May 27, 2025
There is a moment in Safe House where Taylor regrets their shopping choices. I am hopeful the kid and I will not do the same thing.
Yeah, with the kid’s big move happening at the end of the week, it’s time to do some shopping! Clothes and furniture are on the docket for today, but so are some other things. I’d be stressed if I didn’t know the kid works best this way and if experience hadn’t taught me that I can one hundred percent trust this kid, and then some.
The shopping day and the imminent move means I’ve got to get this edit done! I have 40 pages left in this first readthrough; I should be able to do it. It’s been absolutely fantastic this far, and I have ideas to strengthen it without changing its essence.
I had told a potential client that I’d save space for them when I get home from the big move, but I haven’t heard back confirming that, and I have an established client who’ll be sending their new manuscript my way before I get home. We’ll see how that shakes out; I am not one to ask a client to wait if I don’t have to. We all have deadlines and goals, friends, and communication is KEY.
I wrote about 2000 words in Absolutely Alyssa yesterday; I was on fire as Xavier spilled his darkest secret to Alyssa. So after dinner, out on the back deck with the kid, I pulled up a short piece I started… oof. Maybe a year and a half ago now? (in case you ever wondered how long it takes to produce a work of fiction!) I’m going to use it for my 2026 newsletter freebie, and I was blown away by it. It had started out as a different story, with a different purpose, and I’d begun reframing it a couple months ago but had let it sit as I fought with Absolutely Alyssa instead.
Let me tell you, letting it sit was a very very good thing.
And best of all? It still illustrates what I’d hoped it would!
Swordcrossed, by Freya Marske
(affiliate link; as always, money goes to operational expenses here at West of Mars)
If you’re having as much fun with this series as I am, feel free to pick up my books, book me for an edit (where I’ll talk about you here in vague but flattering terms!), or stuff my ko-fi. I’ve got my annual business insurance renewal coming up and this year, for the first time ever in 14 years, I’m a little short. Hopefully that’ll be resolved by the time payment’s actually due. Your support helps and means a lot!
Wish me happy shopping today. With only a few days left in town, things are getting real, and that includes nerves and emotions.
Can I just escape into a good edit? Please?
February 20, 2024
Woo hoo! It’s here! It’s here! It’s here!
Yep, book three in the Tales from the Sheep Farm series, Safe House, releases TODAY. Thanks to everyone who bought it — and its two predecessors, Maybe the Bird Will Rise and Populated — at its presale pricing.
I don’t know what to tell you about this book. It continues the story of Mack and Tess and their hunt for the answers of the Mackenzie treasure and legacy. It’s my pandemic book, in its own way. And it’s a story of a person with a lot of baggage and secrets that simply cannot remain hidden any longer.
Of course, like the entire Sheep Farm project, there’s plenty of found family here.
Oh, heck. Here’s what the back cover says:
A deadly virus is bearing down on the world and Emerson Mackenzie, CEO of PharmaScience Technologies—now back in its ancestral home of Port Kenneth, Tennessee—opens up the historic Mackenzie house on the family’s defunct sheep farm to six people: himself, his wife Tess Cartieri, his house manager, two members of his board of directors, and his executive assistant, Taylor Alexander.
Taylor won’t abandon Emerson, but at the same time, they don’t want to be there. Taylor has secrets, a past and memories they cannot face, and they fear that being locked in a house with five others will be entirely too revealing.
Taylor’s passion is to be outside, hiking, in a world that makes sense to them, and Emerson harnesses that, asking Taylor to map the boundaries of the old sheep farm and maybe help discover secrets buried on the land. Taylor is glad to do so, although the secrets they help Emerson and Tess discover are immediately darker and more disturbing than any had expected.
As the virus rages, as tensions across the country simmer, as relationships within the house change, and as the land gives up its secrets, Taylor realizes time has grown short. Their secrets cannot remain hidden any longer.
When they spill, Taylor is exposed for all in the house to see.
And every person inside the house responds in ways Taylor never expected.
Like the first two books in the series — and the ones coming after — this was a ton of fun to write.
Pick up your copy. As always, my books are available at every retailer who’ll carry them, and via such library apps as Hoopa and Overdrive/Libby. Yes, I get paid if you read the book via the library! So if your book budget is thin, there’s a solution for you. (Granted, not all library systems play nice with Hoopla or Libby, and may not carry certain books. But go ahead and ask for ’em anyway. It’s good for them to hear what you’d like to read.)
A reminder for you Large Print lovers: All books in the Tales from the Sheep Farm series are available in Large Print. I recomment either B&N or Bookshop.org
As always, I am eager to know your thoughts. You’ve seen me say it over and over, but it’s so very true…
The best way to help an author is to buy a copy of a book for a friend.
The next best way is to tell a friend.
The third best way is to leave a review online. And in fact, if you’d like to join my reviewing team, drop me an email! I’d love to send you a free copy, and there’s no need to be all “I am afraid to leave a one-star review” in my world. Your opinion matters more than an algorithm.
People are treasures too. That includes you and your opinion of my books.
January 29, 2024
There’s been a lot of chatter this week on socials about quick releasing books. I stand by the practice… IF the author can hold off on publishing until their books are the best possible, they’ve been through editing… in other words, don’t rush. Publishing is the long game, so it’s smart to make sure you’re playing to your best advantage.
That’s what I’ve done with the first four books in the Sheep Farm series. (I’m working on Book Five right now, in fact, and I do hope to have it out for you by the end of 2024.)
Which brings us to today’s subject matter: Safe House, Tales From the Sheep Farm #3 is up for preorder at all the usual retailers. And like always, it’s 99c
Here’s your universal book link.
I’ll have my amazing web person update the books page soon, but in the meantime, here’s the book description:
A deadly virus is bearing down on the world and Emerson Mackenzie, CEO of PharmaScience Technologies—now back in its ancestral home of Port Kenneth, Tennessee—opens up the historic Mackenzie house on the family’s defunct sheep farm to six people: himself, his wife Tess Cartieri, his house manager, two members of his board of directors, and his executive assistant, Taylor Alexander.
Taylor won’t abandon Emerson, but at the same time, they don’t want to be there. Taylor has secrets, a past and memories they cannot face, and they fear that being locked in a house with five others will be entirely too revealing.
Taylor’s passion is to be outside, hiking, in a world that makes sense to them, and Emerson harnesses that, asking Taylor to map the boundaries of the old sheep farm and maybe help discover secrets buried on the land. Taylor is glad to do so, although the secrets they help Emerson and Tess discover are immediately darker and more disturbing than any had expected.
As the virus rages, as tensions across the country simmer, as relationships within the house change, and as the land gives up its secrets, Taylor realizes time has grown short. Their secrets cannot remain hidden any longer.
When they spill, Taylor is exposed for all in the house to see.
And every person inside the house responds in ways Taylor never expected.
If you’ve read the first two books, or even just Maybe the Bird Will Rise, you’ve met Taylor. But now you get to really know them. So did I as I wrote this, and I really like who Taylor revealed themself to be.
If you need a copy of Maybe the Bird Will Rise or Populated, both are on sale right now to celebrate the release of Safe House.
And of course, if your library uses either Hoopla or Overdrive/Libby, look for me there. I get paid, the library gets circulation numbers, you get books within your budget… it’s a win-win-win for everyone.
On the editing front, I’m going to be finishing up one that’s taken me longer than I would have liked, but it needed a lot of attention and love. Next up in the editing queue is a genre switch by an established author. This is the second time I’ve gone over it for her (reminder that I charge half the original amount when you ask me to do this) and I’m anxious to see her improvements. This author, like all of my clients, is more than willing to do the hard work, and it shows. Watching her develop as a writer has been a pleasure and a privilege.
Next week (Feb. 3), I’ll be appearing with a few other authors at the Peters Township library here in the Pittsburgh region. If you’re nearby, come see me and my friends! 
That’s it from this end. Expect more of these updates and let me know what you think of them!
