Greetings!Thanksgiving in the US is one week from today. I have so much for which to be thankful, and I’m trying hard to remember that as I fight against feelings of sadness over all that we have missed out on this year and all that we will be missing out on this Thanksgiving. In Minnesota, the latest COVID restrictions prohibit social gatherings with anyone outside your household. I know the same is true in many other places around the country. This means moms (or dads) will be roasting a turkey for just a few and left wondering what to do with ten pounds of leftovers; it means all those youngish adult children won’t be coming home for Thanksgiving dinner proudly bearing their contributions of wine and store-bought rolls; it means grandparents won’t be hugging their grandchildren; it means cousins who haven’t seen one another since last Thanksgiving may have to wait another year to catch up; it means no good-natured ribbing when, much to your brother-in-law's dismay, your team wins again; it means toasting one another via video call and trying hard to pretend it’s the same thing as being there.
So much in life has changed, so much more so than I ever dreamed possible when this all began, but there is still so much for which to be thankful. And I am. Every day.
And one of the biggest things I’m thankful for is all of you. Your support and encouragement, your kind reviews and emails, buoy me day after day. The fact that so many of you who were fans of the Misty Lake books and who normally read in the romance genre took the plunge and gave I Know an Old Lady a chance is something for which I will be forever grateful. I Know an Old Lady hit Number 1 in its category on Amazon back in September and since has spent many days in that spot. No matter how many times I see that #1 Bestseller banner next to my book, it’s still a thrill. And it’s not just in the US where things are going well. Occasionally, I venture to other Amazon sites and I won’t soon forget the day when I found either I Know an Old Lady or one of the Misty Lake books ranking in the top 50, or top 25, even top 10, in Germany, Australia, Canada, and the UK. All those markets, at the same time! It’s still baffling to me sometimes to consider that people around the world are reading something I wrote. Never, when I first began this journey, did I dare to dream these kinds of things would happen. So, thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart.
What's New?I’m nearly done with the first book in my next series. After that departure from the clean romance genre with I Know an Old Lady, I’m back to familiar territory. This will be a three-book series and will tell the stories of Ellie, Nicole, and Max. Each has a very different past and a very different reason she suddenly finds herself doing something she never dreamed she'd be doing…teaching middle school! Ellie’s story is first. Originally from Oklahoma, Caston, Wisconsin is light years from everything—and everyone—she knows, and that almost makes up for the seemingly endless winters and the fact that she can’t get a glass of sweet tea to save her life. I hope you’ll enjoy getting to know Ellie and her friends.
Writing this book has been such a different process than the previous books I’ve written. With this one, I find I’m constantly stopping in the middle of what I’m writing to write a scene, or even an entire chapter, that will happen much later in the story. The result of this scatterbrained writing is that nearly everything is written, but now I have to put it all in order, fill in the blanks, and make sure it all flows. It certainly wasn’t my intention at the outset to write this way, and for someone who thrives on order and schedules, for whom surprises are often the equivalent of nightmares, it's been a challenge. The only explanation I have is that my writing mirrors my life right now. The situation at home and around the world is constantly changing, it seems I don’t know from one day to the next what to expect, and life is something of a roller coaster of emotions. I guess it only makes sense that my writing would reflect all of that. So, I deal with the fractured writing process the same way I try to deal with a fractured world, all the while hoping and praying things return to normalcy sooner rather than later.
My hope for you is that you’re still finding things for which to be thankful, and as you celebrate the holidays that are special to you over the coming weeks, you find joy and peace.
Now, I’m off to buy a turkey and to try to figure out how to make it taste like my mom’s.
Be well,
Margaret
So much in life has changed, so much more so than I ever dreamed possible when this all began, but there is still so much for which to be thankful. And I am. Every day.
And one of the biggest things I’m thankful for is all of you. Your support and encouragement, your kind reviews and emails, buoy me day after day. The fact that so many of you who were fans of the Misty Lake books and who normally read in the romance genre took the plunge and gave I Know an Old Lady a chance is something for which I will be forever grateful. I Know an Old Lady hit Number 1 in its category on Amazon back in September and since has spent many days in that spot. No matter how many times I see that #1 Bestseller banner next to my book, it’s still a thrill. And it’s not just in the US where things are going well. Occasionally, I venture to other Amazon sites and I won’t soon forget the day when I found either I Know an Old Lady or one of the Misty Lake books ranking in the top 50, or top 25, even top 10, in Germany, Australia, Canada, and the UK. All those markets, at the same time! It’s still baffling to me sometimes to consider that people around the world are reading something I wrote. Never, when I first began this journey, did I dare to dream these kinds of things would happen. So, thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart.
What's New?I’m nearly done with the first book in my next series. After that departure from the clean romance genre with I Know an Old Lady, I’m back to familiar territory. This will be a three-book series and will tell the stories of Ellie, Nicole, and Max. Each has a very different past and a very different reason she suddenly finds herself doing something she never dreamed she'd be doing…teaching middle school! Ellie’s story is first. Originally from Oklahoma, Caston, Wisconsin is light years from everything—and everyone—she knows, and that almost makes up for the seemingly endless winters and the fact that she can’t get a glass of sweet tea to save her life. I hope you’ll enjoy getting to know Ellie and her friends.
Writing this book has been such a different process than the previous books I’ve written. With this one, I find I’m constantly stopping in the middle of what I’m writing to write a scene, or even an entire chapter, that will happen much later in the story. The result of this scatterbrained writing is that nearly everything is written, but now I have to put it all in order, fill in the blanks, and make sure it all flows. It certainly wasn’t my intention at the outset to write this way, and for someone who thrives on order and schedules, for whom surprises are often the equivalent of nightmares, it's been a challenge. The only explanation I have is that my writing mirrors my life right now. The situation at home and around the world is constantly changing, it seems I don’t know from one day to the next what to expect, and life is something of a roller coaster of emotions. I guess it only makes sense that my writing would reflect all of that. So, I deal with the fractured writing process the same way I try to deal with a fractured world, all the while hoping and praying things return to normalcy sooner rather than later.
My hope for you is that you’re still finding things for which to be thankful, and as you celebrate the holidays that are special to you over the coming weeks, you find joy and peace.
Now, I’m off to buy a turkey and to try to figure out how to make it taste like my mom’s.
Be well,
Margaret
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