So I took a long break from writing to "pursue" other things. I help my older family members with their online endeavors (my uncle wrote a book about natural medicine and sells local NJ honey) and any issues with their retirement, benefits, renewing licenses, and things of that nature. Ho…

I love writing books. I hate the business of selling books. Yeah, I know. Sounds like I'm whining, but it's true. I love story telling, and creating characters and worlds and life and death situations and romance and everything involved in this art. I even like editing! Truly! Few things ar…

“Please don’t!” Joshua begs from his knees. The link chains bound by a lock have bruised his wrists, radiating immense pain throughout his arms. It compares little to his four broken ribs stabbing his torso. Bill towers over Joshua’s broken frame, scowling at the pitiful sight, holding a baseball…

I LOVE Jane Austen novels. If I could, I would go back and live in her world, BUT.... only as Jane Austen. Or, maybe as myself. Need to think about that for a bit... Back then, in England, women didn't have a lot of rights, or respect as writers, or respect in general. They were still considere…

I remember when I completed my very first novel, way back when, I didn't want to delete a single thing. Not a line, not a scene. It was all too precious. My heart and soul went into weeks and weeks of writing. It's perfect just the way it is. I laugh when I think about this. How egotistica…

It's been a while since I have posted anything about my current work-in-progress and that's because I've been a bit busy with it. If all goes according to plan, the 3rd book in the Family Relics series, The Dragon Amulet, will be out this summer. Woohoo!!  And, of course, while in the m…

Stardate : 663161 --- “Dig. Dig. Dig. It’s a temporary gig.”  Today is my first day on Nero-12.  A mist of dust twirls in the air and scratches my cheeks as I shovel dirt over my shoulder. I raise my hand to wipe my face, but my thick glove prevents me from doing so. The sense of urgenc…

After submitting my manuscript to my editor for the first of several rounds of editing, I spent, possibly, a full week writing the blurb to my novel. The blurb is the back of the book cover, the text on your book page, the text that people will read when they are considering buying your book. I hav…

The question for this month's IWSG post is "How do you define success as a writer?" For me, it's when I hold the print book in my hands during the final product review, and I try to convince myself that I actually wrote it all. It happens after each book. I'll read a passage o…

Last night I watched Leonel Messi lead Argentina's national soccer team to win the Copa America semi-final against Colombia with a bloody ankle. It was amazing the way he was targeted. He was masterful, unstoppable and the only way to take the ball from him was to tackle him full-body or by sli…

For this month's IWSG post, I thought I'd have a little bit of fun. I created a mini mantra, or secondary mantra, of the things that has somewhat defined my life as a writer.   #1 - I drink loads and loads of coffee when I write. I mean I have to seriously stock up. I look for coupons. My …

One summer morning in 2018, my daughter and I went on a mother-daughter date to a popular pancake house in a nearby town. We went on a Tuesday to avoid the weekend crowds, and so that we wouldn't be rushed. The best mother-daughter conversations burst from binging on pancakes and coffee.  And …