The edits on the romantic fantasy are off to my agent, as well as a blurb for both books, a synopsis, and a “mood board” which I’ve never made before, but here we are.
That means with the exception of a few possible tweaks, my part of this process is done for now, so I can play video games all weekend and not worry about it. In the next few weeks, my agent will review the edits, then start working on a submission package to see if anyone wants to buy it. Fingers crossed!
Since I made this mood board, would you like to see it? How about it along with the tiniest little snippet I shared on social media today for the #FridayKiss prompt?
If the answer is no, too bad, this is my blog and I can do what I want. ;)
Behold!
Fun fact: while most of these photos are from a stock site, one of them is mine. 👀
The #FridayKiss prompt was “bed” this week, which is why I finally jumped in with a snippet:
I was supposed to be taking today off, since Mr. M is off, but I have failed rather spectacularly at that, so here’s a tiny, non-spoilery snippet of my new romantic fantasy. If I’m working, at least it should be fun, right? :)
This is still rough draft, subject to change, etc, etc. Happy reading!
The first door I tried was locked tight, so I moved on until I found a door standing open. I peeked inside, and my breath caught—it was an enormous library, three stories tall and filled with heavy wooden bookcases holding what had to be thousands of books.
I’d heard rumors that the private royal library in Obrik held ten thousand books, but here was a treasure its equal. I tiptoed into the room, worried that my mere presence would somehow damage the irreplaceable tomes.
But once the awe wore off, I saw that this room, too, suffered from neglect. Some of the shelves were pristine—and I made note of which shelves the mage preferred—but most were dull with dust.
This, at least, was a problem I could solve, and I didn’t exactly have anything better to do while I waited for the mage’s mood to improve.
I was used to pitching in to help anywhere I could. Cleaning would be no hardship—assuming I could find supplies. And if I cleaned the library, then maybe the mage would be more likely to help me in return.
“I need cleaning supplies,” I murmured, unsure if the castle would understand. “A broom and mop and dusting cloths.”
Light glinted in the corner of my eye, and when I turned toward it, I found a small door, nearly hidden between two towering shelves. Inside the tiny closet I found a broom, and a mop, and dusting cloths.
Last week was our eighteenth wedding anniversary, and we celebrated with a trip to the beach for a long overdue vacation. The entire plan for the week was to sit on the beach, float in the ocean, and do absolutely nothing.
It was glorious.
The beach in Destin, FL is all white sand and warm, crystal clear water. It was our first trip to the area, and we didn’t really know what to expect, but Southwest had a direct flight and the price was okay-ish, so we went for it.
Our twelfth floor condo had a balcony with a great view of the Gulf, and the resort had a pool and hot tub for when walking the extra hundred feet to the beach was too much effort. Thanks to Idalia, the first couple of days were red-flag days, which means the surf is potentially dangerous, and I could definitely see that when compared to the later part of our trip when the waves were more ripples than real waves.
We spent the mornings in the water, then came inside for lunch and an afternoon nap, then headed back out for more ocean time in the late afternoon/early evening. I took a Kindle with a stack of library books on it, but I didn’t read a single book, other than the audiobook I listened to on the plane. I did, however, watch a ridiculous amount of HGTV, my go-to vacation channel.
HGTV always cracks me up, especially shows like House Hunters, because it’s usually a couple who are like butterfly catchers or basket weavers with inexplicable two million dollar budgets and wildly different requirements. I know the whole thing is staged for max drama, but I love it anyway.
This time, I found a new show, and I’ve now binged most of it. It’s called Farmhouse Fixer, and the host, Jon Knight, is that Jon Knight, which I didn’t realize until after we’d watched more than one episode and we finally caught the intro. He renovates old New England farmhouses, and seems to really, really love his job, then he jets off to perform with New Kids on the Block when it’s showtime. The whole show is adorable and very low-drama, which makes it perfect vacation fare.
Now I’m back in the real world, because I don’t have an extra few million dollars to buy my very own beach front house, and I’m pretty sure I don’t have any eccentric distant relatives who are going to die and leave me a mysterious fortune and/or beach house.
However, if you’re an old, eccentric billionaire who needs someone to leave your fortune to, you know where to find me!
This week, I’m continuing to edit the romantic fantasy. I made it a little over a third of the way through before vacation, so my plan is to re-read that portion to get back up to speed, then knock out the rest hopefully by the end of the month.
