Remember my ‘career freeze’ plan?
Well, I’m having to take it a step further…
Between my own ambition and my colleagues ramping up their production plans for this year, it’s taken a lot for me to come to terms with the fact that I need to do the opposite and step back. But I also believe in doing what I know is best for me and my loved ones, even if it means turning my back on something that means so very much to me.
Instead of focusing on my books and my career this year, I will be focusing on my FAMILY and MYSELF.
Once edits are finished on Crystal Lies and my anthology piece is submitted (I’m submitting another short story to an anthology, which will feature Grace and her sister, Kim, from ‘Cursed With A Gift’!), I’ll run my next Kickstarter…but otherwise this year will be a temporary quitting situation for me. Here’s what I expect that to look like:
- No planned newsletters. When they go out, it will be as needed, with only announcements and maybe the occasional book/Kickstarter recommendation. The last planned newsletter is for February 23rd.
- No social media engagement. I’ll post big announcements there as well, but that’s it. I’ll be leaving or muting a lot of groups I’m in and logging in maybe once a week just to clear notifications and make sure nothing pressing has come up.
- No in-person events except Novemberfest in Logan every other year, and maybe Brandon Sanderson’s event since I’ve heard such great things about it from other authors.
- Minimal stock will be kept for my store and those rare events. I will likely phase swag out completely.
- A little writing may happen on occasional weekends, but I’m planning on a FULL STOP break for the rest of the year once my current projects are wrapped up.
WHAT WILL I BE DOING INSTEAD?
Feeding my soul/spirit with a strengthened focus on church. Spending quality, purposeful time with my family. Cooking, cleaning, and other adulting things I never have time for and have put on my husband’s shoulders for too long. Self-care—including finally getting a handle on my sleep schedule, eating healthier, being more active/exercising, and maybe even finding a hobby for myself for the first time in years (since writing started as a hobby and became my career instead).
Ideally, I’ll also find better ways to cope with my ME/CFS so by next year, I’ll be able to handle life stuff as well as career stuff and not have to choose between the two. 
I’ll miss you all during the hiatus! I hope I can come back stronger than ever in 2026! Thank you for your love and understanding! 
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PS—Since my last big sale for books from my store was inconveniently during the holidays, I’m running ONE more! This is ONLY for original editions of the Crystal Dragon Saga. I am also only providing these books in bundles as I work to get rid of my stock.
Individual books can be purchased from Amazon until the new ones can be published there instead. To get them signed, bookplates may be ordered from my store.
The sale ends when the stock runs out.
Current stock: THREE sets of books 1-3, and THREE full series sets!
