I write in layers. That means, my first draft is mainly dialogue, character thought, and emotion. Once I complete the book, I go back in and add setting, description, movement, body language, and timeline. I used to weave my setting and timeline in as I wrote the first draft. Until my editor asked if I […]
20 Ways to Achieve a Healthy Book/Life Balance
Perhaps you’ve been there. The children are hungry for dinner. The laundry heaps on the bedroom floor are waiting for a fold. Your friends’ texts remain unopened. But you only have six chapters left in that book you’ve been anticipating for months. If that describes you, then you have an unhealthy book/life balance. If you […]
A New Leaf #Giveaway
So I got a new desk. I didn’t mean to. It was supposed to be for my husband. I do most of my furniture shopping on Facebook Marketplace and flea markets. I’d found a white desk just like it a few months ago, but it was three hours away. So when I found this one […]
Series Boxed Sets: Yea or Nay? + giveaway
In recent years we’ve seen a huge uptick in the sales of boxed sets for books, especially eBooks. I’ve been part of half a dozen MABS—that’s multi-author box sets—over the last few years myself, and as a reader I love those because I can get to sample new-to-me names. But today, I’m talking about single […]
Revisiting Characters
A Texas Bond, book three in my Texas Hill Country series, officially released last week. It was inspired partly by my husband and I dabbling in flea marketing after shopping them for years. The picture I included is the booth we had full of items we created or repurposed. It was fun fitting our […]
Dreams # Giveaway
These days, I hold writers’ hearts in my hands on a daily basis. And I’d love to make everyone’s dreams come true. But I can’t. I understand now why editors are so picky. I have editorial deadlines to meet, which allows a limited amount of time to spend on each book. If a book will […]
A Month of Christmas Books! + Giveaway
I have a thing for calendars. There, I’ve admitted it. I love them. I remember buying my grandmother one for Christmas every year, taking care to choose one with pictures sure to put a smile on her face (usually filled with lots of cats). As an adult, I buy a wide-box calendar for my fridge […]
Books & Puzzles # Giveaway
I love jigsaw puzzles, but it’s been several years since I’ve done one. When I was a kid, I remember my Uncle Spud always had a puzzle. When I visited or spent the night with my cousins, he’d let me ‘help’ with his puzzle. Over the years, my parents bought me puzzles and my love […]
Making Time to Read #Giveaway
The love of reading inspired me to be a writer. But since I started writing, I don’t have time to read. It’s a conundrum. When I read, I like to focus–to really give my time to the book and read it in two to three days. Over that last several years, I read a book […]
Between Books #Giveaway
Many moons ago, we saw a movie that inspired me. In the story, a young girl’s parents were authors. On deadline, they rarely spent time with her. Until they finished. When she came home from school that day, the whole family painted a room in their house. Though I’ve always made a point to work […]