A Pause. A Breath. And...GO

It seems impossible, but so far 2018 has been busier than 2017. I was forced to miss some of my scheduled events due to a concussion and family needs, but the rest of the year should continue as planned.

What I missed: Sadly I had to miss the Altoona Book Festival. I suffered a concussion in an accident two days before the event and was unable to make the trip. I also had to miss the West PA Book Festival because my family flew in from Texas and our other vehicle was in the shop due to other circumstances.

Now that life is back to so-called normal, I'll pick up where I left off.

For most weeks this summer, I've been part of a wonderful weekly market. I'll be there two more Saturdays in August and another two in September. The rest of my Saturdays are filled through the end of October.

I'll be teaching at The Author Zone conference in Pittsburgh in September and at Pennwriters' Road Trip Conference in Erie in October. I'm a featured author at the Allegheny Regional Festival of Books in Bedford PA in mid-September. I will also be part of the guest panel at The Author Zone awards ceremony in October. See my home page for more details.

My poetry collection Raw and Unfinished was published earlier this year.

I'm collecting submissions for next year's Celebrate book. With so much bad news and negativity in the world, I want to create a book that celebrates life and living. If you have a short story or poem that is any kind of celebration, contact me for details. Deadline is September 30, 2018.

I've also been busy with the other jobs of my life. I taught a children's Spanish class in the winter and spring as well as teaching an ESL class and tutoring Spanish. I'm currently working on editing and formatting several books for upcoming publications at Tree Shadow Press.

Although I was deeply disappointed about missing the above mentioned festivals, it was a good reminder that sometimes plans aren't supposed to work out. Once in a while we all need to stop, take a breath, and continue. I'll try to remember that in the future and hope that it won't take another concussion to force me to take a break. I much preferred my more recent break, a two week Pittsburgh "staycation" with my "tween-age" Texas grandchildren. Now, that was something to celebrate!