A Brand New Year!! by Sally Shupe

Who’s excited for a brand new year? Last year is in the past. This year is a brand new slate. What do you want to see you accomplish? Dream big! Everything in the past is gone, setting this year up to be a great launching pad into another year.

Take a few moments (But only a few moments! It’s time to move forward!) and think about last year. What didn’t work so well? Did you have a planner that didn’t keep you on task? Get a new one for this year! Did you want to get more things accomplished around the house, or lose weight, or be more active? Brainstorm ways to see that happen. Did you find if you had highlighted certain tasks that they got done in the timeframe needed? Get more highlighters, in different colors! Did you feel like it was just you swimming in a big pond and you wished you had someone in your corner, someone who would encourage you, ask about your writing (or whatever you’re working on), be interested in reading what you wrote? Take this year to find a critique partner, or a really good friend who you can bounce ideas off of, who will encourage you along the way. Need a running buddy so you’ll get out there and run? Find one! Need to lose weight but lose momentum? Find a group who will motivate and encourage you when you want that midnight snack.

However, for this exercise, keep most of your focus on what worked for you. Do more of that! Did setting an activity goal for each day or week make you more motivated to work out, walk more steps in a day, or get more things done? Did writing out a grocery list enable you to eat healthier and not come home with random junk food in your bags? Did having a critique partner keep you accountable and at the end of the day, week, or month the words were piled up in a great way? Then continue those traits into the new year!

Find what works and keep doing that. If something doesn’t work, change it. It’s your plan for success. There are as many different ways to accomplish something as there are people. What works for one person, or a dozen, may not work for you. Find what works for you. You want to be successful this year. You want to lose weight, get more things done, write more words, have completed novels to publish. Work out a game plan to get it done! This is a great new year for you to be who you wish to be. Work out a plan that works for you and watch this year be the year!

Sally Shupe lives in southwest Virginia with her husband, two grown kids, and a whole bunch of pets: five dogs, three cats, a rabbit, and birds at the birdfeeder (and the mandatory snowman when the snow cooperates). She writes contemporary Christian romance, with two completed manuscripts and others in progress. They are part of a series located in small town Virginia.

When Sally’s not writing or working full-time, she is a freelance editor for several authors who write fiction and nonfiction; students working on dissertation papers; a copy editor for Desert Breeze (now closed); a content editor for Prism (became part of Pelican); performs beta reading for various authors; publishes book reviews on her blog and with Valley Business FRONT’s monthly magazine; is a member of ACFW and ACFW Virginia; and loves genealogy, running, and crocheting.

Sally uses her love of words to write about God’s amazing love.

The Importance of Alone Time by Mary Manners

 

The Importance of Alone Time

by

Mary Manners

 

 

I am a creature of habit, and I probably crave routine more than the average person. I think that's why I love my animals so much--they need and enjoy routine, as well. But sometimes things come up and life gets in the way of my nice, cozy self-prescribed organization. If I'm not careful, the distractions of everyday life suck all the creativity right out of me. And even when the creative juices keep flowing, my writing time is usually the first thing that falls to the wayside.

 

At least that's the way it was until I learned to take some alone time and not feel one bit of remorse for doing so. I like to write in long stretches of time, which I'm able to do now that I'm retired from my day job. For the first year or so after I said goodbye to my nine-to-five (or more like six to six) job as a school principal, I felt a twinge of guilt when I holed up in my home writing office for hours at a time, working on a story. I had accomplished a life-long dream of becoming a full-time writer, but it still felt...odd, especially after a job that had me surrounded by people virtually every moment. 

 

 



 

But a lot of those feelings have fallen away, and I can now say that writing is a job that I love--but it's still a job just like any other job, and it devours time. Because writing is more than simply penning stories (that's the easy part). It's networking and marketing, social media and cover art, workshops and reader events. God must have known that my experience wearing the many hats of an educator would help me conquer the author learning curve a little more easily.

 

I'm thankful I have an understanding husband who has been supportive since Day One. He gets me, and that's the greatest gift anyone can ever give a writer--to understand the need for alone time. So, thanks allowing me to share with you today, and now it's back to work...back to writing.

 

~~~~~

 

 

A CHANCE TO LOVE AGAIN…

Naomi Taylor is putting her life back together following the sudden death of her husband, when eldest son Austin shows up at her doorstep with grandson Max. The troubled teen wants nothing more than to escape the cozy little town of Serenity and get back to his friends in the city. But Naomi’s not giving up on him, and hopes next-door neighbor Ben can help her find a way to reach him and turn things around—before it’s too late.

 

Ben Miller lost his wife to a long and ruthless battle with Alzheimer’s. Coming to terms with the loss has shown him he still has much to live for. When his needs intertwine with Naomi’s, their long-time friendship blossoms into something more.  

 

Can the two discover a way to move into the future and love again, without betraying memories of the past?

 

~~~~~

 

Mary Manners is a country girl at heart who has spent a lifetime sharing her joy of writing. She lives in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee with her husband Tim and their rescue dog Axel, mischievous cats Colby and Rascal, 8 rambunctious chickens, and a dozen fish.

Mary writes stories full of faith and hope. Her books have earned multiple accolades including two Inspirational Reader’s Choice Awards, the Gail Wilson Award of Excellence, the Aspen Gold, the Heart of Excellence, and the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award.

Mary loves long sunrise runs, Smoky Mountain sunsets, and flavored coffee. She enjoys connecting with reader friends through her website: www.MaryMannersRomance.com.