Back To The Writing ...

After a week of fun and list making ... I'm getting back to work.  Mondays are good for that!

But before I officially do - Summer Secrets was officially in the #1 spot ...  on the top of the NYT!

It's so exciting.  And if you scroll down, you'll see that in addition to Summer Secrets, Don't Say A Word shows up at #24.  I can hardly believe it.

And one last bit of good news ... ALL SHE EVER WANTED is now #1 on B&N's Top 100!

Okay, but my blog is supposed to be about getting back to work.  As writers, it's easy to get distracted by the business of publishing.  So much of our work is done in isolation, that when something more public happens, it's fun to take a moment to enjoy it and share it with friends.  Because every writer knows these moments don't come around that often.  But when the hoopla dies down, it's back to the next book.

I remember a line from a movie about ballet - Center Stage - and the head/retired ballerina tells the young dancer that when things go wrong, when life gets too crazy, you always go back to the barre -- the barre is home (okay, I'm paraphrasing). But I think as writers, home is always the book, the writing, the next story, the next scene, the next sentence.

So that's what I'm doing today -- as soon as I finish this blog.  I'm working on a new book and there are so many decisions to make, what each character looks like, the setting, the time of year .... all those little things that tend to bog me down when I'm racing ahead to the big scenes I see coming up in my plot.  But life is in the details, and books are the same.  Thoughtful decisions about the little things always add color and depth to any story, so I persevere.  Then when I get to the big scenes I can't wait to write, I have a lot more to work with.

Whether traditionally publishing or self publishing, all writers have to remember that it's always about the book. And all the other distractions of the business of publishing or even life in general are just what we have to fight through to get back to the book.

So my decision today -- what to name the river that's an important part of my story.  The book is set in Northern California, there's some wild white water rapids, but also some peaceful, lazy parts ... any ideas?