Life

The New Ending is Finished!

Sorry for the radio silence lately. I’ve been cranking through the new ending of Polaris Rising. And I added a lot more words than I expected. With the previous ending, the book was about 97k. Now it’s up to 115k. I hope my editor really was serious about that flexible word count or I’ll have to cut it back down. I love the new ending, but it’s out to my beta readers to make sure I’m not crazy.

In more personal news, I signed up for a half marathon next February. It’s not my first, but it is the first since I lost weight, which means I’d like to set a new personal best. And that means I have to train. …

Approaching 100k

I’ve made it through the first-pass edits for all of Polaris Rising except for the final chapter. The word count currently sits at a little over 98k and I probably have at least another 5k to write. I hope you all like big books. :)

Luckily PR is a science fiction romance, which gives me a little flexibility with the word count. I’ve been given the go-ahead to cross 100k if I need to and it looks like I’m going to need to. It may get pared back down in second round edits, but for now it’s expanding. More Ada and Loch for everyone!

Originally when I wrote the book, I planned for it to be a series of multiple books focusing on Ada and Loch, so the ending was a little open. When my editor suggested we have a new couple each book, that ending had to change. …

Edits, Salt Lake City, and a Book Rec

I’m still deep in edits for Polaris Rising and will be for a while. I know I’m supposed to be all jaded and cynical and tired of looking at it, but I love this book to pieces and I can’t wait for you all to read it. Even reading and revising it for the umpteenth time hasn’t dimmed my enthusiasm.

In other writing news, I sent off my XPRIZE short story, Materials Girl. It clocked in at 3,967 words, just 33 words shy of the 4k limit. Concise I am not. I had a lot of fun writing it, but I’m realistic about my chances of actually winning—let’s politely call them “slim.” :)

Yesterday I spent the day buried in laundry so I will have clean clothes to pack for a business trip to Salt Lake City. I’ve never been, so if you have any recommendations of what to see or where to eat, I’d love to hear them. I won’t have a huge amount of time to sightsee, unfortunately, but I’m going to sneak in what I can.

And finally, today is the release day for Tessa Dare’s The Duchess Deal. First, a disclaimer: I haven’t read it yet. Amazon isn’t delivering my copy until tomorrow and I’m terribly sad about it.

I normally wouldn’t recommend a book I haven’t read, but I love Ms. Dare’s books and I was hooked from the first chapter she posted on her site. I’ve been waiting impatiently for the release date. RT also gave it 4.5 stars and made it a Top Pick. If you like historical romance, you at least owe it to yourself to check out a sample.

Hello Again

So it’s been over a year since I last posted. This blog has always been something of a diary for me, but now my Twitter account tends to serve that purpose even better–a diary written 140 characters at a time.

However, some things are suited to long-form posts and so here we are.

A lot has happened in a year. I finished writing two books. One is an urban fantasy that I had worked on for years, and one is a romantic science fiction that I wrote in a matter of months. I pitched the urban fantasy at RT2016 and eventually signed with my dream agent: Sarah Younger of the Nancy Yost Literary Agency.

My goal of becoming a published author is one step closer to fruition. I still can’t believe it’s real.

On a more personal note, I’ve managed to maintain my weight-loss for over a year. While I would still like to lose a little more, I’m happy just to have maintained because it has never happened before. I’ve probably lost several hundred pounds in my life, but sadly, until this time, it was the same weight over and over.

We’re doing the Whole30 again this month, and it’s reminding me to pay attention to what I eat and to check labels. It’s funny which products have hidden sugar added (I’m looking at you bratwurst and breakfast sausage).

Overall, I’m excited for what 2017 has in store. Let’s just hope it’s not another year before my next post. :)

On Resolutions – Losing Weight

I’m generally not big on New Year’s resolutions. I think the arbitrary calendar date of January 1 is not more likely to make you stick to a goal than starting on, say, April 2. But I know a lot of people love them, so I’m striking while the iron is hot.

One year ago today, I was on day four of the Whole30. You can read all about it here. It wasn’t a resolution so much as “I really need to get my eating under control and I suppose I’ll survive thirty days.” I did not expect great things. I didn’t expect any big changes, except that for a month I’d eat a lot more vegetables than I’d seen in a while.

I think these are possibly the best kinds of “resolutions.” Small, not too hard, and with a definite end point and success criteria.

So, for thirty days, I followed the plan exactly. I did not cheat. I did not waver. I used all of my innate stubbornness–and I have quite a lot–to stick to my goal.

At the end of thirty days, something miraculous did happen. No, I wasn’t suddenly a model. But I realized that I’d lost a bit of weight, I felt better, and it really wasn’t that hard.

So I kept going, sticking to a plan I called pseudo-paleo.

And going.

And going.

It turns out that this healthy eating thing isn’t a great mystery: Eat fruits and veggies and meats and skip the stuff that comes in boxes. Yes, I skip the stuff that many, many food companies spend millions of dollars promoting as “healthy.” After eating it for years and getting no healthier (only fatter), I am skeptical at best about their claims.

And now I sound like I’m on the woo-woo train. Well, all aboard, because in 2015 I lost over seventy pounds.

Seventy. Pounds.

That’s like losing an average ten-year-old. Or, if you’re a dog person, it’s like losing a large golden retriever.

Don’t get me wrong–I had a lot of weight to lose. I’m just now getting out of the obese category according to my BMI. I could stand to lose another forty or fifty pounds. But I’m still going. I’ll get there, slow and steady.

Now it’s time for some bad news: I have no idea why it worked this time.

Something in my brain just clicked during the Whole30. A friend said she had a “click” moment, too, and after that, weight loss worked for her.

Let me be very clear: THIS IS NOT AN EXCUSE NOT TO TRY.

I never would’ve had the click if I hadn’t tried the Whole30. Maybe you’ll start counting calories, and that will lead to your click. Hell, maybe you don’t need a click and it’ll just work for you once you start.

A year ago I never, ever expected that I’d end the year seventy pounds lighter. It wasn’t even on my radar. But I’m glad I started when I did, because time passed anyway and now I have something to show for it.

So here’s my challenge to you, if you want to lose weight: Try to eat healthy for thirty days. If the Whole30 works for you, do that. If you can’t abide the thought of giving up breads, count calories with MyFitnessPal.

Do something.

Be strict. Stick with it for the entire thirty days. No cheating, not even if your best friend is getting married, you’re going out of town, or for any of the other million excuses we all have.

You can do it. I believe in you.