This has been a wonderful couple of weeks. Just when I thought things couldn't get better (or crazier, depending on the angle you looked at it), I received the advanced review copies (ARCs) for Smoke and Ashes. 
Hands down--not including the birth of my children--this was one of the most amazing moments of my life. For nearly a year, I have known the day would come in which I could hold the book in my hands, smell the mass market paper and ink, stroke the cover, and drool over the artwork. It was surreal when that day finally arrived.I'm not one who cries (and I'm not really a hugger--though I make exceptions), yet this week I have been spontaneously bursting into tears and hugging strangers.I can't express how much it means to me that I get to hold my literary baby in my hands. I have sacrificed more than most know to make this dream a reality--friends have come and gone, my social life has its own headstone, and my family members knows that whatever "vacation" we take will likely revolve around a conference, book signing, or convention. And, just like any small business, I really don't have days off. There is always something that needs my attention, or word counts that are breathing down my neck.Yet, it always has been a labor of love.Through it all, the sacrifice, the writing time, the exclusion and tedious schedules, it all comes back to the reason I will always write--I want to make a difference. I want my readers to put my books down and feel uplifted--and to walk away with a feeling of hope.In writing Smoke and Ashes, I spent a great deal of my time researching the events that transpired between the pages. Want to know about chemical oxidizers and arson? How about how fires affect fingerprints? Ask this girl. Or, more accurately, ask me because I spent many an hour talking to firefighters and police officers within my community.
This book (really all of my books, but this one in particular), wouldn't have been possible without their support.As a thank you to my local fire department, as soon as I received my ARCs (and a bunch of swag), I bought a cake and a thank you card and made my way to their doorstep once again. I was given a gracious welcome and "How did the book turn out?"I have never had a bigger smile on my face as the moment I handed them the book that they helped to create. Up until that moment I had kept the secret... a secret a year in the making... a secret that I had been dying to tell them--They had helped to make my dreams of becoming a Harlequin author a reality.I cannot express my thanks enough to the men and women who serve our community. Not only do they put their lives at risk, but they open their hearts and their doors in doing community outreach--like helping crazy blond writers who have nothing more than a dream and a pen.These amazing men and women risk their lives to help others, and my sacrifices pale in comparison. I have no room to complain. I don't have to hold the hands of the dying or run through a burning building. I simply get to mark down the stories of those who do. They are the men and women who live through real life danger... they are (the often unsung) everyday heroes.I tip my hat to those who serve. Thank you.
DIY and Losing Your Mind
The other day I sat down and wrote the best little blog about how writing is just like renovating a house… and I promptly lost it.
I keep asking myself how… How could I do something so dumb?I write for a living. How can I, a person who lives in neatly categorized files and spreadsheets, lose something I spent hours conceptualizing, writing, and editing?The answer is simple. I’m losing my mind.Instead of trying to recreate what I doubt was a masterpiece rich in allegorical wealth, I am going to give you a quick snippet into the how and why I lost my stuff.
The truth is, I’m elbows deep in renovating my house. (Like the prison bars?)Last summer, my husband convinced me that we should move into a house with a shop (that included a car lift… We bought a house because of a car lift… *Shaking head* I am still confused at how he convinced me this was a good idea).He’ll be the first to admit the house needed entirely too much work for our own good (but, on a side note, our kids are learning how to remove trim and spackle). Or, maybe it is for our own good—we have come together as a family through this journey. We regularly have painting dance parties--last night it was to the song “Get Low.” Regardless, when I'm not writing, I'm renovating... and sometimes one thing just bleeds into the other. Things aren't saved (like blog posts) and paint makes its way onto things (my computer has a nice new speckled pattern).
For your viewing pleasure, here's another pre-reno picture of our house so you can see it in its full glory. This puppy hasn’t been touched since 1979.I wish I could kid around about loving the orange carpet, but I hate it so much that even the thought of saying I love it makes me want to rip it out. It's end is near, my friends, its end is near...
On a positive note, the orange-beast carpet does work well for a painting drop cloth. So far we’ve gone through twenty-five gallons of paint. I’m not kidding. Twenty-five. And I’m not done.I went out of my house this week for McDonalds, while there I had a conversation with one of my friends about how my nails are whatever color I’m painting in my house. I love getting my nails done, but I am living in a reality in which that kind of frivolity would last about ten minutes. I long for the days in which my fingernails were a nice pink color, or better yet, red... I love red.The only place that isn’t covered with paint are my fingertips… I have been rubbing that paint off thanks to the hours I’ve been spending on the keyboard working on the books—but that’s another blog post (needless to say, I’m LOVING the upcoming releases).Okay, I’m rambling. See what I mean? I’m so losing it. I feel like the dog from Up when it sees the squirrel. My mind is awash with long to-do lists and the desire to be done with all things orange and smothered in paint.So… What do you recommend I do to come back to center (i.e. my spreadsheets and calendars)? What about you? What do you do when life is pulling you in a million directions? What do you do to escape? I can’t wait to hear!!**Oh, don't forget to stop by my contest page... There's always something fun happening there! :)
Happy Holidays!
Thank you for another wonderful year. I hope that you have a wonderful holiday season, spent with the people you love and cherish and may you receive the gift of a wonderful book!
I know I've said it before, but thank you for all of your ongoing love and support. You are the reason I write.
May you be blessed this season and in the year to come!
-Danica Winters