My Promise to Me

If you remember, back in December I received the personal revelation to "quit your job and write."

I quit my job. Now, about that second part....

You and I both know things have been crazy. Death in the family. Appliances going bonkers. Computer crashing. Kids breaking bones. Illness. The list goes on. But, really, what happens without change? Nothing. I don't move forward. My family stagnates. Not fun.

So I've taken some advice from the irrepressible Jenni James deeply to heart. And I wrote out my own plan for the next year.

Starting with February. It's The Lost Princess month! This book will be finished and to the editor by February 25th.

Then in March I have a little ghost writing project to complete, finishing it up in April when I will then tackle the next 200 pages of City of Light.

Basically, it's like this: While the kids are in school, I'm writing. If I'm not writing, I'm editing. I have plenty of time to get my social networking in, or relaxing, or reading, after the kids go to bed. While the kids are home, I belong to them. In the summer I'm going to edit more because it's easier for me to do it in chunks.

And by February 2014 I will have published 4 more novels and 3 more short stories.

Whew. That's big. That's like, a year. Epic. But I'm going to do it.

Here's the publishing rundown:

The Lost Princess will be out May 27, 2013.
City of Light will be out August 26, 2013.
Verity (title pending) will be out September 11, 2013.
Price of Love will be out October 5, 2013.
Beauty of Others (working title) will be out November 30, 2013.
By Degrees will be out January 4, 2014.
Tea for Two will be out February 1, 2014.

So, if you don't see me online much you'll know why. I'm making my dreams happen. I can do it, too, with a LOT of help from God and a little help from my friends. :)

Life Edit

Occasionally a writer has to eat her words, and even those words aren't terribly tasty. A few weeks ago I told you all about The Price of Love, my "perfect for Halloween" story I planned to launch as an e-book last week. Lacking the huge fanfare and announcement that it's actually for sale now, I'm sure you've guessed where this is heading.

I got into the story to edit it, and found it needs SO much more work than I first thought. My initial fondness for the story had made me blind to how much I have grown as a writer since. And, so far, only one scene has been rewritten. Oddly it's a really critical scene near the end of the story.

Now, I'll let you in on what's going to happen from here. I'm going to work on this story off and on in my "free" time and get it nicely polished for NEXT Halloween. I may release it before then, if I'm really happy with it, but I doubt sales will be that good until the creepy season hits again.

I'm sorry to have disappointed you. Trust me, I'm disappointed too. But, sometimes, we just can't have what we want.

For My Next Trick

"Hey, Rocky! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat."

"Again?!"

I have no idea where Rocky and Bullwinkle came from this morning. There's really no point in asking. Let's just hope it's not going to be a Rocky and Bullwinkle kind of day.

Get moose and squirrel!

K, I think I'm done.

As I tie up the edits for The Tyrant King, I find myself looking ahead to those days when I wait to hear back from my betas and then the days (and weeks) while I wait to hear from my editor. What should I work on next? The obvious answer is The Lost Princess. She's actually my November project this year. What do do in October?

I think it's time for another e-book, myself.

The Price of Love, tentative release HALLOWEEN. Set in beautiful Scotland in an ancient manor house, this is one love story gone wrong that will send shivers up your spine.

Alita is thrilled to travel to Scotland to meet her future in-laws and plan the final details of her wedding. That is, until she meets her fiance's mother. Then Alita starts having strange dreams, dreams of dying a horrible death--dreams that spur her to dig into an ages-old mystery, and in the process learn not everyone is as they seem.

Yeah, you're right. I need to work on that synopsis. It's early, mind, and I haven't had a lot of sleep. :P

Look for more updates on The Price of Love in the coming weeks.