“Never give up, never surrender.” If I had not listened to that, I wouldn’t be published right now. Look it up. It’s in the acknowledgements of Vigilante Nights.

As of January 1, 2025, I am retired from the corporate world and living my dream life!!! Now, I'm a full-time writer... however, I don't actually write full time! LOL. I have so many irons in the fire with regard to my writing world. Audiobooks, learning to create my own covers (NOT using AI), creating fantasy maps for my new series, taking marketing & advertising course. And writing, of course!

I love to read, watch TV (sometimes too much reality TV), dabble in photography and graphic design. I still garden and am soon looking to re-landscape my front yard!

I love romance and every book I've written has a romance angle in it. Having said that, paranormal/psychic fiction is my favorite to write. There's something about the ability of the mind to do extraordinary things that fascinates me. Anything from telekinesis, telepathyy, to clairvoyance and seeing ghosts factor in my books. Now I do like writing contemporary fiction without any speculative element. That was a big change for me with DRAGONFLY NIGHTMARE, and I enjoyed writing it. It gave me a healthy break from all the extreme paranormal/fantasy world building.

Sorry, it’s not good business for authors to read manuscripts by other authors unless you have a critique partnership. If you’re looking for a critique partner, check the "Beta Readers, Mentors and Writing Buddies" thread at the Absolute Write Forums.

There are so many authors who do it much better than I do and have been self-publishing longer. I recommend you read as much as you can about it. Start with these great books:

Persevere. Don’t ever give up chasing your dream. Even when you’ve gotten hundreds of agent rejection letters or every publishing house has turned you down and you want to chuck it all, keep writing. It only takes one editor or one agent to like your first, third or even your tenth book. If writing is in your blood, you’ll never be able to give it up no matter which path you take with your writing.

The first novel I wrote when I was eighteen was originally inspired by S.E. Hinton’s classic novel, The Outsiders, one of my favorite all time novels. Memories of gang activity and street racing from my teen years also played a role in the plotting. The story had stayed with me for years, and I always wanted to update and write it with a fresh outlook and more experience. Despite hearing that the market was soft for books written from a boy’s POV, Lucas’s story begged to be written and published. I couldn’t ignore my muse! Vigilante Nights bears only slight resemblance to that long-ago story, but Lucas’s coming of age in a time of tragedy remained constant.

Books. Pretty much everything I read inspires me in one way or another. There are so many creative authors in the world, with fantastic ideas, characters (real or fake) and great word-painting. Imagine how only twenty-six letters of the alphabet can create so much entertainment!

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

The Hobbit by J.R. Tolkein

The Mists of Avalon by Marion B. Zimmerman

Rhapsody by Elizabeth Haydon

My favorite books of 2025: Darkwater Lane by Rachel Caine & Carrie Ryan (suspense; series final); Summer at the Saint by Mary Kay Andrews (women's fiction); Cassiel's Servant by Jacqueline Carey (fantasy); and Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas (fantasy).

Outlander & Blood of My Blood

All Creatures Great and Small

Family Law

Fire Country

Happy's Place

Will Trent

High Potential

Virgin River

When Calls the Heart

The Gilded Age

Hacks

Landman

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon

House of the Dragon

Favorite Reality Series: Below Deck, The Traitors, Big Brother, and Survivor