Could I get a hug with that drumstick?

Easter, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Four times a year I grant unto myself the freedom to indulge in potato salad, baked beans, squash casserole, dirty rice, ham, turkey, cake, pie… You get the picture. And yeah, I guess that should be over-indulge. Nor do I do this dirty deed alone. Oh, no. I drag my whole entire family to the table. Misery loves company, after all.

“Here, have a deviled egg. Take two, they’re small.”
“Want some Cool Whip with that pie?”
“Mmmmm, cornbread and collard greens, delicious.”
“Of course, I’d love another helping of dressing. Ladle on the gravy, baby!”

Gathering for a meal at the holidays is a ritual in our family. We meet, we eat, we talk, we laugh, and we renew the bonds that hold us together. Sometimes we even call a family gathering when there isn’t a holiday, just to shake things up a bit. You know, grill a few hotdogs and hamburgers, or fry up some fish and hush puppies. Not everything has to be about turkey and ham.

The best thing is that whatever the occasion, everyone always goes away full of more than just food. We stock up on hugs and smiles, encouraging words and humorous stories. Accomplishments are applauded. Failures are meticulously examined for silver linings and golden nuggets of wisdom. And dreams for the future are polished until they shine.

Yes, the fried turkey was juicy, the potato salad, perfect, and the pecan pie a slice of heaven, but though it may be the food that brings us together, it’s the heaping plate full of love that keeps us coming back for more.

An Author is Born

I can't believe it. Here it is only a year after I completed the first draft of Bloodsworn and I receive an email from a wonderful editor at Wild Rose Press informing me that she has received approval to offer me a contract on the book!

YES! I'm going to be a published author! God is good!

Can't sit back and bask too long, though. Time for edits and revisions, and re-writes now. Not to mention marketing classes. The hard work is just beginning. My schedule is going to be very busy the next few months. In addition to getting Bloodsworn ready for publication, I'm also working on another project.

Sniper Shots is a romantic suspense that recently finaled in The Golden Pen contest. Contest results should be announced by December 1st and I'd like to have the book finished by then. Not sure if such a deadline is feasible but I'm going to give it a shot.

Oh, and I'm going to have to start blogging a lot more often than once a year. :-)

Well, here it is November already. Remember that plot bunny I mentioned back in April? Well, I finished it in October! Yippee! I’ve titled it Bloodsworn. My mother was the first to read it and loved it…thank goodness, since I really wrote it for her. I kind of like it myself, even if it is 178,000 words. Yeah, I know, kind of long for a book, but it seems to read well. You can check out the first chapter under ‘Stories’ and see what you think.

Something else I’ve done a few months ago is join RWA (Romance Writers of America) and my local chapter TARA (Tampa Area Romance Authors). What a fantastic bunch of people. They made me feel very welcome the first day. And guess what? One of my very favorite authors is TARA president! C.L. Wilson! I had no idea she lived so close.

Anyway, they have workshops and guest speakers who give us struggling authors pointers in how to get our works published. Wonderful! Just what I need. Now, if I can just get some of the ladies who are already published to read and critique my book…

Oh well, even if that doesn’t happen, I’ve enjoyed writing the three books I’ve finished and look forward to my next project. What is it, you ask? Well, I thought I’d take a shot at writing a category story, something for Silhouette’s new Nocture Bites series. I’ve had a plot bunny on the back burner about a dragon dragged into our world by some enemies out to steal his magic. Changed into human form, he hooks up with a nurse who tries to help him. Sparks fly, fires smolder, and the two burst into some seriously seductive romantic flames. My only problem will be in keeping it short and sweet. (See Bloodsworn’s length above.)

Oh, and my oldest brother wants me to help him write this romance story he’s been working on. Can you believe it?!?! My brother!!! Ah, well, the man has always been full of surprises. And his story’s not half bad, actually. I’ll definitely have to squeeze it into my schedule.

Well, hope everyone out there had a great Thanksgiving. One of my other brothers who lives in north Florida is coming down for Christmas so I’m really looking forward to it.

Here’s wishing you a Merry Christmas too!

WRITING UPDATE
I am pleased to announce that the first draft of The Winglyth King--Book II in The Measure of a Queen series--is complete.

Actually, it was complete a couple of months ago. I haven’t been very enthused about blogging since what I would really like to blog about is the selling of my series, but that hasn’t happened yet.

I did send off three proposals on March 22nd for Fire and Ice.
We’ll see what happens.

In the meantime, I have started Book III, but something has come up so I’ve had to set it aside.

That something started out as a Plot Bunny.
What is a Plot Bunny, you ask? Well, sometimes stories just pop into a writer’s mind and demand to be written. The best thing we writer’s can hope for is to jot them down to keep them from hopping around and interfering with the current project. Problem is, a Plot Bunny can turn into a full blown project in a heartbeat.

Such a thing happened when I tried stuffing ‘Bloodsworn’ in its bunny hole. As I wrote it down, it became too large to fit into the hole. I had no choice but to grant it project status.

*Sigh* It has since taken over.
Already it’s over 50,000 words—about half a book.

The main characters are a woman from Earth, Avera St. John, and a man named Devlin Tragar from a planet called Avalyr.

The story is growing by leaps and bounds and I hope to have it finished soon. Put it this way, I had better. I made the mistake of letting my mother read the first chapter. I warned her it wasn’t finished, but I still got a phone call the next day demanding the rest of the story.

Hence, my furious writing schedule lately.
It’s nice to know I have at least one fan. *smile*

Summer Update

Well, not a lot to report. Haven't heard anything back from the literary agent I sent my proposal to back around the 1st of May. I'm beginning to wonder if he ever got it. Sent it by email so I should probably try doing a snail-mail send and see what happens.

I did get the proposal sent off to AMG Publishers a few weeks ago. Got a quick reply from the acquisitions manager who said he'd get back with me this summer. I'm praying, but not holding my breath.

I've already done research on who I'll submit it to next...just in case.

Book II is coming along well. I hit a snag about the middle of July, but I think I'm past that now. New characters and story lines are cropping up, of course, so I'm having to start another tab in my SuLoPedia to keep track of them so I can go back and work on them later.

One of the characters, a man named Danrin, is going to play a big part in the overall story line. You won't see him in Book III, but he'll be back in IV and V.

I've also been bugged by another set of characters altogether who's story takes place many years before Ceralyn's. They pestered me for three days until I finally sat down and wrote the beginning of their tale. I've decided I'm going to start posting these short stories just for kicks. The one I've just finished is tentatively entitled 'Talia', but I'm looking for that to change as the story reveals itself later.

Another one is a much longer version of the Prologue for Book I. Not titled yet, but will be by the time it's posted.

The third one that's completed is called Nadea and the Wolf and involves Navarre's younger brother, Faolan.

Hope to have all of these posted soon...