Month: September 2021

Logos are Fun

During my multiple decades of living in a crowded nest, I had many slogans and mottos to entertain my readers or audience. Such as:

  • Never give up, never give out your ATM number.
  • You have the right to eat your own leftovers.

But I never had a logo per se, just the cover design of the book. I used the cover image quite a bit in fun items such as a wall clock that read “Is it time to leave yet?”

So when I started the journey of Crowded vs Empty, I thought it was time to create something simple, yet artistic. And today, I’m revealing the delightful graphic.

I must remind myself this does not mean I need to run out and order t-shirts and coffee mugs with the logo and website address on them, though. Granted, Christmas is coming and it is tempting to make logo printed gifts for the adult children and grandchildren I owe the past 20-something years of adventure. (Both my parents have passed away, but they will always be remembered as the original part of the crowded crew.)

If you get a chance, let me know what you think of the new blog and its design.

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A Jump Start from a Master Class

Yes, I’ve been very lax on my writing and marketing the last year or so. I humbly confess. It was a busy time, granted. But you’d have thought I would have bloomed more on the keyboard during the pandemic as so many of my author friends did. I did have a near daily snail mail correspondence going on with my middle grandson, and it was his encouragement that finally shoved me back on the old saddle of writing and editing.

I have a 92,000 word manuscript, working title “Twinkies and Tranquilizers,” that I believe is ready for query letters to agents. Time to crack my knuckles and get researching for who is looking for women’s fiction set in the sizzling Seventies.

So when I saw a post on Facebook by the Southwest Washington Writers Conference about a master class on Friday, September 10th titled How to Make Yourself Unforgettable to Agents, Editors, and Readers—Master class with James L. Rubart – I didn’t hesitate to sign up. How serendipity is that? And within an hour’s drive from home. Perfect.

Before heading out that morning, I followed my routine of checking my email, seeing what’s happening on Facebook and reading the online edition of our local paper, mainly the funnies and horoscope. Well, Sagittarius read: “Take things in hand instead of waiting for events to make a decision for you. If you want to change your professional orientation, this will be the moment to take up a career change or retraining course.” The planets have aligned and all systems are go.

Now I had no idea who Mr. Rubart was before the class started. The brief bio stated a Christy Hall of Fame author and marketing expert. By the end of the day, I was hooked, had signed up for his newsletters and purchased two of his books. What an energetic and enthusiastic gentleman. I won’t go into detail of the class, but I encourage you to check out his websites (plural) and find out for yourself the wealth of tips and encouragement this man has. Not only is he a prolific author, but he has a separate company, Rubart Writing Academy, offering courses to unlock your success. He understands ways to stand out in the literary world. He understands people, writers, all of us.

Oh, the brainstorming that went on during those five hours. I’ve created a new blog, Crowded vs Empty where I can explore the variances of suddenly living as an empty nester after two decades of being the queen of the crowded nest. My laptop is getting daily use (finally) in my latest work in progress, a young adult novel. And, wait, there’s more, exciting, new ways to tweak my query letters to agents giving them, hopefully, a chance to hook their attention.

Stay tuned to see what happens.

It’s All in the Risk

Sometimes you have to shake the tree, in life, and see where the apples fall. I made a bold decision and asked for the rights back from the publisher to my second book of the Baillie Castle trilogy. I have now self-published the tome under a new title and cover design. His Kilt Dropped Here is a fun stand-alone read, as well as Book Two in the trilogy.

It’s not an easy decision, nor one that should be made lightly, but I felt the book needed a fresh look to gain a wider audience. A gamble? Definitely. Yet one I hope reaps in benefits through my readers. The original title was His Lass Wears Tartan – as the publisher thought it best to have the titles similar in style to the first book, Her Ghost Wears Kilts. And the cover layout showed a skipping lass over a field. Neither of these, the title or the image, portrayed the essence of the book, the storyline.

The protagonist, our heroine, Rogue would never skip about in a short tartan. A young woman in her twenties found herself an heiress to not only a Scottish castle, but additional property as well. Though her heart lived more in the stable with her prized Friesians, she worked with her aunt and staff making the castle into a popular bed and breakfast.

His Kilt Dropped Here, a rom-com of magical realism

A short blurb:

“Rogue, an heiress to a Scottish castle, is content in life. No males need apply. Yet a gorgeous local business owner and a handsome outsider barge their way in, competing for her heart. Murder, a psychic and the glitzy Diva Squad make this unasked for love triangle sizzle and explode.”

So, was it a good risk? I believe so. Now as fall begins her beautiful path into cooler days and longer nights, enjoy yourself with a copy of His Kilt Dropped Here and don’t forget to leave a review.

Announcing a New Blog

We’re nearing the end of 2021, only a few months left to go and, I don’t know about you, but I’ve suddenly had the urge to make all sorts of changes. Energy is shoving itself down my lethargic body and I’ve “climbed back on the horse” of writing again after a very long dry spell.

And with that new found energy, I’ve created a new blog – Crowded vs Empty! In essence it will be a chance to entertain and maybe…, possibly…, hardly likely…, educate about the differences in living in a crowded nest versus living in an empty nest.

Yours truly is the author of The Crowded Nest Syndrome, surviving the return of adult children. And I’ve had a lot of fun with my tales of living with more people in my home than usual. It’s been that way since around 1993, almost thirty years. Well, recently, when I made a comment on a Facebook post that I was now “suffering” an empty nest, a delightful author friend replied, “You need to write a book, as I will be an empty nester some day.”

This new blog is in lieu of writing an actual book. Maybe someday, it will grow up to be its own trade paperback and eBook. But for now I’ll use the blog platform to let you know how I’m navigating the new territory. Stay tuned!