NEW Holly Wild Book 2 Arrival!

"You there boy, do you know what day it is?" I screamed down to Marie as she watered the garden.

"Uh, Christmas Day, sir?" she replied, looking up at me on the balcony. There I stood, my hair frizzled, wearing three day-old clothes (inside out and backward) with one chicken-poop covered slipper on and my glasses tangled and sitting atop my aforementioned hair and frazzled head.

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"NO! It's the day before Holly Wild Book Two comes out," I yell and laugh maniacally as I toddle back into the house tripping over the other slipper, as well as the fan and the cat napping in the dog-bed. I don't get out much. 

Or at least I haven't gotten out much due to getting the book two out in time for our July 18th deadline (hence the three day old clothes--underwear not included). Since June, I have worked feverishly and furiously on getting the manuscript done, edited and dropped into my publishing program. I have worked diligently and deliriously, without stop, on scads and oodles of illustrations. I have worked with fear gripping my heart like a vise, or more like slamming it in a car door five times--as I saved, worked on, revised and fixed files to go to print.

Naturally, with all this intense work comes fear. Fear of storms wiping out my work, fear of my hard-drive crashing, fear of the cat dancing on the keyboard and wiping out my work and crashing my hard-drive. Fear of the files suddenly and mysteriously being wrong...fear that I forgot something...fear that I misspellled the first word of the chapter...see! Like that! Misspell! I could go on. Really, I could. Too much coffee, too much keyboard and not enough human contact.

How I look most of the time. (flies included)

The girls (Marie and Lisa--my Team) have been at art shows during much of this final pre-print phase, so it's been me and the chickens, me and the cats, and me and the dog eating popcorn together. And frankly, they really don't give that much feedback.

So the file went in, cover and all, last week. Crossing my fingers, my eyes and my toes (which is not easy after my big toe removal and replacement surgery a few years back)--I hit DOWNLOAD FILES. Gone. Weeks, months, and five years worth of story and memory--gone to the printer--to print lots of books, so it better be right.

Building a book is much like labor and delivery. I know. Been there, done that--twice. It think childbirth was easier. I did get to do my Lamaze breathing throughout file changes, cover sizing and pagination. I did have ice chips and my little fan nearby throughout ISBN, copyright and Library of Congress paperwork. I do look a little crazed, wild and woolly, like being in transition. Then afterward, calm and relief  after the cord and download portal is cut. Now my book is in the hands and rollers of the printer.

My Editorial Team dancing! (because I changed my clothes)

So what day is it today? "THE DAY BEFORE HOLLY WILD (BOOK TWO) Let Sleeping Bear Dunes Lie, COMES OUT!" So let's dance! But just for a moment or two because...

Next week I will be signing MANY books up at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Empire, then over to Cottage Book Shop in Glen Arbor then up to the Superior Children's Book Festival in Sault Ste. Marie...and in the midst of that, putting Book 3 together!

Get UP! Do the DUNES! Get your 
Holly Wild: (Book 2) Let Sleeping Bears Lie  Bear Track Press, $12.99
ISBN 978-0-615-65973-2