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Upgrades, holidays, and a submission to my first anthology...

I have exciting news to share!! Last newsletter, I shared how I was inspired to write a prequel to my portal fantasy series IN TIME AND MEMORY. I hinted that publishing plans were in the works, and now the wait is over and I can share those plans with you!

I've been writing stories since I was eight years old; I didn't write anything down until years later, and that's when I started seriously thinking about writing and publishing a book. I knew early on I wanted to self publish; I've never gone with traditional publishing.

But anthologies are cool - and something I really wanted to be a part of, if I could just know about them soon enough to write and submit something! And I finally got that chance with The Order of the Pen Press, who opened submissions for a 'ships' themed anthology. So I have been busy writing and finishing THE PRINCESS FROM THE SEA to submit.

Today I found out that myself, along with 9 other authors, have been accepted into that anthology -

*Happy dance!*

At this time, most of the Pilot Episode for this series has been posted to my Patreon page, with just a few more parts to go over the next few days. The prequel story will be completely standalone, but familiar characters are bound to show up in the main series, along with much more exploration of the fascinating world and kingdoms of Aereth.

WRITER'S LIFE: This series has been years in the making, and this prequel almost did not happen when technical difficulties arose. I am blessed now with a new and fully-functioning laptop (with a wider screen to work on stories side by side, and bigger hard drive to store all my art and story endeavors).

I made a trip to the library, recently renovated, and was thrilled to find my CROWN OF STARS series on the shelves in their (small) fantasy section. And later, I was blessed to celebrate a writer friend's wedding at the end of December.

I have much to be thankful for over the holidays, with a visit from my Texas-living brother, and much needed family time for Thanksgiving, and Hanukkah celebrated with friends and family. I also reached my 50 book reading goal for 2023, and am working on reading 53 books for 2024.

Looking for a unique twist on a classic tale, in a brand-new illustrated hardcover edition with art by the author?? I recently had SAVING BEAUTY re-covered and it is now available on Amazon! And bonus, now at a better price!

READING: For the first time in years I can read whatever I feel like reading - as I'm between 'book launch teams' at the moment. Where do I even start? I have been wanting to re-read old favorites I have not had time for before; I just finished a fun re-read of "The Lily Gate" by Hanna Sandvig, as well as one new read "The Two Bells of Christmas" by Joanna Barker. The 'Bells' of that story are twin sisters who get themselves into a pickle when they switch identities!

One of my last reads of 2023 was an audiobook re-read of "When Calls the Heart" by Janette Oke. A favorite novel from my childhood, I really enjoyed this narration. The voice of Elizabeth was perfect!


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