J.L. Wilson's Blog: Why I'm not here often, page 4

An end of the year wrapup

 What did I do this year?

Let's see ... one book published. Another edited and ready to go on January 10. A BUNCH of books edited and getting ready to publish.

Check my latest newsletter for all the gory details.

And have a happy, safe, healthy holiday season!

And yes, another newletter

 It seems like that's what I post, but hey, I'm busy!

I'll have a book out in January. I edited 17 books this summer. I'm writing a new book. I finished writing one in the springtime. And I'm retired and enjoying my retirement!

My latest newsletter is available

 Just click the tab to see all my newsletter -- in this one, I show off a new cover. Yay, me!

Still making progress -- and another book on the way

 I'm making strides in editing my Big Series. I never realized how many compound sentences I had until I searched for "and". Whoa, Nelly.

So I'm cleaning up the standard writing structure, not focusing on plot, character, or story lines. It's a very time-consuming edit because it's literally looking at every word. These are Big Books -- more than 100K each, and there are 9 to review in the main series and 5 in the add-on series.

Yep. Keeping me busy.

And I have a new book coming out. The Wild Rose Press bought "Mirrored" which is my Snow White and the Seven Jocks books. Snow is one of my favorite characters, I must admit, and Brendan Royal, her gentleman friend, is pretty special, too.

Expect to see it next year sometime.

Now what to write next? I'm wavering between Little Red Riding Hood, Dracula, or Jekyll & Hyde. Decisions, decisions...

New book, editing, and fun

 I have been elbow-deep in editing, and I am having so much fun. I'm working on my Big Series and yes, I've read and re-read it multiple times. But now I am looking at every word, weighing it, and deciding if it adds to the plot or character or arc of the story.

This is nitty-gritty editing and I love it.Oh, and I sold another book! Mirrored will be out sometime next year. This is the Snow White and the Seven Jocks book. Happy weekend!

Book #33 is ready for your viewing pleasure

 My 33rd book in print (there are more that are out of print, but that's another story!) is ready for downloading or skimming or ... however you do your reading:

This is the story of Theresa "Tug" Gallant, a woman with a bakery in a lighthouse and a handsome guy who would like to know the secret to her buttercream frosting ... she's also the won who found the dead body on the dock and now she's wondering -- is he the hero or the villain of this piece?

Springtime news

 My latest newsletter is up for your viewing pleasure!

Click here to see it.

Deadlines met, new book coming, old books being reviewed

 I truly retired at the first of the year -- when I say "truly", that means I actually did it this time. I "retired" in 2018 from my high-tech career and took on the job of Master Gardener Coordinator for the county where I lived.

I took that job because 1) I'm a Master Gardener and 2) the position had a lot of turnover in previous years and so the organization of files and policies was in disarray. I thought I could get things somewhat organized and I enjoyed working with the MGs on all the projects they managed.

Well, it took 2 years but I got it mostly organized. We had the pandemic throw a monkey wrench into some things and then the derecho hit -- hurricane-force winds that blew for over an hour and we had no warning it was coming. The city lost 60% of its tree canopy and 1000s of homes were damaged. Recovery will take years.

I stayed until I was sure things were set up post-derecho and post-pandemic then I retired at the end of 2020. So for 3 months, I've had lots of time to:

move to a new town and a new homefinish writing two manuscriptswork on edits for an upcoming book, releasing in Maybegin reviews of the 14-book series I want to release next year.And I've also had time to relax -- a thing I didn't have much of before. This retirement thing is pretty sweet, I must say.
I'll be back in a few weeks to tout my next book -- the Little Mermaid story. If you've ever read the original LM, you'll know she was a stalker and a somewhat disturbed one at that. I've taken that character and put her into a new story with a few plot twists along the way.
Coming soon!

New Year and new news

 my latest newsletter is posted in which I talk about moving (and a death we weren't expecting), my future plans, and life in retirement!

A new year, a fresh start

 Well, we did move -- there was a week of chaos before and after the move. Our closing date kept shifting, we'd already sold our old house so weren't sure if we'd have to go into temporary  housing, then the movers showed up and we didn't have the keys yet -- and got the code for the garage and the movers moved us in and then we got the keys.

And then one of our cats suddenly and unexpectedly collapsed. She was one of the young cats and the most active, so we had no idea what was going on. I had a frantic drive to the new emergency vet (across town) 12 hours after we moved in. Tests were run and the vets were bewildered by the results. There was no way to tell what was happening; the only solution was surgery, but they didn't think she'd survive it.

So we had to have her euthanized while we held her in our arms. Here I am, 10 days later, and I'm still stunned by the suddenness, the loss, the shock. She was our most vibrant cat; I could easily visualize her in spots in this new house, exploring and having fun. But now she's gone. It will be a long time before I manage to put her death behind me. 

It reminds me that life is so ephemeral and we have no guarantees. 

A new year and a fresh start, but I'll carry the grief with me for the first few months at least.