Yikes! It’s been a year since my last update. Time got away from me. Let me catch you up with the good, the not-so-good, and the great things happening. (I like being transparent and sharing the not-so-good stuff so other writers can prepare for the ups and downs of publishing.)
First up, CONTRIBUTE, Book 2 of the Holo Series, came out in Germany. It’s my favorite cover yet.
Big personal news—after almost twenty years of teaching, I finally bought my first house, a small Cape, with the help of the Mass Housing Loan program. Woohoo! I cannot describe how amazing this feels since I didn’t grow up in a house and never had a yard. I planted my first flower garden this spring, and I’m slowly letting the move sink in.
Super bonus: I have a writing office now! It’s so empowering to have a personal work space that honors my creativity. I’m saving up for some custom bookshelves and a comfy chair for reading—maybe by next summer.
I’ve been working hard on edits for my next YA book, GERMLINE FOUR…so hard that I dropped my laptop down a flight of stairs and now only the top half of the screen works. Uggghh. I’m forcing myself to finish this manuscript with the busted screen, and when it gets published, my gift to self will be a new laptop. I’ll be sending the manuscript to my agent in October. Fingers crossed it finds a publisher soon.
Speaking of agents, I have a new agent! Let me backtrack—unfortunately, my old agent and I parted ways in 2018. She was heading on maternity leave and needed to cut down her client list. Since I was one of her newest clients with no sales together yet, it was a logical decision. Yes, it sucked as much as you can imagine, and I wallowed in the WTF do I do now phase? But only three months later, I was lucky enough to sign with agent Ali Herring of SpencerHill Associates! She’s full of new energy and has been a huge fan of the Holo Series since Consider came out. We clicked on the phone about my future work and career goals. I am psyched to work with her since she totally gets me as a writer. And she’s a Trekkie who loves Jane Austen. I mean, come on!
As soon as GERMLINE FOUR edits are complete, I’ll be working on my middle grade novel (which is already half done) titled MAY’S STRING THEORY. It’s for older elementary and middle school kids, but surprisingly, it’s not science fiction.
And then, we’ll see. I have a lot of ideas brewing. Publishing is a strange journey. Just gotta ride the waves and enjoy the process. Thanks for waiting it out with me.
Oh, and if you haven’t already noticed, my author website has a new look! I switched over to Squarespace—it’s simpler and easier for me to maintain. Win-win.
