writing / editing

The Importance of Taking a Break

The Importance of Taking a Break

Two years ago I announced that I was taking a sabbatical from writing. I was burned out, exhausted, frustrated, and ready to be done with *waves hands around* all this. Initially my break was only supposed to be from marketing and social media, but shortly after I announced my break, I also stopped writing.

I rarely stop moving, and that’s been true over the past two years, but I removed the yoke that had been weighing me down and spent my time doing things I enjoyed. Reading, being outdoors, wrangling my very demanding puppy. I volunteered in my community, I started a writers’ happy hour — something I’d wanted to do since before the pandemic. I connected with old friends and met new ones. I came up with a bucket list for my 50th birthday.

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Eve Ellaway’s Playlist

Eve Ellaway’s Playlist

A lot of authors create a playlist specifically for the book they’re writing. Sometimes the lyrics speak directly to the story, and other times it’s more the vibe of the song that fits, but we play it every time we sit down to write. After a bit, the first notes of the first song feel like slipping into comfy sweats and you’re right back in the flow of the story.

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Inspiration is Everywhere

Inspiration is Everywhere

I’ve never based the main plot of a book on anything from my life — I slip real details into the side stories. The little scenes that may not stick with reader. The small opinions and observations and random conversations — those are often based on my personal experiences. A character hates nuts in baked goods? *waves hand* Hello! (My husband hate that too. A super random thing we agree on.) Has a dad that points at them and says ‘behave’ before they go out with friends? Me again.

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Word of the Year: Go

Word of the Year: Go

I began 2024 hoping I would find my way back to writing and I now have TWO unfinished manuscripts. While I would prefer to have a complete first draft, I’m back on track and believe I’m heading in the right direction. And that direction is forward.

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16 Years in the Making

16 Years in the Making

I’ve always loved to tell stories. From songs and short stories as a kid to novels later in life, words have always held an importance to me unlike most anything else. I revel in crafting an interesting tale, then watching for my audiences’ reaction. Even my day job is in marketing and communications and my top StrengthsFinder strength is Communication.

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Not All Tropes Are Bad

Not All Tropes Are Bad

If you’ve spent any time in bookstagram, bookthreads, or any of the book-themed social spaces, you’ve probably seen a graphic featuring a book cover surrounded by short phrases and cutesy arrows pointing to the book. These graphics provide readers an at-a-glance summary of what themes they can expect in the book, and oftentimes these images include details that might be left out of the “official” book description, which makes them a valuable piece of a marketing plan.

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Preorder The Quiet Unraveling of Eve Ellaway

Preorder The Quiet Unraveling of Eve Ellaway

You can finally reserve your copy of The Quiet Unraveling of Eve Ellaway! At the moment only the ebook is available for preorder, but the hardcover (that’s right) and paperback will soon be options as well.

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COVER REVEAL: The Quiet Unraveling of Eve Ellaway

COVER REVEAL: The Quiet Unraveling of Eve Ellaway

I’ve been working on this book for so many years that it feels a little unreal that it’s almost a real book! It’s been two years since I’ve published my last novel — my longest gap in almost a decade — so getting to reveal the cover is extra sweet!

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Announcing TQUEE!

Announcing TQUEE!

The young adult psychological suspense manuscript I’ve talked about FOR YEARS — mostly on social media — is going to be a book! I first wrote The Other Me in 2018-19, polished it again in 2022, and it can be in your hands in February 2025.

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Riding the Wave

Riding the Wave

Creativity often comes in bursts, and the more you cultivate it, the longer the burst lasts. After not writing for half of 2023, I created a month-long challenge for myself to get back into writing. Each day I wrote roughly 250 words. I tried genres I don’t typically write in, styles atypical to my own, all in the hope that I’d wake up that part of me who loves words.

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