This weekend has been 😩 Thu: torrential rainstorm=basement flooding (claim #1) Fri: delayed flight to Chi for son Sat: torrential rainstorm that caused street flooding (soaking a car, claim #2) Sun: cancelled flight home for son=3 round trips to airport in a 10-hour period Calgon, take me away!

Chicago Navy Pier fireworks were a huge disappointment - too foggy to see anything. But the amazing people of Chicago who were illegally parked on LSD saved the day with their own fireworks. Solid metaphor - when govt fails, the people save the day.

It’s ALIVE!!!! www.32auctions.com/organization...

Sooo…we got 6 inches of rain in an hour last night…and most of it ended up in my basement. 🫣😩😭

We are at Summerfest in Milwaukee and Mr. Ridgefield is a marketer’s dream. Every booth, every person hawking wares…he’s 100% engaged. Of course, it does benefit me, as I’m currently sitting in the ViP area at the TMobile stage. Lol

I’m heading to Summerfest Milwaukee tomorrow (yay Muse!), so if my book Under the Influencer becomes a chaotic Buy It Now for the Romancing the Vote auction…PLEASE BUY IT. I’m having imposter syndrome by including my debut novel. Don’t let it die on the vine, please!😭

THE ICE CREAM TRUCK IS IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD!

Daaaaaaaaaayummmmmmm

This has been my day with #RomancingtheVote. Send help, wallet is sweating.

Holy shit. @RomancingtheVote hit its goal in precisely (checks watch) SEVENTY-EIGHT MINUTES.

I'm fairly certain that there are more people bidding on the @romancingthevote auction than the sum total of attendees at the Great American State Fair. My son took this photo around 6 pm yesterday.

Oh no...I made a terrible mistake and added the Samuel Alito talk by @courtneymilan.com to my watchlist and now my email is blowing up. @romancingthevote.com

I'm telling you -- this auction is not for the faint-hearted. In less than 10 minutes I was outbid on all my proxy bids and am now in the process of taking out a HELOC

The #RomancingtheVote Auction is OPEN, baby! #Romancelandia, time to support democracy and voting rights and get sweet, sweet auction items. #booksky www.32auctions.com/romancingthevote2026

Aaaaaah! It’s almost here! At some point, the Fickle Finger of Fate will offer up some Buy It Now copies of “Under the Influencer” for your reading pleasure! If you see one/snag one, please let me know (as I have no clue when they’re dropping). ☺️😍

Romancelandia comes together for some amazing things, and the Romancing the Vote auction is one of its shining moments. Thank you to all the volunteers, esp. Bree and Courtney. Hours of effort for such an important event.

#Indieauthors -- let's do a Summer Road Trip. Post the setting of your most recent novel, real or fictional, and see how many cities, states, countries, planets or fictional destinations we can visit. I'll go first -- Killathay, Ireland (fictional) #booksky

One of my favorite people is in the middle of reading "Under the Influencer." We have similar-aged adult children, and she just got to a very spicy scene and texted me: "I would crawl under a rock and never come out if my boys read this and I was the author." Ha! Mission accomplished.

This has to be one of the most magical things you can buy in the @romancingthevote.com auction...someone will read your words and call your book pretty. 😍

Musk says not a single person has died due to him axing USAID. Sadly, part of my job involves tracking aid spending. So here’s a thread with just some of the people who lost their lives because of USAID cuts

If you're into NOT helping billionaires destroy our planet just for the fun of enriching themselves further and you STILL want to buy a book...Under the Influencer is available on bookshop. org which supports indie bookstores. bookshop.org/a/124374/979...

I'm a huge, huge supporter of Romancing the Vote, and this year, I finally get to donate copies of my own novel -- Under the Influencer -- as part of it. Every citizen has the right to vote!

Good for Rakuten Kobo!

I'm on the hunt for a few romance readers who like spicy, slow burn destination romances for the Red Door Cottage Review Team on Booksprout! booksprout.co/reviewer/tea...

If you dream of writing a book, find a community. A place where you can learn, try, fail and succeed with support. It can be in person or online, formal or informal. Some of the best formal writing groups cost less than $3/month. Casual meetups can be free. Do it. Invest in your dream. #amwriting

Author friends…what’s five books versus voter rights? You know the drill!

Illinois launches free statewide digital library for all residents: www.wrex.com/news/educati...

Trying to play in the Booktok playground when you're in your mid-fifties is like trying to visit a foreign country with just a phrasebook. I know I'm not getting it exactly right, I'm emphasizing the wrong syllables, but you generally get what I'm trying to say. #GenXtok

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CHICAGO AREA READERS -- I'll be doing my first book event to support UNDER THE INFLUENCER at the Noble Capybara bookstore in Lisle, IL on June 6. This is the first of two local author fairs, and I would love to have you come out. Drop me a note to say you're coming and I'll have a treat for you!

It's my book birthday today! 😍 My first published book at age 53. That feels both old and still so young. Anyone who feels like they might be starting too late, ignore those negative voices (especially those inside your own head). I can't explain the rush it feels to see my book in the world. ☺️

In less than 12 hours, my debut novel, "Under the Influencer" will be available. I'm beyond excited -- and can't wait for readers to discover this travel nightmare cozy (and spicy!) romance. So why do I feel like I wanna throw up????? 😂

We are ONE WEEK away from when you can get your hands on UNDER THE INFLUENCER. Finish up your to-do list, find a babysitter, drop the dog at doggy daycare. Whatever it takes to make time for you to meet my grumpy, sexy Irishman, Finn Malloy.

Was able to meet up with a bunch of amazing writer friends this weekend, and the discussion of author events...from bookstores, to reader events, to breweries and pop up markets -- are we too saturated with too many places to sell books?

It's MAY....which means my debut contemporary romance novel "Under the Influencer" will be out MAY 12! Bridget is a wannabe influencer who gets the gig of a lifetime traveling to Ireland. When her cottage is more nightmare than dream house, Finn (her driver) has an idea to help them both.

Can't believe that tomorrow is May -- the month my debut romance novel UNDER THE INFLUENCER is published!

Heading to @chicagonorthrw.bsky.social ‘s SPRING FLING tomorrow!! But I have some tough decisions about which sessions to attend in person and which to watch online after the fact. 😭

The world is bananas...but here's one of the baby bunnies in my yard, doing his first hops around 😍🐰

Are you ready to meet Finn and Bridget? UNDER THE INFLUENCER is coming on May 12!

Hey you. Yes, you. Remember when you said you would take your writing seriously this year? You started out with such good intentions? THIS IS YOUR SIGN TO PICK IT BACK UP! Register for Spring Fling and I'll even throw in this handy-dandy discount code. DO IT. Your writing deserves it!

Hey algorithm...find me new romance writers. I want to tell them that @chicagonorthrw.bsky.social is a great place to learn, connect and thrive as a writer. Membership is the cheapest around...$35. You get free admission to monthly meetings taught by a wealth of experts on craft, publishing, etc.

So, looking back, I had great writing hopes for 2025. I had an agent, I had good feedback on my manuscript, I told people they could read my book soon. ....things happened. 😂 But I start 2026 with a renewed determination. This book is good, and it will see the light of day!

YES! I'm all registered for the Chicago North Romance Writers SPRING FLING 2026! Who's going to join me? EARLY BIRD PRICING ENDS SOON!!!! www.chicagonorthromancewriters.com/spring-fling

This.

Contemporary romance indie authors - trying to decide between KDP, IngramSpark, Draft2Digital and Barnes & Noble for self publishing. Leaning toward KDP, but would love to hear your thoughts! #indiepublishing #writingromance #amwriting

One of the best writing conferences around for romance writers! Registration just opened with early bird pricing, and you can choose in-person or online! (But I hope you choose in-person so we can meet!) #amwriting #writingromance #chicagospringfling

Authors of #Romancelandia! In an attempt to get a jump on Bookstore Romance Day planning for 2026, I have opened up the author registration form. This information is shared w/bookstores who want to do events for BRD & for Bookstore Romance Day-presented virtual panels & events. Link in next post.

Today's the LAST DAY to submit a workshop proposal for Chicago-North Romance Writers' SPRING FLING conference in April 2026. You won't want to miss it!

If the #StuffYourEReader event is too much to sift through -- @fatedmates.net have done the legwork for you. Just added these to my TBR! #romance

For those who want to GET ALL THE BOOKS -- a bunch of freebies for you! It's #StuffYourEReader day!