I’m back from a lovely week spent in the mountains of western North Carolina, one of the most beautiful places in the world. It was about 10 degrees cooler there than in the Raleigh area, a welcome change, and that slight difference also meant the foliage was at its peak. We took many hikes and saw lots of waterfalls, deer, turkey, a black bear, a bald eagle, evidence of a bobcat, and a cheeky chipmunk. It was lovely!

Now that I’m back, however, work officially begins on editing Alignment, Book II. While exciting, I also find the task a bit daunting. Part of the reason is that editing takes so much longer for me compared to writing the actual story. I can’t help but think of that line Gandalf says in The Fellowship of the Ring:

“We now have but one choice, we must face the long dark of Moria. Be on your guard. There are older and more fouler things than orcs in the deep places of the world.”

While the “long dark” of editing begins, I also have quite a large number of to-dos on next month’s schedule. Two of those to-dos are quite exciting, though. During the first week of November Jeff Brown and I will meet virtually and work will officially begin on Awakening’s cover art. How exciting to be at this final phase at last! The second thing on my schedule is attending Christopher Ruocchio’s Shadows Upon Time Release Gala, celebrating his final book in the Sun Eater series. Christopher is a fellow Raleighian and acquaintance, so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to attend and congratulate him on his success. If you’re interested in attending, know that ticket sales end October 31^st! They can be found here.

No doubt, with all the exciting progress lined up for both of my books, I’ll have a lot more to post here in order to keep you apprised of the latest. Stay tuned!