I Finished Writing a Book

Autumn is upon us and I would like all of the applause, please.

This week, I submitted a new middle grade mystery, a book that really meant a lot to me for personal and creative reasons. It’s told partly in an epistolary format, a la Rachel Riley, and I got to a certain kind of mental place writing it that you always hope to get to as a writer. It’s that place where you feel as if you aren’t really writing the book, but it’s being told to you. It sounds very woo-woo and is hard to explain unless you’ve been there, but you don’t get there for every project, and it’s hard to describe the bliss of sipping an almond milk cold brew while transcribing what your characters are whispering to you1.

It’s also hard to describe the bliss of being done. For now.

Fall in our house also means soccer, ballet, piano—dinner is often anything I can throw in an air fryer and nobody’s cleaned the master bathroom in at least three weeks. The children’s dressers are still filled with shorts and tank tops. There are multiple pumpkin crafts due at school. This house needs a mother, and it needs one quickly.

I’m forcing myself to go on slow walks around my neighborhood and check out the growth of the mushrooms. I’m making cinnamon rolls from scratch. I made an eye doctor appointment. The things of life that aren’t glamorous or sparkly, but make up our day-to-day rhythms. I come from the midwest and have many family members in healthcare; the idea of taking a bit of time to simply exhale is itchy. But creative jobs can’t simply foster an environment that pumps out content. The times of slow growth are also part of the gig, since they’re where the ideas begin to merge and burst and transform. Or as often says, we’re gardens, not machines.

Also, now that this draft of Mr. Cooper Didn’t Do It is off to my editor at HarperCollins, I can throw myself into promo efforts for the two (!!!) books I have coming out in 2026. The truth is that a) I’m a wee bit anxious about over promoting because I’m well aware it’s obnoxious and b) I’m really proud of both of these books, which I want to do well and c) my adult book still doesn’t have a final title or cover because for the first time in my entire career, we’re having a hard time coming together to find one. Every time we land, a new person doesn’t like it and we have to start over. Sometimes that person has been me. Everyone has opinions which is a fantastic sign that people care about the book’s success, but these are the moments when you kind of want to stomp your foot and have to remember you’re an adult with a job, not an elementary schooler playing with scissors and glue. I have every drop of faith in the world that we’ll come up with something that works but in the meantime, it makes me antsy and it makes promotion difficult. (You can actually already add it on GoodReads—just know that the title isn’t finalized!)

I also have an idea for a new book brewing and it’s in that sweetest of spots: the playlist place, the daydreamy place, the character creation place. It’s nowhere near ready to be formulated or put in any kind of synopsis for my agent, it’s just a project that occupies my mind during long drives or soccer practices. There’s nothing like those new-book butterflies to roll in while baking up an apple tart or admiring the way my orange mums have burst open.

In other news, one of my favorite publishing substacks, , had a really interesting take on this article that was everywhere this week. Essentially, the Walrus article makes the case that publishing should stop being so uber focused on an author’s sales track, and while Kathleen doesn’t disagree, she adds a lot of important context.

All of the caveats: I have a very limited experience in publishing to speak from. I’m a fiction author in both the adult and children’s space—not a publicist, not an agent, not an editor. To be honest, all of those jobs sound like my worst nightmares.

But I will say that something I appreciate about Kathleen’s take is that it acknowledges the often-forgotten fact that publishing is a business. Yes, there are a lot of emotions involved. Yes, there’s a lot of creative people working together. AND: it actually does make sense that a bookstore, which operates at extremely tight margins, is hesitant to order large copies of a book when the author’s last book flopped. I say this as someone who has had major career highs (What Happened to Rachel Riley accounts for, no exaggeration, 2/3 of my book sales—it made lots of state lists, was an indie bestseller, won awards, got me recognized once at the zoo in front of my kids making me feel like Beyonce, etc.) and major career lows (my debut released in May 2020. I’ll let you do the math.) I have BEEN THERE where you are thinking but it’s not my FAULT this book didn’t do well! And this new book I wrote is really, really good! and someone is kind of squinting at you curiously.

At the end of the day, like I mentioned above: we are adults doing a job. There has to be some sort of business sense bopping around in our heads. And I don’t agree with the constant barrage of doom-sayers insisting that one rough track record will kill you forever. That’s not been my experience at all. I have a slow-and-steady-wins-the-race approach due to circumstances of my life (being a mom in small town WI and not a billionaire)—local connections, school visits, lots of blabbering online, supporting other authors, growing my craft with each book, doing small talks at local libraries where I sell 10-15 books. And it’s working, for the most part. It’s paying off. It just doesn’t look fancy-pants.

There’s a push in this industry to be as flashy as humanly possible, especially right out the gate. But if you want to flourish as an author as your career, you need to think bigger than the sales track behind you or the book ahead of you.

On November 15, I’ll be speaking in Rhinelander, WI at Rhinelander District Library at 11:30 AM, following their local author fair. This event is free and open to the public. I’ll be talking about the creation, cookbookery, and chaos behind The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County, as well as signing books. See you there!

I’m also excited to be a featured writer at next year’s Winona Christian Writers Conference in Winona, IN. Registration is opening soon—mark your calendars! I attended last summer as an attendee and absolutely loved it. It’s a small, cozy conference with lots of writing, reading, and face time with incredible authors.

Two reminders for Each and Every Spark:

The first is that personalized signed preorders are available at my local bookstore, Books and Company. They’re available to be shipped nationally. The book releases 2/17/26.

The second is that I am almost booked for the year for school visits. I do have a bit of availability remaining in January, February, and March.

Why bring an author to your school? Having an author speak to students is the perfect way to get kids excited about books and reading. My presentation on the six R’s of writing, which I’ve given 50+ times to thousands of students, is the perfect way to demonstrate to your students the importance of reading, (w)riting, research, revision, reviews, and resilience in a way that’s accessible and entertaining. My Create a Character workshop has helped hundreds of school kids get creative and brainstorm writing projects of their own. With the launch of Each and Every Spark, I’m also offering deep dives into historical fiction, teaching kids how historical writers live, breathe, and dream within their chosen time periods—using fun research methods to help them craft engaging stories.

These presentations can be customized for various grade ranges and group sizes, and I also offer a special presentation specifically designed for Christian schools if requested2.

If you’re within driving distance of 53089 and are willing to partner with a local bookstore to sell copies of Each and Every Spark, I am offering a massive discount in February/March (the most affordable my visits have ever been). Reach out ASAP if interested! I can absolutely travel further, but am not able to offer the sale discount to schools outside of WI or IL.

This book tackles some heavy themes, but they’re important. I believe fiction is one of the safest, most fulfilling place to tackle tough issues with kids. I hope Each and Every Spark makes its way into your classroom libraries. I’m so grateful if it does. 🖤

And lastly, a book (or two) I’ve loved lately for…

Picture book fans: We’re major Hector Fox fans in these parts, and we loved cozying up to Hector Fox and the Raven’s Revenge by Astrid Sheckels this month. The illustrations are second to none and it’s just the definition of cozy!

Middle graders: I absolutely loved How to Tell a True Story by Tricia Springstubb. It has very Kate in Between vibes if you’re a fan of that one—a girl’s brother goes viral for saving her from a fire, but there’s a lot more to the story for her to discover. Also great commentary on parents separating as well as friendship troubles.

My kids recommend: Benjamin (9) is blowing through every single one of the Mac B, Kid Spy books by . These were recommended by for kids who are huge graphic novel fans and can sometimes get bored with more text, and I so appreciated the rec because these are funny, captivating, and well written. Tess (7) is currently having The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien read aloud to her by her dad and I hear quite a bit about dragons and dwarves every night. Bridget (4) would like to give a nod to Who Goes There? by Karma Wilson with illustrations by Anna Currey. She’s inherited her mother’s adoration for all picture books starring mice, clearly.

Adults: I read Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall after having it recommended by two different friends and my mom. It features quite a few unlikable characters but it definitely stuck with me, and the writing is beautiful. Basically, a farmer’s wife’s high school sweetheart returns to town and chaos ensues, but it’s much deeper than the Hallmark vibes you might get from that description.

Thanks for reading along!

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