As some of you might know, I have a series called the Ice Era Chronicles. It is a post-apocalyptic, futuristic romance series. The main line of the books, the times, is all about male-female love stories with action, sex, and the question of whether the world of ice will kill everyone.
I also have a series of books called the Alien Love Series. My Dagerstanteens are all a bit gay, but if you want to get down to brass tacks, in the end, the alien species has no gender. They are considered male by the humans they meet, and they fall in love with men from Earth. It’s a bit of a gray area.
I have a four-book collection called “In the Mountains.” I don’t consider that a series, though. It was just a set of books I wrote when I moved to the Appalachian Mountains of Georgia. So that one really doesn’t count.
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And so on to what this post is about...
I wrote a book for a writing contest with a specific prompt. It was supposed to be about a research base floating in space and an alien prince. I put my own spin on it because I am who I am.
I didn’t plan to do much with this book other than submit it in the contest. As it was, the story got rejected. I don’t know why. But as I worked on it, I thought I could write a story for all seven characters in the first book. I labeled it on my computer as “Reel Legends.” They are on the planet of Reel. The first book in the Reel Legends introduces Trace and it sends this person on an adventure. I then made an outline for a second book and a third. Who am I kidding? I did an outline for all seven main characters, but when the book was rejected, I didn’t pursue writing more stories. I think I was caught in that place of writing for myself and wondering why write if no one wants to read my work. (I live in this space.)
And so, time passed, and I wrote a book about vampires… and so now here I am.

I could write another Ice Era Chronicle or start a new set of “In the Mountains.” I could write another love story for my Dagerstanteens or keep going with “Reel Legends.” Or finally, I could write about more vampires. Heaven knows I got some ideas for the Lex Sanguis and the vampire Enforcers. They have human vampire hunters trying to kill them and evil vampires turning, and they all have some serious insecurities about their fang size…

But I digress. I don’t know what to work on. So, does anyone have any thoughts?

I don’t feel old. But I bet that is what all the old people say.
​As time goes on and I talk to my twenty-something daughters, I realize that my age shows in my work. I am not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing, or if it just is.
I was reading a story the other day, and the author made a comment about a Rolodex. I chuckled, but then I wondered how old this lady was to know what a Rolodex was. My mom had one of those. I didn’t even have one. So… that’s like a really old reference even for me.
I think about that when I’m writing. Now that it happened to me, I wonder if what I put into words just sounds like an old person and her babble. Don’t get me wrong, even if you said yes, you are a babbling old person, I would still write. I would write and give you the finger between chapters. But still, I want to be conscientious about the terms I use, not because they age me, but because I want to paint a story for you. I want to immerse you in the very best tale I can weave, and I don’t think I can do that if I am referencing a Nokia flip phone. (I used to have one of those.)
As I write this post, I think about the movies and shows from the eighties and nineties, or even the ones made in the fifties. Some stories are timeless and still hold up. I want that magic. Maybe if I keep working on being the best writer I can be, I will get there one day.

​I will sometimes read books by authors who are new to writing or practicing their craft. I like to read work that isn’t mainstream and try to be supportive of someone's writing, no matter how big or small their project is.
That said, I do not like reading unfinished books! I get a dopamine hit when I finish a book. It is my drug of choice. I get a flood of the chemical in my brain when I’m done with that last delicious page and when I read a well-put-together book that closes with a satisfying conclusion.
Because of this specific drug reason, I never watch TV shows that are ongoing, and I NEVER read books that are not completed.
I hate it when a book is complete, and the story leaves me unsatisfied, but it is a particularly terrible feeling when I, of my own accord, take on reading something left hanging.
Now… to be supportive of others, I sometimes read part of a friend's manuscript to help them keep going and grow as an author, but this is not what I do in my leisure time.
And then I did it. I did what I hate. I read a few pages of a book the other day. I was on Inkitt, and I wasn’t paying attention, and I read part of a story!
And what is worse, the story was good. It was the most beautiful, most painful, most crazy work I had seen in a long time, and I hated the writer for not finishing it.
These are strong words, hate. The word fits, however. I got emotionally invested in the two main characters from page one, and here I am, torn and shattered, waiting and hoping the writer keeps going.
UGH! This is awful.
This book has been on my mind for days and days. I think I’m going crazy. I want to write the end of this book because it is bothering me so much. I don’t know what to do to get over this. Does anyone else have this problem? It’s like having the flu and never getting better. It’s a cold that I can't shake.

​My husband served with a guy named Jason Barker. They served in Afghanistan during the war. Not long ago, Jason told my husband he had written a song. And so, I listened to it.
13 or None is a wonderful song. It captured Afghanistan and the connection to the soldiers. As some of you might know, I served in Afghanistan as well, and so even though the song wasn’t about me or anything, I still felt a deep bond to the work.
Anyway, the other day I was listening to it, and I had a thought. I am so happy Jason made this song. It is one of my favorites. I am happy that he made it, even if he isn't famous or making a ton of money off it. You see, what if Jason thought that no one would care, and so he didn’t make the song? Then I should have never heard it. That is a shame. Because I love it. All this made me realize that I might have people out in the world who love my books, and they are happy I am writing them. They are their favorites, and what if I didn’t write them because I was so caught up in the why and how? Jason is my new favorite artist, and his one song fills my soul. What if C.M. Moore is someone's favorite author, and one of my books fills their soul?
That is a lonely thought.