Book at the beach - Kandy Shepherd

Look at that lucky book of mine! I wish I were sitting on that beach towel with it in beautiful Byron Bay in northern New South Wales.

Sadly no such luck—A Diamond in Her Stocking is with my daughter as she takes a break from her university studies. It’s summer Down Under and the long summer vacation still stretches out in front of her. She’s having so much fun I doubt any reading is being done!

Meanwhile I’m at home writing. I had three books for Harlequin Romance released in 2014 and hopefully the same number for 2015. That’s why I’m writing, writing, writing and not lying on the beach. But I’m also rejoicing that I work from home, my time is my own and I’m doing what I always wanted to do—writing romance.

When I left my “day job” I thought I was sliding into semi-retirement when what I really did was head into another fulfiling job. It was a change I’m so very glad I made.

I’m not great on New Year resolutions. It’s a tad too embarrassing when the year rolls on and the ridiculously unachievable resolutions still haven’t happened. But I find the new year is a good time to think about change.

This year I really am thinking about making regular exercise an indispensable part of my daily routine in response to all this time sitting in front of the computer. So far, so good because it’s summer I’m able to swim which is no hardship at all! (I just wish I was at that beach with my book!)

Have you got change in mind for this year? Or did you make a change last year that turned out for the best?

Whatever you live you live in the world, whether the new year starts in winter of summer I hope you’re enjoying a fresh start to 2015!

Kandy’s third Dolphin Bay story for Harlequin Romance, A Diamond in Her Stocking, was a December 2014 release and is available now.

Kandy Shepherd is an award-winning author of contemporary romance and women’s fiction. She lives on a small farm in the Blue Mountains near Sydney, Australia, with her family and a menagerie of four-legged friends.