A Cup of Coffee & A Romance Novel With R L Tynes

 Happy Monday! I can't believe it's another week already and that Halloween is tomorrow. Halloween is my favorite holiday. The decorations, the costumes, pumpkin carving, the movies, and that magical fall feeling (If it gets cold enough here which today IT IS! 55 degrees baby!) are the absolute best. I have more Halloween decorations, including a Halloween tree, than Christmas decorations. Christmas is for Children, Halloween is for adults. I will die on that hill. Ha. There is just no stress with having to buy gifts or go places so Halloween wins for me every single time.  Anyway, I usually am at my day job at this time, but I woke up with a text from my boss telling me she is giving me a paid day off. Happy Early Halloween to me! And now I'm at the park about to write and edit in the car while my husband does his run. He recently started the Couch 2 5K program and I'm so proud of him. He's doing great! I need to get my butt in gear and start exercising consistentl...

 We all know that if we pursue anything in life, fear comes along with us. Especially when we start any creative endeavor. Fear is what keeps us from going after what we want, and it's our job to keep pursuing our dreams in spite of it. I can talk about all the fears I've had and symptoms of those fears for days, so I'm labeling this post as the first of probably many.  Recently, I took one of Alessandra Torre's free classes and it gave me the answer I needed to the fear I was having in that moment.  Now, if you don't know who Alessandra Torre is, where have you been? I'm just kidding. But she is a fantastic romance and thriller author who also runs Alessandra Torre Ink & InkersCon. It's a fantastic resource for authors so go check it out and join her Facebook group . You won't regret it.  So, I've learned that I have had different fears at different stages in the writing journey. Mostly, I know what they are and can continue on my work because...

I am always reading some type of non-fiction book or audiobook these days, and I come across so many brilliant words that apply to my writing. They give me lightbulb moments, and I have to write them down where I can see them every day as a reminder to keep going, or to keep putting those words into my daily practice or routine. I figured I’d start sharing my favorite quotes I come across that have an impact on me and my writing. I hope you enjoy these and they inspire you to keep on writing and chasing your dreams! 😊💖 “So getting awards and all that fame stuff? I liked it a lot. But there’s nothing lasting in it for me. What I love is sweat on the floor during rehearsals, or just playing ball and making a shot. I like the work. I like the practicing. That has more authenticity and value than anything else.” - Britney Spears - The Woman in Me Page 124 

Since the Summer of 2022 the majority of what I’ve been reading is MM Romance. I discovered this relationship dynamic with my audible plus membership and that led me to read The Understatement of The Year By Sarina Bowen followed by Goodbye Paradise also by Sarina Bowen. Goodbye Paradise is now one of my all time favorite books, and I highly recommend it! From last Summer to present, I have been hooked on MM Romance, and it has become my favorite dynamic to read in Romance now. I can’t tell you why, but there’s just something about it that hit different for me and made me feel all the feelings more. Maybe because forbidden relationships were already one of my favorite tropes and it happens a lot in MM. I just don’t know, but the magic is there for me in these love stories. ✨ (And yes, I do have tons of MM romances I plan to write under my MM pen name. I will keep y’all updated.)😍 Current Read & Recommendation: The Missing Pieces Trilogy by N.R. Walker  I wanted to share abou...

Happy Monday! How was your weekend? We had our annual father daughter camping trip. Which is more like “glamping.” We had fun fishing, swimming(this is Mississippi. It’s still hot outside. 🤣), and hanging out together.  I worked my day job today, and my current work listen is The Success Principles by Jack Canfield. I am loving it. I try and  listen/read a good bit of personal growth/self development and Writer Craft books because it helps me to believe in myself and keep my fire lit. This is from someone who “hates” non-fiction, and falls asleep reading it. But listening to it on an audiobook has been a game changer. So if you are like me and can’t read non-fiction, but want to learn, give audiobooks a try.  Then I came home after work, and did some much needed yard work. My flower beds looks so much better despite the grass and plants being dead. We’ve had the longest drought ever. Like I think it’s rained 3 times in 4 months. Pray for rain to come. Lol  Now I’m ...

 I’ve been reading this book called Deep Work , and it’s all about being focused and successful in a distracted world. It’s been so eye opening, and it gives great advice on what you can do to get done what matters in very little time.  I always asked myself why I can’t focus anymore after I’ve been writing for 3 hours. My brain is tired, I can’t produce quality work, and I have to stop for the day. I used to get frustrated because I want to work all day on my days off, but I give out. I felt so unproductive.  Then, I learned through the book that our brains are usually only capable of 3-4 hours of this thing called Deep Work. Where we are completely distraction free, and zoned in on our important work and able to make huge strides in it.  Learning this helped me feel so much better about the work I do in a little time, because it’s the important work that gets done, and I know I did my best.  I also found the Deep Focus playlists on Spotify really do help to s...

Currently, I’m in the process of reading through my manuscript, For Now, Book 1 in the Timeless Love Series.  I’m in revision mode. I don’t care so much about grammar and technical stuff here. I’m focused on the storytelling and making it amazing.   I’m making notes as I go on. Noting things I don’t like or need to change and fix.  I’m also taking notes on each chapter as I go through making an outline as I go. This should help me see everything I did in the book as I “pantsed” it. And see what I need to fix. Oh how I wish I was a plotter and then editing would be so much easier. 😂 Most importantly, I leave myself little praise notes as I go through. If I’m proud of a sentence or scene, I will leave a comment saying “good job, or I like this.” This helps my confidence to keep on keeping on and to believe I can get to the level I want to be.  As a new writer, I know I’m not where I want to be yet. What I see in my head comes out as mediocre on paper and the edit...