Michelle Miles: Milestones

I’m supposed to be working on a weekly report and an agenda for a meeting. Instead I’m thinking about milestones and the next phases of life.

My son recently graduated from high school. Don’t we look awesome in this picture? I’m very proud of all he’s accomplished.

People have been congratulating me, which I thought was odd. I mentioned it to my husband. He looked at me like I’d grown a third head. “Am I going to have to explain this to you, really?”

So, he did.

All those times I got him up and ready for school, even when he didn’t want to go.
All those school lunches I made.
All those school functions I volunteered to chaperone.
All those school parties.
All those band concerts/competitions/football games.
All those times I was a shuttle/taxi/chauffeur.
All those birthday parties.
All those school plays.
All those band fees I happily paid for because I knew he was doing something he loved.
All those times I sat with him at the kitchen table and helped with homework. And then when I couldn’t help him, made sure he was turning in school work.
All those times I pushed him to do something I knew he should do because he would regret it if he didn’t.
All those times I bought him school clothes and supplies.
All those times I took him to the doctor/dentist/orthodontist/eye doctor. ALL.THOSE.TIMES.
Most of these things I did by myself because I was a single mom.

And, of course, that’s not all. We are now entering the next phase of his life. He was awarded a scholarship to the community college. He’s enrolled and registered and begins his next adventure in the fall.

As we were leaving graduation, his 4th grade and 5th grade teachers made their way to us outside the convention center and hugged him and congratulated him. I can’t even begin to express how wonderful that was that not only did they remember HIM, but they remembered ME, too. And made a point to find him in the crowd.

What he doesn’t know is that this time in his life is special. It’s fleeting. I’m sure he’ll have some regrets—we all do. He can’t see into the future like I can and that’s okay. That’s part of growing up.

There are many more milestones to come. As we age, we hit different ones. College graduation. Marriage. Deaths. Raising kids. New jobs. Job changes. Hitting those “big” birthdays. I guess I’m feeling nostalgic and a little sad that this phase is over. But you know what? The best is yet to come.

Michelle Miles: Adventure is Coming

Back in the early 2000s, I started writing a twice-weekly serial for the now-defunct Keep it Coming. I'd wanted to write something fun and different. A time travel. With lots of action and adventure and maybe a splash of romance.

Then Keep it Coming closed but Inara Press was born. They specialized in serialized fiction. I was able to land a contract with them…and then they folded shortly thereafter. But the person who was my editor there was also an editor at Samhain Publishing and she invited me to compile the serials into a novel format and send it to her. It was accepted.

A Bend in Time, the first book in the Adventures of Ransom & Fortune, was released in 2007 by Samhain. The second book, A Break in Time, followed shortly thereafter. They were both in print at one time. And then Samhain folded and I got my rights back, not necessarily in that order but you get the idea.

I’ve had the rights back to these books for a long time while I decided what to do with them. I wanted to make sure I did the series right and gave Skye and Dane another crack at being published. I loved writing this series. They were so much fun. But I’d made Dane a hit man and redeeming him was…hard. He was not a nice guy in the original series. In fact, he was kind of an ass. Not really a good quality for the hero.

One day I printed off the first book and did a read-through. My writing has certainly changed in the last ten years, so I knew it would need to be updated. Plus, having Dane as the hit man just really bothered me. I broke the novel into two novellas. Part one would now become volume one; Part two would be volume two.

Part of the story was that there was a hit man, so I split that part off from Dane’s character and made a totally new villain that was 100% villainy, thereby making Dane 100% heroic. It meant I didn’t have to work as hard to redeem him, because he didn’t need redeeming at that point. As for the villain, well, he’s just a super bad guy working for the ultimate bad guys. But I didn’t know who those bad guys truly were.

Then one day I was binge-ing Person of Interest on Netflix for about the tenth time. I loved this show when it was on TV and miss it a lot. I got to thinking about the root of the show. There was The Machine and then there was Samaritan, one being controlled by our heroes and one being controlled by the baddies. Then Timeless premiered on TV, the short-lived time travel series on NBC. It was a pretty decent show and I was sad when it was canceled. And so while I was working on editing Highland Fling, I started putting some things together and well…I sort of borrowed some ideas from both those shows for my adventure series.

I will tell you this. It’s a time travel; it’s adventure; it’s action…and while each volume has story threads that are wrapped up, the overall story arc is ongoing throughout the series. There will be more than two volumes. How many volumes is still up in the air.

I’m really excited to re-release these stories once again with all new, gorgeous covers and totally edited and updated stories. I think you are going to love hanging out with Skye and Dane. I know I do! It’s up for pre-order right now at Apple, Barnes & Noble and Kobo. Amazon pre-order coming soon.

In the coming months, I’ll be sending my newsletter subscribers exclusive excerpts that will not be posted anywhere else. Be sure to subscribe today if you're not already to be the first to read the all-new revised opening of volume one! In the meantime, click one of the buttons below to pre-order your copy today, both for $0.99 until after release.

Get Highland Fling here. Releases February 19, 2019.

Get Dead of Winter here. Releases March 5, 2019.

Michelle Miles: Hello, 2019!

Another year has closed and the start of a new one is officially off the ground.

I, for one, am glad to see the old year go. The last six months were rife with breaking things--cars, oven, house heater, windshields. And also new things--fix cars and heater, new windshields, oven, new cookware. I treated myself on Cyber Monday with a set of Calphalon cookware and I can honestly say it's the best cookware I've ever had.

Aside from all that, the last year was a hard one for me, creatively. I let all the awful things happening in the industry stifle my writing (Cocky Gate, book stuffing). I think I just got caught up in the drama, which is something I try never to do but I had a hard time looking away from that Cocky Gate thing. I stopped writing for a good six months when I got depressed over sales and everything happening in the industry and had a very "why bother?" attitude.

Towards the end of the summer, though, I got off Twitter and started thinking, seriously, about my future writing.

For 2019, I’ve decided I want to focus on the writing and publishing my backlist as well as some new material. After 60+ rejections, it makes you re-evaluate your writing life and make decisions about the career. Even though I have a day job, I do consider this a second career, so it was time to move forward instead of standing still. I’m throwing myself into indie publishing and looking forward to getting those stories told and in the hands of readers. My focus is all on the writing and the books and not so much on the marketing, though I do understand that plays a role as well.

I don’t want to get hung up on the money aspect of it like I have in the past. It’s a soul-crushing feeling sometimes to look at sales and see nothing for weeks or sometimes months. And I know that’s mostly my fault. I haven’t been producing like I should or want to. I haven’t been talking to my 3000+ newsletter subscribers. I hope to change that for 2019.

I haven’t given up on the dream that someday my books will be on the bookshelves or they’ll be turned into movies. I have very specific ideas about who should play my lead characters. Heck, I’d even settle for an HBO series. *grin*

There are other non-writing things I want to accomplish, too. Declutting is always high on my list. Getting the kid graduated and into college is another. Overall, though, I’m proclaiming 2019 Year of the Books.

How about you? What are you plans for the new year?

Michelle Miles: How to make $3 million writing books

Do I have your attention? :)

This post isn't about how to make $3 million from writing books. I don't have the secret formula. Sorry about about the click-bait.

I’ve been writing for publication since 2001. The entire lifespan of my son. I’ve seen the industry change from the traditional houses ruling to indie publishing booming. To Amazon claiming its own stake in the publishing game. The rise and fall of small presses. The downsize of traditional publishing.

I joined RWA in 2004 and was so happy to find a writing home, a place where others understood me. A place where I could make connections with other writers. I was hungry to learn everything from craft to industry. Back then, the contest circuit was the way to go. The only way to catch the eye of an agent or editor. Careers were launched that way (I can think of two off the top of my head).

But things changed. The world changed. The industry changed.

Michelle Miles: NaNo

I’m participating in NaNoWriMo this year. I mean like really participating. Not just signing up and then ignoring my book for the next 30 days.

(For those who may not know, NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month during November where you write 50,000 in 30 days AND survive the Thanksgiving holiday!)

Anyway…I decided to get off my duff and start working on book two in my Dragon Protectors series. I really hadn’t intended to start writing that book yet but when I put the first one up for preorder and it started getting a good response, I figured I better get on it. I even went so far as to go ahead and upload a preorder over at Draft2Digital and gave myself six months to complete it and get it ready for sale.

Michelle Miles: Crafty Crafts

I’ve been in a bad funk with the writing lately (mostly ignoring it) so I decided to turn my attention elsewhere.

Most of you know I do other crafts. I opened my first Etsy shop to sell my handmade cross-stitch ornaments. I stitch A LOT of Santa faces. They are so cute. But I’m expanding and doing other little ornaments.

Stuff like this:

And this:

Michelle Miles: Living in a Fishbowl

I had a recent experience on Facebook that has me questioning my very existence on Facebook.

My post was somewhat controversial, though I had no intention of it being that way, and generated over 170 comments (don’t bother looking for it; the post is no longer available for public consumption). It was merely my observation of the double standard that exists in our world. What’s good for the goose is sometimes not good for the gander.

When we put ourselves on social media, and post things that are considered hot topics, we unwittingly invite these people into our world. If our thought or opinion doesn’t align with theirs, then we’re open for attack. Everyone and everything comes under careful scrutiny by people who know better and people who have no problem telling us about it.

Michelle Miles: May Day

It's May! Can you believe how fast it got here? Seems like we were just celebrating New Years Day.

May is probably one of the best months of the year (besides October - I love Fall!). Lots of fun stuff happens in May. My birthday. My husband's birthday. Mother's Day. Memorial Day Weekend. The end of school. It's a busy month for sure.

And this year, we have a royal wedding to look forward to! I can't wait. I enjoy following the royals from their wedding to the birth of their children.

I had a blog post all written and ready to post but after re-reading it (and after my cool down period), I decided it was far too snarky. And so here I am talking about May 1/Beltane while The Fifth Element plays in the background.

I like May even if it is the official beginning of our hot Texas summers. There's lots of shopping happening during the month and cake and ice cream. That just can't be beat.

What do you love about May?

Michelle Miles: New Quarter…NEW GOALS! Sorta…

It’s really hard for me to get it in my head that it’s April. APRIL! The first three months of the year are gone in a puff of smoke. 

I think I’ve mentioned before I have this journal I use daily to keep me on track for my goals. I discovered, too, long ago that it’s too hard for me to plan an entire year of goals. With the Best Self, it breaks down the year into 13-week increments. I set three goals for those 13 weeks. They can be anything I want. So, because I want to produce more books and get myself out of debt, I decided to start tracking these goals.

Michelle Miles: Let's talk crafts

I had a hard time coming up with something to blog about. I’m not sure what my mental block is with blogging lately, but I literally stare into space and then … I got nothin’.

I thought about talking about the Oscars but, let’s face it, they were #OscarsSoBoring. I was glad to see Gary Oldman and Sam Rockwell win. The Shape of Water just looks weird to me and I doubt I’ll ever see it.

There’s not much else going on in my life other than writing, editing and stitching. I’ve started an Etsy shop and I’ve been stitching my little fingers to the bone. I make cross-stitched Christmas ornaments. If you follow me on Facebook, you likely have seen me post progress photos of them. They’re fun and they give me a sense of accomplishment because I can finish one in about a week.

I’m also trying to teach myself how to crochet. I have no idea why other than I saw the most gorgeous crocheted blanket on Facebook. It looks like this:

Michelle Miles: Dream Big

Oh, hello, there. It’s 2018.

Last year was trying in a lot of ways for lots of people including me. I had a lot of changes on the job front and the home front. But that’s all in the past and I’m ready to move forward in the new year.

I wrote a lot in 2017 but some of it hasn’t made it to publication yet. I finished three novels, one a major revision, one new and as-yet unpublished and one published and for sale (On the Hunt for the Wizard King).

I’ve made some career decisions for 2018 regarding the books and have decided to phase out all the contemporary romances on January 20. They’ll be gone and permanent out of print. I may do something with them someday, but for now, they’re all going away. It wasn’t an easy decision, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized those books are not really part of my brand anymore.

Michelle Miles: New Release!

I’m going to use this space for my shameless self-promotion.

On Friday, December 1, the second book in my Age of Wizards series released. ON THE HUNT FOR THE WIZARD KING is out for public consumption. I’m so insanely excited about this book. It took me nearly a year to write because these books are long and complex. But I’m happy with the way it turned out and I think readers will enjoy Sunnie and Caleb’s story.

Michelle Miles: RHS Marching Band State Bound!

Excuse me while I have a Mom Brag Moment.

Most of you know my son is in band. He plays bass trombone. For the band kids, their summer is over at the end of July when they start practice for the upcoming marching season. These practices are intense, let me tell you.

Before school starts at the end of August, they are out there from 8-11 am and then 1-4 pm and every other day 6-9 pm. DAILY. Then school and football starts. By the end of September, there are competitions every weekend with practice after school almost every day.

These kids work so hard. They are so incredibly talented, too.

On October 28, they had Area UIL Marching Competition. It was cold that day and windy but the husband and I were there watching and freezing. They did great in prelims and made finals. So back we went that evening. We sat through all 7 bands that night and FROZE OUR BUTTS OFF.

But it was worth it. Richland High School was not only named Grand Champions, but advanced to UIL State Marching! The last time the band advanced was back in 2012, so this is a pretty big deal. Birdville HS also advanced. We’re hoping to see both school in the finals.

Their marching show is awesome. I love watching them perform. The band directors are incredible and its obvious they love their jobs (and the kids!). It’s proof that all that hard work has paid off and they have achieved something only 35 other bands in their division have achieved.

They perform Wednesday, November 8 at 3:45 pm in San Antonio. I’ll be cheering and watching via the live stream. A lot of hours of practice and rehearsal have gone into this show and I just know they’re going to kill it. Go Rebels! 

Michelle Miles: How to become more productive in your daily life

I don’t often recommend products. When I do, it has to be something I truly, whole-heartedly believe in. I’m not a sales person (as evidenced by my own sucky book sales LOL) by any stretch. I’ve tried to sell jewelry and Avon but I’m…just…not cut out for that.

But there is one thing that has transformed me. Not just my writing life, but my life in general. I love to journal but sometimes those blank pages can be daunting. I love setting goals but I can never figure out how to achieve those goals. One of my big goals is to write full time, but I never really sat down to figure out what steps I had to do to make that happen. I mean, I know I need to write books. But how does that break down into achievable steps to get there?

One day I was skimming through my Facebook feed, as you do, and I kept seeing this sponsored ad over and over again. It hadn’t really stopped to look at it until one day, finally, I paused and really looked at the ad. It was for a journal, but a journal designed to help you reach you goals.

Huh. I was intrigued. I followed the link to the Facebook page here.

And then I ended up on their website.

Michelle Miles: Let's have some fun

Okay so. It's my day to blog and I got nothin'. It's been a whirlwind last month with the kid turning 16 (!!!) and marching band and everything else I have going on. So let's have some fun.

Here's a picture of my cat:

Caption it.

OR tell me a story about your favorite pet.

And go!

Michelle Miles: Never Tell Me The Odds

Whoa. It's August. Hard to believe July is in the rear view mirror!

It's been a hectic one. The kiddo started driving for reals and I have significantly more gray hair. I started a new job in June. Summer band camp started. School starts August 21! And so beginneth the crazy marching season. I'm gonna be a crazy person by the time football/marching season is all over but that is TOTALLY okay. You know why? Because I love it. I *love* marching season!!

Yeah, I'm a nerd.

And to prove it further, the IT folks over at the new day job know it's for sure because I have the Millennium Falcon on my desktop and Daenerys as my login picture. It's a great icebreaker. "You a Game of Thrones fan?" Well, duh. "AND a Star Wars fan?" Double, duh.

I have this really cool Medieval Star Wars art up on my wall in my cubicle and it garners all sorts of comments. It basically combines two of my very most favorite things: Star Wars and the Middle Ages.

I stare at it often.

Happy Independence Day!

Photo Credit: Pexels.com

Happy Independence Day!

Here in the States, we're celebrating our independence. It's a day off for most of us. A day for BBQ and fireworks and family time. The kid, husband and I are grilling hamburgers and hot dogs. We are likely skipping the fireworks because it's 1000 degrees outside and the crowds...oh, the crowds. I have a big problem with a million people crammed within two square miles oohing and aahing at the sky. Don't get me wrong, I love the fireworks but I hate the crowds and the five hours it takes to get home from said fireworks.

So we're gonna hang at the house and stuff ourselves silly. There is even homemade banana pudding in our future. We're going to watch some baseball and feel 100% all American.

Photo Credit: Michelle Miles

Oh and before I sign off... the most patriotic thing I've done in my life was watching the lighting of the faces at Mt. Rushmore while singing God Bless America and the Star Spangled Banner. There was so much national pride bubbling up in me, I nearly burst. Totally serious, y'all.

What's the most patriotic thing you've ever done?

Michelle Miles: What's your inspiration?

I don't really have a lot to blog about lately. I'm kind of in a funk. My day job is a stressful mess at the moment and when I have that sort of disruption, it really messes with my writing chi.

So I look for inspiration elsewhere. I'm fond of gardens. I have a Pinterest board devoted to them. I constantly find fun and new pictures to pin. I found this one this morning:

It fuels my imagination. And then of course, there's the art by Anne Stokes. She's amazing!

I just love her dragons.

My awesome husband is in the process of building a deck for the gazebo I had to have. I have big ideas for it. It includes a curved flagstone pathway leading up to with purple ground cover planted between the stones. I bought lights for around the top. In my wild imagination it looks like this:

I'm not sure if it will turn out like this, but I hope it does. :) Pinterest and I are good friends. Can you tell?

So what fuels your inspiration? What makes you happy and sooths the soul?

Michelle Miles: 1001 Movies

There’s a really cool book called 1001 Movies. I have it. Because I’m a dork like that. The book is 960 pages of Moviedom, complete with a handy checklist at the front.  (It also helped the cover has Indiana Jones on it – my first true love.)

I spent two hours perusing it. It’s jam-packed with photos, a little synopsis of each movie and opinions by contributions, starting with a silent movie released in 1902: Le Voyage Dans La Lune (a.k.a. A Trip To The Moon). I can personally say I’ve never laid eyes on this movie but there are some iconic pictures that are widely recognizable. The Moon with the missile-like spaceship right in its eye, for example. According to the book, the movie “represents a revolution for the time” and clocks in at only 14 minutes. But at the turn of the century, there weren’t movie theaters like what we have today.

Michelle Miles: Bring it on, 2017

Another year as come and gone and most of us are happy 2016 is in the rearview mirror. The celebrity world lost a lot of great entertainers this year and, well...it sucked. I’m still reeling after the deaths of Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds. It was like seeing my childhood flash before my eyes.

But I don’t want to dwell on that. I want to look forward instead of back and thinking about the future year ahead. We have just over 360 days to make it a great year.

I’m really not into making resolutions but I do like to set goals for the year. Last year my big goal was completing, editing and publishing IN THE TOWER OF THE WIZARD KING. I also wanted to re-release some of my titles that had reverted to me from a previous publisher. I’m happy to report I was able to release all five of them and relieved to be out from under that horrible publisher. You can catch all the REALM OF HONOR titles and WIZARD KING at your favorite retailer. *shameless plug*