The Right Direction

The Triangle region of NC is about a two-hour drive from the coast, so those of us living here experienced only the outer fringe of the fringe of Hurricane Irene - blustery winds and periods of rain.  Grey skies prevailed instead of the normal expanse of clear Carolina blue.  Yesterday, a friend urged me to notice the clouds because they were going in the wrong direction, something that happens rarely in one's lifetime, if at all.  Even from hundreds of miles away, Irene's winds influenced the path of the clouds.

Now that Finding Felicity is published, I find myself thinking about my next book and what direction to take.  So many new ideas have sprung forward, and I feel caught between writing the book I think I should write, and writing the book that I want to write.  Of course, I want to write them all!  So much writing to do ... and so little time!  What direction should I take?  Watching the clouds, I realized that whatever direction I take is the perfect direction.  Publishing, tastes, and trends change like the winds.  Storm today.  Gone tomorrow.   Have faith, I tell myself.  Writing that comes from the heart will always be received and read in its perfect time.

In the meantime, let us turn our thoughts and prayers to all those on the East Coast as Irene treks on.

Finally ... Finding Felicity!

What a thrill it is to finally see Finding Felicity available!  As of today, it is available in ebook format.  Very soon, paperbacks will be available both online and to order in bookstores.  I've been busy requesting reviews and can't wait to start receiving them!  Provided, of course, that they're positive.  Of course, I recognize that writing is subjective; some will love the book, others ... not so much.  That goes with the territory of being an author. 

Right now, I'm just relishing that Finding Felicity is out there!  As to reviews, I'll quote one of my favorite heroines, Scarlett O'Hara: "I'll worry about that tomorrow!"

Letting Go ...

This week I finished the final proof of Finding Felicity, so the next time I see it, it will be in published form.  I have never worked so hard and I've never felt so satisifed.  I can hardly wait to come home to a box of paperbacks waiting to be opened - I'm tearing up a bit just thinking about holding a copy in my hand.  Sometimes, I find myself smiling and I'm sure people at the office are wondering what's happening.  Other times, I am seized by a fit of anxiety about reviews and how it will be received.  Will readers enjoy it?  How will people react to it?

Those are things that I can't control.  I wrote Finding Felicity a long time ago, and it is deeply rewarding to know that in a matter of days, it will released out into the world.  Now, the characters and the story will have their own life in the hands of readers. 

My task now is simply to breathe, surround it with love, and let it go.

Book Journal: Emily Giffin's Love the One You're With

I started reading Love the One You're With last Friday and found I couldn't stop reading, so I finished it on Sunday afternoon.  Of course, I should have been writing!  Still, having been so focused on my own writing of late, reading has been on the back burner, and I was eager to just relax and read.  Here's what I want to mention:

• Whenever I read, I look for a Savory Sentence.  Alas, I couldn't find one here.  Please comment if you think I missed it.
• Having moved to the South myself from Toronto via Los Angeles, I share Ellen's observations about Southern phrases.  Bless her heart!  It really does come across as insincere to those of us from other regions of the country.  What, exactly, does it mean?!
• I loved so much about this book.  Mostly, I loved Leo.  With all his flaws and committment phobia, I found him to be the most authentic character in the story.  The most true to himself.  That he reminds me of an ex-boyfriend might have something to do with my affection for him.  I don't think I could be friends with Ellen; even now, I am not convinced that this is a woman who knows herself and what she really wants.  Having lost my own mother too soon, I could definitely relate to Ellen and her confusion. Losing a mother, or father, early in life leaves a void in so many ways.  Still, Ellen seems to have simply have taken the path of least resistance, instead of proactively creating her life.  Emily Giffin is a gifted author - this is the first book of hers that I have read and will not be the last.  Her pacing is excellent, her characterization spot on, and I was thoroughly entertained by her observations of society, friendships, and relationships.  I could have done without the occasional expletive.  In the end, the point of the book rings true ... love the one you're with.
• Would I recommend this book to a friend?  YES!

Life, Liberty and Finding Felicity

The fireworks have faded and the 4th of July festivities are coming to a close. I find myself thinking about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. What is it about the pursuit of happiness? What keeps us always striving for more ... of something?  What if, instead, happiness is everywhere, all around us, just waiting to be found? What if happiness really is a choice?  I think it is that simple.  Pursuing happiness leaves us constantly chasing for something that is just out of reach.  Choosing to see, to be, the happiness - the love and the beauty - that surrounds us all the time and is always present is so much simpler than persistent pursuit. 

So here's to life, liberty, fireworks and Finding Felicity.  I hope you enjoyed the holiday!

When Love Happens

Anything can happen when love happens.  Love is a call to adventure.  A wake-up call.  A call to be our highest and best selves.  Love comes in so many forms, in so many ways.

I thought I loved horses, until I made a childhood dream come true and acquired my first horse as "a woman of a certain age."  Sonny King Pepper taught me things that came as quite a surprise.  About horses.  About myself.  About people.  About life.  Sometimes, love changes everything. 

I'm writing The Gift Horse as I wait for Finding Felicity to come out.  Two very different love stories.  Then again, are any love stories really the same?

Simple Pleasures

Life is so busy these days.  Weekdays are a flurry of working in an office, commuting, classes, writing.  I love the hectic pace!  So on a hot summer Sunday afternoon, I slow down, breathe, and find time for simple pleasures.  Scratching my dog's belly and feeling my heart open at the sight of her little face expressing doggy bliss. Looking out my window at leaves glistening and floating in the breeze.  I notice a neighbor's laundry drying on the line; how exquisite it must feel to slip on a pair of jeans that have dried in the sun.  I even took a nap! 

Along my driveway there are several gardenia bushes.  On this summer Sunday afternoon, I was inspired to pluck a few blossoms to enjoy inside the house.  Such moments create space for new ideas, new creativity, new life.  A simple pleasure.  I hope reading this, you're inspired to treat yourself to a simple pleasure, no matter what day of the week it is ...