Finding Me Launch

It’s hard to believe I can finally say this: Finding Me releases October 13!

I started working on this story in 2009. Yes—2009. Seventeen years ago, Finding Me was an idea and a collection of characters beginning to take shape in my imagination. I had no idea then how long the journey would be—or how much I would learn along the way.

The book has been through numerous developmental edits, rewrites, revisions, cuts, additions, and plenty of moments when I thought, “I finally have it!”—only to discover there was another layer of the story waiting to be uncovered.

One of the biggest changes in my writing came when I began studying story structure more seriously. Dwight V. Swain’s Scene and Sequel method helped me understand the rhythm of a novel. A Scene moves the story forward through goal, conflict, and disaster, while a Sequel gives the character—and the reader—time to process what happened through reaction, dilemma, and decision. That decision then launches the next goal, and the story keeps moving.

I also discovered screenwriter and story consultant Michael Hauge’s Six-Stage Plot Structure. His approach helped me look at the bigger picture: where the major turning points belonged, how a character’s outer journey connects with their inner journey, and how those two arcs work together to create an emotionally satisfying story.

Those techniques eventually became the structural foundation not only for Finding Me, but for the entire Lake Tearas Trilogy.

And then came another tremendous gift: signing a three-book contract with Scrivenings Press.

I feel incredibly fortunate to work with their editorial team. They are thorough. They notice things I’ve stopped seeing because I’ve lived with these characters for so long. They ask hard questions, point out places where I can dig deeper, and continually push me to make the story—and my writing—the best it can be. I appreciate them more than I can say.

After all these years, Finding Me is almost out in the world.

I’m excited. I’m grateful. And, if I’m being completely truthful, it still feels a little surreal.

A story I began in 2009 will finally become a published novel on October 13, 2026.

It’s been a long time coming—and I can’t wait for you to visit Lake Tearas.