Fall is definitely in the air, folks, and I
have the photos to prove it. Just look at these.
The change happened a few Sundays ago. I
think I tweeted it that day. I felt it in the air. It just
tasted like Autumn, even though it was still in the upper 80s.
Then, the final ten days of August, our
endless, scorcher of a summer, with all its record breaking
heat, ended abruptly when we had a transition period of two days
when we stayed in the moderate 70s, then straight into a stretch
of 50s, gloomy skies, and rain.
This first week of September, were having a
few days in the 90s again, followed by a prediction of
noticeably colder temps again this weekend. 68, 69, 70. Ups and
downs, lots of wind, colors appearing in the trees. Its all
here.
Welcome Fall! It truly is my favorite
season. I dont know why. I was born in February, so its not
that, and its not just that I love Halloween so much. I love
the colors. My house is even decorated in fall colors, shades
of yellow, orange and red. I love the rusty & coppery colors
best of all, I think. And the smell in the air this time of
year. The whole energy of the harvest theme really resonates
with me.
I dont know about you, but in the spring and
fall, I get the cleaning urge, and I try never to ignore that
urge, since it comes around so seldom. =) Ive been washing the
doggy slobber and muddy tail swoosh marks off my walls, windows
and woodwork. I hoed out my temple room, also known as my
meditation room, though its really my own little church. I
have altars to honor the energies of the four directions in
there, and all of my sacred objects. I created a little
divination corner with a beanbag chair in front of it where I
stashed all my runes and tarot cards and the like. Its nice in
there again. It had become a bit of a catch all area, but
thats a thing of the past.
temple door
main altar and
divination corner
western altar
Next task, the dreaded office. (Insert scream
of your choice from any Halloween soundtracks CD here.) Its
full to overflowing, really, with . . . well, just stuff.
Even my desk looks like a mess-monster got to it. So that
will be my next task, but you know, its hard fitting these
things in, with all the important stuff competing for attention.
And the second most important thing in my life
right now is my writing. Readers, I am working on what I think
will be the best book of my entire career, and yes, it is a
vampire book. Wings in the Night. Old school Wings in
the Night, with the old gang, but featuring J.W. (one of the
twins, and if you dont know who I mean, Ill ruin another book
by telling you, so just read the reissues this fall and youll
be with me.) The other day (Friday, August 27th, a day that
shall live in infamy, in my mind at least) I tweeted that I had
just written the best scene I had ever created. And that was in
this book, TWILIGHT
PROPHECY, which will be released next May. We dont
have cover art yet. Oh, but maybe soon. Im dying to see it.
They did such a beautiful job on the art for the reissues, that
I know this new one will be breathtaking too.
(What reissues, you ask? These ones, coming
in October, November, and December.)
So thats whats in progress. My muse has
been in top form and very demanding, eagerly feeding me ideas
for one new stand-alone story, a whole new trilogy, and bugging
me start work on the vamp book that comes after the one Im
writing now. And she seems to want me working on all of the
above at the same time! Shes keeping me awake nights with her
whispers, feeding stories into my brain. Im not complaining,
mind you. Id far rather have the inspiration flowing faster
than I can keep up with it, than the alternative. So its all
good.
And of course, KISS ME, KILL ME,
the third and final book of my Secrets of Shadow Falls summer
suspense trilogy has just gone on sale, August 31st, and so
well see how it does. Its getting fabulous reviews and
wonderful comments on Facebook and elsewhere, so I have no doubt
its selling well. And Im feeling so good that only good
things can happen right now.
Also, Ill be posting a special, exclusive,
free story at EHarlequn.com this month. The story is KISS
ME GOODBYE, and its a mini-sequel to the Secrets of Shadow
Falls trilogy, featuring Dawn and Bryan from book one of that
series. (You dont need to have read the series to enjoy this
short sequel.) It will appear, 1 chapter per day, every day for
20 days, beginning September 13th. And its entirely FREE.
Ill post a direct link here and everywhere else just as soon as
I have one. But they cant give me the link until the story
goes up. I hope you enjoy it. And it should be a good way to
kill time between the third book of that series, KISS ME, KILL ME,
and the first of the vampire reissues, TWILIGHT HUNGER
at the beginning of October.
So what else can I tell you? Oh, yes, why on
earth did I place my writing, which is something almost holy to
me, second on my list of priorities? Because living is first.
Living, loving, experiencing life outside my head and office and
computer screen, spending time having fun, fun and more fun with
those I love. No matter how long I have on this planet, it will
never be enough time with my partner. Nor with my girls. Thank
goodness Im convinced we stay together into the afterlife, and
the life after that, and on and on.
Were in the early stages of planning a
wedding for my fourth-born daughter Stacie to her fabulous
fianc Chris. Were still scouting out locations, and thats
really the hardest part of the entire thing. (Ive planned lots
of weddings, trust me on this.) Once you have the date and
locale locked in, youve overcome the first and biggest hurdle.
Everything else springs from that. So were on it, big time.
And of course, Im eager to spend as much time
outdoors as possible before the dark, snowy months of winter
arrive. (Im not a fan of cold and snow.) Especially now that
it feels like fall. So kayaking and lake visits, and fishing
and walking, are all calling to me. As is decorating my home
for Fall and All Hallows. So theres a lot going on, and the
traditional fall hoe out of the cluttered rooms in the house
gets pushed lower and lower on the list of priorities, with my
soulmate, my family, my dogs, my fun, fun life, my embracing of
the autumn and my writing all far more important to me. And
yet, getting that office done is going to feel so good, I can
hardly wait for a rainy day to spend working on that. And in
truth, it has begun.
Now, I will leave you to enjoy my latest doggy
video. I have two more in progress. (Another fun
competitor for my time--making dog movies.) And I will be back
with another update around the middle of September.
