Under Contract

Friends, being under contract for writing a book is new for me. I’m really excited about the opportunity to write another story that will be available to readers at a near-future date, but there are adjustments to be made. My inspirational calendar’s message for February is “Consume Less; Create More,” and I’m finding that to be a true statement in my life these days.

I’m currently still able to carve out family dinner-and-TV time, but I may have to trim that back a bit once some editing jobs kick in, as I’ll be shifting my writing time from the morning/early afternoon to the evenings. One of my hopes is that I’m able to keep at least one night a week free to hang out with my parents, as I love spending time with them.

I was supposed to have a book review ready for you today, but I haven’t yet finished the book because writing has used most of my time lately. I’m enjoying the book I’m reading (What I Would Tell You by Liz Tolsma) and hope to have the review ready for you before this week is out. Yet, my writing schedule is a bit hectic and demanding at the moment, so I’m having to chip away at the review book in spare moments along the way.

I have one more review book to read after this one (The Maid of Ballymacool by Jennifer Deibel), which is the next paperback I’ll be reading. Beyond that, I’m going to get much choosier about which review books I take on, because my reading time has significantly dwindled of late. While this is definitely sad to me (I’ve loved reading since before I can remember), it’s a fantastic blessing to have my writing dreams coming true right now, and I’m grateful to God for this amazing opportunity to write for Wild Blue Wonder Press.

What else might change around here due to the writing deadlines I’m facing?

I would guess that some articles might be rather short, although I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if they stayed lengthy. I tend to get longwinded at times, but that’s generally because there’s a lot to say about subjects I’m passionate about.

It might not be a new thing around here, but there could be delays in new blog articles heading your way. Prior to 2020, I posted virtually every single Monday for years — since 2012! Since 2020, I’ve been more miss than hit, unfortunately. I’m still trying to get back to regularly posting on Mondays, as I really like that schedule. It has been a monumental struggle for me, but I’m determined to get back to that before too long. Hopefully I can return to a decent track of scheduling articles ahead of time so that they’ll arrive in your inbox and on this site right on time.

Something else that might change, though this is not due to the contract, is that I might be having more articles that are contemplative about specific Bible verses or God-inspired character traits. A burden has been pressed upon me lately on several different topics, and each one has had a Bible story or verse come to mind right along with it. I can hardly wait to dive into these things during my private Bible study time and share with you what I learn. Some of them may even turn into series of articles, if there becomes more subject matter to cover than a single article allows.

As soon as I’m able, I’ll be sharing more about the work-in-progress (WIP) that I’m contracted to write. I can hardly wait to tell you more about it. At this point, I can share that I finished my first draft last night and today am diving into some revisions. Soon, the story will be in the hands of my beta readers. Their early feedback will help sharpen up the rough draft before I hand it in to my publisher.

Also, I may be sharing more of my writing process with you. I haven’t forgotten the request to write about outlining. As soon as I get this WIP sent to my betas, I’m planning on pulling up the half-finished article and seeing what I can do to get it prepared for you. That and a million other things await my attention.

What types of things would you like to know about my writing process?

I also have some editing jobs coming up, which will make me twice as busy. This also will weigh in on my blogging schedule, as paid jobs must take precedence over volunteer gigs, though obviously I don’t want to neglect you, my dear reader friends. I cherish you very much.

While I now head off to dig into some revisions, I want to leave you with this one more thought: that kindness matters. We know this, because God was first kind to us. May we each choose to express kindness to someone who crosses our path today.

Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles!
Laud Him, all you peoples!
For His merciful kindness is great toward us,
And the truth of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord!

Psalm 117:1-2 NKJ

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