Not a Witch (for real!)

I can hardly believe it, and you probably can’t either, but Not a Witch is done! The ebook is available pretty much wherever you buy your ebooks.

Amazon!
Other Places!

If you’re a library user, all the Jake & Boo books are available through Overdrive, so ask your library to get them!

The paperback should be available by the end of the month – I’m waiting for the galley proof to arrive, and if it looks okay then we’re in business. I’ve had cover issues in the past (Not a Mermaid was a nightmare) but I am optimistic!

Not a Witch is also a backdoor pilot for a new series – Hill Country Witches. I am currently plotting and outlining the first book and will be writing it in November for NaNoWriMo. I will be posting the draft on my Patreon page throughout November, so subscribers will get a first look at the story. Once the draft is done I’ll be editing and rewriting and hoping to publish in early 2021.

So…

Why the long wait? Fair question, and I am so, so sorry it has taken so long. I really thought it would go faster, and then *bam* it was like I hit a brick wall. It’s taken about 18 months, but I think we’re getting my health issues figured out. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Hypothyroidism, and started on thyroid hormones for that, but still was having fatigue and pain and inability to concentrate. My endocrinologist (who is amazing) suspected anemia, and it turns out I do have low iron stores, but not anemia. So the next order of business is getting those iron levels back up! Turns out low Ferretin symptoms can look like a lot of other stuff and can go undiagnosed for years. Years, people! Yikes. I guess what I’m saying is, if you know something’s wrong, don’t give up until you figure it out. It can make such a difference. Like whether or not you’re able to put out that latest book or just take a walk around the block.

Summer in the City. Or the Woods. Or Wherever.

My favorite part of summer is a very small and specific thing. The smell of the fig tree outside my office window. I love the smell of anything fig – the leaves, the fruit, the… well, I guess that’s about it, huh? Smell is one of the strongest triggers of memory and emotion, and I have a strong sense of smell (sometimes it’s great, other times, not so much). I wish Diane Ackerman had dedicated more of A Natural History of the Senses to it.

But I’ll be leaving my fig tree behind for a few days to drive off into the woods and unplug. Not literally, because I’ll need AC and I’ll need to charge my computer and run my Nespresso machine and turn on the lights. But you know what I mean – no social media or internet to distract me. Just me and my words, and my crocheting, and Grimm on DVD. But mostly words. Lots and lots of words.

Hey – if you haven’t signed up for my Patreon yet, think about it! Love Letters starts in June!

It’s May, so…

UPDATE: Well, that was quick. I figured it would take a few days, but my Patreon account is already ready to go! Find out more at My Patreon Page!

Καλό μήνα! Or, kalo mina. That’s what you say in Greece at the start of a new month. Basically, have a good month. My husband and I are planning this year’s trip to Greece and I’m supposed to be improving my Greek skills, but it’s a hard slog for me. I’m excited, though, because sitting alone in an apartment in Thessaloniki is where I get some of my best work done. This year we are in the same apartment as last year, and I can’t wait. It has a Nespresso machine, which was the source of my current addiction.

Anyhoo, I’m grinding away at Not a Witch, but it’s been slow going as life has been a little chaotic the last couple of months.

I also spent some time working on book two of Cable’s Bend, “Love Letters”, and finally had to admit something to myself. At first I thought the story was boring me, but that’s not it. What it is, is that it doesn’t fit in with the other stuff I’m writing now. A big part of that is that it’s got sexy bits. I’m fine with writing sexy bits, but I’d rather do a scene where they start getting hot and heavy, and the cat throws up on the sofa or someone throws their back out.

Timing-wise, “Love Letters” runs concurrently with Saving Grapes, and includes some of the same events, but from a different viewpoint. The main characters are men in their late forties, with responsibilities and commitments, who have to figure out how to balance that with finding personal happiness. Yeah, I know it’s not action-packed, but it’s real, and deserves a shot.

I just don’t think it fits with the “brand” I’m building with Jake & Boo and the upcoming Hill Country Witch series.

So, here’s what’s happening:

I’m starting a Patreon account. It has been created and is under review. Once it has been approved I will post a link here and on Twitter. I’ll be serializing the stories and throwing in some stuff from the Jake & Boo universe as well – I’m thinking some short stories about Jake and Don as kids, that kind of thing.

Anyway, content will start going live in June, and the stuff I put on Patreon won’t be available anywhere else! If that kind of stuff interests you, I hope you’ll check it out.

Newsletter 1.1

Hi all! So, the first issue of the newsletter went out this week, and so far the only problem that’s popped up is that one person was unable to see the pictures of Fred. If anyone else has any feedback, or ideas of something they’d like to hear more about or questions, or whatever, just send them my way! In the meantime, here are those missing pictures of Fred:

Something’s in the Works!

I’m finally going back to Cable’s Bend! Book 2 is well and truly in the works, and it’s definitely happening. Cable’s Bend books are straight up romance, with no paranormal goings-on. We also don’t fade to black – so if you’re not up for some steamy sexy-times, you can always skim over those parts. Here’s the working description, in case anyone’s interested in what’s going on this time in my fictional wine-country town:

Jonathan Heywood thought he had lost everything – his wife and son, his partner, his home. But when the past comes calling, Jon discovers that not all is lost…

When Jonathan Heywood gets a call from his former brother-in-law, he heads to Cable’s Bend for a reunion with his long-lost son. Enchanted by the small town, Jon takes a sabbatical and starts working on a history of the area, bringing him in contact with local amateur historian, Drew Martin.

Their attraction is mutual, but so is their initial caution. Jon still grieves for the life he lost. Drew struggles with balancing his desires with his responsibilities as minister for the local Unitarian Fellowship. Years ago his commitments resulted in a heartbreaking loss, and he is hesitant to put his heart on the line.

When their examination of the local archive unearths a trove of unexpected love letters, they realize that no matter what life throws at you, the challenges are easier met with a partner at your side.

It’s Live!

It’s done! Not an Elf is available on Amazon! It will start showing up at other retailers on the 7th, and I’ll post that link when it is available.

I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it – this one has more Jake & Petreski time, more family, more Cats, and more magic!

Not an Elf Cover Reveal!

It’s almost December, and I’m busting my ass trying to get Not an Elf out there sometime during the first week. I mean, who wouldn’t want to spend Christmas with the Petreskis? Mom bakes and Dad has found a way to make fruitcake edible (hint: it involves hard liquor).

Not an Elf Update

We are getting there! But for the life of me I can’t figure out why I ever think I’ll get anything done during October. Because October means RHINEBECK!

Specifically, my annual cross-country road trip to Rhinebeck, New York, birthplace of Nick Burkhardt and home of the New York Sheep and Wool Festival.

So, yeah. Nothing much happened for a couple of weeks. Lots of knitting and crocheting, wine sipping, yarn buying, and so on. But that’s not going to get Not an Elf finished.

But whatever else happens, this month I have to finish, because I can’t be publishing a Christmas-themed story in January! Well, I can, but I don’t want to, because in January I want to be working on Not a Witch!

Not an Elf – Sneak Peek!

Work on the next Jake & Boo book, Not an Elf, is on track for publication in early November! It’s a Christmas-themed tale set mainly in Waxahachie, Texas. Both sides of my family have roots in Ellis County, and Waxahachie in particular. I’m planning to do a write-up about that in my first newsletter, coming out in March – sign up for the mailing list over to the right >>>>>

But in the meantime, here’s an excerpt from Not an Elf:

We finished the slice of pie and I was on my third cup of coffee when there was a knock on the window next to our table. We both jumped and I turned to see Petreski looking in, a ball of silky brown fluff held in the crook of one arm.

“Is that a dog?” Andi asked.

“I think so. Where’s its face?”

Andi wrinkled her nose. “I think it’s that mushy bit on the right.”

“Huh.”

“Oh good lord,” said Alva Bettencourt, coming over to our table. “What on earth is Ruben Petreski doing with Karl Lowel’s dog?”

“So it is a dog,” said Andi.

“Did you hear about Karl?” I asked Alva.

“Oh, sure. It’s all over town. Good riddance to bad rubbish as my mama used to say. But that dog.” She sighed and shook her head before going back to the counter to ring up a customer.

I turned back to the window in time to see a string of drool drip from Jermaine’s mouth – I could see a little pink tongue lolling out of it now – and land on Petreski’s hand.

“Eww,” Andi and I said in unison.

“I’d better get out there before your brother loses it,” I said, tossing some cash on the table. “Take care of the bill, okay?” I grabbed some napkins and hustled to the door.

“This better pay off,” Petreski said, as he used a napkin to wipe the drool off his hand.

I looked down at the dog in my arms. Beady brown eyes looked up from a smooshed-in face. I tucked a napkin underneath Jermain’s chin. “I hope so, too.”

“You getting anything from him?”

“I’d say it’s too soon to tell. He may not even be aware yet that his human isn’t coming home.”

“I gotta say,” Petreski said, tossing the used napkin into a trash can, “I’ll be surprised if he ever figures it out.”

“Boo! What a terrible thing to say!”

“Jake, I don’t think that dog’s all there, y’know?”

I stroked the silky fur and told Jermaine what a good, good boy he was.

“Did you get his food and toys and stuff?” I asked.

“In the car.”

“What are we going to do with this, uh, dog?” Andi asked as she joined us. “Because you know mom’s gonna have a meltdown.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Petreski told her. “Let’s go, okay?”

“What about Daddy?” Andi asked when we got in the car.

“He’ll get a ride back with Chief Watts.” I turned and met his eyes and he gave me his “we need to talk” look. I nodded, and he pulled onto the road.

Had we really only been here two days?

* * *

Andi was inside with Beth, probably talking about crazy Jake and his dog fixation. Boo and I were in the backyard, looking down at where Jermaine sat on the dried grass, staring off into space.

“Maybe he doesn’t need to go,” I said.

“Well, Mom said he doesn’t come inside until he does.”

“We could be here a while.”

I picked up a stick and threw it, to see if I could get Jermaine to do something. Anything other than sit and pant. He stood, walked over to where the stick had landed, and sat back down, staring towards the line of trees at the back of the property.

“Lovely,” said Petreski. “I told you. Not all there.” He tapped a forefinger against his temple.

“Maybe he’s old and tired.”

“He’s three. I checked his paperwork. He’s a registered, purebred Pekingese.”

“Inbreeding, maybe?”

“Lovely,” he said again. “Are you getting anything yet?”

I tried to relax and open my mind. I’d had some minor success with that recently, and had discovered that sometimes animals could sense me like I was sensing them.

There were some squirrels in a nearby tree, and something scurried behind the barn, but I ignored anything that wasn’t Jermaine, and got… well… hmm. Usually, trying to read animals like this is like swimming through dark water, and a dog will kind of shimmer and glow and emit emotions or sensations. They’re not verbal, but their sensations tend to be strong. But comparing Jermaine to those other dogs would be like comparing a smooth black river rock to a cut diamond.