Hello!! Long time, no write. I'm sure you all thought I fell off the face of the earth since I've abandoned my blog for quite a long time. Things weren't (still aren't) going well in my quest to become a published author, so I needed a mental break. But I'm back, feeling rejuvenated and ready to rededicate myself to getting my books out there. Thank you all for hanging in there with me, and I hope you'll keep coming back.
I didn't abandon writing completely. For the past year, I've been busy making revisions and edits to Book One (Murdered by the Books) at the suggestion of a rather prominent publishing house. We went back and forth for months, and each time they indicated they loved my book and wanted to keep working with me on it. I sent my last edits months ago. The silence was killing me, so I finally emailed and asked about the status. I was informed the woman I'd been working with for over a year had retired. They invited me to send a synopsis and the first three chapters through their submission engine. Seriously?! This is tantamount to starting over. Again. I did as they asked, not expecting a good outcome. And that's exactly what I got. A polite no thank-you. I never expected to get published right away. But this is becoming ridiculous. It's never easy, is it?
Those of you who know me well know what a huge St. Louis Cardinal fan I am. The regular season is over with my team having clinched the National League Central Division. The play-offs started this afternoon. My Redbirds faced t he Philadelphia Phillies, losing 6-2 in the ninth. I love my Birds, but why is it never easy?
These two little ones were born on June 4 and joined our family on August 2. Riley and Finley are 18 week old furry bundles of cuteness. They can be sweet and cuddly when they choose to be or stubborn as the day is long. We pee in the backyard, but don't think twice about doing it inside as well. And we refuse to poop outside. Our house looks like a tornado hit it with dog toys and teething bones littering the floor. All the furniture is pushed to the walls and every pillow and blanket in the house has been shoved around and under said furniture to keep curious pups from crawling into small spaces they don't belong in. I've trained many puppies in my life, and I don't remember it being this much of a challenge. My husband says it's because we're older. move more slowly, and fall asleep in our chairs at night. He's not wrong. But why isn't this easier?
It's never easy for the main character in a cozy mystery either. Clues fall into their laps unexpectedly, people put pressure on them to solve the crime before the cops can, and their lives are always threatened by the bad guy. My MC, Jillian, is no exception to these rules. The following scene occurs the same evening Jillian is attacked by a knife-wielding psycho during her first date with Travis.