A New Year of Goals and Dreams

 Has it been nearly a year since my last post? WOW! Hopefully with the new year on it's way, I will do much better and keep you readers up to date on the goings on in my neck of the woods. First, I wanted to send out a 'Thank You' to those who messaged me asking why I had stopped my blog. Some of you, I had never met and didn't know you followed. You will never understand my excitement to know I had folks out there reading my words. Thank you for taking the time to reach out to me and get me motivated again. 

I have to believe my lack of motivation for my blog came when I decided to leave my literary agent. Sadly, she didn't deliver as I had hoped. Apparently, there was more who had the same concerns as I and the way this agent handled her business. She lost many of her clients when the renewal of contracts came back around.  Since the great exit, books have been published without her and new agents have been found! I'm so proud so many of my literary friends didn't let this experience hold them back. They are getting the recognition they deserve and their stories are being read.

For me, I almost gave it all up. I was devastated, and I couldn't imagine starting all over again. Thankfully a publishing house heard about me and a dear lady asked for a sample. I sent her a piece of my YA book and she was hooked, but that's all I can say for now. It's not a guarantee and I have some work to do. I have hope this might be my year. So, I continue on with the plan my stories will meet the masses and they will touch hearts and fans will keep turning those pages.


 Thank you to all who root and cheer me along. It has been a journey, and one that isn't finished yet. 

To all of you new authors out there, let me give you a tiny bit of advice from someone who learned it the hard way, please...PLEASE, I beg you, do your homework when you search for an agent. I know how excited you are when you get one who finally says 'yes' but that yes can turn disastrous if in the wrong hands. Look at their website and search to see what books they have sold, if any. Talk to others before you get too excited. If something doesn't feel right, it might not be. There are some awesome literary agents out there who will move you on the right paths to publication and then there are some who will sit on your hard work and do nothing and tell you lies. You deserve to know what they are doing for you and they should be honest.

Thank you friends for visiting me again! Now on to those edits! 

   

Nothing like Vintage Valentines!

My heart will always be with the retro Valentines! They were the cutest! Today's Valentines don't carry the personality they once did.

One of my favorite times of the year was the Valentine exchange in grade school. I had so much fun decorating my box and getting it just perfect.



I loved getting the list of names of my classmates who I would give a special little card too. I couldn't wait to see the collection I would get in my box too! It was always a mishmash of fun and colorful designs that made my brain pop with excitement. I wish I still had every single one. Sadly I'm sure my mom did a bedroom clean out and they'd get tossed away because I would never throw them away.

Thankfully we have eBay and yard sales and flea markets. It's been fun collecting pieces of my past again. Here are tiny few from my collection that I remember as a little girl.

I hope you all have a beautiful Valentines Day

Dreams Come True! 'The Making of Nebraska Brown'.

What an exciting day for my dear friend Louise Caiola! Today her book, THE MAKING OF NEBRASKA BROWN, comes out! I can only imagine the excitement she and her family must be feeling at this very moment. I'm so happy for her. Louise and I meet a few years ago as we shared the same literary agent. We have both moved on from there but have stayed close as writer friends. She has been such an inspiration and I adore who she is.

I was one of the lucky ones who got to read the ARC from the publisher, Immortal Ink Publishing. What a beautiful story! It will be one I treasure and read again and again.

This is my review:

"Living in Italy with Tommy would be any girl's dream come true, but to Ann Leigh a forgotten past begins to come alive, making her perfect life not so right anymore. Flashes of America's bread belt, a boy named Shane, and a pregnancy she knows was hers, drives her to find out who she really is...and then she remembers the fire.

From the beginning this story captured me with its pure beauty. It is obviously written with great love, thought and skill. What an amazing author Louise Caiola is! Too often I don't fully attach myself to characters but I couldn't help but love the ones who were brought to life in 'The Making of Nebraska Brown'. They were real. I never struggled bringing them into my heart and mind. They where beautifully flawed, making them believable as if they lived right next door. I could relate and felt myself wanting to extend my hand out to these characters in hopes to be there with them.

It has been days since I finished this book and the story is still on my mind. That lets me know I've read an instant classic. 

I will treasure this book. It has earned a place on my shelves. I can't wait to read more of Louise Caiola's works. What an amazing author! I am a fan!" 


Please pick up your copy today! You won't be disappointed! Follow the link to get your ebook or paperback! Congratulations, Louise! You deserve this! YAY!!!

http://www.amazon.com/Making-Nebraska-Brown-Louise-Caiola/dp/1938750772/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top