Bye 2024, Bye!

Just a pretty picture from one of the many adventures we had this year.

This year was a lot, but it was great to see so many pretty and/or new places.

Well, my hope of putting two books out per year has gone out the window as of 2024.

The good news is I’m still writing.

What a year 2024 has been! I feel like I’ve been running at the speed of light just to have a prayer of catching up on the very basics of adulting. At the start of the year, we were planning on moving to North Carolina which didn’t pan out. Looking back now, that’s probably a good thing given that Hurricane Helene wiped out the part of the state we most wanted to live in. While it’s still the goal, it’s been pushed out a couple years because I require complete stability in all things. My 20s were for risk-taking, my 30s have been dedicated to the smartest financial moves I know how to make. The good news is, my family is healthy and thriving. What more can we end the year with?

On the book end of things, the main reason I didn’t get anything out in 2024 is because I can’t choose what to put out next. While I had a solid plan, my nervous brain told me that what I have isn’t ready and requires more polishing. The easy thought would be that I should be polishing, but it gets hard because I also had some fantastic ideas for new books. When I have a new idea, I have to start it as soon as it comes to me or it won’t stick. It’ll stay a concept that I never finish because I’ll lose that initial bout of inspiration. If I lose that first spark, then I don’t get the big spark that comes once I’ve started it and all will be lost forever. Yes, it’s dramatic, however, also painfully true. So, I had to start the new projects and polish others in between.

What’s in the works? More than time with toddlers allows.

One of the books I’ve been working on for years—and feel absolutely desperate to get out—is so big in concept that it has to be 100% right. For that to happen, I have to spend loads of time writing to get a grip on the real pieces of the story. I will gladly write a thousand pages just to come out with ten excellent ones. I let my mind and my characters take me on the most convoluted journeys so that I can get a better sense of who they are, their best stories, and their world as they perceive it. My “star book” as I call it, is a touch of fantasy mixed with a lot of reality. And while I’m the writer and get to make the rules, they still have to make sense, even for scenarios beyond the stories in the book. I have other books with different characters set in the same fantasy world, so I’m making sure those rules and structures hold true through all of them and any future ones I might write. It’s a big undertaking but I’m thrilled by the hunt. Unbeknownst to me, about five years after I started my “star book,” I found out that some of the concepts I wrote about are actually part of a belief system I was completely unaware of until I shared the book with some friends. Anyway, this is the book that everyone—who knows about it—is most excited to have released. No pressure, though… Right…? My brain says, “It’s all the pressure. Think of all the pressure you know and add more… Way more!”

Another book that is close to done is one about a girl who leads a double life—very literally. She has two lives and no idea which one is real. I couldn’t figure out why for the longest time. Now that I know why, I’m having to go back and fix lots of discrepancies while placing little info nuggets that toss people off the trail of what’s to come. I will say, it’s hard to write for a teenager but I LOVE the father-daughter relationship in this book. It’s the whole reason it exists.

Lastly, another book that’s close to ready is one about a lady who is encouraged to start dating by her dead husband. She’s fully prepared to be the fifty-year-old cat lady (sans cats!) and her ghost of a husband won’t let her. I love the spunky, fun nature of this book. However, I know there are too many spoilers along the way, so I’m having to go back and leave a little more mystery as to what happens. The hard part is, eliminating those spoilers means losing some really good scenes. That, for me, is equivalent to chipping one’s front tooth and never going to the dentist to have their smile restored.

No matter what, I will be writing and working toward another book release. I can hardly wait to hold another copy in my hand, sniff the pages, and read those familiar lines that came from some magical place in my brain. The only way I can quantify the experience is as a Mom; it’s like looking at your children and thinking, “Wow, I made those little people nuggets.” I’m astonished every time and madly in love every day. So, believe me, more will come. (Books!! Not kids, I’m soooo done with that!)

Until next time. Happy reading, friends ~Elly

PS - I got a new Volvo!! His name is Beethoven. My trusty steed, Vivaldi (my old Volvo), has gotten up there in age, and while there’s nothing wrong with him, it’s only a matter of time. Also, we needed a bigger car that fit our family more comfortably. A small SUV and two kids wasn’t working well for us, so we went full size. Isn’t he a dream!? I can’t stop staring in awe… or disbelief. :) Scroll and laugh at me being an excited goober while sitting in the worst California holiday traffic.