Happy New Year everybody! I want to thank each and every one of you for supporting my writing, and for following me online. I hope that you have a joyful, successful and very happy 2012 and that you make your dreams come true.

Thanks to 2011 for being a great year full of progress. Here's to continuing a successful journey in 2012!

Hi all; I'm back. I guess you noticed that I've changed the format of this blog somewhat. I wasn't being very diligent about keeping updated, so I decided to open things up a bit and offer the characters from my novels and short stories a chance to drop in every now and then to give you their stories. So now, there's no telling who will be doing the updates. Will it be me? My characters? Or even my birds? Yep, even Zack, Chloe and Ollie are interested in jumping into the fray. 

So today it's me, and I'm here to report a little problem I'm having. It seems that a rut is developing in my life, and I'm not happy with it. No precious, not at all. Yes, I am frustrated and here’s why: Every bit of the progress that’s been made over the past 2 years has skidded to a halt. Things were good and heading in the right direction for a while but then, it seems people got  tired. It was hard. It required changes they didn’t want to make. So they’ve dug in their heels, got out their shovels, and dug a comfortable little bunker to hide in, hoping it will all go away. 

Aww, poor babies. Reality is hard. Well, I hope that hole is comfortable. As for me – no thanks, I’m not dead yet. I don’t belong in a hole. Or a box. Or a box in a hole. Whatever, the point is that I’m not staying in this place. Stay if you wish, but don't get mad as you watch my backside climbing out of this rut.

I didn’t come this far to quit.

I didn’t come this far to fail.

I didn’t come this far to give up. 

I’d rather try and fail than not try at all. And frankly, I’ve seen enough progress to know that success is possible. I honestly don’t understand why some people are so eager to give up when the goal is in sight. Isn’t it worth it to work through the tough stuff to get to the goal? I mean, would you turn back from a trip to Disney World because you have to go through a town with a paper mill and you don’t want to deal with a bad smell for a few miles? I wouldn’t. But it seems that I know some people who would. 
 
The bottom line is that I see a rut developing, and I don’t like it. There’s potential to see more progress and I want to see it through. Yes, I’m tired. Yes, I’m weary. But I’m not giving up. I know there’s no turning back and that people settling in this rut are deceiving themselves into believing that lie. There is no going back, nor do I have a desire to. The things that have passed have passed for a reason - they no longer have a place in the present. The purpose now is to move forward. I don’t have to stay in this rut, and I won’t. I’m going to gird myself up and keep going. 

Halfway isn’t good enough for me and if that's “expecting too much out of life,” well, darn right I do! So you can be safe, but I won’t be sorry. I still see the goal, and I'm pressing on. You can come with me, or you can be left behind. And that’s the way it is. 

So that’s where it is. I’m not wasting my time on people that don’t want my help. There’s still too much to do. 

That’s all today. I hope you’re journey is well this day. Look for my weekly installment of "From  Sidekicks to Superheroes" soon - that is, if I can claim my blog from my characters and birds!

 Bye!

I was offered another book contract this week.

Yes, that's right. Another publisher, Wings e-Press, offered me a contract for Blurry, my young adult novel. After checking to make sure it didn't conflict with my other ones, I signed it yesterday. So ladies and gentlemen, I'm publishing 2 books.

I can't believe this. I've had a 4 year dry spell of nothing but rejection after rejection and absolutely NOTHING in print, I get an offer to publish 2 of my books in a matter of less than 3 months.

It's absolutely unbelievable, and it's going to happen fast, as Wings wants to publish Blurry in August 2011.

I'm still haven't got work from Whiskey Creek Press on a publication date for Anywhere But Here, but I'll probably hear from them soon. I know publishing 2 books will be a lot of work but heck, I just uprooted and moved 2 professional licensure programs last year and dealt with my in-laws moving at the same time. In other words, I spent a year going to hell and back. I think I can do this.

I'm really excited. In fact, the only thing that's keeping me from bouncing off the walls is that I'm getting over a cold. It hit me last weekend and thankfully it seems to be passing, but the high ozone today hasn't helped.

So that's life in my corner of the world. I pray this is a turn for the better in my life. I've been working for this for 10 years and now that it's happening it's kind of shocking! But it's a good shock. Finally, it's change and progress in my life that I've worked for, and not something that other peoples' decisions are shoving down my throat. Finally, I'm steering this ship. Finally, my life is in a heading of my choosing.

Finally!