I'M BACK!

 I have news!

My book, Out of the Picture: A Shepherd Sisters Mystery, is being published by Hallmark Publishing. The release date is September 3rd. The cover reveal is today!

I am beyond excited that this is happening. Savanna Shepherd, her sisters, and their idyllic Lake Michigan hometown are so close to my heart; I love their story, and I hope you will too!

And a brief note about this blog post title, "I'm back!"

I didn't go anywhere.

But I think it's fitting that my last blog post was titled, "Write Scared," nearly two years ago.

This is one of those 20/20 hindsight moments: a year and a half ago, in my writer-life, I was feeling discouraged, frustrated, tired, bitter ... I was feeling all the negative things. And I decided that I am a writer. I have to write. When I don't, all the scary things that that previous blog post mentions happen. So I made peace with the idea that, although I am a writer, I might be the only person who ever reads my words. I told my husband and my agent I quit. I told my agent to take me off her site. I was defeated.

But my agent told me no; she wouldn't take me off her site, and I was not done.
My husband told me I was full of crap (he said it a little differently).

But something changed. I got off the merry go round. I kept writing, but it stopped mattering (as much) that I was writing just for myself. During the last two years, I found the courage to leave a job I'd invested 7 years in, and started a new adventure with a different company. I soaked up every second of my kids' last few years in high school. I watched my son grow from a cute little boy to an amazing young man. I took my rockstar daughter on college tours and a spring break trip and then a mom-daughter trip to NYC to see Be More Chill and get tattoos together. I made myself present when my husband felt like talking about his garden or his motorcycle. I used days off to RELAX. Sometimes I wrote, but sometimes I had lunch with friends or saw a movie with my sister. 

When my agent (she's actually a magical superhero in disguise, but don't tell anyone) asked me -- pushed me -- to consider submitting something to Hallmark, I never imagined it would turn out like this. I'd say I owe her my firstborn, but I'm kind of attached to that one. And the other one. But I owe her ALL the love and chocolate.

And now, with my debut cozy mystery being released soon by Hallmark Publishing (listen guys --  HALLMARK PUBLISHING), I am sort of still waiting to see if I'll wake up soon, and this has all been a dream. I also realize my friend who keeps telling me that things happen when they are supposed to happen has been right all along. About this, anyway. Not saying she's right all the time ;)

Check back this evening for the gorgeous cover reveal!

Thank you for reading. xo

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