Good question, as the final draft of Sea Glass Memories (Seahaven Sunrise Book 2) is complete (phew!), and I am feeling proud and excited!

There are a few "next steps" but the first one is this: I put the manuscript aside and find a way to celebrate. For me, this involves a day of quietude near the ocean, and a special dinner with my husband.

If I wanted to publish Sea Glass Memories the traditional way, I would either seek out an agent or send query letters to "real" publishers.

Since I choose to self-publish, my next steps involve:

I feel blessed that over the last two years, I've discovered three wonderful, creative, professional women who work with me on these steps. If I didn't already have them in my corner, I would need to do some research to find specialists in these areas whose work I admire and who have time available in their schedules.

My "next steps" list is long and reaches from now until October 10 when

Sea Glass Memories will make its way onto bookshelves. This list includes but isn't limited to:

Some may think that after the imaginative, intuitive work of writing and then tirelessly revising a novel, that the rest of the steps aren't creative. Not so! I am able to pour as much love and creativity into the birthing process of my books as when I am dreaming up the stories and writing them.

Thank you to Jane from Texas and Maritza from California for asking this question. I hope it all makes sense.

Do you have a question about the writing process? Please send a reply to this email. I'm happy to answer you directly and might include it in a future issue of this newsletter.

 🏆 May Give-Away Winners 🏆

a paperback copy of Tending Roses, by Lisa Wingate.

Cate from Illinois

Raylene from Nebraska

This month I'm giving away TWO paperback copies of You, Me, and the Sea by Meg Donohue.

This novel is a spellbinding and suspenseful tale—inspired by Wuthering Heights—that illuminates the ways in which hope--and even magic--can blossom in the darkest of places.

To enter, just fill out the short form here and I'll do a random drawing THIS SUNDAY JUNE 18. I'll send you an email notice that you've won,

(NOTE: I use the random generator at random.org to choose the winners

Would you like to help me promote my new novel this fall? It's called Sea Glass Memories and will be easing onto bookshelves on 10-10-23.

As an Indie Author, I depend on the support of my Super Fans to help spread the word about my novels. I have a good group of dedicated Super Fans and am interested in adding 10-20 more.

If you enjoy women's fiction with a splash of romance and would like to be considered, please read more info on this page about what you'd need to do (basically, read an ebook version of the book in September and leave an Amazon and/or GoodReads review on October 10, 11, or 12.

Greetings! I appreciate you for reading my author newsletter! This is me in April of this year, on board Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas. This was Day 1 and you can already see how happy I was (and warm). Have you ever been on a cruise? Should I set one of my future novels on board a ship like this?

In between newsletters, I'll be posting more often on Instagram, my blog, and/or my Facebook Author page, so please be sure to visit me there too.

I'm open to hearing from you so please feel fre*e to

reply to this email with any questions about the writing process, or the name of one of your own favorite authors who stir YOUR heart and soul. And don't forget to enter our June fiction give-away, You, Me, and the Sea, a beautiful story that will stir your heart and soul.