It's here - the poll you've been waiting for! The final book in the Wrapped in the Rays of the Sun series needs a male voice. Which character is it going to be? Vote below! Results will be revealed at a later date. For a quick review of the characters... Cassius Elson - One of two brothers working on the ship, The Majestic. He is generally a second-in-command. Jeong Lahn - Son of Little Deef/United Front businessowners. He is a friend of Victoria's and often out on solo missi

What do you mean, early renditions and the silence? By the picture and my occupation, it looks like it has to do with writing. So, what did I begin doing when I decided that I wanted to put my thoughts down on paper? Did I think it would go anywhere? What became of all those ideas? This #BehindTheScenes is going to spill some of the tea. It's also pretty raw and mentions abuse, so this is your trigger warning. I always liked to tell stories. My parents' friends always told me

Yikes! Is it Friday already? Here are the answers from Tuesday's Trivia (Wrapped in the Rays of the Sun series only). How many did you get right? Comment below! The Papacy - The Papacy, first occupied by Saint Peter (according to Christian tradition), is a monarchy in itself (sort of). The pope is supposed to be a prince and the ultimate leader of the known Christian world. In the fictional book series, especially in the earlier books, the Holy One emulated these real-life po

I know many people cannot buy books or invest in someone's literary career. That is the ultimate goal for authors. In order for them to get to that point, though, they need support. Not all authors have support from family, friends and their community. That support needs to come from YOU. And the best part of all of this: it's FREE. Check these out! Social media love is the best way to help an author. They are everywhere - TikTok, Meta, Reddit, you name it. I have at least a

Well, here it is - the break I warned you all about. The weather is supposed to get better and everyone is anxious to get outside. Calvin is off for the week. In less than two weeks, it'll be my wedding anniversary. Less than two weeks after that, it'll be my birthday. It's a busy time for us. #BehindTheScenes and #TriviaTuesday will continue after my birthday, on May 12 with #TuesdayTrivia. It'll end close to when Calvin graduates from middle school. Season 5 of Literary Goo

I knew I had to cycle back to this subject someday. The writing process. The messy way I keep track of everything. The colors and the sticky notes and the tabs. The strange bookmarks, with appointment cards, ads, old pamphlets and coupons. What does it all mean? This #BehindTheScenes is here to tell you more! Somehow. The mind of a neurodivergent person varies. Each one is different, myself included. A lot of us can see colors, sounds and more in our head. Sometimes, it's not

I love reading...as this #BehindTheScenes will tell you. I am THE definition of a book dragon. My love for it was drilled into me early on. My father always believed that being an academic was the best way to get through life and my mother agreed. After all, his father went through seminary school. It brought him to a comfortable position after years of struggling with a bad marriage and alcoholism. He and my grandmother (his second wife) lived in San Francisco for many years

So far, so good. March is starting out ok. But something more exciting - the #TuesdayTrivia answers! Which ones did you get right? Let me know in the comments! "Sharia" Law - Explained in the Quran and the Hadiths, Shari'a isn't the extremist form we associate with it. Shari'a is the path society takes to implement Islam. It emphasizes taking care of the poor, providing money for education, being environmentally conscious, etc. What we associate "Sharia Law" with is the suppr

This might be a little angry in tone, everyone. But seriously... I think a lot of disabled people can relate to this. Being told to be grateful for what we have and what is available for us to use. Like it's special treatment in allowing others to participate in society. Like it's their fault that special things were put into place. That their set of standards are always the norm and we have to be judged by them. #ChronicallyWriting here. And today, we are exploring a common

It's something that people have asked me. The reviews in the first two books even said it. Will there be more books about Klenard? Have you thought of writing a story about so-and-so character? Why can't this character's story be told? And this #BehindTheScenes is here to tell you...I do have more plans for the world of Enos. But I have other projects I want to work on. I don't want to spoil such a good thing with too much! I can tell you what I have planned so far, though. P

It's Friday, and you know all know what that means! It's time for the answers to #TriviaTuesday How many did you get? Comment below! The Pirates' Code - Pirates of the Caribbean caught my imagination as a teen. No, I did not write fan fiction for that particular storyline, but the idea of sailing the open seas with a random bunch of men and women was an escape from reality. Having a moral code made the idea even better. That was where the Articles of Agreement in From Across

Five years ago today, I published my second novel. It was a different genre from what I had written before. That really snowy day, as I shoveled snow, it felt like nothing had changed. The world was still turning. The pandemic was swirling around the country. Everyone was reeling from the events from the month before. But it meant a lot more to me than everybody thinks. Because that book, Casting Shadows , brought me a new vision, of seeing things through another's eyes and u

This #BehindTheScenes explores a story from a long time ago, nearly a decade ago now. It was January 2018 actually. I was working early hours at the bank call center. I was also readying myself to leave our current housing situation. My husband and I were planning our marriage at town hall too (yes, we did it that way) and there was a lot of family drama. And the worries about our son's autism! It was an insane time. You cannot imagine the stress I was under. Everything was i

OMG, it's 2026 already! And we're back with season 4, part 2 of #BehindTheScenes and #FindOutFriday. This time, we are starting off with #BehindTheScenes and getting to the down and dirty. This one delves into another passion of mine: candle making. Despite feeling skittish around fire, I always loved candles. When I was young, my parents always lit one. It was generally a taper in a bottle or a small votive on a plate. It lit up the dark corners and made the shadows jump and

It's always said that it's lonely at the top of the mountain. It's the same with chronic illness. Our world becomes our illness because each day depends on how you feel. While I cannot fall back on that as much as others (because I have nobody else except my husband and he too is disabled), this #ChronicallyWriting will tell you how tough that part is...and how hope sometimes comes unexpectedly. These days, with the unpredictability of my illnesses, I like staying close to ho

I've always seen life, especially with chronic illness, as a spinning wheel. The universe is constantly taking a turn at it. Just when you think something is going good or you get used to life, something else stops you and drops you to the ground. It might not seem like a lot. You're used to being hit all the time. You're always waiting for the other shoe to drop. But this is different. This is a power that you do not understand. It's your own body. From the inside, it attack

"You don't look disabled." "No! You don't look autistic!" Those are things that I hear often. They are right. I am thirty-six years old and have managed life pretty ok. Although it took a while, I have a Bachelors in Educational Studies. I am self-employed as an author. I have a son and a husband and two fur babies. I own my home and can pay my bills, take phone calls and answer the door. Take walks and act civilized in public mostly. Smile and greet people. Run and play with

God, that went by fast. Calvin is in eighth grade and we are back to #BehindTheScenes and #FindOutFriday for the school year! For the...

Yep, here we go again. Time to tell you I'm taking another break. And I am, for the rest of the month and into May. Calvin is on...

In case you did not catch it on social media...the Kindle pre-order of From Across the Sea is up! The release date is the end of this...