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January 2024

Welcome to the new year! This is Day 1 of your fresh start. A new page on the calendar — heck, a new calendar, because that’s often the way it goes — unless you’re one of those super-organised people who uses an 18-month planner 😵‍💫

Although some people bah-humbug the idea of starting over on some arbitrary day, I’m definitely a fan … as if you couldn’t already tell based on the stories I write. Life is cluttered and challenging enough, so why not take any reasonable opportunity to look to the future?

But I’m not doing too well at that right now. There are things from the past that keep tugging on my sleeve, begging for some acknowledgement. So, in the interest of decluttering so I can move forward, I’d like to share them with you today:

First: My favourite film from last year was just named The Guardian’s Best Film of 2023. It’s a Korean-American romantic drama called Past Lives, about a budding romance that never found its way suddenly resurfacing in adulthood. It explores themes of trust, connection, identity, and the simmering tension of walking in two worlds. For anyone into deep, moving love stories, be sure to have tissues and a drink of water nearby.

I’m not sure what 2024’s favourite film will be, but if it’s even half as good as this one, it’ll be amazing.

Second: The Guy from the Wedding is still on my radar, despite hoping I’d be able to release it last year. What was supposed to be the final revision unearthed structural problems that detracted from the story and characters. I was stuck for ages, trying to figure out how to fix them, only figuring it out in the final days before Christmas.

I’m excited to be back on track with this book again, and will hopefully get it to my beta readers by March.

Finally: My garden has been struggling in the heat 🥵 The summer warmth hit Perth in spring this year — or should I say Birak seemed to hit during late Djilba. Starting the new with with last year’s kangaroo paw looking worse for wear feels a little sad, but I’m hoping it’ll pick up again if we can keep it alive until Djeran.

What’s giving me a lot of hope right now is that we appear to have an adorable Laughing Turtle Dove settling into our garden. He’s still too skittish to let me close enough for a photo, but has visited often and seems happy to walk where we’ve stepped when we’re out of sight. I hope he stays and manages to keep away from the neighbourhood cats (who are also adorable).

Thank you for reading my little musings in your inbox. If you feel like sharing too, send me a little reply! I’d love to know what’s lingering from your past and what your hopes are for the year ahead ☕️

From friends and around the way

Brights, Broken Things by Linda Shantz
She’s dreading a future that was never her choice. He’s racing cross-country, looking for a safe place to land. They both want the same thing: to leave the past behind.

The Audition Curse
Pippa loves Jude's soaring voice, and Jude is won over by Pippa's effervescent personality. But this all comes falling down when he learns Pippa's big secret: she has an audition curse.

A Contemporary Romance Book Fair
Clean and sweet contemporary romances.

Start the new year with a bang!
An all-genre book fair. Ends 1st Feb.

New Year, New Reads
An all-genre book giveaway. Ends 31st Jan.

You might enjoy this too:

An interesting anecdote from sweet romance author Vida Li Sik:

Here in Africa, there is an interesting custom to pay lobola—a dowry for the bride based on her education, job and skills. This age-old tradition is meant to build a bridge between the two families, but it’s a process that can become quite stressful when the woman’s family sets the “price of cows” too high. These days, there is even an app to help you calculate how much a bride is worth!

Read the rest: Some things you can’t duck.**

By the way, reviews are a huge help to small-time indie authors. Both good reviews and bad ones help readers hone in on the books and authors they resonate with. If you've enjoyed one of my books, I'd love it if you would leave me a review or star rating on BookBub or Goodreads.

The Guy from the Internet - BookBub - Goodreads

The Guy from the Park - BookBub - Goodreads

The Guy from the Flower Shop - BookBub - Goodreads

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