Christmas in July...

Just kidding.

But, now that i have your attention for a few minutes...

Just wanted to check in, since I’ve sort of been AWOL out here lately…with good reason, I promise!! What’s going on with you? How’re you all dealing with this crazy 2020 so far? Are your states opening up little by little? I hope you’re healthy. Hope you’re seeing at least a little bit of good in life. I know this has been a rough year for everyone, but I have to admit, last year was far worse for me.

Not gonna go into all the sordid details, but if you’ve followed me long, you know my 2019 started out with surgery on my left foot. That set me back more than I thought it would, but then again, it was winter and cold and gross. I didn’t get out much; the girl kid was away at school, and JB was traveling a lot. Fast forward to our anniversary trip to Napa Valley in April of 2019 when our rental car was broken into, and we lost all of our electronics, including 17 chapters on my laptop I had not backed up, and little things like my prescription glasses, my credit card, and my driver’s license. (Please read the last 10 words with heavy sarcasm.) I still get angry, still feel violated, when I think about that, and it’s been over a year. And last but not least, my mom’s Alzheimer’s progressed to the point that Dad and I had to make the difficult decision to find memory care for her.

So, yes, 2020 has been different. Inconvenient. A little boring. But my family has been lucky through this quarantine. We're healthy, JB’s in an essential business, he’s been able to work from home some, and I’ve had my kids here with me since March. For us, it’s been good family time. We’ve had dinner together almost every night. My kids work together to cook; they’re experimenting and trying all kinds of new things. My dad joins us nightly for dinner, and my mom’s well-cared for. We play games. We take walks. Listen to music. We've done a lot of virtual visits and drinks since this started, allowing us to stay in touch with family and friends. And I've read nearly 90 books this year!!

I have to be honest. It would take a lot for 2020 to be harder on me than 2019 was. Again, I get it—it’s been a bad year for a lot of people. But for me, 2019 was so painful, it still hurts to look back.

Ok, so what I’ve been up to, you ask? What’s kept me away from posting any short fiction or blog posts? Well…I had foot surgery on my right foot four weeks ago yesterday…this recovery has been much easier. I’ve been able to get out a bit more, even just to sit outside on the deck. The pain has been better managed, and I’ve had a lot of company with the kids always around. I’ve also had a lot of reading and writing time! You can follow me on Goodreads and Bookbub to see what I'm reading and loving!

So…things I’ve been writing and have recently finished:

1. French Stuff a novella that will be part of the Just Coffee anthology with other amazing authors including Mignon Mykel and Aubree Valentine

2. Boone’s Girl a novella that will be part of another anthology TBA very soon

3. (Secret Title) a big fingers-crossed side project that I hope to share good news about soon

4. Mistletoe Mishaps a Christmas novella I hope to release this fall (doing edits now)

5. Plus One a lighthearted contemporary romance I hope to release this fall

6. Hookin’ Up the next H Book, hopefully out this fall

7. And another Side Project...

I’ve been busy…I finished Boone’s Girl and Plus One just this week, so they’re in edits now. I’m ready to dive back into Hookin’ Up and finish Parker & Vanessa’s story. And I’m so excited to get started on that last side project…

Keep checking back!! I promise to try to get something new posted out here on the short fiction page ASAP!!

#midsummerupdate #checkingin #howareyouguys #writingprojects #busybusybusy