It’s been a long time, but I’m back to doing this newsletter. 🙂

I probably won’t have much to report that’s exciting or new as often has I did way back in the past when I was able to publish six books a year, but I am a firm believer in “a little each day still adds up”. We’ll see how things go.

I’m happy to say that I do finally have a book in edits. That’s actually big news given my snail pace. So…

Masquerade Bride will be out in April!

This is currently in edits.

I decided to make this a standalone.

This turned out to be a very sweet (squeaky clean) romance. There is only one kiss the hero and heroine share. So for those of you who’ve wished I would write a sex free romance, this is for you.

If, however, you’re afraid I’ll stop writing sex scenes, don’t be. 🙂 I personally prefer some steam in romances that I read. I read books without sex, too, but my preference still leans toward spicier romances. Now, for any other genre, I am fine without any sex at all, but the other genres don’t focus on the actual development of the couple who are in love. It’s the center focus that matters to me.

Going back to this particular romance, all that was needed was the kiss. To add to anything else would be to diminish the power of that kiss.

I will go more into the plot and whatnot with this book in my April newsletter. I need something to post about.

The Preacher’s Wife is 3/4 of the way done.

I’m going to end up putting this back into the Oregon Series. I was fiddling around with the idea of making it a standalone, but deep down, I know this book will be stronger as part of a series.

Why was I tempted to make this a standalone? Because I write so slowly these days, and some people won’t read the books until the series is complete. I understand why they want to wait. It keeps everything fresh, and you can quickly read through a series. But it is frustrating to hear that because I can’t write fast. It didn’t bother me when I could publish six books a year. Now that I’m expecting to publish two in 2026, it feels impossible. If I make it to three, I’ll be shocked, but if I do, it’ll be my horror novel under my pen name. I really love the horror novel I’m working on and will keep writing it.

I’ll have to look at not writing in so many series at a time. Making Masquerade Bride a standalone helps. So right now, I have one historical western romance series (Oregon Series), and I have one Regency series (Marriage by Chemistry Series).

The Preacher’s Wife is coming up on the crucial moment where everything changes for the hero and heroine. This is going to be one of those gritty books. I don’t know if any of you have read Brave Beginnings, but it’s going to be similar to that. I need to make the case for the heroine (and her brother and mother) to have fled Iowa to make it all the way to Oregon. I have to make the case for them to have lied to the hero, and, most importantly, I need the hero to understand why the lie was necessary.

This book is similar to His Redeeming Bride in many ways. The amount of Christian input is the same. The topic of forgiveness and redemption are key. I always felt that His Redeeming Bride was about God’s grace in a sinful world. This book has the same theme. That has made this book very rewarding to write, and also difficult. I need to get everything just right so that it remains a story instead of turning into a sermon. I’m sorry, but I can’t watch a lot of Christian movies or read a lot of Christian fiction because they all go into “preachy” territory. Doing that always pulls me out of the story. Fiction is, first and foremost, about the story. When you lose the reader on that point, the rest of it falls apart.

The Science of Love is coming along nicely

This is Book 2 in the Marriage by Chemistry Series.

(The Earl’s Bluestocking Bride is Book 1.)

The heroine has snuck the experimental love potion into the hero’s drink. This is not a comedy, but it’s definitely a more light-hearted kind of story. The heroine is terribly insecure due to her upbringing and the fact that her first husband took one look at her naked and decided to annul that marriage. She’s returned to London in disgrace. Thankfully, the annulment took place in America, so she’s spared any social backlash, at least at the moment. It’s hard to say if the story will take some kind of turn. I’m only 26,000 words in. It’s still early.

This is going to be a steamy romance. It needs to be. The heroine needs to know she’s sexually desirable. That’s very important to her happy ending.

That’s all I have for the romance stuff right now.

I hope everyone has a wonderful March!