Three

Do you ever get the feeling there is a higher power up there laughing at you?

I do. Frequently.

Example: I decided last October that an August 1st publish day for The Fracturing was going to happen, no matter what. I didn’t announce it to anyone other than my beta-readers and my husband, but that was what I was aiming for. And once I have a goal, it WILL happen. That’s just how I roll. I like my goals, okay?! Within a week of making that goal, I had a badly sprained ankle from trying to be a cool mom on the trampoline. That would later involve numerous doctor’s appointments. Then within a few days of the ankle incident, the dog had explosive diarrhea ALL over my carpet. It took me at least two days to fully shampoo the poo out of my carpet. On a bum ankle. With my boys as "helpers". There went at least a week of productivity right out the window.

See what I mean?

Maybe the lyrics from one of my favorite county songs says it best, “You make your plans and you hear God laughing.”

For me, God isn’t just laughing at me. Not a giggle or a snicker or even a cute little “teehee”. He is SNORTING at me. Or a good, solid chortle. Yeah, I said it! God chortles at me.

So when it came time to game plan and goal set for when this third book would be out, I was dreading it. I just knew there’d be a crapstorm in the wake of making that decision, but highly motivated by all of y'all, I made an aggressive goal for a date in “early spring” (which I am obviously still too scared to say out loud).

And then, yep, crapstorm . This time, maybe not so crappy in a literal sense. One month later, I found out that I am expecting baby #3. Wanna know baby #3’s due date? Approximately three weeks after my projected publish day.

LIKE SERIOUSLY?!

And I know what some of you may be thinking, “She’s pregnant, not ill.” Which is kind of true and kind of not. SOMEHOW (squints at husband in blame), I will be pregnant for not one, but two, book launches. I was sick as dog for The Fracturing launch, and I will be verrrrry pregnant if I can manage to make my goal for the third book.

I am also a high-risk pregnant woman. I delivered my first son at 35 weeks. To make a long story short, it was terrifying, and we almost lost us both. So I’m already proclaiming this is the last child I brew. My pregnancies are not enjoyable at all and there are LOTS and LOTS of trips to my specialists downtown. There is no glowing. Zero glowing, actually. Being pregnant for me feels like a slow death until the very end when God goes, “JUST KIDDING, here’s a baby!” It is completely worth it. 100% worth it, I’m just saying there’s lots of “extra” in being a high-risker.

So what does this mean for you and getting your eyeballs on The Reckoning? Well, quite possibly, it doesn’t mean a darn thing. I started working on the third book one week after the second book came out. And I’m a goal slayer, remember? Once I make it, it’s normally as good as done. Sooooooo, as long as this little babe stays cozy and happy in there, I am going full-steam ahead. I fully intend to launch this third book before I launch my third baby. Because after that, I’m going to need a hot minute to figure out how to be a momma to three little boys. Like, I’m out of hands, y’all! And sanity. That’s long gone too.

All of that to say, this is why I haven’t officially declared a date yet for Book 3. I would like these first three rounds of editing on the whole book done before I say anything. I don’t want to get your hopes up and then pop out a baby early and ruin it for ya.

So while God is up there chortling away at/with me, here I am, busting my butt and editing this book. I'm saving back those royalties too so that someday I can have editing help in an editor and you can get my books more quickly. Trust me, I don't like it taking this long either! Thank you for being patient with me during these next few months. And thank you for sticking with me. I am so fiercely protective over my blog followers/Facebook followers. I LOVE this group of us.

This is a crazy, chaotic, beautiful life I get to live. I always wanted to be a mommy. For as long as I can remember. And after having my second son, I knew I wanted another baby. Though getting pregnant happened wayyy faster than I thought it would, I am overjoyed and a little stunned. Mostly just grateful.

Writing is my passion. It is what I want to do in this world. I am determined to “make it” as an author. How blessed am I that I get to chase down my dreams of being a mommy while I get to chase down my dream of being a successful author?!

Many, many nights of not enough sleep are in my near future. My dark circles are going to be permanent marks, but they are marks of a friggin’ warrior so whaterrrrr. Mommyhood is hard. Writing is hard. Both at the same time is madness, but I am juuuuuust crazy enough to give it all a go. Because that’s how I roll.

Spring IS coming. What will come first? Baby or book? No one knows, but it’s a whole lot to celebrate! I wouldn’t change it for the world.

“Ain't it funny how life changes. You wake up, ain't nothing the same, and life changes. You can't stop it, just hop on the train. And you never know what's gonna happen. You make your plans and you hear God laughing. Life changes… and I wouldn't change it for the world.” (“Life Changes” by Thomas Rhett)