Happiness

     Recently, I haven’t achieved as much writing and reading as I would have liked, but I have been rather busy, but in a good and happy way.  My son, James, flew over from Norway as a surprise for his sister, Phoenix, since it was her sixteenth birthday.  How I managed to keep this secret, I will never know  Her reaction when she saw him was priceless and although I have it on video, I have been asked not to share it.  We hadn’t seen him since the beginning of November and I am so pleased we had a happy time together.  The worst part is saying goodbye.

     Although I haven’t achieved as much writing and reading as I would have liked, I am not upset about it, since realistically I knew this would happen.  I feel happy and motivated and I’m ready to continue my writing journey.  This is a perfect example of when discipline and organization come into play.  Had I not been so organized and disiplined prior to my son’s arrival, I would probably be in a state of panic now.  I have bravely set my novel, Survival At Any Cost, to one side until I receive more comments and more edits about it.

     Since my last blog I have improved my author pages and feel that I am making progress.  I have started reading ‘Author Marketing Secrets’ by Demi Bernice in preparation for the Author Marketing Secrets 60 Day Writing and Marketing Challenge, which begins on 1st March.  Before then I will also watch Demi’s short videos.  The book I will be dedicating to this is, Dead Eyes.  This will be the first in a series and will introduce Detective Ellen Knight.  Between now and March, I will be focusing most of my energy on Dead Eyes and getting to know my new characters.  My target word count is 55 thousand words.  I have wanted to write a series for a long time, so this is a brilliant opportunity to begin.

     I have been very fortunate since I have done some more interviews and author spotlights which I will let you know more about when they are published. Book Bloggers do a wonderful job at helping and supporting writers. I seem to be getting more followers which I am pleased about. It does take a lot of effort to build a base of real followers. Obviously my friends follow me, but it is a lovely feeling when people I don’t know start following me. I real enjoy interaction with my readers and hope to do more of it. I am also trying to find the right cover for Survival At Any Cost.

     My entry for the Goodreads Reading Challenge 2018 is on target and I have completed ‘Blood in the Sand’ by Kelly Clayton which had a nice twist and I have almost finished ‘Missouri Waltz’ by Richard Dunk. I am currently reading ‘Memory of Snow’ by Kirsty Ferry and today I am starting, ‘The Scent of Guilt’ by Tony J Forder. I have read the previous book in this series this year, but he has me hooked and since this novel was recently released, I couldn’t resist.

     It is good to read different genres because it’s a whole new adventure.  I am also enjoying reading new authors to me. When I read something that is not familiar to me, it does take a while for me to get into it, but I am very glad that I persevere because it is an enjoyable experience.

     By following this link and you can follow me on Goodreads and see the reviews that I leave.

     Being happy is a state of mind.  The more you put into something, whether it’s writing, another profession, getting fit, family life etc. the more you will get out of it and the happier you’ll be.

     My biggest dilemma at this moment in time is whether to start reading, The Scent of Guilt, or get to know Detective Ellen Knight better.  Whatever I choose, I know I’ll be happy.

Until next time – keep chasing your dreams!

NICOLE