand and they walked to his house. What was up with him? Serious was not one of his common emotions. When they were settled on his couch with waters in hand, he turned to face her.

“I have some news.” He paused to take a drink before he continued. “I received a call last night regarding a job in Montana. It is a great opportunity for me. I will be training horses for a large ranch. They will supply me with a house and stables for my horses.” He watched for any emotion on her part. “Sara, I told them I would take the job. I will leave in two days.”

For those of you that read my current work, my writing style has changed some, but the feelings behind the words are the same. If you haven’t read this one, then check it out. It’s available on most ebook and paperback sites.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Don’t forget about the fun giveaway I’m running…It’s in my posts…

Toes in the Sand Giveaway

Below are the ways to enter Stephanie’s latest giveaway. It starts now, and ends Wednesday, May 18^th at 10:00am. The winner will be given the option to pick any one of her many books as the prize! (this excludes collections) Make sure you are watching so you don’t miss any of the chances to get your name in the drawing.

On top of this over the next 9 days, if she reaches 200 likes on her author Facebook, and every 100 after that until the end of the giveaway, she will have a flash giveaway!