Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed the outdoors last month with the warm weather. I did by hiking at Frontenac Park despite the ticks. Nasty little bugs. Let’s just say my dog, Gimli and I didn’t get very far.
What I’ve Been Writing
Thank you again to those who purchased, spread the word and/or left a review for Withstanding the Fiery Furnace. I greatly appreciate it! It’s readers like you that make a difference and are a great help for authors.
I took a break from writing during the first couple of weeks in October to spend time with family and enjoy the outdoors to help replenish my energy. Now I’m back writing again and I’m looking forward to the journey my characters will take me on. Even though I may have a story planned out on paper, sometimes the characters have a say in the matter and lead me down on an unexpected path. As a result, the book turns out differently than what I first imagined.
I’ve enrolled in a One Year to Publish program where we write and publish a book in a year. My first draft of the second book in The Wall Family Saga is done and sent off to the editor where they’ll provide an overview on the entire manuscript. I don’t know about you but I’m excited to see where the Walls take us next on their journey to escape Russia.
I’m also working on a collection of short stories where it follows people from all walks in life traversing through their darkest moments. No matter how dark life gets, there is always a glimmer of hope though we may not see it at the time. This reminds me of the reason why I write in the first place which is to inspire and encourage people through difficult times they may face. I’ll be working with an editor hopefully in mid-November where we’re going to look at the stories as a whole to see if there any missing plot and character holes.
What I’ve Been Reading
I’ve read two books this past month: Katarina’s Dark Shadow and One Last Secret.
Katarina’s Dark Shadow by MJ Krause-Chivers follows a young Russian Mennonite woman who has high aspirations to be a school teacher. A rebel attack on her farm brings the Great War to her doorsteps and whispers of something darker on the horizon. With her dreams dismantled, would she flee or stay and protect her family as they fight the forthcoming evil?
If you want to find out more about Russian Mennonites and the Russian Revolution, I would recommend this book, the first in its series, by MJ Krause-Chivers. This historical fiction novel brings these horrific events to life.
If you are into historical family mysteries, check out Krissy Baccaro’s second book One Last Secret. If you haven’t read her first book, Buried Secrets, I definitely recommend reading it. One Last Secret still follows Ella as she discovers there’s more to the family secret she uncovered in the first book. She travels back to Italy to investigate. Discovering more dark secrets about her uncle, she races against him to find her long lost grandmother before he does. I couldn’t put this book down. If you love mysteries and suspense, I highly recommend this book.
Let me know what you are reading by clicking on Leave a Comment on the top of the blog post.
Keep an eye out for my historical blog series where we’ll go behind the scenes of Withstanding the Fiery Furnace and we’ll learn more about that time period.