New Horizons by Susan Sands

I feel like I'm turning a page. Yes, I know the COVID is still all around me, and the year is still 2020. But I've survived the virus, thankfully, and I'm on my way to hopefully working with a new agent and getting the books of my heart published. Books set in my home state of Louisiana. My very first ones. They won't be exactly the same. But it's been a dream of mine to do these stories and see them come to life--finally.

No details yet, but. I can already see the covers--kind of. I've got a Cajun cookout menu already planned for the first book release. Red beans and rice with smoked sausage, crawfish etouffee, and crusty French bread with butter. Bread pudding with a vanilla glaze. So, yeah, I've been dreaming about these books in every aspect for years.

My new website will go live in a few days, and it's a beauty! I'm hoping to use it for my latest news instead of doing a newsletter. It's an experiment to see how many people will follow for giveaways, etc. There is going to be a giveaway as soon as it goes live, so be on the lookout at susansands.com.

Right now, it's still the old WordPress site, but it will switch over soon.

I'm focused on what I can control right now. Yes, I'm worried about the world. Very. But I'm mostly staying home and writing. I'm wishing you all good health, both mental and physical. 

I'm always available to writers who have questions, or who I can help. I will always try.

Have a fantastic day, or try to. Keep trying to. Love to all!

Susan Sands

Celebrating Human Spirit: Susan Sands

The hurricane in Texas and parts of Louisiana brought devastation to so many of our fellow humans this past week. I've worried about family and friends in both states this week. My people are safe, but

they are not dry. They've lost homes and possessions. Several are elderly and face rebuilding. Some are currently in shelters.

I grew up in Louisiana, but lived in Texas as a young child. Some of my earliest memories are of Hurricane Celia in Corpus Christi, Texas blowing away my swing-set as we peeked out the window after hiding in a closet under mattresses. When Category five Hurricane Andrew blew into Louisiana's coast, I was pregnant with my first child, and we lived in New Orleans at the time. We evacuated inland to Donaldsonville, La. to avoid a direct hit. Unfortunately, Andrew changed course and hit us spot on. It was the scariest twenty-four hours of our lives. When we emerged the next day, it looked like an atomic bomb had gone off all around. The tall grasses were sideways from the wind. It didn't carry with it the same kind of rainfall that Harvey did, but the winds and destruction went on for miles. Katrina hit after I moved away, but it displaced a large number of family members as well. Hurricane Rita hit my hometown and caused damage on my parent's property several years ago. So, I am somewhat of a weather freak. I watch it on television with the same intensity as the Game of Thrones season finale.

I am utterly amazed and horrified at the sheer devastation and flooding of homes and businesses Harvey has wrought. But I'm also heartened by the human spirit and the way people from every background have pulled together and continue to help one another.

Consider any form of help you have to offer the victims. They will need assistance for some time. Certainly, keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

Susan

New Year -- New Books by Susan Sands

Hello All! I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday season. We celebrated Christmas in our household, just barely. We nearly missed most of it due to my trying to finish writing the new book. I'd promised to have this baby finished by the end of the year, but too late I realized that the end of the year involved writing during Christmas vacation, which also included time normally set aside for decorating, shopping and cooking. Oh, and I'd made plans to travel between Christmas and New Years. So, yeah, Christmas was a near miss.

For the first time ever, the only decor we had in our house was a lovely tree decorated by my sixteen-year-old daughter (she did a fantastic job), and the gifts purchased in haste on Christmas Eve by yours truly. We did manage to make our traditional homemade cookies somewhere between my manuscript completion on the 23rd and Christmas Day.

Sufficed to say, I don't recommend an end-of-year deadline, self-imposed, or otherwise when you have competing loyalties.

I'm now in Louisiana with my parents for a few days enjoying the food and my hometown. Yesterday it was seventy-five degrees; today it's forty. My suitcase contents don't reflect the changes in temperature, sadly. 

As unprepared as I was for the change in weather here, I'm more than ready for all the exciting changes the new year holds as I prepare for the release of my second novel from Tule Publishing. I can't wait to share the details as they are finalized. I can say that this book is a connected  story to my first, Again, Alabama, and our target date is sometime in April.

I hope you all have a wonderful new year with lots to look forward to and celebrate!

Susan Sands

e-mail snsands@gmail.com

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/susannsandsauthor

Twitter: @SusanNoelSands

Blog:  Sweet Home Alpharetta at: http://susansands.com