May 28
LITTLE 15 passed the test of this feisty group of book clubbers in Lantana, Texas.
Place a novel in the hands of a book club and you’ll find out pretty quickly if it’s worth a read.
LITTLE 15 recently went under the scrutiny of some long-time book clubbers in Lantana, Texas, which is located about an hour northwest of where I live. All of these ladies are extremely well read, so I knew my book would be put under the microscope. Read more
May 21
Sometimes all you need is 20 seconds of insane courage,
Just literally 20 seconds of just embarrassing bravery,
And I promise you
Something great will come of it.
~Matt Damon as Benjamin Mee
I saw this quote on Stephanie Saye’s blog and loved it immediately. Her May 18 story about using it to give her son courage is well worth reading…
May 18
On a recent family movie night as we argued over calmly discussed which movie to watch , we came across the trailer for “We Bought a Zoo” starring Scarlett Johansson, Matt Damon, Elle Fanning and Thomas Haden Church. Although my husband and I concluded that this PG-rated film wouldn’t keep our three-year-old’s attention long enough for us to actually relax wasn’t suitable for our three-year-old, lines from one of the scenes in the 60-second clip unexpectedly moved me. In it, Matt Damon’s character is having a heart to heart with his son, who appears to be smarting over a failed relationship with a girl. The father offers his son a golden nugget of wisdom that sent me scampering from our family love nest in search of the nearest crayon and paper scrap to scribble it down. Here’s the scene:
May 16
Behind every good author, there often exists a team of seasoned publishing professionals that plays a key role in making things happen. My high-profile authoring career is no different. In fact, I’m so big time now (LITTLE 15 is currently ranked #289,633 on Amazon’s Kindle Best Sellers list – watch out E. L. James, I’m coming for you!), I’ve decided to hire an administrative assistant to take care of all those mundane tasks that take me away from penning the next New York Times best seller. Her name is Tyra and she has more than 10 years experience in publishing, during which time she has spent interning for yours truly. As all trusted colleagues and proteges should, Tyra has stayed right by my side through it all – during those early morning writing sessions and all the late ones that ran insanely too long. She has stayed calm when I’ve thrown tantrums, crumpled up paper, and cursed the writing Gods. She has watched me jump up and down like a crazed lunatic the day my agent signed me and has demonstrated unwavering compassion when rejection letters have found their way to my mail. Through thick and thin, she has stood by me, whatever the day, the mood or season. She is my mainstay of support, my silent champion, she is … dear friends … my cat.
And now, please, if one of you would be so kind as to buy my novel, LITTLE 15, then perhaps I can move one step closer to overtaking Ms. James, who I’m sure is shaking in her boots.
My assistant, Tyra, hard at work filling orders for my recent Goodreads giveaway.
May 10
“Blood of My Wings” by brothers Ian (7) & Luke (3)
I learn by going where I have not been,
Rising from my place of familiar,
I ignore discomfort and fear,
You don’t live here any more, I say,
Off with you! Leave me behind!
No longer do the tendrils of pain hold steadfast to my nerves,
For strength swells within me on the shore of my soul,
Blood drips where my wings have torn through my skin,
Spanning wide and setting me a sail, Read more
May 5
Introducing protagonist Elena Feather and bad boy Jackson Ively.
Well, folks, I’ve been tagged.
Writer, runner, mother and lawyer, E. L. Farris, has graciously pegged me as one of seven authors to share an excerpt from a work in progress, known in the writing world as the WIP. The tag is called the Lucky 7, and like most things that get passed around, Lucky 7 has its own set of rules. Here’s what you are supposed to do:
Open your WIP and:
1. Go to page 77.
2. Go to line 7 on that page.
3. Copy the next 7 lines, sentences, or paragraphs as they are written.
4. Tag 7 authors who also have Works in Progress.
Life Beyond LITTLE 15
For me, this comes at a good time. The last few months have required me to have a laser-fine focus on promoting LITTLE 15 and rightly so. Now that I’m a published author, no longer can I just hide behind my computer screen and indulge myself in the creative writing process for hours on end. Instead, now, I must get out there, connect with my readers and build my fan base. It’s an entirely different ballgame of social networking, speaking engagements and blogging. Although I’m enjoying very much this long-needed expansion of my career, I feel as if I’m starting to neglect what got me here in the first place – my writing. Believe it or not, there exists other compelling characters and stories in my repertoire besides LITTLE 15. In fact, I have an unpublished novel patiently waiting in the wings to lure you into its world. I call it SAWTOOTH and it holds a very special place in my heart; not only because it was the very first one I wrote, but also because it helped me land my agent, Evan Fogelman, which in today’s competitive publishing landscape, is extremely hard to do. On a much deeper level, though, SAWTOOTH in itself has been life-changing for me. In writing it, you see, I realized that God gave me the gift of storytelling – and the capability and strength to write and finish an entire 85,000 word novel. And that, my friends, has had a profound effect on my life as a writer, artist and individual. Read more
Apr 28
Pleasure Little Treasure
Let’s talk synchronicity for a moment.
The year was 1987. It was my 15th birthday and my dear friend, Lisa, gave me the latest album from the English electronic music band, Depeche Mode. The album was called Music For the Masses and came recorded on one of those nifty “cassette tapes” that fit nicely into something called a “tape deck.” Remember those? Read more
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