Hello everyone. Been some time since my last post. I have started a couple of different posts in the time since end of last year and now, but each sounded trite in the face of events unfolding.

Yet, no matter how horrendous things have become, I know that ART and CREATIVITY are what I bring to the fight. Will my book change people? Probably not. Does it offer an escape from the chaos? YES!

And I believe that we all need an escape sometimes.

With that, let me start with some updates for this new year.

Book Marketing

One of the things about being a self-published author I had no idea about is how much work is involved in marketing. I thought writing the book was hard, but marketing it, talking about it, and getting it into people’s hands to enjoy has been so much more intricate.

I’ve taken a couple online courses on book marketing, learning how to get a newsletter going, and have started a Substack (coming soon!).

Social media marketing has its place, but I know for myself and many others it can become nothing more than doomscrolling and a time suck. I have met some lovely other authors and creatives by joining Instagram and that has been a blessing. So it is about balance.

One of my goals for 2026 is self-regulating on social. Setting aside time for it for my book/business, and relationship building, but also knowing when it’s time to just put it away!

Writing

I have been writing! Yes, actually writing my new story, an alternate history set in the California Gold Rush. A good chunk of the lot is written out, and for me that’s a big step, as I’m a notorious “pantser” when I write. With the setting in my backyard, it’s been so much fun doing research into the local, Sacramento area history, too.

Reading

I was able to read several books over the holidays. And now I’m reading a classic: Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. Set in Monterey during the Great Depression, the novel so far has been filled with almost tangible descriptions of the area. I’ve been to Monterey and Cannery Row many times in my life and it is such a beautiful place now. (If you can ever go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, GO! I’d live inside the Outer Bay exhibit or jellyfish room if I could.) There’s a major juxtaposition between the landscape and the characters’ lives that Steinbeck is so wonderful at creating. I’m halfway through the book, but I’m sure it will continue to be enjoyable.

With my kiddos, they have been devouring books all winter. Right now it jumps between All the Dogman books, Captain Underpants, Babysitters Club, PAWS, and Diary of a Whimpey Kid. I’m going to be looking for a new novel to read with them at bedtime, a classic of some kind.  

That’s all for now. Hope that you all are able to escape into something that brings you joy. ☺️