This blog post does not have a picture of a fox

But there was one in the backyard this week! It was down by the pond, and while I tried to get a photo, it wasn’t happening. All I got for my efforts was an orange blur.

Still, I haven’t seen a fox in the backyard for years (granted, I may simply be missing them), so it was nice that this one stopped for a visit.

Autumn and October have officially arrived:

October in the wetlands
October in the wetlands

In writing news, I’ve made it through the longhand edits! The last 200 pages or so are waiting patiently for me to start keying them into the manuscript.

After that, I’ll need to comb through the manuscript, adding here, deleting there. Looking for the crutch words and phrases I’ve used or overused. I know I’ve said aplomb far too many times (or, rather, Henry has). My characters do far too much eye-rolling (to be fair, it’s warranted).

I even started work on the cover. Here’s a peek:

A small cover portion of The Marigold Miracle

So, The Marigold Miracle is starting to feel like a real book.

I am, however, taking the rest of the day off. It’s lovely out, and while I may not venture far from home, I am going to enjoy this unseasonably warm weather.

Booking Through Thursday: Reading off the beaten path

Welcome to Booking Through Thursday, a weekly bookish meme about books and reading for everyone who loves both. Booking Through Thursday was first hosted by Deb. With permission, I’ve restarted it in 2026.

This week’s prompt:

Do you have a favorite genre that’s off the beaten path?

Maybe it’s nonfiction about a particular time in history. Perhaps books for a craft or hobby. Maybe it’s hopepunk or bizarro fiction. Whatever you love, let us know (and maybe recommend a book or two).

What’s a favorite genre that others might not read?

What’s a favorite genre that others might not read?

How to play:

  • On your blog: Copy the question/image for your blog, answer it there, and post a quick comment here with a link or trackback to your post so we can read it.
  • On social media: Copy the image, answer the prompt, and post a quick comment here with a link.
  • Right here: Answer in the comments and start the discussion here. No need to have a blog to play.

Note: If it’s your first time here, your comment may end up in moderation. (My spam filter is aggressive.) I’ll be in after my writing sprints to set it free.

P.S. The prompt is always open, and you don’t have to play on Thursday. Comment whenever you like!

Announcing: The Bookshop @ Writing Wrongs

Here it is. The Bookshop @ Writing Wrongs, my online bookstore.

An open book showcasing its pages, placed on top of other books with a black background. The text reads 'The Bookshop @ Writing Wrongs' with categories including 'Fantasy', 'YA', 'Ghosts', and 'Other Strange Things'.

Feel free to visit. If you spot a typo or a broken link, drop me a note in the comments here. I’d appreciate it. I was going fast and furious with all the connections, uploads, and whatnot.

BookFunnel handles delivery of both the ebook and the audio (you can listen to the audio in their app or in a web browser).

And if you’re in a shopping mood, feel free to use the coupon NOWOPEN at checkout for 25% off. (Good until October 31st.)

Deep Valley Book Festival recap

I’m both extremely charged up after yesterday and extremely tired. Somehow, both these feelings can coexist without any contradiction.

I enjoyed myself far more than I expected. I’m not only a committed introvert, but I’m also pretty shy. But I love talking about writing, and I love talking about books, and I got to do both yesterday. My table location in one of the room’s corners was a bonus for me. I felt quite comfortable there.

Some takeaways:

  • I wore some (cute, flowered) compression socks. 10/10 would recommend. My legs and feet felt great at the end of the day. No wonder nurses wear them.
  • My sweater was on point. Or rather, my daughter’s sweater was on point. Even Kate DiCamillo complimented it. In related news, this sweater is now mine.
  • People may not take a chance on a new-to-them author (although some did!), but they will take a chance on a five-dollar blind date with a book.
  • I made back my table fee and then some!

Some pictures:

My festival table setup

My author table setup—one small issue. The author packet said tablecloths were provided, but the festival had to switch venues, and, well, no tablecloths. Next time I’ll know to pack one. On the plus side, this gave me a chance to see what other authors use before I buy anything.

Me at my author table

Me (obviously) at my table (also obviously)

Me with Kate DiCamillo

Me with Kate DiCamillo with the signed collector’s edition of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane for my daughter. I’m hoping this is a fair exchange for the sweater.

Booking Through Thursday: October reading vibe

Welcome to Booking Through Thursday, a weekly bookish meme about books and reading for everyone who loves both. Booking Through Thursday was first hosted by Deb. With permission, I’ve restarted it in 2026.

This week’s prompt:

Do you read a certain type of book in October? Does autumn change your reading habits? Or do you simply go with what’s become available on your library waitlist?

What’s your October reading vibe? Cozy, creepy, gothic, magical, or something else?

What’s your October reading vibe? Cozy, creepy, gothic, magical, or something else?

How to play:

  • On your blog: Copy the question/image for your blog, answer it there, and post a quick comment here with a link or trackback to your post so we can read it.
  • On social media: Copy the image, answer the prompt, and post a quick comment here with a link.
  • Right here: Answer in the comments and start the discussion here. No need to have a blog to play.

Note: If it’s your first time here, your comment may end up in moderation. (My spam filter is aggressive.) I’ll be in after my writing sprints to set it free.

P.S. The prompt is always open, and you don’t have to play on Thursday. Comment whenever you like!

October’s Booking Through Thursday prompts

An open book with pages fanned out, resting on top of two stacked closed books, accompanied by the text 'Booking Through Thursday'.

For those who like to plan ahead, here are the October 2026 Booking Through Thursday prompts:

  • October 1: What’s your October reading vibe? Cozy, creepy, gothic, magical, or something else?
  • October 8: What’s a favorite genre that others might not read?
  • October 15: What book scared you more than you expected it to?
  • October 22: What fictional house would you absolutely not spend the night in?
  • October 29: How scary is too scary for you, on a scale from mildly spooky to the scariest in the horror genre?

Want to suggest a prompt? Leave a comment or use the contact form to send it my way.

Of stories and themes and sandhill cranes

First, look at these beauties stopping by on their migration:

Sandhill cranes in the park
Sandhill cranes in the park

All of us in the park that morning did our best not to disturb their walk through the space. I swear, you could see everyone hold their breath as they passed by.

Another question Anno asked was this:

Are there stories and themes you prefer to work from?

The answer to this is yes and no. I don’t usually sit down with a theme in mind, and sometimes, I don’t even have a story. What I often have is a character in a situation or with a problem she must solve. (I suppose you could call this the inciting incident.)

So, I work from there. How does she solve this problem? Can she solve this problem? Does she create more problems by solving the first, and so on.

I really enjoy writing adventure stories, although my idea of an adventure is often very silly (catching ghosts with coffee, protecting the world with umbrellas), and these have emerged alongside my indie career.

I trace these stories back to having to entertain myself in the backseat of the car on our cross-country trips to Oregon. When reading in the car makes you sick, you don’t have many options for entertainment, at least not back in the 1970s.

I also love secrets—in stories if not real life. I’m not certain I’ve written a story where someone doesn’t have a secret. I also really love intergenerational secrets, generally the older generations keeping things from the younger ones (often for very good reasons, but still, secrets).

Found family. A lot of my stories involve the main character(s) finding someone or several someones to call home over the course of a story (or series). Some of this is simple logistics. Introducing a large cast of characters all at once is difficult for both the writer and the reader. But I have enough found families in my stories that this is clearly a theme I work from, even if it’s not a conscious choice.

In practical writing news, it’s crunch time for the Deep Valley Book Festival. I go back and forth between thinking I have too many books and then not enough. (I guess we’ll find out, won’t we?) I plan to have the car packed on Friday, so all I need to do is grab my electronics and go on Saturday morning. (Okay, coffee and a shower first.)

It’s going to be a busy week, but I’m looking forward to it.

Booking Through Thursday: Constant Companion

Welcome to Booking Through Thursday, a weekly bookish meme about books and reading for everyone who loves both. Booking Through Thursday was first hosted by Deb. With permission, I’ve restarted it in 2026.

This week’s prompt:

This doesn’t have to be your favorite book or a comfort read. But is there a single book (or perhaps series) you’ve read more than any other? Maybe a cookbook, a religious text, or a favorite childhood story.

Let us know!

What’s one book you’ve read more than any other?

What's one book you've read more than any other?

How to play:

  • On your blog: Copy the question/image for your blog, answer it there, and post a quick comment here with a link or trackback to your post so we can read it.
  • On social media: Copy the image, answer the prompt, and post a quick comment here with a link.
  • Right here: Answer in the comments and start the discussion here. No need to have a blog to play.

Note: If it’s your first time here, your comment may end up in moderation. (My spam filter is aggressive.) I’ll be in after my writing sprints to set it free.

P.S. The prompt is always open, and you don’t have to play on Thursday. Comment whenever you like!

Keeping the (writing) faith

Anno asked me some questions a few weeks back that I’ve been ruminating on ever since. The one that’s been dominating my thoughts is this one:

Given the challenges of modern publishing, what helps you keep faith with your work?

Well, that’s the question, isn’t it? Things are fraught* right now in publishing, whether you’re pursuing traditional or indie publishing.

The thing that helps me the most is this:

Despite everything, I still get to tell the stories I want to tell. No one can take that away from me.

A four-book series about catching ghosts with coffee? Why not?

Sentient umbrellas? Absolutely!

Indie publishing is simply how I get my stories into the world. Because, let’s be real, traditional publishing isn’t knocking on the door and making offers for either of those series**.

It’s hard, I’m not going to lie, to keep training your focus on those things you control. I struggle with it all the time. More is more has seeped into every aspect of our culture, especially work and creative endeavors.

But it’s simply not the case. It’s a lie big tech is telling us to keep us online and distracted.

So, I put my focus on those things I control:

  • My stories
  • My blog
  • My mail list

And, this year, I’m adding:

  • In-person events
  • Local independent bookstores
  • A direct-sales store

Yesterday is a perfect example of why I love being indie. It was a rainy, bleak Saturday. I had the sniffles, and while I had a shed-ton of chores to do, I didn’t feel up for any of them***.

So I said to myself: Let’s build an online direct-sales store.

And I did.

It’s not complete, not yet. Once it is, I’ll reveal it here. I want to have it done in time for the Deep Valley Book Festival.

Then, when I was wrapping up for the day, my new table display bookstand arrived:

Bookstand with several of my books on display

So, all things considered, I’m feeling fairly hopeful today.

*I used fraught in a text conversation the other day and got the laughing/crying emoji as a response.

**Another use case for the laughing/crying emoji.

***But do I ever? Yet another case for the laughing/crying emoji.

Booking Through Thursday: Let’s not go there

Welcome to Booking Through Thursday, a weekly bookish meme about books and reading for everyone who loves both. Booking Through Thursday was first hosted by Deb. With permission, I’ve restarted it in 2026.

This week’s prompt:

What fictional world aren’t you going to visit any time soon—or at all? Narnia on a bad day? Westeros? Anything by Stephen King? (I’m beginning to think this list could be endless?)

Let us know what world to avoid!

What fictional world would you avoid at all costs?

How to play:

  • On your blog: Copy the question/image for your blog, answer it there, and post a quick comment here with a link or trackback to your post so we can read it.
  • On social media: Copy the image, answer the prompt, and post a quick comment here with a link.
  • Right here: Answer in the comments and start the discussion here. No need to have a blog to play.

Note: If it’s your first time here, your comment may end up in moderation. (My spam filter is aggressive.) I’ll be in after my writing sprints to set it free.

P.S. The prompt is always open, and you don’t have to play on Thursday. Comment whenever you like!