
It's the last day of June as I'm writing this, and my goal sheet is sitting here on my desk, staring at me. I'm making adjustments to what I started the year with, as well as updating my monthly goals for the rest of the year. I had high hopes when the new year started, and then two things disrupted my plans--the day-job upheaval, and my challenges with getting manuscripts read so I could revise. I don't think I've missed my last critique group before as much as I have this year, and I thought having reader friends who wanted to help would be good--and it would have been, I think, if their own lives weren't so crazy-busy.
So I am scaling my writing goals way back for the rest of the year. I had intended originally to have not just the final book in the Medusa's Daughters trilogy out, but several in a short contemporary series this year. Right now, I'll be ecstatic to have Freeing Medusa and the first in the contemporary series out before the end of the year. And I'll keep looking for a new critique partner or group that might be a good fit.
Before I get back to my goal-revisions and then revisions on Freeing Medusa, I have a snippet for you this week from Light the Way Home.
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Lucie had been on Mac’s Light Island for almost three weeks, but the view from the back door of her temporary home still took her breath away. Right now, she realized she’d been standing there staring, slack-jawed, at the sunlight glinting off the grey-blue ocean waves for a good five minutes. Shaking her head, she pulled the door shut and stepped down onto the sidewalk, feeling in her purse for her car keys.
She closed her fingers on the fob as a giggle reached her ears. She turned to the white picket fence that bordered the property next door as a big multi-colored ball sailed over it, toward her. “Oh!” She caught it before it hit her in the face, then started across the grass, balancing the ball on her hand.
Another giggle sounded as she neared the fence, so she adjusted her direction a tiny bit and came to a stop looking directly down onto a tousled blond head.
“I think you lost something,” she said.
The little boy’s face tipped up quickly, his blue eyes wide with surprise–as if he couldn’t believe she’d found him already.
Lucie grinned and held the ball higher.
He smiled as he got to his feet, brushing off his jeans-clad knees.
From seeing him playing outside several times already, she’d guessed he might be four, but now at close range, she scaled that back to three.
“Hi, I’m Hayden,” he said, holding out his right hand.
It was her turn to be surprised. She shook his hand, bemused. “Hi, Hayden, I’m Lucie.” Not too many three-year-olds had such good manners. Aside from the ball toss at her face, that is. “Nice to meet you.”
He glanced up at his ball. “Me an’ my dad are your neighbors.”
“I see that.” She noted he hadn’t mentioned his mom. “Who were you playing with?” She gave the ball a little bounce.
“Maybe you wanna play with me.” Guileless blue eyes locked on her face.
Ah. She squelched the pang in her chest. “I wish I could, but I’m on my way to town. Maybe we can play another time?” she added when his grin vanished.
“Like this afternoon?”
“Hayden!”
The deep voice got her attention–and the boy’s–just before a tall, sandy-haired man rounded the back corner of the next-door house.
Lucie’s mouth went dry. Wowza!
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Am I alone, or are you also looking at your annual goals to see if you need to make some adjustments? I'd love to hear about it if you are. And until next week, happy reading!
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