Lissa Matthews's Blog

New Release – ALL THAT GLITTERS

I really do love this book. It’s been a labor of both love and hate, of so much fear and procrastination. And it turns out the fears have been well founded. But…It’s okay. I’m okay. I think… I’m not too sure.

This book, this series has been a few years in the making, from concept, to the first words written, to the multiple re-writes and revisions and editing passes, to the final product.

It’s my longest book at just over 65,000 words.

It’s the first in a series.

It ends on a cliffhanger.

And i...

Music Monday – Back From The Dead by Halestorm

I’ve been listening to a variety of music lately from different sides of the spectrum… Duran Duran to Miranda Lambert to Taylor Swift to Halestorm. Pop to country to head banging screaming music.

Music and my moods have always been connected. I have been angry, sad, happy, depressed, and pretty much every thing between.

Halestorm is one of my favorite head banging screaming bands. They write about misfits and freaks and feeling left out and feeling put upon and they write against fitting inside ...

Snippet Saturday – Cocoa

I have several books with hot cocoa in them and I spent some time going through all of them. I think this is my favorite scene with it… And I’d forgotten how much I love this story

“Seriously?”

“Yes. Why? You don’t like cocoa?”

“Of course, but I…” Tessa shook her head at the out of the blue request. “Yes, we do have a place. Prim’s Cafe. It’s a couple doors down.”

“Do you mind if we stop and get some?”

“Not at all.”

The couple of doors they passed were the County Courthouse and Linda’s Candles a...

The Endurance Series

I have been working on and thinking about this series for the last few years. I have written and re-written the first book. I have started and re-started the second book. I also realized there will be a fourth book (which I need to contact Bookin’ It Designs for that cover). I have second, third, and fourth guessed the books and the whole series. I have spent countless hours and sleepless nights watching races and researching. I wanted to get it right. As right as I possible could.

One of the th...

Music Monday – Duran Duran’s Arena

When I’m working through revisions and edits on books, the music I listen to generally has nothing at all to do with the book. It’s a playlist of songs I grew up listening to. It’s an album on repeat that I know every part of right down to the millisecond. And I’m one of those people that when music is on, I have to sing along if I know the words. If I don’t know the words, I have to listen intently so whomever I’m with is going to be ignored for a bit.

The album I get listen to mostly is Duran ...

Snippet Saturday – Memories

Welcome to Snippet Saturday! Each Saturday, I’ll pick a theme and then pick a part from one of my books or one of my works-in-progress that I think fits. I hope that once I get back into the swing of this (I’d forgotten how long it takes to find just the right snippet) that I’ll be able to find some authors to participate on their blogs, too.

I don’t know about you, but I find myself thinking of years gone by when the holidays come around sometimes more than any other time of year. Maybe because...

It Was Never Meant for Me…

It’s been a long time since I’ve come to the blog with some thoughts and ideas and just ramblings. I used to love blogging, well, to a point. I never learned the ins and outs of SEO or how to make it look more polished and professional like some other authors did and have and still do. I never learned to do that with my newsletters either. The thing that I wanted most out of blogging and sending newsletters was some way to connect with those who chose to read them, to make it an extension of my ...

Music Monday – Diane Keaton’s First Christmas

Happy December!

Diane Keaton is one of my favorites and this song is lovely and sad and I’m so happy she’s done this… She inspires me because she’s still trying new things, doing new things, exploring new things at the age of 78. She’s always had her own style (I mean, the polka dots!! and the hats!!!), embraced her own quirks and lived her life, by all accounts, on her terms. I hope to be more like that over the next 24 years of my life…

Have a good day, y’all!

Lissa

Music Monday – Postcards from Texas

Miranda Lambert has a new album out and it has been on repeat on Spotify for me since it came out on Friday, September 13th.

It is so great. I have all the song lyrics memorized. it’s classic Miranda and yet it’s not. Her last 3 albums… Wildcard, Palomino, and now Postcards from Texas have been her best ones and I have listened to her since her very first album, Kerosene. She’s grown, she’s changed, she’s been through so much, and her music always reflects it. She’s one of my favorite artists, ...

12 Hours of Sebring and a Writing Day

One of the things about these endurance races is that they keep me in a seat… The desk, the dining room table, the couch, the chair on the porch… And the more I’m in a seat, the more writing I am likely to do. I don’t want to miss any part of the race, and I want to get words in because I want to finish at least one of these books. There are 4 that need to be finished and finished before May. There are personal and professional reasons for that.

So, some facts about the Sebring race…

-12 Hours…...