Sunday Morning Musings

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        It’s Sunday morning as I sit down to write this. It’s a beautiful day. Not too hot yet (thank God for air conditioning…I tend to hibernate during the summers in Arizona) and there’s a lot I need to get accomplished. Sunday is my busy day, not like Saturday, where after my chores, I have a tendency to sit my butt on the couch and just veg. Granted, I do need that time to recuperate from the work week, but I hate the idea of being idle when there are so many things I could be—should be—doing.

        I’m not lazy. Not by a long shot. My house is cleaned and the laundry is done before I sit down. And I only do this on Saturdays (there’s too much to do and not enough time during the week).

        I have NetFlix, a constant draw for me and it’s both a good thing…and a bad thing. I particularly like the limited episode series. It’s so easy to get drawn in. You tell yourself you’ll only watch one episode then hours later, you realize you’ve watched the entire thing. I like the movies, too.

        That’s not to say I don’t do anything else during the time I’m vegging. I always have a pad of paper nearby so I can jot ideas, scenes, and bits of dialogue…somehow, just mindlessly watching a show frees up something in my head and the words I’m struggling with suddenly appear. 

        Which is a good thing because it seems like the writing is a hit or miss lately. I’m working on Wife Unexpected right now. I do have a deadline. It’s not for a while yet, but it seems like (feels like) I’m falling behind. I know, on one level, that I have plenty of time, but I can’t help feeling like I should be further along in the story.

        There are mornings (I write between 4:30 and 6:00 before the day job takes away every last brain cell in my head) when I’ll write 700 words then the next day, I’ll only get 200. What’s up with that? I have found though, when I’m having trouble in one scene, I will jump ahead and that seems to help (I am a puzzler).

        Ah, well, it is what it is. And being that this is Sunday, I should get moving! Lots of things to do today to get ready for the work week ahead…come on retirement! Only one year, five months, and twelve days to go before I can say goodbye to the day job! Whooo-hoooo!

Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

It's Here! It's Here!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe! I'm a day early but I couldn't help myself! The Madam & Mr. MacLean has been released! Whooo-hoooo!

 

 

 

Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

The Madam & Mr. MacLean - Proofs are done!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Whoooo-hoooo! The last time I wrote to you guys, I let you know the first and second round edits for The Madam & Mr. MacLean were done. This week? The proofs are done as well!

        I’m so excited! Reading through the story for the last time before publication is still a thrill! Yes, it’s a lot of work, but it’s so worth it. At least in my opinion.

 

 The Madam & Mr. MacLean

Release day is July 7 (it’s currently up for pre-order on Amazon). I hope you love Sheridan and Wyatt as much as I do!

Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

The Madam & Mr. MacLean - First & Second Edits are done!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Okay, I’ll admit it right off the bat. I am tired. As you all know (and probably feel this way, too) there’s too much to do and not enough hours in the day! I am, however, not too tired to let you all know that I have finished both first and second round edits for The Madam & Mr. MacLean…and I’m happy. I have one more round to go!

        As you all know, I just love my editor and copy editor. My publisher, too, and their outstanding cover artists. They’re all so wonderful! I am so blessed!

        The book is already up for Pre-Order. Just love this cover. The heroine looks exactly like I pictured her. And the hero! Wow! Isn’t he dreamy? He’s even more handsome than I wrote him!

The Madam & Mr. MacLean

Since there’s no rest for the wicked, tomorrow I can get back to Wife Unexpected. I will admit I have missed Faith and Tysen while I worked through my edits on The Madam & Mr. MacLean (scenes and dialogue were coming to me at the most inopportune times. I still stopped what I was doing to jot them down because when great stuff hits you, you gotta do that!). 

And that’s all for me. It’s Sunday so I need to clean out my fridge and get ready to go grocery shopping, plus a bunch of other chores I didn’t get to yesterday. Hmmm, the chores never seem to end, do they?

Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

The Maverick & Miss Miller is free on Bookbub from June 8 through June 12!

The Maverick & Miss Miller is 

FREE

on Bookbub 

June 8 through June 12

Grab your copy!

The Maverick & Miss Miller

The Madam & Mr. MacLean - Cover Reveal

 

    Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

    I am in the middle of editing The Madam & Mr. MacLean (my editor has once again taught me things I didn’t know I didn’t know and I am grateful to her) but I wanted to take a minute to share the cover with you all. I just love it! In addition to their excellent editors, Oliver-Heber Books has fabulous cover artists! Look at what they created for me!

 

Can you tell I’m excited? She looks exactly like I pictured Sheridan DuBois to look! And he’s just pure eye-candy! Can’t wait for this book to come out. July 7! Mark your calendars!

Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

To Write or Not To Write

       Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

       Well, the day job kicked my butt again these past two weeks. Too much to do and not enough time, but you all know what that’s like.

       Still, I survived and actually got some stuff done that I haven’t been able to get to and this makes me happy.

       What else makes me happy? Well, the writing, of course. I admit, I would be lost without it and I know this because…

        I didn’t write for over ten years. I know, that’s a long time. Why? Well, a few reasons, but looking back, none of them were good. We all have our own self-editors in our heads. You know the nasty, little voices that say “Who wrote this drivel? Why do you even try?”

        And then, there are the external voices. In my case, it was a particularly devastating rejection letter. In the past, I let those things bother me (lots of tears and then self-soothing chocolate) so I decided I was going to stop writing at all.

        And I did. For ten long years.

        I noticed something about myself when I wasn’t writing. I’m not the same person as when I do write. There is a need in me to get those words on paper (or on the computer), a passion for making up stories that keeps me sane. And, if it can bring joy to someone else, all the better.

        So, what made me start writing again?

        I was cleaning out my file cabinet and I came across that rejection letter, the one that made me put down my pen. In a clearer frame of mind (and ten years of personal growth and developing a thicker skin), I read it again. And again. No, I was not torturing myself. I was learning, seeing what that agent saw that I hadn’t seen before.

        And suddenly, two things clicked in my brain at once. An epiphany, if you will. I realized how much I missed writing and how much I was denying that part of me.

        What was the other thing? Plain old stubbornness. Yes, I said that and I mean that. I am stubborn. Have been all my life (and believe me, sometimes stubbornness will see you through a situation more than anything else).

        So…I sat down to write. A story so full of conflict that there could never be any doubt (which is what the agent had pointed out in the letter…that I didn’t have enough conflict).

        Finding and reading that letter again happened in 2006. In 2008, I published my first story. That was eighteen years ago. Since then, I’ve published fourteen stories, finished the first draft of another, and started four more.

        I still have that rejection letter. It’s framed on my wall. And it reminds me…never let go of your dreams.

        Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go! Marie

Happy 2026

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Happy New Year! I am hoping that 2026 will be a good year, and I seem to have started it off with a bang (a muted bang…the dogs and I are tired of the fireworks they’re shooting off around here. They’re still doing it although New Year’s Eve is long over).

        Why do I say I started off with a (muted) bang? Because I finished the first draft of The Madam and Mr. MacLean! Yay! That was a goal I set for myself at the beginning of 2025 (I’m a slow but steady writer with limited time so I’m pretty pleased with myself). It’s almost ready for my edit (it’s still going through critique) then off to my beta readers.

        The other thing that made this New Years great? I signed a contract with my publisher (LOVE my publisher) for four more books – two more in the Wives of Bravado County series and two more in the Matchmaker Mischief series. I’m excited and so happy and yes, I have started all four stories because that’s just how I roll.

        It’s my favorite part, actually. I love the start of a new story (the middle is where I run into problems, but the beginning? It’s totally fun). I love creating the setting, and the plot points and most especially, my characters. If I’m really lucky, my characters will tell me who they are, what they stand for (i.e., what they will or will not do), and what their goals are. Sometimes, they talk to me. No, I’m not crazy but I do have voices in my head…such is the life of a writer! I kinda consider it crazy if I don’t have voices or scenes or dialogue running through my head.

        Speaking of scenes, I just got an inkling of a new one so I’m gonna go write.

        Stay well! Stay safe! Have a beautiful 2026 and remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!

        It’s that time of year when we are inundated with holiday commercials and movies, particularly those Hallmark Christmas movies, which I am totally addicted to. I will admit that I’ve watched quite a few, when I’m not busy doing the hundreds of other things that must be done. And it’s all good. I’m one of those romantics who gets tears in their eyes with that happily-ever-after (and I hope you feel that way when you read one of my stories).

        I have taken another week off (I have a lot of PTO that I need to burn before I lose it and yes, I’m going to pay for it when I get back to the office but that’s okay, too) so this week is perfect for catching up on things I haven’t had time to do. I don’t have much planned for the holiday. It’s just the DH and myself (and the dogs, of course), but that’s okay and with the time off, I’m hoping to finish the first draft of The Madam & Mr. MacLean. That’s my goal and I’m so close, I can taste it.

        I’m also going to make a big batch of spaghetti sauce with meatballs and sausage then make lasagna (yum) and baked ziti and of course, cheesecake, because that’s what I do for the holidays, whether I have company or not.

        That aside, there’s a new year headed our way, a new beginning so to speak. I have a few goals. They’re not resolutions as I find I fail at those, but goals, things I know I can achieve with hard work…and a little time. One of those goals is to write another story in the Wives of Bravado County series. We’ll be going back to the little town of Possibility, Texas, where everything is possible, even second chances. I have my characters all lined up as well as several plot points and I’ve already written the opening scene (hahahaha, it came to me out of the blue…I hadn’t even been thinking about this story when the heroine spoke to me while I was doing dishes). Of course, I had to write down her idea right away and those dishes had to wait.  

        Anyway, 2026 is right around the corner so….my wish for you: I hope you find peace. I hope you find joy. Most of all, I hope you find love (if you haven’t already). What kind of romance writer would I be if I didn’t wish that for you? May your days be merry and bright (yes, I stole that from the famous song) and may all your New Years’ wishes come true.

        Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go! 

Marie

Words! Words! Words!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        So, if you read my least blog, you know that I planned to take some Paid Time Off over the Thanksgiving holiday, knowing full well I’d pay for it dearly when I got back to the day job (OMG, did I ever!!! Seemed like everything was on FIRE that Monday morning and believe it or not, I’m still trying to put those flames out) but this blog isn’t about cleaning up the mess. This blog is about how wonderful it was to take that time off.

        And it really was wonderful! I maintained my schedule and woke at 4:30 like I do every morning and then….I wrote and wrote and wrote…and it was fabulous. Two thousand words one day (I know that’s not a lot for some writers, but it’s a lot for me, as I’m a slow writer), fifteen hundred on another day then four thousand and three thousand—that’s not to say I didn’t cut words. I did. A lot of them because I headed for the cliff of no return a couple times.

        And I didn’t write on Thanksgiving (I was busy cooking) but the rest of the days? Can you tell how much I loved being off!

        It became a game for me. Normally, during the work week when I need to head off to the day job, I average between three hundred and seven hundred words, but this? Having some time off to write as many words as I wanted? How many can I do today (of course, it helps when you’re in love with your characters AND they do whatever they want, even if it’s not what I want)? So much fun! The other thing I learned is that I can get up, do something, like make a cheesecake, then come back and write some more.

        After I ran out of words (because that does happen), I did some stuff around the house and then…then I got to sit down and relax and watch a movie if I wanted. Again, it was wonderful! I got to rest as well as do what I love to do. Win Win!

        If this is what retirement for me can look like, I am so ready! Only two years, two weeks and two days to go! Whoooo-hooo!

        Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go! Marie

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Happy Thanksgiving! I have to admit, this is my favorite holiday, by far! The smell of turkey roasting, the warmth of family and good friends, the knowledge that Thanksgiving is the official start of the holiday season. Yeah, it’s my thing.

        In years past, I had a full house and cooked for days, breaking out the old recipes passed down from generation to generation. There’s my mother-in-law’s stuffing recipe (as my son used to say “It’s the bomb”), my grandmother’s cheesecake recipe (it’s a killer…oh so good), my mother’s apple pie (sweet, cinnamony goodness bordering on sinful). So many memories are associated with food and preparing it. The laughter, the teaching moments, the many, many ‘oops’…yeah, sometimes the hand mixer could get away from you and there would be cake batter all over.

        I distinctly remember my grandfather chopping celery and onions for the stuffing while my grandmother supervised. My mother, who believed that as the first-born daughter, I needed to know everything about hosting a big dinner, had me by her side the entire day, basting the turkey, peeling the potatoes and learning her secret for creating the perfect mashed potato, washing the dishes as we went so the kitchen stayed clean (which is something I still do).

        This year, it’s going to be quiet, just the DH and I. And I took the week off from the day job. Yes, I will pay for it when I go back into the office, but that’s all right…I plan to use my time off to my advantage. Cooking, of course, but there’s a few movies I’ve been wanting to see…and I plan to write. A lot. Starting right now.

        And even though it’s going to be quiet this year, I still have so many things to be thankful for. And I don’t just save that gratitude for one day. I am grateful all year long—for family, for friends who have become family, for a job that I love (although the countdown to retirement has begun), for a warm home, but mostly, I am thankful for you, gentle readers, for reading my stories, for liking my characters as much as I do, for giving me the chance to show you some of the worlds I like to create.

Happy Thanksgiving! Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

Time Flies

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        By the time you read this, it will Wednesday, November 12…so I’d like to ask…where has time gone? The days seem to be flying by so quickly, I can’t keep up.

        The day job is kicking my butt. Not enough hours in the day to get everything done. Same with stuff at home…not enough hours to get it all done, plus Thanksgiving is coming up, which means I need to find time to prepare. It is my favorite holiday and I do love all the things that go along with it—the cooking, the baking (I have a killer cheesecake recipe that everyone loves), and all the rest. I will admit I enjoy all that stuff.

        All that being said, I don’t let lack of time stop me from writing. I get up early and write before the day job and household chores have time to kick my butt.

        Speaking of writing, my current work in progress is kicking my butt, too. Why? Well, we’d have to ask my characters that. It seems that they have decided to go off and do things the way they want. Like they have their own agenda and really don’t care about my plot points…or what I want them to do.

        Case in point. I had a plan (and the lead up) to Wyatt and Sheridan’s first kiss. Well, my hero, Wyatt, decided that he didn’t like the timing at all…so he just went and did it on his own before I was ready. I guess he was and it didn’t matter that I wasn’t.

        Of course, him stepping up and stepping out of sequence, just threw a whole monkey wrench into my plan. The worst part? He was right! That first kiss should have happened when he wanted it to, not when I thought it should!

        This is not the first time this has happened. I’ve had many other characters, at one point or another, just completely disregard my plans and just do what they wanted to do. And yes, they were right as well.

        I like to think you can teach an old dog (me) new tricks and maybe, just maybe, I should start listening to my characters instead of being so stubborn (yes, I am stubborn and I’m not afraid to own it) and let them do what they want when they want. It seems these characters I have created in my head know better than me, which is really strange when you think about it. They are my characters! My creations! How can they know better than the person who created them?

        I can’t answer that question. Obviously, I don’t know, but I think it’s time I let them take the lead. That being said, I’m going to open up my work in progress and see what surprises Wyatt and Sheridan have for me. Could be interesting. Could be fun.

        And that’s all for me. Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

I'm Just Rambling

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        My DH and I have been married for a long time. Forty-five years coming up in January and I just noticed something last night. I have taken on his way of rambling. Let me explain. He’ll start a conversation on a specific topic…and then he starts rambling because one thought will lead to another and another and another. At some point, he’ll say “what was I talking about?”. Well, I’ve gotten really good at recapping, telling him where he started and where he ended up so he can pick up his train of thought and get back to the original topic. It’s kinda like taking a tangled mess of string and unraveling it. I will admit, I sometimes will get lost and instead of unraveling, that string gets knotted. He’s been doing this for as long as I’ve known him.

        Now, for the revelation. I realize, after all these years, my brain has taken up this habit of rambling—silently, in my head—but what I didn’t realize is that I am doing this out loud now. It happened while we were watching a movie and it started when I recognized a character then it went to other movies/shows I had seen him in and then it went to who he had been married to…and then, it went to other movies this actor wasn’t even in! I know! What the heck!!!?!?

        It’s also showing up in my writing, which is probably why I consider myself a puzzler (not a pantster or a plotter…yes, I do write out plot points but there’s no big outline). I write the scenes as they come to me then puzzle them together. So far, that has worked for me, but today, when I sat down to write, I found two places where I had already written the scene…it was just further along in the story. Good grief! All the words, not once, but twice.

        The obvious conclusion? There isn’t one…except I’m rambling! And it seems to be taking over. Does anyone know of a cure?

        And on that note, I’m going to open my current WIP, which is The Madam and Mr. MacLean, and see if I can’t stay focused and not ramble (or repeat myself). Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

Another Sunday Morning

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        It’s another early Sunday morning as I sit down at my computer and write to you all. Today, it’s raining. Not hard (at least by me), but it is thundering and lightning. And it’s wonderful.

        Not for the dogs so much. Neither one of them likes thunder…or any loud noises for that matter. My smaller girl, and I only say that because she weighs less than her sister at one hundred pounds—my big girl is one hundred and forty pounds—is laying under my desk (as best she can…it’s amazing how ‘small’ she can make herself) where I can rest my feet on her. Gives her comfort to know I am there. My big girl is hiding in the bathroom, where she usually goes when she’s afraid. Sometimes they both end up in there.

        Sunday is my busy day. It’s the day when I get to catch up on all the things I didn’t accomplish Saturday or during the week. It started off this morning with reading my critique partner’s pages (which is always a pleasure and starts me off in a good mood). From there, I ordered needed items from Amazon (not my favorite thing to do, but a necessary evil).

        I also worked on our living trust paperwork (lots of paperwork to fill out) and then I had to renew my girls’  licenses. Maricopa County has a new way of renewing now. It’s online so I had to set up our profiles, etc., but it’s done. They’ll get new tags, too. The last thing I need to do is upload proof that they’ve received their shots, which will have to wait until tomorrow because my printer/scanner is broken and I need to scan their records.

        I’ll have to tell you about bringing my scaredy-cat girls to the vet for their shots…it was straight out of the Three Stooges…my girls are big, as I already mentioned, and when they don’t want to do something, they don’t. Needless to say, after that ordeal, both the DH and I were exhausted…it’s really hard trying to get a dog to move when they’re as big as you and they just don’t want to!              And now, being that the other items on my to-do list are done, I get to do the fun stuff. I get to work on The Madam and Mr. MacLean and hopefully write a few hundred words before I clean out the fridge, make my list and go grocery shopping.

        Yes, Sundays are my busy day, but it’s all good.

        Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go! Marie

I Love Early Mornings

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Well, folks, it’s another Sunday morning. It’s quiet in the house. Just the dogs and I are awake…well, I’m awake. They are snoring on the futon behind me because it’s still quite early—4:30am when I sat down to write this. After years of getting up at this time, I can no longer sleep in (on rare occasions, I will sleep until five, but that doesn’t happen very often). I don’t even need an alarm, just that internal clock I’ve been training for the past thirty years (hmmm, will I still get up at this time when I finally retire from the day job? I don’t know. Maybe, but why break a routine when it works so well?).

        It’s all good though.

        I love the early mornings when it’s quiet, when it’s still dark out, when my part of the world is just starting to stir. Seeing the sun rise on a brand new day is the best part of my day and it reminds me that I have much to be thankful for (and I am. I count my blessings every day). It’s the perfect time for me to write. Not because it’s early and it’s quiet (I can write anywhere at any time, whether it’s quiet or not) but because I have designated this time for me—before the day job, before everyone needs me, when it’s just me and my characters. I cherish this time with them because once the day belongs to other obligations, I don’t have time for the characters I have created.

        Sometimes, I’m lucky and the words are already in my head before I even sit down…they’ve been percolating in my brain while I slept and can’t wait to come out. Sometimes, it takes me a minute (and some coffee) to get those words flowing, and most days they do come (they might not be the right words, but that’s another story). I have had mornings where I’ve stared at the blinking cursor and had no words at all. Fortunately, there haven’t been many of those days (although, I will admit, with The Madam and Mr. MacLean, reaching my daily word count has been a struggle—I do get the words, it’s just that sometimes, they aren’t the right ones and they get ripped out).

        Speaking of The Madam and Mr. MacLean, I should get back to it before the rest of the world intrudes. Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

Keep Going

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        It’s been a week, my fine peeps. The day job is keeping me busier than I want to be (and truthfully, I’m having a hard time keeping up). It’s all good though. I learned how to multi-task a long time ago and that’s the only thing keeping my head above water! On my work-from-home days, I can hear my husband chuckling at me from the other room because he hears me talking to people on the phone and making them laugh (my work-from-home days are busy phone days). I think it’s important to be able to make people laugh whenever you can. I also believe in being kind—to everyone.

        On the writing front, things are going well. I am writing every weekday morning, before the day job, which is my routine. After the day job, I have no functioning brain cells left. Sometimes, I write on the weekend, too. I admit, I took a break yesterday and did nothing except my Saturday chores. Once those were done, I sat my behind on the couch and watched a couple movies—nothing I would recommend though.

        I did have a day early in the week where my word count was dismal and…I had a moment. I don’t know if you’ve ever had that moment where you ask yourself why you continue to write (or continue to do something you’ve done for a long time). The moment didn’t last long. Just a day, but I did have to have a long talk with myself in the mirror. Basically, the gist of it was “pull up your big girl panties and get on with it”. That seems to work well for me and it did. The rest of the week, my word count was really good and The Madam and Mr. MacLean is moving right along.

        Also last week, I participated in a writing workshop. I love those…I always get something good out of them and this one didn’t disappoint. The most important thing I learned is that what works for one might not necessarily work for another. This particular workshop was geared to finding your strengths. I’m going to take the test (hahahahaha, yes, there’s a test to see what your strengths are!). I know at least one of them. Perseverance. I have that by the bucketful! I keep putting one foot in front of the other (yes, sometimes I do the cha-cha, one foot forward, one foot back, but I always get the rhythm and I always keep going).

        And that’s about all for me…it’s Sunday so time to water the plants before I do the rest of my Sunday chores. Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

Some Time Off and A Lot of Writing

Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

Well, here it is, another Sunday morning (that’s when I write this blog) and I’ve already been up for several hours, working on The Madam and Mr. MacLean (hahahahaha, I’m always up early, usually before the sun comes up because after years of doing so, I can no longer sleep in, even on weekends).
        You know, when I started this story, I didn’t like my heroine very much. She is/was such a different kind of character than I usually write, but I have to say, the more I’m working on her, watching her change, seeing what she can become, the more I like her. She isn’t (or wasn’t) a bad person…just…different, but she is growing on me, and I hope she grows on you, too. Her name is Sheridan.
        I’ve been working on her a lot over the past couple days (I took PTO from the day job as I have too many hours and I need to burn some…my company only allows so many hours to be rolled over to the next year). Anyway, I made a three-day weekend into a five-day weekend, and I can’t tell you how much I’m enjoying my time off (oh, I will pay for it when I get back to the office on Tuesday, believe me, but for now, the time off has been wonderful).
        I’ve been writing, as you know. A lot. Both on my computer and long-hand (I try to jot down ideas as they come to me…yesterday, that one idea turned into three hand-written pages…I should have just come into my office and typed, but I was in the middle of doing other things). I’m still all over the place because one thought leads to another and you know how that happens BUT even though I’m not even close to it, I wrote the epilogue. The words were in my head (I woke up with the scene and dialogue so had to run with it). I’ve done this before…written the epilogue before I wrote everything else and it seems to work fine. Gives me a goal to get to. I did not type “The End”. Never do until I’m really there. Actually, I never type “The End” when I finish a story. I always type “The Beginning” because it is the beginning of the rest of these characters lives.
        What else have I done on my time off? Well, I cleaned and did laundry because there’s really no time off from that, but I was also able to watch two movies. I recommend The Thursday Murder Club. Pierce Brosnan is still a hunk and half, even with his white hair. I also watched The Six Triple Eight and admit to getting very ‘verklempt’. I didn’t cry, per se, but my eyes did get all watery and there might have been a tear or two (or twenty) that rolled down my cheek. Good movie, based on a true story. I would recommend that one too, whether you like history or not. The acting was phenomenal!  
        And that’s about all for me…Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!
        Marie

On That Thought!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Oh my goodness! It’s been a crazy, busy week! It feels like the more I stuff into my brain, the more my brain multiplies it! Is this normal? Is this how other people’s brains work? Is this why my brain feels overwhelmed sometimes?

        I don’t know.

        I was talking to my lovely critique partner, discussing where and how The Madam & Mr. MacLean is going, and I mentioned that I wrote quite a bit…but I was all over the place. One thought led me to another thought which led me to another thought and of course, I don’t want to forget those ideas or that dialogue so I was in one chapter then another chapter then I’d go back and feed something into a previous chapter. Not only that, but I’m getting ideas and dialogue for the next four books (and yes, I need to write that down otherwise I will forget)! Is that the definition of crazy? I don’t know that either.

        Anyway, my critique partner said, “That’s just how your mind works.”

        And it is…I am a master multi-tasker. My day job requires that I be able to stop on a dime with what I was doing, move on to something else, then go back to what I was originally working on. I feel like I start many things, but it takes a long time to finish the thing I originally started on (mostly because I’ve been interrupted or something needs my immediate attention).

        It's like I’m a butterfly, or maybe a honeybee, flitting from flower to flower. I suppose, after years and years of training myself to be able to do that, I don’t know any other way. In some tasks, I’m very methodical—start here and finish here—but in others, not so much. I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I do know that eventually all my tasks get completed. It might not be in the timeline I originally thought, but it all gets done.

        We’re not even going to talk about the rabbit holes I go down. I can start to look up one tiny thing and boom, hours have passed. I learn things though and you never know when one of those little tidbits will explode into something else.

        Is there such a thing as having too much information in your brain? Can a person have too many words? Too many facts? I don’t know that either, but you know, I’m willing to find out. I don't think I have a choice at this point.

        And with that thought (OMG! Another thought!), I should get back to working on The Madam and Mr. MacLean. Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

Some Fun Stuff

         

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        So, I did a couple of fun things in the past week (aside from writing) so I thought I’d share a little. I met a friend for lunch. We used to work together, but it’s been a while. We do stay in touch via Facebook, but it’s not the same as sitting across from someone, sharing a meal amid laughter. It was such a fun visit—we laughed a lot. And I left the restaurant happy, enthused, and raring to write.

        What else did I do that was fun? I did an interview (oh, no, not in person! That would just terrify me!). I did two interviews actually, one for Oliver-Heber, my publisher, and one for Fresh Fiction. Here are the links if you want to check them out….

https://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=15045

https://oliver-heberbooks.com/marie-patrick-and-her-mischievous-matchmakers/   

They were a little difficult to do. I share a lot with you, gentle readers, but don’t normally share as much with others. I’m trying to get out of my comfort zone, so to speak and doing these interviews was a step forward. 

What else did I do that was fun? Well, I’m not sure most folks would call it fun, but I did work on The Madam and Mr. MacLean, the next story in the Matchmaker Mischief series. I won’t say it hasn’t been a struggle, because it has, but I’m making headway, I think. My heroine, a rather reserved individual, has finally smiled! And laughed! Which made me laugh. And I’m so proud of her. I know that sounds silly, but it’s true. Hmmmm, I wonder if other authors feel like this—almost downright giddy—when a character begins to blossom and comes out of her shell. My hero is the complete opposite…he smiles and laughs all the time. Actually, it just occurred to me that my hero is kinda like my DH…he’s very outgoing, very chatty (with everyone—I don’t think he’s ever met a stranger!) and he’s been making me laugh for the past forty-six years!

And that’s all for me…I need to get back to my heroine, Sheridan, and see if I can make her laugh again. Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

It's Here. It's Here! The Marshal & Mrs. Morgan has been released. Whooo-hooo!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Yes, it’s me again. I’m trying to get back on schedule (which is difficult when days and weeks go by and your routine is disrupted…and we all know that I live by my routines).

        Anyway, as I said, I’m trying to get back on schedule so here I am.

        The Marshal & Mrs. Morgan is releasing on July 22 (a day before you’ll see this post. A date which also kinda snuck up on me though how that happened, I can’t begin to explain) and I’m so excited for you all to meet Devlin Goodrich and Tresia Morgan. These two characters just kinda came alive for me…they knew who they were and were not afraid to tell me.

https://www.amazon.com/Marshal-Mrs-Morgan-Matchmaker-Mischief-ebook/dp/B0FB45SYR6

        Tresia is kindness itself (we all know how being kind is important to me). She’s also smart, sweet, and an all-around good person (which is also important to me). She loves a little too hard, but that’s all right. Nothing wrong with that at all.

        Devlin is a good man, too…a little lost in the beginning of the story, looking for a change—a new job, a new town—that will help both himself and his daughter come to terms with their past.

        And then there’s Avery, his daughter…cute as a bug’s ear and just…I hope you’ll fall in love with her like I did. Actually, I hope you love The Marshal & Mrs. Morgan as much as I loved writing it.

        That being said, it’s time to get back to work. The Madam and Mr. MacLean will not write itself and as you may know, I’m struggling a bit with this story, but I will persevere because…I already know the happy ending!

        Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie