Coming in 2026!

I’m currently working on a new children’s book that I hope to publish next year. It’s for elementary school age children. I wrote the story several months ago and I’m very excited about it! Right now, I’m trying to figure out the title.

Before I decide on a title for a new book, I do searches to see if I’ve found a unique title. I learned the importance of doing this the hard way after I published “The Button Box” and found out there were already several books on the market with the same name.

For a while, I was afraid I had lost my ability to write because the words just would not come after the death of my mom almost two years ago. I think I just needed the time to grieve her loss properly before I could get back to writing.

I think there is often an ebb and a flow to life where we must take a pause from certain things before we are strong again and are ready to get back to them. Sometimes in life there is joy and sometimes there is sorrow. I’ve been in a season of sorrow but now I’m feeling joyful again and with that joy, comes writing.

This blog has helped me get back into a regular writing routine and I’m so grateful that the words are back bouncing around in my head. Thank you to all of you who have read and enjoyed my posts and especially to those of you who have commented on the different ones. Reading your comments fuels me.

So, back to the new book. I recently sent it to my son and daughter-in-law to read. They are experts because they read lots of books to their four children. My son said it’s one of my top two stories for children. (He really loves “The Halloween Scare” and so do I!) Every writer’s goal is to get better at their craft and perhaps I have.

If all goes well, I hope to publish this next book in the spring or early summer of 2026. I’m using my same team…Vicki Killion Guess is illustrating, and Crystal Wood is doing the book layout. They both live in Texas. All of us have taken some personal hits during the past two years…with deaths of loved ones as well as some medical issues. I’m grateful that they are both still willing to work with me now that I live across the country from them. I must say, it’s not as much fun to work on a book over the phone as it was to meet and work in person.

This new story involves animals and friendship. My daughter-in-law, Paige, and my granddaughter, Hallie, are the models for the mom and daughter illustrations in the story. Vicki’s daughter, Rachel, is the model for the friend. It’s fun to work directly with your illustrator and have family pictured in your books!

Vicki has completed most of the drawings and they are so charming. I cannot wait to see the painted illustrations! When I began this author journey 12 years ago, I never dreamed I would have the opportunity to publish more than one book. My last book, “Love Hearts” was published in 2023. I’m so excited for you to see what’s coming in 2026!