It’s not supposed to shower in May, but I’ve been standing in a puddle that goes up to my chin lately. That being said…I’m glad I love the rain!

2024 started off differently than I had expected. I had planned to edit my first five novels with the deadset hope that I’d be re-publishing all of them in May. Boom! I’d be dropping all of my books with new covers, fresh line edits, new blurbs, and new keywords. 

That didn’t happen.

In January, I was writing a new story, hunkered down in my fuzzy blanket, recovering from a germ I struggled to evict. Determined, I gave that germ a firm kick to the rear end, sending it to the curb with a renewed sense of returning to my plan. 

Which plan would that be? Would it be the one where I plow through my five books, rush the edits, and hurry with new covers? Nope, I was being called to the new book, of course! This was the second of two new books since November. I do a good job deflecting the ‘shiny new object’ syndrome. Still, I also believe that when creativity strikes, I should give myself up to the flow of words. I only hope that my fingers can keep up with the story playing in my mind.

Fast-forward to the current day, when I’m past the middle of May and jumping back and forth between calendar dates and book titles. I was on track for re-releasing my first book, Switching to Light, in August. I have a new cover that I LOVE, and I gave a pat on my back for typing my last edit. 

Then…a thought hit me as if I was being divinely guided: why am I not starting with my book, ‘Welcome to Garden Valley?’ Doesn’t it make sense to begin with an introduction to Garden Valley, so to speak?

This flipped my world upside down, literally on this morning’s walk!

After spending the morning with a record playing ‘What do I do?’ in the background of my thoughts, I finally grabbed a blank piece of paper on my lunch break to map it out. 

Let me guide you through my thought process with my publishing plan. I was initially going to publish Switching to Light in July, but this seemed too soon since I wanted to dedicate time to a robust launch strategy. Publishing in August meant the next book, Turning to Color, would be in October. But that’s getting into the holiday season and Coping With Yarn works best for that since there are some mentions of sweater weather and Christmas. Releasing both Turning to Color and Coping With Yarn in the winter would be WAY too much for me to handle. 

In one column, the months. In another would be the names of my books. After relinquishing the idea that I don’t need to start with my first book, I devised a plan…and I like it!

After ALL of that, I’m ready to make a BIG announcement! I’m coming out with a refurbished, better-than-ever version of WELCOME TO GARDEN VALLEY in August!   … that….I haven’t even started editing yet.🙂

Since this newsletter is long enough, my next post will be about my process for this release plan. Stay tuned for a behind-the-scenes look at my writing, designing new book covers, and beefing up my blurb and keywords!