Have You Been Wondering When the Next Book Is Coming?
I have.
Ever since finishing Settle My Heart, people have been asking me, “So how close are you on the next book?”
Some people have gotten the answer, “It’s done!” Others, “Well, hopefully soon.” And still more, “Um, it’s complicated.”
Complicated is right. You see, sometimes it takes me some time to get things straightened out in my head, and it’s only after I get really “into” a project that some of my best ideas come.
Also, a lot of this writing thing has caught me by surprise. I didn’t intend to become an author until more recent years. I didn’t intend to write my very first book, let alone get a book published–you can read that story here. So I guess if I’m a little mixed up in my own mind, I’ll lay the blame for it on the fact that I’m new to this.
Almost exactly one year ago, I polished off my final self-edited draft of Settle My Heart and signed my very first publishing deal. I was ecstatic–and terrified–and completely clueless about what I was doing. Sending off my manuscript was one of the most frightening moments of my life.
However, publishing a book is not a speedy process, and as time began to drag and I was still waiting for my manuscript to come back to me for revision, I got impatient with the wait. A new idea begged to be released from my mind, so after twiddling my thumbs for a couple weeks, I pulled out my laptop and started writing again. Settle My Heart took me three years to write and polish. I was not expecting to have this one done in less than five months.
I was shocked. My first book wasn’t even close to hitting the press, and I had already finished my next book? How on earth was I going to pass the time before Settle My Heart was released?
Tentatively, I began my next book, the second book in the series. Just a few chapters in, Settle My Heart was printed and I got caught in an overwhelm of new experiences, everything from learning to ship to setting up a website. Also, I got an unexpected idea about a couple of my story characters, a story that takes place even before the first book in the series, and I was tempted to drop Book 2 and plunge into that one.
But I am the kind of person who cannot stand to stop something in the middle, whether it’s a book or a movie or a sewing project. So I didn’t.
Needless to say, last week I brought Book 2 to a grand finish, the entire writing process taking a total of eight months. I have written more than ever before in this last year, and I think my writing has benefitted from all the extra time, but it hasn’t been easy to explain my book progress to others.
So when will the next book be here?
Soon, I hope. With Books 1 and 2 written, I’ve gained such a feel for the setting and characters that the next one is going to go even faster. Because, yes, I’m going to write another book before sending it to be published. This is the new idea I had in the middle of Book 2. It’s going to be a novella, and it’s going to be the prequel to the Home to Osceola Series. My personal deadline is to have it done by the end of March 2022, but I’m hoping to finish it even faster than that. I am so excited to share this series with you!
As I said, it’s complicated. Sometimes it would be nice if life were a little more clear-cut at times, wouldn’t it?