A Summer Update

Summer has officially arrived, at least here in the Northern Hemisphere. I enjoy the warm weather, but an early heat wave in the Northeast was a little too much.

This time of year allows me to step away from my writing desk for a bit to tend the flower gardens in the yard. Gardening, cooking, and writing are three of my favorite activities (although not necessarily in that order). These days, writing is my first love. Back when I was in corporate marketing, gardening was a way to ease tension from hectic jobs.

I’m happy to update you on the new plants I’ve added to the gardens this year, but let’s discuss writing instead. I’m now penning Book 5 in The Story of Elthea’s Realm Series. Like the other books in the series, I spend a lot of time in the early stages of the draft before picking up steam.

This book will be very different from the other books in the series because (at least for now) my feeling is that I will end the series with Book 5.

Because I’m a discovery writer, I don’t put together a detailed outline. I begin with the seed of an idea and let the story take me along for the ride. And it feels right at this point in my draft to conclude the series.

That makes writing this book all the more important. Book endings can be tricky to get right, and I can feel the weight of reader expectations pushing me to ensure a satisfying ending. That’s true of every book, but it’s even more so with the conclusion of a series.

I am already dreaming up ideas for a book after this series. My idea is to take a much different direction—more of a supernatural tale rather than a story in the fantasy/science fiction genre.

But more on that much later. I still have plenty of work to finish on this book.

As always, thank you for your support and encouragement. I couldn’t have done this without you.

Enjoy your summer!

John