Good morning (or evening, depending on your time zone), readers! It's been a hot minute since I've given any updates on Writing Belle. Last time I gave an update, Expedition 99 was scheduled to release for pre-order on April 30. Obviously, that didn't happen. Why? Allow me to give you the insider info and let you know what's been going on here in my writing and publishing world.
First, I didn't end up posting the pre-order for Expedition 99 in April because it wasn't close enough to the end product to justify cutting it so close. You can only post a pre-order so far in advance of an official release, and I just didn't feel like the story was ready yet. To put this in perspective, it's a 450-550 page book, and I was still hacking away at page 300. I couldn't make the enormous jump from 300 to 550 pages in two weeks. Not without sacrificing the quality of the story...which I will not do. So, I'm still cranking the story out, but I'm waiting until it's ready to post it on pre-order. When will that be? I honestly don't know. I will simply post it one day. It will be a surprise at this point. I've had to delay it way too much already, so there will be no more dates on this novel until it's literally ALREADY LIVE.
Second, because of how deeply mired I am in Expedition 99, I don't have a solid release date for Resurrection: Vengeful Dawn. The raw truth is that I can't work on both novels at once. Why? Because I'm also balancing my novel work with a bachelor's program, teaching writing classes (during the school year), stocking and running a produce stand (we are super into homesteading here), and working as a freelance journalist (yes, I'm still doing that). I have often said that I am not comfortable sacrificing the quality of my novels on the altar of time constraints...so I'm taking the initiative here and saying, "I'm waiting until the book is ready."
Third, I don't do this full time anymore. I know that many of you have been reading my books for nearly a decade now, and I appreciate and love every single one of you. Putting out one book a year is a far cry from the 4-5 that I once dropped, but I can't keep that pace anymore. Not with a precocious, Energizer-bunny of a two-year-old sprinting around my house. I love to write, but I just can't get the novels out as quickly as I used to. And that's okay - as long as I still get to write and share my stories, I'm happy.
I want to say thank you for all of your support and readership throughout the years. I'm sorry that my upcoming novels are taking longer than expected, but I promise that the end results of both will be worth it. It's better to do something right than to rush it. I am very protective and particular about the books that I release, so I am excited to be able to share both of them at the appropriate time. In the meantime, I will continue to share content here and on my social media platforms.
Thank you so much, and have a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend!
WRITING RADIO SILENCE...COMING UP FOR AIR AGAIN!
