Missing In Action

Hello Friends!

I know, I know. You're asking yourself where the heck that girl went. I've been missing in action for far too long (my last blog post was in 2019). I plan to take a much slower approach to it all this time and hopefully (fingers crossed) I won't get another case of massive burnout. I had a crazy, exhausting 4 years after the release of my first book, and after realizing that I'd quite literally lost my love for the written word, I decided to take a big step back.

I most certainly went into publishing wearing rose colored glasses, and now nearly 7 years after the release of "Losing Faith", I'm much wiser (and a whole lot jaded about the industry in general). Here's the thing....social media presence is a full-time requirement for an author. I'm not particularly comfortable talking about my work in person, let alone putting myself out there online only to have the haters pick me apart. Social media is a dumpster fire, and the politics of the last few years hasn't helped. Anyway, this time I'm doing things on MY terms. At MY speed. I'm under no illusions that I'm going to make a living wage with my writing. I'm finally okay with that. As I said, rose colored glasses and all. I may sell two books or I may sell two hundred, but what I really want is to get my work out there. It's important to me. It may be 'romance' but it isn't fluff. There is blood and sweat in every word I've written.

I thought long and hard about querying agents and going the traditional route of publishing. But the more I read about agents and publishing companies taking advantage of authors, I decided to hell with it....I'm continuing to self-publish. I'm certainly not above receiving criticism for my work and I know it will always be a work in progress. I believe any author will tell you that. Truth is, we get better the more we write. I know I have.

I'm happy to say that I'm well-rested and ready to tackle the self-publishing 'thing' again. As I mentioned on my Home page, I plan to release my first book since 2018 very soon. This new work is a gay romance love story and is very near and dear to my heart. The work is a series of 3 books, with the first book "Heal Me" releasing sometime late summer/early fall 2021. "Heal Me" features Davis and Merrick, two unlikely men who become friends. And then become something more. So much more.

I'm excited to get this book out into the world. As with any work I release, it's bittersweet. It's like sending your child off to college. You're thrilled to watch them soar, and brokenhearted that things will never be as they once were.

I know the past few years have been very challenging and terrifying for us all. My family and I have been so blessed to remain happy and healthy. We're all vaccinated now and beginning to peek out into the great big scary world. It's not easy, that's for sure. There's still a whole lot of terrifying things out there. I send you my love and a big internet squeeze and hope that you've stayed healthy and happy too.

Thanks for sticking with me. And thank you in advance for giving my new work a chance. You guys are the best!

xoxoxo

AJ