Happy Thanksgiving!

In honor of Thanksgiving being this week, I thought I'd write a post on a few of the things I'm thankful for. I'm thankful for my family and for my day job. I'm thankful for my writing and the fulfillment it gives. I'm also thankful for the fans of my books and the motivation they supply for me to do my very best.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday, and remember all of the things you have to be thankful for.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Time for an update!

Thank you all for waiting patiently while I continue to work on my books. I just wanted to give everyone an update so you know where I am at with my current projects. I finished writing Here After and sent it to my editor on October 15, 2012. She's given me a a lot of feedback so I can make it the best that I am able for all of you. I am also working with my artist to get the cover art for Here After up and going, so if all goes well, I'll have a picture to post shortly. I will let you all know as soon as I have an official release date for Here After.

Also, I've started to work on the third book in the Immortal trilogy, Eternity. I have set a deadline to finish this one sometime in May or June. I know that may seem like a long time, but please bear with me while I give this story the time and energy it deserves. Thank you again for your patience and support!

Poll Time!

Alright, before I post this I just want to make sure everyone knows this is for entertainment purposes only and will not influence my writing. With that said, I thought it would be fun from time to time to post a question about my books to see what the fans think. I know everyone will have different opinions and that is what makes this so fun. For scientific measure, I created a poll below so you can easily respond and we will be able to see the percentage of you who choose a particular answer. This is the first question that came to my mind, and I'm interested to know what you think. Feel free to leave comments about your choice below if you want to explain your answer, or if you would like to comment on this post in general. Happy polling!

online survey

The poll is now closed. Final results: 105 Total votes, 88 (84%) for Samuel, 17 (16%) for Duncan. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Current Project Updates

So, I have been getting many questions about my current projects "Here After" and the third book in the Immortal trilogy, "Eternity". This post will attempt to answer some of those questions.

Update on Eternity: Currently with my editor for final proof read should be released in January 2017

Update on Here After: Completed the writing and working on the first round of edits from my editor. Shooting for a release date some time in February or March of 2017. This will be the first book in the Here After chronicles.

Update on Here for Now: Second book in the Here After chronicles. I will begin the outline as soon as the editing for Eternity and first round of Edits for Here After are completed.

Thank you all for your support! I will continue to update my Facebook and twitter accounts on a regular basis so look there for the most up to date information. Thank you all again for your support and encouragement.

Updates: Not So Up To Date

Most of you I’m sure have noticed that I’m not the best at keeping everything updated. In an effort to combat my much belated updates and correspondence, I have hired someone to help me keep everyone in the loop. If you have, any questions or comments feel free to post them here or on my Facebook account.

Thank you all again for your patience and understanding during this transition.

Insight

First, let me explain how I write. I, unfortunately, do not write with a plan or outline in place. This is against every writing rule I was taught in school and every one I’ve read since putting my fingers to the keyboard to begin Immortal in 2010. This means I throw out a lot of what I write. Immortal alone I started over five times and probably threw out 80,000 words.

The reason I’m telling all of you this is three fold.

1)      For those who are writing or aspiring to write: Don’t give up. I have the worst writing habits in the world, yet I persisted, and because of it, Immortal and Forever were created.

2)      This means I am not a fast writer. If you add in the fact that I also have a full time job, two kids, and a husband, as well as writing but I hate excuses. I know, as a fan waiting over a year for Mass Effect 3 and three years three months for Inheritance by Christopher Paolini (see I’m a bigger dork than you thought) to come out I really do understand the frustration of waiting for the next book or game or even movies to be released.

3)      This also means that my most frequently asked question: When will Eternity, the third book in the Immortal Trilogy, be released? This question is actually hardest for me to answer. I would chalk it up there with Stephenie Meyers being asked about Midnight Sun. I know you all want a date now and the sooner the better. The thing is I needed a break from Immortal not a long break but a little one. Hence, the reason I am working on Here After my new series. I promise afterward I will be back to work on Eternity.

I hope this gives you some insight into what I’m doing and I hope you’re all willing to hang in there with me. The wait will be worth it.

Confusion

Many things confuse me. Like why are people so obsessed with reality television? Why is it so important to have someone retweet your tweet on Twitter? Why does it feel like an earth-ending apocalypse if no one responds to your comment on Facebook? And how in the heck do you use Google+?

I know some of my questions may never be answered but these things throw me for a loop. I’ve tried (with varying degrees of success) to understand these questions. Some braver souls have even tried to explain to me why it is so important to know what J. Lo was wearing on American Idol last night. I just don’t understand. 

I believe I may have discovered the reason for my confusion. I am shy. Simple enough. I don’t like to be singled out for either excellence or failure. Though I prefer to always be firmly seated in the excellent category. The thought of standing on a stage, even a virtual one, and being spotlighted is terrifying to me. The thought that anyone would care what I did today is a foreign concept. 

Perhaps this stems from my lack of popularity growing up. Yes, I was the dork sitting in the middle row hoping everyone would ignore me, but at the same time wishing with all my might that I could also be popular. So, I will continue to try to work through my confusion. I will attempt to become a more active participant in the social world. I just hope I don’t get in my own way.