Sometimes we have to give ourselves the "honest talk." I am a firm believer in doing what we can to de-stigmatize conversations surrounding mental health. Too much of society -- especially western society -- ignores the rising percentages of people reporting struggles with depression, anxiety, and other conditions that impact one's mental health, and it … Continue reading More on Mental Health
Yep, we are going to get into it. If you've read my novel, A Kiss of Glass, then you know there are a couple of sex scenes. They are what I would call mildly spicy with some explicit content, but nothing that I would call a full sex scene. There's enough that the reader gets … Continue reading Writing Sex Scenes
It's hard enough to be an author on its own, especially when you have a day job and other responsibilities that can get in the way of the creative process. But this is made even more difficult when you also have to juggle mental illness and its impact on the mind, the body, and creative … Continue reading Writing With Mental Illness
I think we all start looking forward to the coming year around this time. The holidays, while being both beautiful and stress-inducing, tend to be catalysts for me to start thinking of how I want my life to be different in the coming year than it was in the present. What was I dissatisfied with? … Continue reading Changes in 2024
This year has been a thoroughly transformative one for me. I left a job back in January that, while I loved the work, the company was toxic; management was horrible; the business was not necessarily failing, but the company was experiencing horrible turnover because they couldn't keep projects coming in like they had been, and … Continue reading Big Steps and Even Bigger Steps
A lot has been happening lately! Here's my update and a promise that these updates will be more frequent. The first big announcement: I got a new job! I think I posted already about how teaching did not work out. It wasn't the students or the job itself, but the lack of in-classroom support teachers … Continue reading End of Semester & Start of New Job
Well, as sad as it makes me to write this, I have decided not to pursue a career in teaching. I have nothing but the utmost respect and admiration for teachers and educators. The sheer amount of bullshit they have to endure on a daily basis is simply unacceptable. I loved being in the classroom. … Continue reading Adjustments and Learning to Let Go
I'd be lying if I said I was completely okay right now. I'm currently nursing a migraine brought on by this heat. And even though we have an AC unit in our condo, only the living room stays moderately cool throughout the day, and that means that I have to rest on the couch instead … Continue reading Halfway Through August
My partner and I are leaving for the coast this morning. My laundry is in the dryer. I need to check on the neighbor's cats before we leave. I need to run the dishwasher. And I still need to pack. But, we're only going through tomorrow, so it will be a short trip, so I … Continue reading Coastal Reflections
Well, the time has come for me to embrace the deeper parts of marketing. Earlier in the summer, I went through a free, online 5-day Amazon Ad challenge that taught me a lot about how to effectively market my books through Amazon Ads. And while I learned a lot of helpful information, I also learned … Continue reading And Just Like That…
It's the last day of July and I have exceeded my sales goal of 75 copies of my novel sold before the end of July. I am ecstatic, humbled, grateful, and full of so many other emotions. There's an always burning excitement that comes with realizing your work is in the hands of readers. It … Continue reading And So July Ends…
This week has been difficult. Monday during work, I started to feel sick, which is unsurprising when you have children sneezing and coughing in your face everyday. I called out sick from work on Tuesday, and even today I am still recovering. It was a head cold made even worse by my allergies. So even … Continue reading In Moments of Sunshine
Last week was a hard one at work. Teaching of any kind is hard. It takes a lot of mental, emotional, and physical energy. Even the good days eat up most of my energy, leaving very little left over for the rest of my responsibilities. But last week was especially difficult. I worked with a … Continue reading Listening And Reflecting
It's been a long and productive day. I worked eight hours today at an elementary school. I was with special education students again, like I will be for most of the rest of the school year. When I came home, I cleaned up my side of the bedroom, got a bunch of garbage picked up, … Continue reading Whiskey On Tuesday
Today was the first day of my second week in my new career. It was a hard day, not just for me but for the students. The week before a break is always more challenging. But even though some students struggled to process and express their emotions, and even though things were hard, I left … Continue reading Taking Stock and Giving Thanks