Ice Princess Release

To say I'm excited would be an understatement. I'm over the moon! Dancing in the streets!

In case you're not sure what the heck I'm even talking about, my debut...yes debut, novella Ice Princess, Book 1 in the Honey Creek Royalty series released today!

 Currently, it's available on Amazon, Smashwords and soon on our TMP website and Barnes & Noble.

Thank you to my editor, Wendy, my publisher, Kim and Julie who helped me find my way to Honey Creek. A special big hug and kisses to my family. Thank you for putting up with my rants and long nights typing away. I love you!

Countdown

I've been a little MIA lately and I'm sorry. Life away from writing has kept me busy. It's the start of baseball/softball season at my house while indoor soccer still lingers. I'm actually counting down the days till summer vacation so I can at least cross homework off our nightly routine.

While life is still happening so is my writing life. Currently, I'm stuck in editing world with two (yes I said two) manuscripts that need my attention. Both are scheduled to release next year. Yet I have to keep in mind that Ice Princess, my first YA, is coming out this year. April 29th. 5 DAYS!

Waiting for it to release I kind of feel like a I'm waiting in line to see the dentist. Completely necessary, yet I could come out on the other side happy or sad. And a dose of drugs sure could help!

But seriously, no matter what, I'm over the moon with excitement. I did it. I set out to be a published writer and I'm doing it. My only hope is that everyone enjoys my book as much as I enjoyed writing it for you.

Here's a little something to hold you over until next week (BTW, once it releases, I will be posting like crazy all the details):

Mya Newman never minded the routine or quiet that came with living in a small country town like Honey Creek, Ohio. For her senior year, she craved something exciting to happen instead of it melting into a cookie cutter routine like the previous years.
When a new girl, Audrey Moore, moves to Honey Creek, Mya finds herself caught in a triangle. She discovers hidden feelings for her best friend, Michael Graves, but he seems to have eyes for the new girl.
After Mya’s father becomes ill and eventually passes, she turns to her best friend, Michael. Never leaving her side, she can’t help but wonder if he’d rather be elsewhere. With fear of rejection and loss of friendship, Mya decides she can’t confess her recently discovered feelings.
When Michael and Mya share a dance at the Winter Formal, does she confess her true feelings for him? Or does she shy away, forever longing to be the princess who finds her prince?

For those of you that review YA, I've got an ARC copy waiting to send you. Leave me a comment with your email and web address (so I can check you out) and I will send you a copy.

Thank you again for all your support.

I need more books!

Two years ago, I had the pleasure of escorting my 80 year old grandmother to Stevens Point, Wisconsin to receive her award for an afgan contest. She came in first place for her division. Here is the one she won last year.  Here is the one she won this year. As you can see, I'm very proud of her.

Anyway, after we were delayed at our home airport for 4 hours we finally made it to Minneapolis, where we waited another 2 hours before we boarded a prop plane to Stevens Point. I wouldn't classify this as fun. And did I mention my grandmother had to be wheeled around everywhere because she'd sprained her foot a week prior to our trip. And if you've ever been to Minneapolis' airport, good golly, is it every big. And full of every story you could think of.

Back to my point. Monday I mentioned the need for me to have multiple books for a plane ride. Well, I started a new book the night before our trip and by the time we were waiting in Minneapolis, I'd already finished the book and knew I'd have more down time. I had nothing else with me. Not a thing and the bookstore/stand at the airport was blah! Or at least the ones in our terminal...at the farthest edge of the airport....away from all the cool stores....I couldn't go to with my crippled grandmother.

Let me back up. I became hooked to True Blood on HBO way before I discovered the books. So a friend knew this and told me to try the series. I  hadn't read anything vampire related since Twilight. As you can imagine, I was hooked. Sookie, Bill and Eric were my everything. I wanted to devour each book. And I did. Eventually. When I returned home 2 days later from the trip. Ya see, we didn't have a car in Stevens Point and there isn't much there to do...or buy there. So I was stuck with a return flight and nothing to read! 

I did survive...but just barely!

Take my advice, always be prepared!

Travel Stresses Me Out...Sort of

I would never admit this to my husband but travelling stress me out. Not the actual trip but the prep work. I know you can purchase whatever you don't bring with you once you've reached your destination, unless you're travelling to a third world country, but I hate the hassle. Once I get to where I'm going I want to start relaxing or site seeing or whatever it is I'm supposed to be doing there. Not trying to decide where I should stop to get a tooth brush or underwear. And yes, I've forgotten underwear before.

Not only does the packing of suitcases get to me, I have 2 kids I need to pack for, but the carry-on bags are the worst. I mean, what can I bring that will fit within such a small space, especially if I'm flying on a plane. If you have kids, you might understand. You need snacks, entertainment, medicine, cuddle items, more entertainment and heaven forbid if they have an accident! Let me break down my dilemma...

1. Snacks: my brain hears trip and I'm instantly put in bad travel food mode. Salty, sweet, it doesn't matter. I want it. Sure, I want to eat healthy but on a plane, let's be honest. Not going to happen. In the car is even worse. We hit the road and I've already grabbed for a piece of beef jerky even if it's 7 a.m. And the kids. Of course I have to pack them stuff, me stuff and hubby stuff. Four different palates to please for a trip that could last 1 hour to 9 hours (our flight to Ireland was that long; luckily it was over night and they served a meal).

2. Entertainment: modern technology has really made travel easy and hard. Sure, there are tons of gadgets to keep the kiddos entertained but try lugging that crap around. Not fun. Between iTouches, eBooks and hand-held video games, I tend to run out of room.  And remember #1. Snacks take up space too. Plus, each kid has to have head phones so we don't disturb others although, during my flight home last night, I don't think the people behind me got the memo!

3. Books: of course I'd include this one. With my eReader, it helps cut back my load of books I bring when we travel, especially on a plane. And yes, I need more than one book while travelling. For example, we spend a week in MI every year and I bring at least 5 books while my family members do the same. By the end of the week, I could have easily read all of my books plus some of theirs! Even air travel requires at least 2 books for the plane. Later this week I'll share a story about running out of books while flying!  It was a tragedy!

Maybe it's just me, but packing takes some planning mixed with a little stress. When it's all said and done and we've reached our sandy beach, our lake view property or walk along the rocky shore of Ireland, I can relax and know I'll get to do it all again as soon we get ready to leave!  Please, share you tales. Am I the only one!

Book Nibbles

Here's another tastey treat: Love's Long Shadow by Ciara Knight. Prequel to the Battle of Souls series.

Sammy Lorre was cast from Heaven for conduct unbecoming an angel. Living in a demon infested small town with no memory of her previous life, she faces never-ending purgatory until Boon saunters into her life with a promise of angelic love. But is he an angel from Heaven or a minion from the underworld preying on her human emotions? To discover his true identity, she must risk eternal damnation and her heart.

My thoughts....
I've heard most people are not fans of novella's. They like a longer story. More details. And sometimes I agree but with a prequel to a series, I'm completely cool with it. Even a  series made up of novella's are great. Love's Long Shadow gave me just enough of a taste to make me want seconds. If you like angels, good vs. evil with a little light romance mixed in, then you've found a great way to start a series. The first book in the series, Rise From Darkness is also available through Amazon right now. But for a $1.99, how could you not want to get this Love's Long Shadow.

Happy Reading!