Long Time No Post…

Hey everyone, how are ya? Or should I say, the two or three people who might still follow this blog? It’s been a long time since I’ve shared anything here.

So, first things first. I have fourteen novels published (ten exclusively to Kindle Vella). I’m currently writing and publishing two more to Vella. I am hoping to be done with them over the next couple of months.

After they are finished, I hope to start book three of the Traitors War series. Destiny, book one, is available on Amazon as a paperback and e-book (it, along with all three of the Flying Ponies books, are in Kindle Unlimited). Deceit, book two, is available on Vella.

In 2023, my husband and I are hoping to start publishing my Vella novels to paperback and e-book. The first book we will do this with will be Deceit. I also hope to start offering book merchandise that goes along with my novels.

That’s the current plan, so we shall see how it goes. I hope you have a wonderful New Year’s, and hopefully I will be posting a lot more here.

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I Don’t Know if You Know This…

But writing is difficult. Incredibly so, some days. Enough that I want to give up sometimes, because I get convinced no one is going to read my work.

Books are work. Some people don’t realize that. I mean, you walk into a book store, snatch your fave author’s latest book off the shelf, pay for it and leave. But as you’re doing that, or sitting down later to read it, do you ever consider the time and bloody effort it took to write it? If not, don’t worry. Most people don’t.

Writers get frustrated. We wonder why other authors are selling more or making more money or have more Instagram followers than we do. I’ve been blessed to have a muse who works cheap and doesn’t complain about the time we put in, but I get tired. And I wonder if it’s worth all the effort.

I wonder if I’m any good at what I’m doing. Especially when I don’t get reviews on my books. Or when people say they’re reading something I wrote and then never comment on it. Is it worth all the effort? Why put myself through it?

Because I freaking love it, damn it. Not gonna apologize. Since I made the decision to only publish my books on Kindle Vella (super easy to access them, by the way – they’re all available through the Kindle app on your phone or tablet, or go to Amazon and look my name up), I’ve been able to write and publish more. I have 14 books up on Amazon now. Four of them are being written; you can read the chapters (episodes) that are currently posted, and I’ll add more as I finish them.

But as much as I love it, it is hard work. And authors don’t always get a lot of validation, either. We don’t make much money from our work, even though we wish we did. I’d love to go down to two days a week at my job and write more, but that’s not going to happen any time soon. This isn’t a pity post. It’s a post to say, hey, next time you pick up a book, stop and appreciate the work that went into it. Leave a review. Send the author a message on Instagram or Twitter (lf you liked it. Let’s not be a jerk, okay? Plenty of that out there already on book sites).

Anyway. Thanks for reading. I hope you’re enjoying the book you’re currently reading.

💖💫📚

My work space.

What Are You Reading?

It’s been a bit since I’ve posted here. Life definitely gets busy, doesn’t it? Things you meant to do don’t get done.

What have you been reading lately? I’ve been reading mostly YA sweet romances – three quite addicting.

If you need a new read with romance and suspense, might I suggest Got a Bad Case, first in the Riven City series?

https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09623MZJP

Vella on the Kindle App!

It’s finally happened. Kindle Vella stories are now available on the Kindle app for both iOS and Android, meaning you have easy access to not just my Vella books, but a whole slew of other great books. My Vella books available are as follows: Riven City series – Got A Bad Case I Need a Hero Get Your Game On Riven City Holiday Specials series- Drop Them Bones Take Me Home See Me Through Traitors War series – Deceit Big Sky Country series – Fast Horses Also available are my Flying Ponies trilogy and the first book in the Traitors War series, Destiny. 💖📚💫💖📚💫💖📚💫💖📚💫💖📚💫💖💫💫💖📚💫 #kindleapp #KindleVella #vellabooks #indieauthor #indiebooks #amazonbooks #authorlife #lmransombooks #traitorswarseries #rivencityholidayspecials #rivencityseries #bookstagram #newfiction #yafiction #YAfantasy #romance #romanticsuspense #newbooks #thewritingcommunity #writing #vellawriter #vellaauthor #michiganauthor https://www.instagram.com/p/CYrli1XL3qh/?utm_medium=share_sheet

Are You in the Know?

Hey everyone, how is your holiday season going so far?

Have you started the Riven City series yet? No? What better time then during the holidays?

And if you have, are you all caught up? Big things are going down in the city!

Did you know you can leave reviews for Vella books on Amazon? And give each episode a thumbs up? If you’re reading and enjoying my stories, I would appreciate reviews, follows and likes. That shows Amazon that readers are seeing and enjoying my work, and helps me make money.

And while I would write even without getting paid, the money is nice.

Charlie Dragon and Goals

Good morning. How is everyone today? I’m taking a vacation day and working on I Need a Hero, book two in the Riven City series I’m publishing on Kindle Vella.

My goal for September is to finish up I Need a Hero so that in October (my favorite month) I can write and publish Drop Them Bones, the first holiday special in the series. It revolves around a recently renovated hotel, a masquerade ball, some supernatural happenings, and a firefighter and his girlfriend trying to survive the night.

I’m still loving Vella. I can share so many more stories with you all there. I am planning to publish Deceit, book two in the Traitors War series, in either October or November, too, alongside my Riven City books.

I also got a new writing friend, Charlie Dragon. He came from Menards, and though a bit pretentious, I’m enjoying him. He does like to offer suggestions for my book, which isn’t always appreciated, and he asks a lot of questions, some of which I don’t know the answers, because I don’t outline or plot out my books. At least, not in any great detail.

Have a wonderful day, friends. And if you want to read Drop Them Bones in October, I would suggest reading the first two books in the series, Got a Bad Case and I Need a Hero, first.

Meet Charlie Dragon, my new writing companion and mascot.

Big Decision

As most of you know, I made the decision to publish all my future books to Kindle Vella. It was not an easy decision, as I have enjoyed working with Kate Conway and Wicked Whale Publishing since 2018.

But indie publishing is expensive, and while my first two novels sold quite well, my last two have not. Some of that has been due to Covid, and not having the chance to get to book events. And some of it is because indie authors in general have a more difficult time getting their name out there.

Kindle Vella is changing that. It is free to publish my books there, and I have access to sites with free imagery I can use for the covers. I can publish episodes (chapters) as often as I want. While it’s true these books can only be read on Amazon, they are always available as long as you have a phone or device and internet.

So far, Got a Bad Case, first in the Riven City series, is available and I am currently writing and posting I Need a Hero, book two. I am planning shorter holiday books to fit into the series as well. The first one, Drop Them Bones, will be published in October, after I finish I Need a Hero.

If you have read Destiny, book one in the Traitors War series, you will be able to read book two, Deceit, this fall/early winter as well.

I hope that if you have enjoyed my books, you will continue to read them on Vella. I appreciate the support, and I love sharing my books with you all.

What Comes Next

Destiny has been out in the world now since Tuesday, and has three wonderful reviews (by the way, one of the best things you can do for an author is leave a review on Goodreads or Amazon, or both, if you’re feeling really inspired). So what do I do next? Take time off? Rest? Relax? Celebrate?

Relax and celebrate, for sure. But rest? Take time off from writing? Not so much. My brain and my muse (Glucinda is her name – if you know where I got the name, cookies for you!) don’t really work that way. Book two of The Traitors War is already finished and has gone through the first round of editing. I’m not ready to start book three yet, so I’m switching gears and working on another story idea, about young ladies in a secretive society who kill things during the Victorian age in England. Interested?

There are a few other ideas nestled away in notebooks in my office that I plan to tinker with on and off in-between books in The Traitors War. Most of those ideas involve fantasy elements in some way; fantasy is a substantial part of my writing wheelhouse, and I don’t have any plans to stray from it for the next ten or so years.

The Traitors War will probably (I say probably because I’m not exactly sure yet) be a run of six books in the main series, accompanied by one standalone and a duology; all three books will be continuations of the main series, and will feature some of the characters (the ones who survive, that is….muwhahahaha….) These will take, if I publish one book a year, the next nine or so years. After that, this idea I’m working on could be published, or one of my other ones. At this point, I can’t say. A lot depends on my muse and what other ideas we come up with during that time.

At the moment, though, I’m working up a first draft of the Victorian killer girls, and I’m liking what I’m seeing. The characters are telling me who they are and what their goals and dreams are, and that’s an excellent start to our relationship. It will take at least one or two more drafts before it will be what it needs to be, and before it ever goes to my editor, but we’re getting there. It’s a process. Destiny took sixteen years to get ready. We’ll see if these ladies can beat that.

Have a wonderful weekend! If you’re traversing Pentallia, make sure to take a weapon, or maybe find a Shadowliege for an escort. They’ll be fairly harmless, as long as they don’t have a kill order for you, and they know where all the best taverns are.