Secrets Secrets

I know that secrets aren't any fun but I have one, and it's about my writing! Finally, right?!

Now, this isn't my typical kind of project, hence the secrecy, I don't want to speak too soon. But I wanted to let ya'll know that I'm working on something! One thing I can say is this, if you haven't already, pick up a copy of The Wanderer and read it!

I make no promises, those are hard to keep when not everything's in your control, and everything's a far shot in the world of writing but I'm super excited and at the very least I'm branching out. Best case scenario....just pure awesomeness.

I know, that was a whole lotta nothing right? haha. My apologies. Like I said, for now, catch yourself up! This could be big!!!

The Curse of the Trilogy

I've thought a lot about making Volition into a trilogy. I've gone back and forth about it on many occasions. I have a loose idea of where the trilogy would go but the things is...the series is perfect on it's own. The two books are enough to capture the story I wanted to tell. A third book would take the last element of Severance and run with it, making it very different from the first two. I love the concept I have on the backburner, which is what makes it so hard to make the call of ending the series at two books. However, I just don't have enough information to complete it. And it really doesn't fit well with the series as a whole. It's a left field story.

The fact is, too many trilogies exist that might have been better left at two. It's as if two is such a strange number that they HAVE to write three to make it fit. Maybe they just want to profit from one more book in the series. Who knows. But I don't want to trick my fans into buying another book to find that they don't enjoy it. That's not fair to readers. They are reading my books because they enjoy them, the last thing I want to do is have them buy a third book to a series that would have been better left unwritten.

In saying that, if I decide later to write a third, know that in my eyes it has to be better than the first two combine. So it will be well worth the purchase and the read. Otherwise, why even write it???

My current focus is going to be on helping my sister complete her first novel. From there I hope to pick up my next book. Whether it be a book I've already started or a new idea entirely, you'll just have to wait and see!

A Mean Green Healthy Machine

It's still going to be a little while until I plan to write again. As a new mom my current focus is on my health. If you've been following me for a long time you may already know that I try and stay active and healthy. I've never been a "dieter" I am in pretty good shape as it is so I've never felt the need to go to extremes. But here's the thing. Skinny does not equal healthy. I'm not a crazy health nut but I'm starting to wonder why not. After all, what we put in our bodies is literally what we become. It's what our body uses to stay functional. Why wouldn't you want what you put into your body to be the best?

I'm a breastfeeding mother so any changes I make have to be gradual and with my baby in mind. To the same affect, this gives me even more reason to be healthy. Since becoming pregnant I've been focused on my health, though I have not be strict about it in the least. I've also started working out, trying to tighten up my stomach and lose those last few pregnancy pounds.

I've even put up a "motivation" wall....right on my refrigerator.

 

On this motivation wall I have photos, workout challenges, and a goal shopping list.

But what really changed things...what put me into mindset to make a drastic change in myself was the documentary Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead.

(Check out the trailer)



This documentary really opened my eyes. If you are looking to lose weight or even just get healthier check this movie out. We as a nation spend so much money on magic pills, gym memberships, and foods we think are good for us. When in fact, all we need to do it take in more of the stuff that makes our bodies thrive.

Needless to say, my husband and I started juicing right away. However, we didn't own a juicer. SO, as a start, we used our blender. Excuses are the first wall you'll find yourself coming up against. Be sure to scale them without a second thought.

 

 

 

 

So we got some veggies and fruits, I blended up two different juice batches, and we started supplementing this chunky juice. Our plan is to have the juice along with the food we already purchased, so as not to waste the food we have in our fridge. If your situation is more extreme then by all means, toss the junk in your fridge and cabinets. We however, are not looking to throw away money, haha.

 

The same night I made our first batch of juice we also ordered our first juicer! Once it arrives we will be doing a strictly juice diet.

 

(Here's the link for this particular juicer that we purchased: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003R28HWQ/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 )

 

We did a fair amount of research before settling on a juicer. It's not one of the cheaper ones but it's not one of the expensive ones either. We wanted to buy a quality juicer but at the same time, this is our first experience juicing so we didn't want to go crazy before we knew whether or not we'd stick with it.

 

I've made a few attempts at changing how I eat and live in the past, all failed attempts. I want to be healthy. That's the end goal. The hope is that this becomes a new way of life for us. What I hope even more is that you'll look into it as well, and spread the word. We only have one life, make it a healthy one and stop making excuses!!!

Checking In

It's been a little while since I've written a blog post or written...well, anything. Motherhood has certainly demanded the majority of my time. But I'll be honest, my time away from writing has also been elective. There is ALWAYS time in the day to write if you want to make it but the last few months, for me, have been all about family. I would much rather elect to take a break than to find that I wasn't able to make the time despite my desire to do so.

I've been focusing mainly on mommy duty, my wifely commitments, and taking care of my post-baby body. I'm happy to report that all is well. And once I am certain that everything for "me" has been covered than I am positive that there will be no distractions for my writing.

 

I can't imagine that anyone could fault me for letting this little guy take up my attention!

 



M.I.A. but A.O.K.

As some of you may know, my husband and I had a baby in late January, so as you can imagine...the world has all but revolved around our little man ever since. That being said, it's been a while since I've written, and I won't lie...I've hardly even thought about it. I've been reading (thank goodness) and I have plans to pick up with my writing but I'm not rushing things so I hope ya'll will bear with me as it may be a little while until my next book is out.

With my husband set to deploy again in the following months I'm certainly not making any plans to start writing before then, but seeing how Volition and Severance were children of a deployment, you can certainly count on me brushing off my keyboard and settling in to write another book during that time.

As for what to expect from my future works? It's really hard to say. I've been asked plenty of times if I think motherhood will change my writing style or direction at all. The answer to that is, I honestly can't say. I've definitely considered writing about a mother but I'm absolutely positive that I have minimal experience and know-how and I don't want to come off as if I'm already a pro at it. So to instantly start writing in that direction is probably highly unlikely. And, while children's books are entirely out of the question, it's not something I look to start doing right now. Maybe as a personal project but not as a published one.

My husband has also been requesting a tragedy. Something more raw and heartbreaking than my usual love stories. Because I stepped a bit out of the box with Know Thy Neighbor (testing out the waters of the thriller, action, and suspense genres) I'm not entirely against it. The only thing is that I need to have a solid story. I imagine that if said story is ever taken any further than a simple suggestion that it will take longer than my typical few months to "bang out". Then again, who knows. But with a little one and the desire to document his every move so that his daddy doesn't miss a thing, it can be expected that a lengthy wait would be reasonable before you can pick up my next book.

Of course, I still have a few books on the back-burner await future ingredients... But it's too soon to be able to say whether they'll ever really take off. I just don't want to rush anything.

The truth is. I'm just enjoying the moment. It's been a month of being a mom now and I really do love it more than anything. I look forward to writing again but for now I hope you'll be happy to catch up on my currently published works.

Until next time, happy reading. :)

Both The Wanderer and Know Thy Neighbor Available for $0.99 for a Limited Time!

Any day now we are expecting to welcome our first child into the world and I wanted to celebrate with you guys. So, to commemorate this awesome news I wanted to offer you The Wanderer at a discounted price of only $0.99.

I chose The Wanderer because we are naming our son Landon James. When I wrote The Wanderer my husband and I couldn't decide on baby names for our future children and he'd vetoed Landon. Because I didn't think I'd be able to name my future son Landon I chose to give the name to one of my fictional Children, Landon Bradley, the main character in The Wanderer. Well...when I became pregnant and we found out we were having a boy the name grew on my husband and now I'm lucky enough to be able to have two children with the name.

In addition to giving you The Wanderer at a discounted price, I wanted to offer you all my latest novelKnow Thy Neighbor at a discounted price as well, just because. :)

I hope you enjoy them both!

The Wanderer: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/91848

Discount Code: UP43T

Know Thy Neighbor: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/268670

Discount Code: QT37Q

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