Monthly Archives: October 2023

Writing update and signing up to NaNoWriMo 2023

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It hasn’t been that long since my last update back in July (see the post here), but I thought October was a good point in the year for another brief writing update.

I’ve been making some decisions over the last few days and feel positive about the future of my Mermaid Hotel series. Book 1 is currently with beta readers and I am embarking on a re-read myself. Once I’ve had some feedback, and made any changes, I hope to send off the whole book to a few publishers on the short list I’m currently compiling.

I do have some sad news for my fantasy readers. Starlight Prophecy is still on hold. I feel the whole series needs more time dedicated to it but my head and heart are too much into the romance books at the moment. I hope to look at it again towards Christmas time, it depends how my other plans go. Which leads me to…

I’m signing up to do NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) this year with not one, but two books!

I originally signed up to force myself to type of the draft I have of book 3. Because it is already partly written it felt like cheating, so I decided I would also try to increase the word count of book 2 – from 24k to 44k. Obviously it will still need a lot of work to reach the 90k mark I’m looking for, but I can’t set my sights too high for one month! Or can I?

Considering I’m working part time now, it may be a bit much of an ask to write 70k in a month, but I seem to work better to a deadline. After all, I did write and prepare to publish ‘A Christmas Wish’ in just 6 weeks last year. I guess I like a challenge.

On the reading side, I still have three books from netgalley / publishers to read and review by December so look out for some more reviews coming your way soon.

I’ve also played around with the colours and background on my website. Take a look and let me know what you think.

Now, I best get back to work planning for Nano and reading book 1. I’ll be back with another update before the end of the year.

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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic fantasy, heart-warming romance and short stories

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#Bookreview Countdown to Christmas by Jo Thomas #romance #christmasread #netgalley

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This is another great, feel good story from Jo Thomas.

The Blurb

Chloe can’t wait for Christmas . . . to be over! Her son Ruben is staying with his dad and Chloe is planning to ignore the holidays altogether. Her only festive touch is her son’s advent calendar, to help count down the days till he’s home again.

But a surprise call changes everything. Chloe might be the unexpected owner of some land in Canada! Surely, it’s a scam. Or could it be just the escape she needs right now? Ruben’s latest note in the advent calendar tells her to ‘say yes!’

In a flash, Chloe’s new countdown to Christmas involves a log cabin in the middle of a snowy forest, a community that’s worried for its future, a gruff lumberjack who gives her butterflies and a lot of pancakes with maple syrup . . .

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My Review


I loved the characters, the setting and the premise of counting down to Christmas via an advent calendar Chloe’s son made to help her get through the period without him. Although Ruben isn’t in the book that much, her 12-year-old son has a great impact on the story and I’m sure the readers.

As usual, food plays a main role (everything with maple syrup) and I learned something new about another part of the world and profession – tapping trees. The supporting cast were great, especially Bea at the diner and Theo as the rugged hero of the story. But I also loved the rogue turkey always chasing Chloe around.

I loved every minute of this book. I’m so pleased with the ending as well, wish I could say more but I don’t want to have spoilers in this review!

Thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for my ARC copy.

I hope you enjoy this festive book as much as I did. Let me know if you’ve read it, or if you plan to read it this season.

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#Bookreview Your Book Won’t Sell Itself by GJ Stevens #writingguide #indieauthor

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I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this book before it was released in May 2023. Life has got in the way of me reading it until now, but that is no reflection on the quality of the advice on offer.

This book is packed full of information that will help you on your indie publishing journey. It’s a practical guide on what you can expect along the way, drawing on GJ Stevens experiences.

It’s the kind of book I wish I’d had when I first started out. And for those who have experience, there are still many things you can learn. It’s always interesting to see the world of indie publishing through another author’s eyes, and compare techniques.

I like how the author has discussed the different software he uses and professional services that are available to help you with the process of writing and self publishing. It’s great to know you are not alone and that you can draw on experts for certain areas that may not be your strong point.

The take away from this book is anyone can do it. Go on, go for it!

This is a how-to guide I highly recommend to new writers, and those like me that have done it before but may be looking for some tips to improve the process.

Here’s the blurb.

A helpful guide for authors, whether established or just starting out.

Despite writing and publishing eight novels, two novellas and an array of short stories over ten years, I still remember how daunting it was to start with a blank page.

This book is intended as a guide for anyone thinking about writing a book or those who have written a book but its sales are stalling. Presented in two sections, we’ll take a journey through the writing process before delving into strategies to get your book in front of reader’s eyeballs.

Covering a range of topics, including the basics of writing, editing, cover design, blurbs and publishing, I pass on the many tips and tricks I’ve learnt along my journey to get you started and help prevent you from making costly mistakes.

I’ll introduce everything you need to know to get your books selling, from building your community on social media, advertising and selling in person, all with an aim to fast-track your sales with my tried and tested methods.

Here’s the book links

Amazon

Goodreads

And if you want some more information, GJ Stevens writes a weekly blog about his writing and marketing efforts here.

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