Challenge Complete, Contract Signed, My Cowboy Finals, and Spring Is On The Way

Raritan Bay and the mouth of Whale Creek as seen from Cliffwood Beach's Middlesex County side. 

It was a busy, though short month--and fortunately a mild one as far as the weather goes. Our little part of the world got plenty of rain, which is fine with me because I didn’t have to shovel any snow. The snow fell a few times, but the weather was so warm it all melted quickly. There were several incredibly lovely days and whenever the sun is shining I enjoy going outside to take photographs at one of our wonderful parks or at the beach. I'm always looking for another scene to put on canvas--the photo above might be one of them.

I am happy to say I finished the JerRoWriMo writing challenge. In fact, I finished two days early. For now the title of the book I worked on is Home Somewhere. It’s a contemporary romance and needs a ton of revising, but writing it was lots of fun. I had the basic plot and characters planned before I started the challenge, but much of it was done in the seat-of-the pants style of writing—which for me is a glorious delight. Some writers like to have everything carefully worked out before they start writing. I just like to let it rip—and the challenge helps me do that by forcing my internal editor to keep out of my way. I held myself accountable to write enough words everyday to get to the finish line.

There were days when I didn’t get many words down. My mother-in-law wound up in the hospital and then went to rehab. Friends bought hubby and I tickets to see a show with them. (It was a fun show!) And we went house hunting with our daughter and her husband. Still, several dreary, rainy days were a boon to my word count. The weather helped me even the score for the days when I was unable to get much writing done. In addition, hubby (God bless him!) is not a stickler for an immaculate house and we frequently go out to eat, which is a big help when it comes to writing.

While I’ve never made a lot of money from all my writing, I have received some accolades, which have been very, very sweet. The Cowboy’s Miracle, which won 3rd place in the Ancient City Romance Writers' Heart of Excellence Reader's Choice Award also became a finalist in EPIC's eBook Awards. It's not a Pulitzer Prize, but it gives me joy. 😊

Most of all, I am happy to say I've signed a contract with the Pelican Book Group for Patriot's Courage, which is the third sequel in my Patriot books' saga. 

Oh yes--and spring is coming. The daffodils are daring to reach toward the sun as are the chives and my beautiful Lenten roses.  Along with spring comes EASTER! I can hardly wait to sing all the Alleluias!

Book Birthday for THE COWBOY'S MIRACLE!

I'm celebrating the birthday of my book, THE COWBOY'S MIRACLE, with a video. Enjoy!



Available at http://a.co/gjM1IN5

The Reviews Are In For THE COWBOY'S MIRACLE!

                ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
The reviews are rolling in for THE COWBOY'S MIRACLE! Listed below are a few snippets from the Amazon reviews.           

"Who doesn't want to read about a rugged, God-fearing cowboy who comes for the damsel in distress!" 

"This is a fast read and a delightful one. Don't miss it."

"...the twists and turns of The Cowboy’s Miracle took me through the mad, sad, and glad standard for a super-duper book. And this one has it all!"

"The characters were complex and endearing...I thoroughly enjoyed this story! It’s one that I plan on reading over and over."

"The adventures of a cowboy with a past and a woman in need of saving is always a win."

"Love, suspense, and alpacas. A great Christmas read."

Warm up your holidays with a great adventure right now at 
https://www.amazon.com/Cowboys-Miracle-Christmas-Holiday-Extravaganza-ebook/dp/B07PRFBMMM

Release Day for THE COWBOY'S MIRACLE!

Here's a short excerpt from THE COWBOYS' MIRACLE. Enjoy!

     The door opened and Seth blinked in shock. A young woman with long, curly, coal-black hair and hazel eyes smiled at him.
     “You must be the vet.” She reached over to an oak coatrack and slipped into her jacket.
     “Yes, ma’am. I’m a veterinarian, but—”
     “I’m so glad you’re here. I’m terribly concerned about Harley.” She stepped onto the porch and closed the door.
      “Harley?”
      “ʻCall the vet,ʼ he said.” She laughed. “Of course, he didn’t say that exactly, but he meant it.” She hurried down the steps. “Come along. I know it’s the day after Thanksgiving, but our regular doctor is out of town—as is everyone else in the county it seems—and I had to do something. Harley was very insistent.”
     “Yes, ma’am, but where’s Mrs. Holmes?”
      “In the nursing home, as usual. I visited with her earlier and she’s doing fine, all things considered, but Harley’s the problem right now. He’s not himself. I’m so worried—”
     “Ma’am, is Harley Mr. Holmes?” He barely comprehended her. She spoke rapidly, without a breath between any of her words as he hobbled along in her wake.
     She halted for a moment and peered at him as if he possessed a substantial mental deficit. “Why, no. Harley is one of the alpacas. I believe I mentioned that detail when I left the message on the phone, though it is possible I forgot, I was—after all—a bit upset since no one would come out here and examine him. Mrs. Holmes loves the alpacas. I still bring them around to the nursing home on fine days and it cheers her more than you can imagine—calms her, too. Sometimes, she’s almost lucid when she touches their soft fleece.”
     His heart sank. Was his grandmother suffering from dementia? “Is Mr. Holmes here?”
     “Oh, I’m sorry. Didn’t you hear? Dr. Holmes died three years ago.”
     Doctor? Seth swallowed. “He’s...he’s gone?”
     “Yes, a massive heart attack. It was so...sudden...” She took in a ragged breath before
continuing. “He was the mayor for some time and practically a celebrity in these parts, though it doesn’t take much to be famous in Greenburg. Was he your professor? So many of his former students drop by on occasion. He’s still remembered fondly by many of them.”
     “I went to college in Colorado. What did he teach?”
     “English. Oh, how he loved Shakespeare,” she exclaimed. “To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.”
     A cold chill slid up Seth’s spine. His father often used that quote—mostly because it invariably impressed folks. He realized he discovered a link, though tenuous, but at least one thing made sense.

Download a sample to read more or buy it now at

AMAZON, BARNES & NOBLE, KOBO, SMASHWORDS, and iBOOKs!

Pre-Order Your Cowboy!

THE COWBOY'S MIRACLE is available for pre-order now! It will be released on November 18, 2016. Wouldn't you like a cowboy for Christmas? Find him at Amazon, Smashwords, and Kobo.

Win A Reusable Shopping Bag!

This lightweight, reusable shopping bag could be yours! It's adorned with the new cover for my December release, The Cowboy's Miracle, from Prism Book Group. If you're feeling lucky, comment below. I'll select one winner on Friday, October 28, 2016. So be sure to sign up now.

If you win, you'll have a cowboy to carry your groceries home for you. :-)

Creative Fever

I signed a contract on a proposal for The Cowboy's Miracle, which is to be part of Prism Book Group's Christmas Cowboys Series. I spent three days thinking and writing and daydreaming about the proposal. The idea consumed me while I was driving, loading the dishwasher, doing laundry, and especially when I sat down for a few minutes to crochet. The best term I can think of to describe this phenomenon is by calling it a creative fever. 

I'm not the first person use that term either. And it's not a terrible disease, it's actually fun. True, it's a big distraction, but it's certainly better than concentrating on mundane tasks. At any rate, I sent off the proposal and received a contract. I love publishing in this technological age. Everything is FAST. Of course, now I have to write the book, but I'm looking forward to it.

I just handed in the manuscript for Hoping for Joy, which is part of Prism Book Group's Love Is Series. Hoping for Joy will be released in December of this year. The Cowboy's Miracle will also be released in December. There will be plenty of editing to do in the meantime.

Meanwhile, Outside Blessings is already on prerelease at Smashwords. So if you have a few minutes surf on over to https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/610444 and download a sample.