Pain, politics, and pandemic … or why my writing schedule blew up!

You know what they say about best laid plans, and in 2020 mine certainly went awry. Not only did I fail to get two novels published, but I failed to get even one. I blame pain, politics, and the pandemic.

Fibromyalgia is an unpredictable affliction. Though it causes me some pain nearly every day (and when it doesn’t arthritis usually does), it often causes brain fog and fatigue that wipes me out for days. Stress increases these flares—and, of course, national political upheaval on top of a global pandemic caused stress.

Those of you who are writers know that writing can be stressful already. For me it’s both pain and pleasure. My passion. And as long as I’m able, I’ll keep writing and publishing because the joy of knowing someone besides me enjoyed my story is worth the struggle.

So, now we’re in the last quarter of 2021, and I’m happy to say that one of those novels I’d planned for last year has finally been released. Midnight Love is the second of my novels set in Edgewater, a fictional community in my birthplace of Indianapolis, Indiana. If you read my previous Edgewater novel, Building Love, you’ll recognize many of the characters in this one.

In romance, when opposites attract, it’s the differences that make love perfect.

Roxy Ostrowski never dreamed that at thirty she’d have zero love life, be jealous of her BFF, and lose the best job she ever had. Life can only go uphill from here, right?

Wrong. She’d enjoy her new job tending bar in the neighborhood tavern if not for Jack Matthews. Roxy’s nicknamed him “Grim” because he never smiles and barely speaks to her no matter how much she tries to charm him. Then one night, Jack reveals he’s actually warm and personable. Who knew?

As Roxy gets to know Jack better, she’s confident they’re becoming more than just friends. So imagine her shock when an unexpected encounter leads her to conclude she couldn’t have been more wrong.

But why won’t her stubborn heart let go of the feeling she and Jack were meant to have a happy ending?

Read a preview here!

I hope you’ll read Midnight Love. If you do, please let me know what you thought. I’d appreciate it immensely if you’d leave a review on Amazon or your favorite retailer, Bookbub, Goodreads … one sentence if that’s all you can manage. But if Amazon or Bookbub or Goodreads isn’t your thing, at least share your thoughts with me through Facebook or email.

Let’s all send out good vibes to heal our world!