I would like to wish all my wonderful readers a Happy New Year! Thank you for reading, following, commenting, and reviewing!
As a year draws to a close, I like to reflect on what I have accomplished as an author and what I hope to tackle in the new year. Here are the 2023 highlights:
Publications
- The Ballad of Buddy launched this December on Amazon Kindle. My third novel tells the story of Buddy Wilson, Lucy’s trouble-making ex-boyfriend from The Lucy Vaughn Mystery series. This stand-alone spin-off from the series was a fun challenge to write and edit and I was so happy to get it to my readers by the end of the year!
- Magazine publications this year included my Tiny Cat Story published in Modern Cat Magazine, and a couple of short stories resulting from writing prompts published in IdaPost Magazine.
Awards & Reviews
I was pleased that Christmas in Cave Creek received more accolades this year including:
- Indies Today 5-Star Review
- Literary Titan 4-Star Review (and an interview!)
- Literary Titan Silver Book Award
- Dan Poynter Global Ebook Award – Gold Medal
My short story “The Camping Trip,” which you can read in a previous blog post, also won a prize!
- Second place in the Writer’s Block Box Short Story Contest
Events
- This fall, I participated in my first author tabling event at Boise Books & Brews.
NaNoWriMo
I have participated in National Novel Writing Month, aka NaNoWriMo, many times over the years. It’s a challenge to write a 50,000-word novel first draft in just 30 days during November. This year, I challenged myself to write outside of my comfort zone and attempted a paranormal romance. Although I did not write the required number of words, I did complete a 43,000-word rough draft. I am still deciding whether to tackle more on that project next year.
Other
- Wrote several short stories based on writing prompts. See previous blog posts to read some of them!
- Encouraged activism through social media posts against book bans and library closures, as well as posting literary news, cartoons, quotes, and much more. If you are not yet following me on Facebook, check the Connect tab at the top of this page!
- For over a year, I have kept a page on my website known as Lucky Lucy’s Sweepstakes for Literature Lovers where I post links to book-related sweepstakes and giveaways. Visit this page often as updates are made frequently!
- Started a self-paced paranormal romance writing class which I plan to complete in the new year.
In the upcoming year, I hope to continue work on a couple projects that have been brewing for a while, and to begin work on a new novel idea. I would be interested in hearing from my readers about what you would like to see from me in 2024. I always appreciate ideas and suggestions. And if you have read any of my books or they’re in your TBR pile for 2024, I always appreciate reviews on Amazon. Thank you!