Reflections ~ 2021

I thought it would be a good idea to reflect on books, writing, and writing-related stuff that happened during the year, and to look forward to what the new year will bring.

A look back...

I published my debut time traveling novel, RIFT, at the beginning of the year. It was featured earlier this month, along with a prologue.

I did new covers for a lot of my books, along with a refresh of the interiors and back matter. 

I also published two box sets ~ Echoes of Light and Echoes of Time and a short book on dreams ~ Dream Doorways.

I have about a bajillion scribbles for books I'm working on. Some of them will come to fruition in the new year. More about that later.

I created a Facebook page in conjunction with this blog. I have a few followers, and would really love it if you'd follow me on Facebook.

A look forward...

I have two books planned for publication in 2022, and possibly a third. I know some writers can write a book a month, or lots of books in a year, but I'm not one of them. My average is two to three books per year. But maybe I'll surprise myself with more than two books. We'll see what happens. 

I'm currently writing a book I've been wanting to write for about three years now. My first book, Magical Mind, Magical Life (which will be featured next month) is all about being happy and using the magical power of your mind to live a positive life. 

MAGICAL MIND GARDENS is based on that book and will feature 365 ways to grow your mind into a magical garden of harmony and joy. More about that next month. Pub date is November 17, 2022. It's on pre-order for $3.99.

I'm also working on another book in the Echoes of Mind series. It's about the reality of illusion and playing a magical game.

There are a lot of other books running around in my mind and appearing on pieces of paper and on my laptop screen, all asking to be written. Currently thinking about writing a novel about writers who get stuck in a time warp. Also thinking about writing another book on Zen. Maybe a chili cookbook, too. And there's that time travel trilogy that's been whispering to me...

Origins ~ Rift

Once upon a time, I wondered what would happen if you were caught in a volcanic eruption and the energy of that opened a portal into a parallel timeline in the past, and you were separated—by fifty years—from someone you love. What would you do to find them and how would you travel back to your own time? And why did it happen? What caused this time portal to open?

I started dreaming about a character who was a time traveler. His name was Ben and he owned the Kairos Coffee Shop, a gathering place for time travelers. Many people wandered in and out of the coffee shop, time travelers on their way to somewhere else, characters who would find themselves on the pages of novels.

Being a kindly soul, having been around for probably centuries, or even eons of time, he helps guide the would-be travelers to their destinations. He appears to be a barista, but he's also a physics professor, and there's more to him than meets the eye.

My first time travel novel—RIFT—didn't start out with a plot. It started with Ben, a character who is so much more than he appears to be. You'll run across him again in my future time travel novels.

In the story, Sara and Jason are newlyweds, on their honeymoon in Hawaii. They're separated by a volcanic eruption. Jason is thrown back fifty years into the past—to help his parallel self accomplish something he wasn't able to do before.

I wanted my time travelers to have a dog, because if you were lost in time, you'd definitely want a dog by your side.

Meet Mocha and Macchi (parallels of Mauka and Makai), two German Shepherd puppies named after a coffee. One stays in the present; the other travels to the past. 

They're just as determined to find each other again as Sara and Jason are—the newlyweds who were separated during the volcanic eruption.

RIFT is Book One in the Kairos Chronicles.

Kairos Coffee Shop

The Kairos Coffee Shop is a place for time travelers—characters created in my imagination—from different times and places, dimensions and realities, who stop for coffee on their way into stories that lead into the pages of novels.

As near as I can tell, the Kairos Coffee Shop is located in the misty realm of another dimension, though it does appear to be located in the wide open spaces of the Midwest. The coffee shop is run by Ben, who is a time traveler.

Kairos is the Greek god of "special" time—moments when something "extraordinary" happens in "ordinary" time.

RIFT is my debut time travel novel—Book One in the Kairos Chronicles, a series of standalone novels and novellas set in the world of the Kairos Coffee shop.

It features a couple who is thrown back in time during a volcanic eruption and are separated by fifty years.

You can browse the book on Amazon.

Prologue ~ RIFT: A RIP IN TIME

 Before you go tripping through a time rip into a parallel reality, you might like to read how RIFT: A RIP IN TIME starts. The story begins in the Kairos Coffee Shop, which is a special place for time travelers, located in the middle of nowhere.

We've Been Here Before...

August 8, 2018

"You two shouldn't be here," Ben said. 

"But I knew you'd show up," he added, handing the elderly woman a mocha latte and the elderly man a double shot caramel macchiato.

"Why don't you both sit over there by the window? They should be here soon."

"It's good to see you, too, Ben," the woman said, smiling.

"Remember what I told you. You can't interfere. You can't say anything to them or warn them in any way."

"We just wanted to see them," the older man said.

"And the dogs," the woman added.

"You know the rules," Ben admonished.

"Rules are made to be broken," the older man said, smiling at Ben.

"You know how that goes. You did tell me not to go in the lava tube. And you helped me figure out the time rip. You've broken a few rules along the way."

Ben shrugged. "It happens. Let's see how it plays out this time." He turned to greet two customers who had just walked through the door.

The man pulled a book out of his duffel bag, walked over to the corner bookcase, and placed it on the shelf when Ben wasn't looking.

RIFT: A RIP IN TIME is available as both a print book and an ebook on Amazon.

Book of the Month ~ December

Can someone really travel back in time? What if there was a magical place where that could happen? And all you had to do was to show up at this "imaginary" place?

It happened to Sara and Jason. They met at the Kairos Coffee Shop.

RIFT: A RIP IN TIME tells their story. 

It wasn't supposed to happen. Not again. But it did.

Kilauea erupted on February 22, 1969. It's now February 22, 2019, fifty years later.

Sara and Jason are newlyweds, on their honeymoon in Hawaii. While exploring the lava tubes at Kaumana Caves, they find two stray puppies, scared by the tremors preceding a volcanic eruption, and attempt to rescue them.

Sara and Jason don't know it yet, but they're about to embark on a time travel adventure into a parallel reality through a rip in time.

Separated by fifty years and an erupting volcano, can they find each other again?

And what does Ben, the owner of the Kairos Coffee Shop, have to do with all of this?

RIFT ~ A RIP IN TIME is available on Amazon.

Sneak Preview... And a Sale...

 Just wanted to give you a peek at December's Book of the Month and to let you know there will be a sale for RIFT: A RIP IN TIME beginning 12/2 through 12/5. The ebook is on a special Kindle Countdown Deal for $0.99.

You'll have to wait until tomorrow to read more about the book here, but you could always go to Amazon to read a preview there.

Black Friday / Cyber Monday Sale

 Cookbooks make great gifts...

... and these hardcover cookbooks are filled with over 300 totally delicious Southwest recipes. You save $5.00 on each cookbook.

Offer only lasts through Monday at midnight. Go to Amazon now, and buy a cookbook, or two.

New Cookbook Covers

 Doing the happy dance! Just got the new covers for my cookbooks...

Origins ~ Novel Quest

Once upon a time, back in the year 2014, I heard about an interesting challenge for writers: Write a 50,000-word novel in a month. It sounded intriguing, so I thought I'd check it out. It might be fun. It might be an interesting way to challenge myself—to see if I could actually write a novel in a month. I decided to go for it, just to see what would happen. I decided to write a novel in a month, just for a lark.

What happened was my imagination totally LOVED the idea of immersing myself in a novel for 30 days. A few days before the challenge began, I had a book idea in mind, scribbled some notes for it, but it just never felt right. I dutifully sat myself down at my computer on the first day of November and started to type. But the words that appeared on the screen were nothing like what I had scribbled days before. A totally new idea appeared, as if by magic.

The words on the screen were all about writers writing a novel in thirty days. The idea really appealed to my muse. So I did it. I wrote a novel in thirty days about writers writing a novel in thirty days. I love it when my muse takes over and just lets her imagination rip.

NOVEL QUEST is what happened.

It's so interesting how characters can come to life when you're writing them. What's also interesting is how a novel can take on a life of its own and begin it's own journey.

The more I played with the book, and thought about the ideas inside the book, the more it started to change direction and take on a new focus. I originally thought it was mostly about offering a humorous look at writers writing a 50,000-word novel in a month, along with some time morphing and a kahuna quest.

And then the magic happened. I realized it was more about a kahuna quest and finding the magic within, and that writing a 50,000-word novel in a month was part of the magic of the journey.

Quest for a Novel

A funny thing happened on my way to writing a novel. I heard about a novel-writing challenge and decided, what the heck, it might be fun. And it would be interesting to see if I could actually write a novel in a month. Turns out I could... and NOVEL QUEST: A 30-DAY NOVEL-WRITING ADVENTURE happened.

I named my main character Mocha Latte for my month-long, novel-writing adventure because I love coffee and it seemed like a good idea at the time. I was planning to write a novel about a kahuna quest, but Mocha had other plans. 

I had no idea Mocha would turn out to be quite a character who decided to write a novel about writers writing a 50,000-word novel in a month, but that's what happens when you set your imagination free and play with the magic of words. 

Then Mocha started whispering in my ear that it might be fun to write a "how-to" for writers who are writing a 50,000-word novel in a month, and Novel Writer's Survival Guide: How to Write a 50,000-Word Novel in a Month... and Live to Tell the Tale was born.

This book became the 30-Day Novel Series, just in case writers wanted to focus on creating a blueprint for their novels, or they wanted to know how to survive a 30-day novel-writing adventure, or they were worried they might starve during their month-long novel journey.

You'll also find writerly words of wisdom sprinkled throughout the book, as well as a magical word fairy running through the pages.

Offers a lighthearted guide for writers. You're invited on a magical novel-writing adventure... Journey through the magic of words that sparkle and shimmer with light as they dance through your imagination and come to life on the pages of your novel.