Finding Balance

In my last post I talked about pushing yourself and reaching for the big goals, the ones you think about when you’re falling asleep but are afraid to admit out loud. Now I want to talk about balancing that with the rest of your life.

I’ve talked before about the sacrifices you have to make if you truly want to achieve your goals, but another way of looking at it is balance. If you want to write a novel, but you also have a day job and a family and you coach your son’s soccer team, you may have to cut out something else to find that time.

2018: The Year of Dreaming Big

Write down your goals. And not the easy ones, the ones you know will take work but are easily within your grasp. Write down the ones that scare you. The ones you secretly wish for when no one is listening.

Introducing The Trail Rules!

Introducing The Trail Rules! I’m so excited to announce that you can pre-order The Trail Rules — book 2 in the Rules Series! I’ve had so much fun writing this and cannot wait to share Mike (Mikayla) with the world!

I’m Back—and I’m Giving Away a Kindle Fire!

To celebrate my productivity, I’m giving away a Kindle Fire 7 (8GB with Alexa)! All you have to do to enter is sign up for my newsletter. There are also bonus adds by following me on Instagram, Twitter, and the Facebooks, but really I’m hoping to keep in touch with all of you through my newsletter.

Two Novels in One Year? Sure, Why Not.

Sunday I finished the second draft of The Trail Rules, which I wrote over the summer, so it’s perfectly logical that today I’m starting the first draft of The Edge Rules, the next book in the series.

Whipping Your Wip into Shape, Part 3

You’ve read your story so many times that you’ve gone cross-eyed and you’d rather throw it in a river than read it once more. That means it’s time to share with beta readers—a term for readers who review and critique your manuscript before it’s finalized.

Whipping Your Wip into Shape, Part 2

Okay, you’ve made at least one pass through your manuscript, you’ve fixed a few typos, maybe changed a couple details. You’re feeling good. Now it’s time to dig into the big-picture changes.

Whipping Your Wip into Shape, Part 1

You did it. You typed those amazing words The End. You have a NOVEL. But maaaaaaaybe it’s not as polished as you’d like.

You know what that means? It’s time for…
The Dreaded ”E” Word: Editing

The End (number 7)

No matter how many times I type those magical words THE END, it never gets old. On Friday—two weeks later than my goal but also 15,000 words past my goal—I finished the first draft of The Trail Rules, book two in the Rules series. (In case you’ve missed it, YES! This is now a series!)

Your Mission, If You Choose to Accept It…

I started writing my current novel in April and arbitrarily decided that I’d like to finish it by the time our family arrived at the beginning of August. I quickly realized that wasn’t going to happen, but I still wanted to finish it SOON, so I set a new deadline of our NEXT houseguests. Who are coming at the end of August.

In less than two weeks.