GOALS: 2023

It's once again my favorite time of year -- GOALS!! I absolutely love setting goals for myself and seeing just how much I can accomplish in a year. And after the (surprisingly) productive 2022 I had, I'm more excited than ever to see what 2023 has in store. So, let's do this!

STAY HEALTHY!

Yes, this is absolutely the first thing on my goals for 2023. I'm finally in a good place with my Fibro and all my meds, and I want to maintain this. I'm no longer actively trying to lose weight, but I will continue to eat healthy and stay active. Encompassed within this goal is to keep my family as healthy as possible, too. Thankfully, my daughter seems to be adjusting to her disease and the recent medication change very well, and I pray that she continues to improve and do well. 

KEEP ON WRITING & PUBLISHING!

Obviously! I mean, this is what I do after all. Unlike previous years, though, I don't have any firm plans in mind of what I want to write and publish--and admittedly, I was freaking out about this for a while, but then I realized it doesn't matter. I don't need to have my writing planned out for the entire year. That's the best part of being an Indie author: I can write whatever I want, whenever I want. So rather than list out all the projects I think I might want to work on (and let's face it, I *always* veer away from my list anyway), I'm going to aim to write and publish another 5 books this year. I'm going to make this a mix of YA and adult. 

TREAT MY BUSINESS LIKE A BUSINESS!

I realize this might sound a little bit odd, and I do treat the act of writing and publishing like a business, but it's all the other stuff that goes with it that's lacking. I need to become better organized with my marketing, expenditures, and time management. I'm confident that doing so will also help me in the long term with my output and overall creativity.

EXPAND MY AUDIENCE!

Back in 2021, I'd sold licensing rights to my series to a couple of serial reading apps. I have a list of others that I want to explore and potentially contract with so that I can continue to expand my audience. I'll also be looking for new fun ways to help spread the word about my books. 

READ!

I'd like to aim for 1-2 books per month again, not including any submissions I have to read for Anaiah. I read quite a bit in 2022, and I'd forgotten how much I love to get sucked into a story. I will attempt to read every night before bed.

BALANCE: SLOW DOWN & LOOK AROUND

I'm forever making lists of things I need to do, setting deadlines, and basically working as much as I possibly can. This past year, though, I'd taken a Mother-Daughter vacation (which is going to become an annual thing), and I can't tell you how much fun I had exploring, spending time with my girls, and laughing. I want to do more of that in 2023 -- So, I'm hereby giving myself permission to slow down, look around, and just enjoy life. I'm not getting any younger, my kids are starting to spread themselves farther apart, and I'm to the point in my life where I feel like I've earned the right to really start enjoying all that I have. While I will always keep writing, publishing, and editing, this is the year I find a better balance between my professional and personal life. 

What will you do in 2023?

Looking Back on 2022...

I read somewhere once that whatever you're doing at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve is indicative of how the new year will be for you. Well, at the stroke of midnight on December 31, 2021, I was in the children's hospital with my daughter, and to say that 2022 has been a year of ups and downs for her health, my health, and others in my family would be a massive understatement. While my main focus this year has been keeping my loved ones as healthy as possible, I still managed to do some publishing stuff. So, let's take a look back on the year to see what I accomplished, what I didn't, and what big changes I faced in 2022.

My original 2022 goals included: 

(1) FINISH WARS OF THE HEART SERIES

GOAL ACHIEVED! I wasn't sure I'd actually finish this series, as I was really struggling with the final book, but I managed to write, edit, and publish the entire trilogy, and now all three books are available. So, if Jax is your favorite, go grab these books and find out what happens :) 

(2) FINISH VAMPIRE WARS SERIES

As previously noted, I'd written and released a short YA vampire story called The Culling that was part of a multi-author collection. While that collection is no longer available and I have all rights back to my story, I had hoped to add more and republish it, but because of how much I struggled with Jax's series--and the numerous health issues--I didn't get this done. Maybe next year. 

(3) CO-WRITE BOOK 2 of EON SAGA

Hahaha. NOPE! Though, I'm not the only one responsible for this, and my co-author and I just couldn't seem to coordinate our schedules enough to get the second book written. But, we do have a solid plan for the first book in this series, so stay tuned for updates about that. 

(4) RELAUNCH WARPED REMAINS

Yeah, I'm going to be honest... this has been at very bottom on my list of priorities. Though I'm hoping to revisit this next year. We'll see. 

(5) BRANCH INTO MIDDLE GRADE

Sadly, I didn't get the opportunity to actually write a middle grade story, but I've been thinking about one a lot, and it's starting to take shape in my mind. Fingers crossed!

(6) SELF-PUBLISH ADULT ROMANCE

I'm proud to say I did do this! I wrote and published 2 books under the pen name Lexi Lawton--Obligation and Obsession. I have two more books planned within this world, so be on the lookout for those.  

While I did okay with my goals this past year, (though not nearly as good as I would have liked) so much more has happened that I never expected or planned for, so here's the quick rundown: 

Professionally: 

• I wrote a total of 370,324 words. That's actually 9,201 words MORE than last year, which I have no idea how I managed that, but I'll take it!
• I blogged a total of 12,632 words.
• I rebranded my author logo, and I'm so in love with it. (Thanks again, Courtney!)
• I released 5 books: Bound, Beholden, and Banished, all written as Kara. And two new adult romances--Obligation and Obsession--written as Lexi Lawton.
• I wrote book 1 of a brand new series that will eventually be published as Lexi Lawton. It's a motorcycle club romance, and a new genre for me, but I love this book and can't wait to share it!
• I dabbled in a bit of ghostwriting again--mostly story creation and outlines. 
• I wrote a rom-com proposal for my agent, and she sent me some notes, so I'll be reworking that a bit.
• I attended two book signings and had a blast at both of them! 
• I finally got to meet some of my amazing book people--Kris Riley and Andy Garcia-Ruse. This was a real highlight of my year. 
• I've booked multiple signings for next year, too. 
• I reconnected with my CP, Courtney, and we've been so much better about keeping each other accountable and trading our work for feedback.
• For Anaiah, I edited 7 full length novels and 5 novellas. 
• I freelance edited 6 manuscripts.

Personally:

• My husband surprised me with a new kitten! His name is Salem, and he's all black. He's a jerk most of the time... except in the middle of the night when I'm trying to sleep. Then he wants to purr--LOUDLY--and snuggle into my neck. I love him though. 
• My neighbor and best friend who moved away has moved back, and she's once again right across the street from me. I couldn't be happier about this. 
• My other close friend has moved out of state and informed me recently that she's not coming back to Michigan, which makes me sad, but I'm truly happy that she's happy. 
• The weight I'd gained back in 2021 is now gone again. I haven't really been dieting per se, but I have been way more stressed and active this year, so I'm sure that's a big part of the loss. Totally not complaining!
• I made a trip to NY to attend my aunt's wedding. Being a part of that and catching up with the family was great.
• My favorite aunt moved to Michigan! Now her and my uncle are here, and I love that. They also have a litter of puppies, and I probably spend a tad too much time at their house now. #SorryNotSorry
• The house my husband and I had purchased as joint office space has now been converted back into an actual house that we live in with our youngest daughter. My son and other daughter now live together (along with some friends) in our old house. I still have a dedicated room for my office, though, so it's all good. 
• I, along with 3 of my 4 daughters, took our first annual Mother-Daughter Vacation. We were supposed to take a cruise, but for obvious health reasons, that didn't work out. Instead, we explored Michigan and visited Mackinac Island. (Which is totally gorgeous!) We're already planning next year's trip. 
• During a signing I attended in Missouri, I took a day to drive into Lawrence, Kansas and take a picture in front of the sign. For those who don't know, Lawrence is a big part of the show, Supernatural. 
• My husband, son, and I are in the early stages of launching a new business. More about this soon!

I even managed to read more this year: 

• Dead Wednesday by Jerry Spinelli
• Hush-a-Bye by Jody Lee Mott
• One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle
• The Kill Jar by J. Reuben Appelman
• Raine's Fall by Erin Osborne
• Knight's Rising by Bella Jewel
• Savage Protector by E.M. Gayle
• Sinner by Lexi Timms
• All the Missing Girls by Meghan Miranda
• Fallen, Torment, Passion, Rapture, Unforgiven, and Fallen in Love by Lauren Kate
• Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman
• I Am Watching You by Teresa Driscoll
• Outbreak by Davis Bunn
• Creepers and Scavenger by David Morrell
• Peeps and The Last Days by Scott Westerfield
• Little Creeping Things by Chelsea Ichaso
• The Project by Courtney Summers
• Chain Letter and An Ancient Evil by Christopher Pike
• The Ash House by Angharad Walker

Overall, it's been a decent year for me, and I'm excited to see what I can accomplish in 2023. Stay tuned for my official goals post :-) In the meantime, tell me in the comments what YOU did this year! 

Thursday Thoughts: Pen Names and Passion Projects

It's been almost three full years since I embarked on my self-publishing journey and embraced the Indie world. I've certainly had a lot of ups and downs, and wow have I learned a TON! Looking back, there are definitely things I'd do differently, but now I know and I can adjust moving forward. I have a huge list of things I've learned, but there are two that have really been resonating with me lately, and I want to share them in the hopes they might help another writer.

NEW PEN NAMES:

A lot of authors write using a pen name--this is nothing new. Some authors even have multiple pen names for various genres. I used to have two different pseudonyms. One for YA (Kara Leigh Miller) and one for adult (Lexi Lawton). But when I began to focus on self-publishing, I dropped the Lexi name. Mostly because I knew I just didn't have the time to build two separate names, and honestly, I can only write one book at a time, so I'm either writing YA or Adult, but never both at once. 

However, in my quest to learn the business side of publishing, I joined the Wide for the Win Facebook group. Seriously, if you're an author and don't belong to this group--and you're selling your books on places other than just Amazon--go fix that right now! The wealth of knowledge in that group is astounding and so, so helpful. 

One of the biggest takeaways I got from this group is how multiple pen names are often necessary. See, when you publish on vendor sites, after a certain amount of time, you'll begin to notice a section called "Also Bought." These are books that are, hopefully, similar to yours. It gives readers a chance to see what other customers have bought that are like the product you offer. 

So, using me as an example, if I write and publish YA paranormal romance with limited foul language and no graphic sexual situations AND I also write and publish steamier / erotic adult romance under the same name, my "Also Bought" section will get messed up, because in theory, I'd have a mix of books. And sure, a lot of readers buy and read across a variety of genres, age categories, and heat levels. But stop for a moment and think of what this does should a teen find my books. The "Also Bought" recommendations won't just list other YA books, it will include some very adult books. 

Before anyone comes at me with "yeah, but..." I do realize there are quite a few authors who write a variety of stories under one pen name. And huge kudos to them! I truly wish I could do that, too, but I know I'm not a big enough author to make that work for me. 

With all of this in mind, along with knowing that I'm not the type of writer who can only write one age category / genre all the time, I have decided to branch out into more than one pen name. Yes, I still have my adult pen name, Lexi Lawton, who writes steamy New Adult romances, and while I'm not actively writing or publishing anything under that name right this moment, she's still alive and kicking ;-)

I'm working very closely with an author friend of mine, and together, we're launching a new pen name -- one that we're not going to publicly name just yet -- and we'll be focusing on some darker, steamier romances. 

PASSION PROJECTS: 

When I first began writing Eternal Curse, it was what I called my passion project. It was a story I wanted to write for ME. I never had any intention of publishing it, but rather it was something I would work on when I was stuck on other things. It was my safe, fun space. I had no expectations, no rules, no pressure--and then that single book turned into a seven book series. The words poured out of me, and I rediscovered my love for the act of writing. 

But then I published this, and to be clear: I do not regret that decision in the slightest! I have actual readers now, people who loved my books and want more. That's a huge accomplishment that I'm very proud of. But with that comes pressure -- pressure to write more books faster, to write the books my readers want, etc. Suddenly, writing once again became a chore rather than a joy, and I found myself struggling again. I didn't *want* to write, and well, that made me grumpy. lol. 

So, my second most important lesson learned is to ALWAYS have a passion project handy. I realize not every author can jump from one project to another, and I'm extremely lucky that I can. I've also realized that I simply cannot write without a passion project which, oddly enough, is what pushed me to finally embrace my second pen name. This has also led me to the co-authored venture I mentioned above. Once again, I'm feeling excited about writing and publishing, and I hope 2024 will yield a lot more book releases. 

Are you a writer as well? 

Do you keep passion projects on the side? 

GOALS: 2021

 

It's once again my favorite time of year -- GOALS!! I absolutely love setting goals for myself and seeing just how much I can accomplish in a year. And after the productive 2020 I had, I more excited than ever to see what 2021 has in store. So, let's do this!

KEEP ON WRITING!

I wrote so much in 2020, and I would love to keep up with the momentum I'd built. Here are the specific projects I hope to work on: 

1. Small Town Cowboy Romance Book -- I'm busy working on a proposal for my agent for a series of small town cowboys. I want to get the first book written, and possibly have outlines for the rest of the series. 

2. Cursed Series Spinoff Book -- I have the characters, and the idea for the story, and I've already written the first couple of chapters, so I just need to finish writing it. 

3. Adult Romantic Suspense Book -- I have one I'd started several years ago, so I'm going to dust it off and finally finish it so I can send it to my agent. This will be written and eventually published as Lexi.

4. More YA Books -- I worked hard last year to launch The Cursed Series, and I've seen some wonderful gains in my readership, which I don't want to lose, so ideally, I'd love to write another YA book or series I can release. I have an entire list of ideas to choose from, so we'll see what happens. 

READ TILL MY EYES BLEED!

Okay, so maybe that's a little extreme. LOL. I read more books for pleasure last year than I have in a very long time, and I loved it. In fact, I'd forgotten just how much I love getting lost in a book. Between all the writing, editing, and reading submissions for Anaiah that I do, I rarely have time to read stuff that I want to read, so this year, I'm going to make it a priority. I will read at least one book per month, hopefully more. And maybe, if I'm feeling frisky, I might start doing reviews again, too. 

GET OUT OF MY COMFORT ZONE!

Anyone who knows me in real life knows that I'm generally a shy person. I prefer to stay home, chat via messenger or text as opposed to talking on the phone, and I do most of my marketing online, too, without having to really put myself out there all that much. Well, this year, I'm going to make a real effort to get out of my comfort zone and put myself out there more via videos, podcasts, conferences, etc. 

PROGRESS: KEEP MOVING FOWARD!

As I've mentioned, I made a lot of traction in my writing and publishing life, and I don't want all of that hard work to be for nothing, so for this year, I'm going to focus on moving forward while progressing with my writing and publishing. I'm going to continue to self-publish via FireChicken Press, and God willing, I'll get Lexi back on track with some new publishing contracts as well. 

What will you do in 2021?

Looking Back on 2020....

Hmm... Well, this was certainly "A Year" wasn't it? Between politics, the pandemic, and the rollercoaster that is publishing, 2020 has not been a great year on a global scale. While I, too, had to deal with all of this stuff in my everyday life, I had an overall amazing year! And I'm reluctant to even type that because I know for so many, this year was truly awful. But because it's been so awful, I'm not going to feel bad about my accomplishments. If anything, we need more reasons to celebrate this year, so buckle in and let's take a look back on the year to see what I accomplished, what I didn't, and what big changes I faced in 2020.

My original 2020 goals included: 

(1) FINISH BOOKS 1 & 2 OF THE GEORGIA CORBINS SERIES

These books... I both love and hate them. LOL. They are very near to my heart, but I'm still really struggling with what direction to take them, so while I thought about them quite a bit this past year, I didn't actually open the docs and work on them. But that's okay. Maybe next year. 

(2) WRITE BOOKS 2 & 3 OF MY YA PARANORMAL ROMANCE SERIES

Bahahahahaha! Wow, has so much happened with this series! Originally, it was only supposed to be three books. That turned into four. Then six... All of which are now written. Four are now available for sale with the final two up for pre-order. 

(3) RESURRECT MY PEN NAME

For those who don't know, I write steamy New Adult and adult books under the name Lexi Lawton. After a surprising (and wonderful) email from my publisher, I found out they are re-investing in my books with some new marketing efforts, and I couldn't be more excited! So, I've revamped Lexi's website and social media, and I'm actively working on some new stuff for her. In the meantime, if you want to stay up-to-date, you can follow her (me) on social media: newsletter / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads / Amazon / AllAuthor / Bookbub. 

(4) OFFICIALLY LAUNCH FIRECHICKEN PRESS, LLC

I didn't just launch this with one book as I'd originally wanted to--I launched it with the entire Cursed Series! And I did so several months earlier than I'd expected, too, so that's been fun. 

(5) KEEP ON EDITING

I'm still with Anaiah, and I've still been editing. I don't foresee this changing any time soon. I also managed to snag a couple new freelance clients. 

(6) FIND MY PASSION

My official word and state of mind going into 2020 was passion. I wanted to find that spark again, to fall in love with writing and editing and life in general, and despite everything, I did. I'm exactly where I've always wanted to be in terms of loving what I do, and this is probably the best thing to have come out of 2020.

While I kicked butt with my goals this past year, so much more has happened that I never expected or planned for, so here's the quick rundown: 

Professionally: 

• I wrote a total of 680,227 words (!!!) That's the most I've ever written. 
• I blogged a total of 19,393 words.
• I released 6 books: Warped Remains, Perfectly Imperfect, Eternal Curse, Eternal Choice, Eternal Bond, and Eternal Love.
• I wrote approximately 5k of a spinoff from The Cursed Series.
• I rewrote the ending to Lexi's 3rd book (Resisting Ryder) and submitted it to the publisher for consideration. 
• I've re-signed with my former agent, Dawn Dowdle of Blue Ridge Literary Agency!! 
• I dove headfirst into self-publishing. 
• My book, Perfectly Imperfect, released as an audio book! And I've since started moving The Cursed Series into audio, too. 
• For Anaiah, I edited 8 full length novels and 5 novellas. 
• I freelance edited 6 manuscripts.
• I had professional author photos taken--finally! It's only been 10 years. LOL. 

Personally:

• I went on my dream vacation--A Caribbean cruise with my BFF, Emily!
• I survived an ongoing global pandemic without getting sick. Well, not any sicker than usual, anyway.
• Despite the gym closing, I managed to continuing working out on a regular basis -- thanks to my wonderful husband investing in an elliptical for me. 
• I maintained my weight loss from last year! In fact, I even managed to drop another couple of pounds. 
• Caught up on lots more TV... I finished the final season of The 100 (severely disappointed) then began a rewatch but stopped midway through season 4. I made it through every single episode of Supernatural, and then watched the finale with my daughter (when we both cried our eyes out). I watched the only season of V-Wars, Daybreakers, and The Society. Oh, and I watched Shadowhunters, too!
• My daughter is on track to graduate from high school early, and I've gone on a couple of college tours with her. I'm beyond excited that she's been accepted to her top choice. 
• My son, who does not do well with online learning, passed all of his classes this first semester, and he's on track to graduate next year, too!
• My other daughter got a new kitten. 
• Two of my girls have gotten first jobs this year--one at Subway and the other at Little Ceasers. 
• We got a new puppy on Christmas eve. Her name is Maggie May, and she's absolutely adorable.

I even managed to read a lot more this year than I normally do: 

• City of Bones, City of Ashes, City of Glass, and City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
• Kissing the Wrong Twin by Christina Herrara
• Risen by Cole Gibsen
• Crave and Crush by Tracy Wolff
• Twin Souls by K.A. Poe
• Flight by Alyssa Rose Ivy
• Fading by Cindy Cipriano
• The Immortal Mark, The Immortal Truth, and The Immortal Bond by Amy Sparling
• Vampire Crush by A.M. Robinson
• The Vampire's Promise by Caroline B. Cooney
• Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer
• Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare
• Hex by Thomas Olde Huevelt
• Uncomfortable and Unavoidable by Nessa Page
• A Cowboy's Pride and Winning the Cowboy's Heart by Karen Rock
• The Country Vet by Eleanor Jones

Overall, it's been a pretty great year for me professionally, and I'm excited to see what I can accomplish in 2021. Stay tuned for my official goals post :-) In the meantime, tell me in the comments what YOU did this year! 

How I Got my Agent Back!

Whenever I feel like I've hit rock bottom, or I'm barely surviving a low in my writing / publishing career, something good tends to happen, something I'm truly not expecting, and this is a trend I've never really noticed until recently. Then again, hindsight is 20/20. 

Way back in 2014, a publisher I'd been signed with was careening toward an unavoidable implosion. I was terrified of what might happen to my books I'd published with them, to what I'd do next. I mean, how do you recover from something like that? And then, I snagged an agent. You can read all about how that happened HERE. 

Fast forward three years and I was once again facing another major blow in my writing career. Read all about that HERE. As a result, I'd parted ways with my agent. I was sad and discouraged and really on the verge of just giving up. But I didn't. I took some time to assess what I wanted to write and what direction I wanted to take my career. 

Fast forward another three years, and here we are at the end of a very long and difficult year. Despite it all, I've had a productive year in terms of writing and publishing, and while I'm happy with what I've accomplished, I was left feeling like I was still missing something. I'd finished a massive 6-book series, and I was floundering on what to do next. Did I dive into a new YA series I could self-publish? Did I write an adult book I could query agents with? Did I finally finish my series written as Lexi and self publish that? (Which is something I'd been considering for a while.) And then, I got an email....

The publisher of my Lexi books was investing in some new marketing for my book in January. Let me tell you how big of a boost this was! I eagerly jumped in to help with their efforts, revived Lexi on social media, and my enthusiasm for this series sparked once again. I reached out to my former agent, who had originally sold this series for me and who I'd always been in contact with throughout the years and let her know what was going on. During our discussions, I asked if she thought my publisher might reconsider publishing the 3rd book in this series. We agreed I'd ask and see what happened. 

Much to my surprise, they agreed to take a look at the 3rd book and reconsider!!!! And so, I gave the book (which had been written for years) another read through, cleaned it up, rewrote the ending, and sent it off to Dawn, who had agreed to submit it on my behalf considering she'd repped the first two books in the series. 

And now it's official---I have re-signed with my former agent, Dawn Dowdle of Blue Ridge Literary Agency!! 

She has sent my third Lexi book to the publisher, and now we wait for their decision. If they ultimately say no, I'll forge ahead with self-publishing it so I can continue to rebuild my pen name. And I'll eventually work on something new for Lexi as well. In the meantime, after speaking with Dawn about what she's looking for, I'm working on a proposal for a new series: small town cowboys that will ultimately be published in some form under my Kara name! I couldn't be more excited about this prospect, and I'm so thrilled to be working with Dawn again :-) 

GOALS: 2020

It's my favorite time of year again!!! GOALS!!! I love setting goals, and I'm more excited than ever this year because there are some big things happening, and with me in much better health, I'm going to hit 2020 hard! So, let's do this.

WRITE Until My Fingers Fall Off!

Okay, so maybe that's a bit dramatic--LOL--but I do want to get back into a steady writing habit, and in doing so, I hope to finish a few projects and/or start some new ones. Here is the official list of books I'm going to attempt to finish writing this year:

1. The Georgia Corbins, Book 1. I swear this book is on my goals list every single year, and I'm determined not to let it still be here come 2021. Haha! I have a large portion of this book already written, so it really just needs a final revision.

2. The Georgia Corbins, Book 2. I have a complete draft of this written that will need to be heavily revised to be consistent with the changes to book 1, so I plan to do that this year.

3.  Eternal Bond. This is the sequel to Eternal Curse, a young adult paranormal romance.

4.  Eternal Regret. This is the third book in my young adult paranormal romance series. I don't expect to finish it, but I'd like to at least get started on it.

Resurrect My Pen Name 

A few years ago, I'd written and published a couple of secular New Adult books under a pen name. For anyone who's been around this blog for any amount of time, you know that things didn't work out so well for me with that deal--at no fault of anyone! Sometimes, things just don't work out. That's the nature of publishing, and life in general. So, after some time away and a lot of reflection, I've decided I'm going to bring back this pen name. I'm going to release the third book in the series that wasn't published by the publisher, and I have a romantic suspense series I'm going to work on. (Please be aware that under this name, I write stuff that is not Christian; in fact, it's rather steamy, so if that's not your thing, feel free to stick to my Kara books.)

Officially launch FireChicken Press, LLC

I have a "work-in-progress" website for FireChicken Press, LLC (FCP, LLC). I'd like to release, at the very least, one book under FireChicken Press in 2020. I'm aiming for FCP's debut release to be sometime in late September or early October with Eternal Curse, The Cursed Series: Book One. 

On this specific topic--my husband and I have purchased the (small) house directly across the street from us, and it will become the official office space for both FireChicken Press, LLC and my husband's company, JMT, LLC. Stay tuned in the next couple of months of pictures and updates. I'd love to host a small, weekend writer's retreat there this summer.

Keep On Editing

I'm still with Anaiah Press, and so I'll continue to edit, but this year, I'd like to be a bit more consistent and aim for about one manuscript a month. I've also got a couple repeat freelance clients that I'll continue to edit for---I'm looking at you, Kat and Katie! :-)

Passion: Loving Life and What I Do

Last year, my focus was on persistence, and while that didn't apply too much to my writing life, it helped immensely with my personal life and weight loss journey. This year, though, I'm going to focus on passion--for writing, editing, family, friends, and life in general. If I'm not happy doing something, I'm simply not going to do it anymore. What's the point, right? Life is much too short to spend it being miserable.

What will you accomplish in 2020? 

Looking Back on 2016....

As 2016 comes to an end and the world prepares to welcome 2017, it's once again time to look back on the year and see what I accomplished, what I didn't, and what big changes I faced in 2016. To read my full 2016 goals post, click HERE!

My 2016 Goals Included:

1. Finish writing books 2 and 3 of The Hayden Falls Saga 

Status: GOAL NOT MET

My thoughts: When I set this goal, I knew it was a long shot. Not because I couldn't write them, but because this series was / is low on my priority list. The contract for book 1 will be expiring very soon, so for the time being. this series is on hold until I decide whether I want to renew the current contract or ask for rights back and find it a new home.


2. Finish writing book 3 of The Georgia Corbins

Status: GOAL NOT MET

My thoughts: Originally, I was planning to self-publish the entire series this year, but then an opportunity presented itself, and I submitted book one to a publisher I would love to work with. While the editor loved the characters and the overall story idea, she felt the writing and execution still needed some work and offered me an R&R (revise and resubmit). So, while I didn't meet the goal I set, I'm counting this as a win. I have her notes and I will be working on this in the new year.


3. Finish writing Savage Passion and send it to my agent.

Status: GOAL NOT MET

My thoughts: I have a notebook full of ideas for this new book/series, but other things have kept me from diving in (see below), but I'm really excited to jump into this new world.


4. Finish Warped Remains--A YA thriller I co-wrote with David Jemal.

Status: GOAL MET!

My thoughts: We finished the book and started sending it out. We currently have an R&R from an awesome publisher. We're days away from finishing the revision and will be sending it back to the editor in early January!


5. Finish Hallowed Ground (Graves Barren, Book 1)--A YA paranormal romance

Status: GOAL KINDA MET

My thoughts: The book isn't 100% finished, but I'm a lot closer than I was last year at this time. I'm now at 70K of an estimated 90K. I also managed to work through some road blocks, plot holes, and outline the ending.


6. Finish Eternally Bound--an adult paranormal romance

Status: GOAL NOT MET

My thoughts: I'm admittedly bummed I didn't get this one finished. I've heard paranormal is set to make a comeback, and I really wanted to get this one done and sent out. *sigh* Maybe next year.


7. Finish The First Snowfall--an erotic thriller.

Status: GOAL NOT MET

My thoughts: I'm on the fence with this book. I'm not sure my heart is into it, so I think for the time being, I'm going to shelve it.


8. Finish Resistance, the sequel to Inferno that I co-wrote with David Jemal.

Status: GOAL NOT MET

My thoughts: This series is currently in limbo, so until we get it worked out, I won't be working on it.


9. Get creative and come up with some new adult book ideas.

Status: GOAL KINDA MET

My thoughts: As I mentioned in my 2016 Goals post, my agent signed me for adult books, and all of my ideas as of late seem to be young adult. I'd like to say I've come up with a whole list of new ideas, but I haven't. At least, not any that aren't YA. lol. BUT, I do have a new romantic suspense series I'm planning to write, and possibly some more NA books (which my agent does rep. YAY!)


10. Beg people to like me-- This included doing more daily promo and meeting other writers in-person.

Status: GOAL MET!

My thoughts: I started a newsletter and am steadily building my list of subscribers. I created and am in the process of launching a new pen name (Lexi Lawton). I met a group of local writers via NaNoWriMo and we'll be organizing a writing/critique group in early 2017.


11. Keep on blogging.

Status: GOAL NOT MET

My thoughts: I completely dropped the ball on this one. I have no excuses.


Out of 11 goals, I fully achieved two and kinda achieved two. Those aren't very good numbers, huh. So, at this point, you're probably wondering: What the heck did you do all year, Kara? I'm glad you asked. I did a LOT! Honestly! Take a look...

• I've written a total of 382,282 words on my personal projects this past year. 
• I've edited a total of 6 manuscripts for freelance clients.
• I've edited a total of 7 manuscripts for Anaiah Press.
• My New Adult contemporary romance, Tempting Tanner, sold to Entangled Publishing in a three-book deal. It's the Collins Brothers Series and will be releasing throughout 2017. I've spent months editing, rewriting, and editing some more. 
• I wrote the Collins Brothers Book 2--Chasing Xander.
• I wrote a large chunk of the Collins Brothers Book 3--Resisting Ryder.
• I wrote a big chunk of Hallowed Ground (Graves Barren, Book 1).
• I wrote 25k of a brand new New Adult romance that's pushing the boundaries in some fun ways.
• I co-mentored not one but TWO authors for PitchWars. And I'm beyond thrilled to say they are both now agented. 
• I started a new young adult romance. 
• I won NaNoWriMo!!
• I outlined a book proposal for a spin-off to my Collins Brothers Series.
• Jody Holford and I released Jaded Love. 
• I visited Washington, DC with my daughter and her 5th grade class. 
• I made several trips back to NY to visit my parents and my two older daughters.
• My parents visited Michigan for the first time ever, and I had a blast showing them around. 

Even though I didn't meet many of my original goals, I still accomplished a lot. The sale of my series changed my focus, and that's okay. In my mind, 2016 was an overall win!

What did you get done this past year?

Re-branding and Book Updates

Last week, I shared some important updates with my newsletter subscribers. (Not signed up? Do so now!) And now, I'm going to share them with all of you...

RE-BRANDING:

Back when I started writing in 2010, I created the Kara Leigh Miller pen name, under which I wrote and published some rather steamy erotic romances. But then I had an idea for a young adult romance, (formerly known as The Georgia Corbins) which I also wrote and published as Kara. During that time, I was asked a lot about why I didn't create a new pen name for my YA stuff. And my answer was always -- Because I don't have the time or patience to create and maintain multiple social media accounts, and because I'd already built a following as Kara and I wanted -- no, needed -- to cash in on that from a sales standpoint. And I really didn't have any issues. 

Until I signed on with Anaiah Press, which is a Christian fiction publisher. For the record, I do NOT regret my time or my books with Anaiah. It's been such an amazing experience that I wouldn't ever change :) 

But clearly I couldn't continue to use the same pen name to write across a variety of genres like I had been. And so, it's come time to re-brand myself as an author. 

From this point forward, Kara Leigh Miller will ONLY publish young adult books. My alter-ego, Lexi Lawton, will publish the steamier New Adult and Adult books. If that's your thing, please feel free to follow Lexi on her website, Twitter, and Facebook. Also, sign up for her newsletter and get a FREE digital copy of Christmas Confessions -- an exclusive short story not available anywhere else!

OUT OF PRINT:

Due to various reasons -- issues with the publisher, contract expiration, etc. -- FOUR of my books will no longer be available for purchase after the end of August....

Love and Other Games

Love by Number (Aurora Island Resort #1)

Love on the Rocks (Aurora Island Resort #2)

Love at the Edge (Aurora Island Resort #3)

I know this might not sound like a good thing, but it is! Because I'm in the middle of a major re-branding, having these steamier titles removed helps me achieve that goal. Plus, this now gives me the opportunity to revisit these books, re-edit, maybe even re-write portions and then re-release them as Lexi. Be on the look out for those sometime next year :-) 

UPDATE ON TORN (THE GEORGIA CORBINS, Book 1):

If you follow me on social media, you'll remember that back in March, I was on the fast-track to having this book ready to release in early May. However, in a weird but exciting turn of events, the book landed in the hands of an editor at a publisher that I would love to sign with!

As a result, all of my carefully laid plans came to a screeching halt. I've recently heard back from this editor, and while she's interested in the series, there are some rewrites she feels need to be done before it's ready for publication. And after taking some time to really think about it and discuss it with her, I've decided to do it. All of her suggestions are spot-on and will only make the series stronger. I can't tell you how excited I am to dive back into this story!

Unfortunately, that means this series won't be published any time soon. I'm really hoping for sometime in 2017, but no guarantees. I do promise that this series WILL be back in the world at some point, though. I love it too much to just let it go.

WORKS-IN-PROGRESS:

While I've been busy working on the Collins Brother Series, I do have a lot of projects in the works and hope to have a new Kara book out sometime next year. In the meantime, this is what I'm working on....

Warped Remains -- A YA romantic thriller that's LOST meets AND THEN THERE WERE NONE. This is a co-written project that will be in front of an editor by the end of the month. 

Hallowed Ground (Graves Barren, Book 1) -- A YA paranormal romance series. It has the same tone and style and epic-ness of the Twilight Saga but without any vampires or werewolves. 

Untitled -- A contemporary YA romance that has a dual timeline (one told in present time and the other told via journal entries). It's a heartbreaking love story. 

Thanks for sticking with me, and until next time...

xoxo

~Kara 

Does no really mean no?

Before I answer that question, let me clarify. This is not some in-depth blog post about a person's right to say no or choices or anything else deep and thought provoking. Nope. This is simply the story of how I found my agent!

That's right! I have an agent!!!! <--- Can you tell how excited I am? 

I have signed with the wonderful Dawn Dowdle of The Blue Ridge Literary Agency. She is representing me for my series of romantic suspense books. 

Now, back to my question: Does no really mean no? Usually, yes. But in this particular situation, no. lol. Allow me to explain.

In December, I participated in the #pitchMAS pitch event. During that event, Dawn favorited my pitch on Twitter. So, I visited her website, did some preliminary research, and sent off my query on December 20th. According to the email reply I got stating she received my query, it would take two months for a response. And so the waiting began. I should add that other agents had requested as well, and the rejections were quickly rolling in, but still nothing from Mrs. Dowdle. 

Then, on January 31st, I got a response. She rejected. What a hell of a way to start the new year, huh? 

As much as it sucked, I didn't let it get me down. I revamped my query, revised my novel (again), and geared up for #PitMad, which was taking place on January 8th. The day of the event arrived, and I was ready to go. My pitches were pre-scheduled throughout the day, and I have a positive attitude. I'm happy to say that the requests started to trickle in. I was excited. 

But then Mrs. Dowdle requested. Again. 

I was shocked and confused, unsure what to do. Typically during this kind of event, if an agent or editor requests something they've already requested, they state to take the second request as a compliment but not to send another query. However, there was no such statement anywhere on her website or Twitter feed. Ignoring her request seemed rude. Tweeting directly to her seemed unprofessional. And I couldn't send her a direct message because she didn't follow me on Twitter. So I did what I always do when faced with a difficult decision -- I turned to my fellow author friends. 

The consensus: Send another query with a little note letting her know she's already seen and rejected my manuscript. So, that's what I did. Do I recommend everyone do this? No. I took a risk doing this, and I knew that, but I figured because of the unique situation of Twitter pitch parties and that she'd already rejected me, what harm could come from it? All she could do was tell me no again, right? 

The second query was sent to her on January 8th. On January 9th I received a reply stating because she'd requested again, she'd reconsider. Now, I seriously thought she was just being polite, but it was nice nonetheless. 

Then, a few weeks later, I got an email from her stating she'd like to set up a time to speak on the phone. So, we did, and now she's my agent!!! 

Overall, I'm thrilled with my decision to sign with Dawn, and I have the utmost confidence in her ability to sell my book(s). And I owe a HUGE THANK YOU to every single person who hosted these contests, retweeted my pitches, offered encouraging words, and supported me in this crazy, wild, emotional endeavor. I wouldn't be here without all of your help :-)