It’s been a strange couple of years for all of us since I last posted: not just because of COVID, but more importantly, the profoundly destabilizing, disorienting force the pandemic has been in our culture.
What do I have to show for my two-year silence?
Well, without going into all the detail: life-threatening diagnoses, two life-changing surgeries for me and one for my hubby, writing a 120k word fantasy, traumatic estrangement from a beloved family member, finding a literary agent, parting ways from said agent, pulling my books from a dishonest publisher, getting said books ready for indie release, querying agents until I saw Query Tracker in my sleep, selling our house and moving, music lessons, radiation therapy, and diving into a new writing project that I’ve carried in my heart for years, and falling more deeply in love with my wonderful husband as we approach the 20-year mark in our relationship.
Oh, I also have a beautifully redesigned website, thanks to Personalized Marketing, crowned by a powerful photo by Dennis Brown.
The banner about nature and humanity reflects a theme which will somehow underly whatever I write from here on in: nature is bigger, smarter, and more powerful, more resourceful and more agile than humans. In baseball terms, nature always bats last, and has an unlimited number of outs. Nature will always win, and the sooner we humans accept that the better our odds of surviving the results of the environmental crisis we’ve created. Frankly, I don’t think our odds are all that good, but that’s a different conversation.
For now, it’s enough to let you know I’m still here, living with a refreshed sense of adventure and unapologetically simplified values, working on a challenging story (working title The Relic), grateful to still be here.
Links and cover art for the new editions of Traveling Light and The Companion to follow soon.
Onward!