Heatwave

Hello from the hot and dusty desert!  I'd like to say the summer heat has in no way zapped any of my energy this past month. That it hasn't even slightly hindered my productivity. But it did, a little. The lack of proper A/C has been a factor in the whole "wanting to do things" parts of life. Or wanting to move at all. Or even breathe too deeply. Our rooftop swamp cooler can only do so much in 110-degree heat, bless it's little soul.

So much of the past month has involved making endless trays of fancy round ice cubes, the kind I bust out this time of year to make the "melting in the heat" phenomenon seem somehow more festive. Then I sit in my recliner, sipping a mason jar of water tinkling with the sound of fancy ice, wondering when the afternoons got so long. An ice pack and a neck fan helps.  Luckily, summer here only lasts only about, oh, six months or so. 

Ugh. 

Bookish Stuff and a Release!

It's here! Her Full Moon Cowboys, the book that launched my Lone Wolves of Shay Falls series, has returned to online booksellers this month.  I'm in love with the new cover design and am stoked about the teaser trailer. (See the trailer and buy links on my official release post HERE.)

And despite the bleak picture I painted of my productivity, I got some work done on books 3 and 4 of the Kiss of the Dragon series and am already prepping the next backlist release, TBA next month.

I hope you have a healthy supply of fancy ice cubes, some solid A/C, and possibly a trusty neck fan to get you through the dog days of summer. Until next time! 

(Photo courtesy of Unsplash)

What Happened?

For those of you who've wondered when the next Kiss of the Dragon installment is coming out, when ANY book of mine might come out, or simply where the heck I've been, first let me say I'm sorry. (If you hadn't wondered, no hard feelings. Everyone's been a little preoccupied since my last blog.)

That last post was March 2019, before the global events that overtook us all. Before the rug got pulled out from under my personal and writing life. In that update, I was starting Going to the Altar 2 (a series written under my other pen name). I released that book at the end of May and spent my summer hard at work developing the premise for Heart of the Dragon, Kiss of the Dragon book 3. I wrote drafts for that book and Going to the Altar 3. But neither were working. They needed rethinking and rewrites. 

Then came 2020.

I arrived at my hospital job to discover I was now a front-line worker on an active, soon-to-be overwhelmed Covid-19 unit. For two years, nobody on that unit came up for air. Days were long and bleak, and no vacation time was granted. I was exhausted and traumatized, but I didn't stop writing entirely. I spent months trying to rewrite those two books. Then I realized part of the issue with Heart of the Dragon was that it couldn't be the final installment like I'd planned.  To truly wrap up the series arc, I needed a fourth book.

(Photo courtesy of Unsplash)

I was still paddling when we lost my father-in-law, presumably to Covid. Then the hardest hit of all: my oldest son died in an unrelated and unexpected tragedy. 2022 spit me out the other end with some other souvenirs as well: severe anxiety, PTSD, and an eating disorder. I know I'm far from the only person to come through the past three years with scars, and I can only hope that those of you who are reading this post fared better.

(Photo courtesy of Unsplash)

Current State of Life/Projects

Fast forward to now, when the tide has finally pushed me somewhat ashore. Hopefully, I can finish climbing into my little lifeboat before the next wave comes in.

Meanwhile, I've been working simultaneously on Heart of the Dragon...aaaand, drum roll please...Mate of the Dragon, Kiss of the Dragon 4. I don't have a release date yet, and more rewrites are needed. My goal is to finish both books before I make Book 3 available. And so, I beg your indulgence and patience a while longer.

I also regained contracts rights to a number of backlist titles  during the pandemic. I'm dusting these off like the comforting old friends they are, and I'll be re-releasing them over the coming months. First up is Her Full Moon Cowboys, the MMF werewolf romance that became my all-time bestseller. Expect that one to return to online booksellers in early August, followed by the Lone Wolves of Shay Falls books.

And so, my dear reader friends, that is the quick(ish) update of "Whatever Happened to J. Rose?" I'm still here and still writing. And for those of us who love stories and storytelling, there are few greater victories.