Hey there happy reader!

My work-in-progress, “From Below the Horizon,” is in what I like to call the “slash and burn” phase.

This is when I go back over the entire manuscript with a fine-tooth comb before sending it to my editor (and having her double over in laughter at all my mistakes!) 

It’s not an easy part of the process. I have to ask myself what stays and what goes… it’s a little bit like moving from a house you’ve lived in for thirty years. You don’t want to pack up your kids’ trophies from middle school as you downsize – they have their own homes already and your garage needs to be clutter-free! But a big part of you has trouble letting go.

I liken this to the five stages of grief for writing.

You start with “umm… I have an idea.”

You move on to “let me just put it all on the page.”

Once that’s done, you check the manuscript for extraneous words or phrases, plus, you delete all those pesky adverbs.

Then it’s the “why did I write this novel and think it was important” stage.

Finally, you throw your hands up in the air and ship the whole bulky thing off to your editor for her to deal with your mess. It’s not easy…

Luckily, I have my writing gurus, the people I look to for help. 

(After all, Mr. Rodgers’ advice is always true. When you find trouble, he said, “look for the helpers.”)

Some of my helpers I know personally, like the four members of my writer’s group – we’ve been together for over thirty-five years. I’d trust them with my life. Then I have my newly formed Guatemala Girlies – the women I met a year ago at Joyce Maynard’s workshop. They are all accomplished, thoughtful and wonderful writers who are generous with their time and their enthusiasm.

Finally, I have two women who I don’t know, but I faithfully follow their writing advice – Anna Quindlen and Anne Lamott. Both have books on the craft that I refer to repeatedly. As a matter of fact, Anne Lamott’s new title was published this week! (And I just love that Anne calls her co-writer and partner her “current husband.” Hysterical!)

Once this manuscript leaves my hands and digitally appears in my editor’s inbox, I’m going to be looking for beta readers. 

If you are interested in an advance copy of this title in exchange for a careful read-thru and a future review left on Amazon, I’d be happy to add you to my growing list.

You can email me at hilari.mpp@gmail.com.

I would so appreciate your honest opinion…

And like those sweet flowers poking up through the dead leaves, I have hope that this book will be worth the wait. 

It took me four years from concept to completion… in that same time both of our sons were married and we became grandparents — twice! I wish I could say I was distracted, but the truth is that I’m just a slow writer, lol.

In the coming weeks I’ll tell you about why I wrote “From Below the Horizon.” It’s interesting that this historical novel got its start in current events…

Hey there happy reader!

Last week I was able to share the first cover of my newly renamed series, The Seasons of Us. Now, I can show you the rest…

I love them! I love the new series name – The Seasons of Us – as well. 

I think the combination of the bright colors, the very “now” portrayal of the main protagonists, and the interconnected titles truly represent the stories inside. I am hopeful that these books (formerly named “The Gypsy Moth Chronicles”) will appeal to a whole new set of readers who may have passed over them before.

Weigh in. What do you think of these covers and titles? I’d be interested to know!

This is a big release week for one of my most favorite romance novelists, Lucy Score.

The second book in her Story Lake series, “Mistakes Were Made” is out now. 

I loved the first of the series, “The Story of My Life,” which was about a romance novelist with writer’s block. (Just a little bit meta, right?) The thing about Lucy is that she writes with such joy and irreverence, and I love that for her.

Plus, when I was starting to work on The Seasons of Us series, I wrote to her and asked for advice. At that point in her career, she was a mildly successful indie writer. She took the time to write back with constructive ideas on how I could improve my marketing and broaden my audience, and she was right. Lucy Score went on to become a New York Times bestselling author, now published and partners with EL James, the founder of Bloom Books.

And, we all can acknowledge how EL James changed romance novels forever with her wildly successful “Fifty Shades” franchise. Lucy and EL together are quite the blockbuster team. I’ve already downloaded Lucy’s new title to my kindle – I will always support her books as she helped me on my path when I truly needed someone to outstretch a hand…

And as I head into the homestretch of my current work-in-progress, “From Below the Horizon,” I am starting to imagine what that cover might look like. 

There are elements in the book, aside from the obvious stone circle, that figure prominently in the story. Perhaps the most important is an amulet, worn by Maya (the first woman leader of the tribe on Salisbury Plain) passed on to her daughter Marah, and which then disappears for centuries, only to turn up during World War II in a most unexpected way…

Here’s a description of it from the story:

Maya was preparing to give her daughter all her jewelry. Some of the pieces had been passed down from her grandmother, others from women who’d lived centuries before her; precious stones inlaid within silver bracelets, disc-shaped earrings with intricate etchings in their center and an amulet of pure gold, a large amethyst in the center, all sitting on a heavy, beaded chain. These special ornaments marked her daughter as the royalty that she already was and were befitting of the leader she would become. Maya had worn this jewelry with pride; she hoped that Marah would do the same.

The jewelry in this novel is an important piece of my imaginings of the mystery of Stonehenge. I think that when history leaves us unanswered questions, it’s the job of a novelist to fill in the blanks. I hope that when you read this book, you’ll agree!

For today, spring is truly hinting that she’s about to make her grand entrance. If you can, take a walk outside. I did and it made me feel so hopeful to see small, green shoots peeking up beneath the last remnants of our snowy winter. Can the daffodils be far behind? Treat yourself to a bit of sunshine!

Hey there happy reader,

As you know, I am now represented by Vinci Books, a London-based publisher who is committed to putting my books out into a much larger world than I could have ever imagined doing by myself. When I signed on, they let me know that they would be changing the covers of all my titles, starting with “The Gypsy Moth Chronicles” series.

What I didn’t realize when this all began, was that they would test everything – the art, the titles, and the series name.

(Where it started)

They changed the art first and I loved the way they made the covers look like vintage postcards.

(Where it went next)

But they weren’t done researching the market, defining my readers and paying attention to the small details.

For example, the word “chronicles” confused the audience. It implies an historical novel, not a contemporary one. Plus, the image was too “old-fashioned” and not current enough to catch the attention of those we were trying to reach.

So…

(Where we are now)

A full re-boot! Not only did they design an entire new set of covers – the rest will be revealed next week – we worked together to rename both the series and the books.

Welcome to “The Seasons of Us” – a collection of five novels. I am very excited about all of this…

Of course, Vinci will let buyers know that these books have been renamed, so that if you bought the originals, you’ll know you’ve already read these stories. 

But to attract a whole new audience, I think this is the way to go. The cover art is very much in fitting with the trends in the contemporary romance marketplace and because this series is about a group of friends who become a family, I think the new titles make sense. I hope you’ll agree.

And, coincidentally, yellow is my all-time favorite color, so it feels like a good omen that the first cover is bathed in this happy shade.

All I can say is that I can’t wait to see what happens next!

I am so close to finally finishing “From Below the Horizon,” my Stonehenge saga. 

This book has taken me FOUR YEARS to complete, from initial concept to completed manuscript. I don’t know about you, but it feels like it’s taken over my life!

I dream about the characters, and I solved a plot mistake in my sleep. Seriously. I knew I had an unresolved plot hole, and I was wrestling with how to fix it when I shot up out of bed at four in the morning with the idea that solved the problem. Crazy, right?

Finally, I think this writing thing might have some strong genetic links! Our three-year-old grandson wrote his very first poem. His mom is a wonderful writer (the poem is reprinted from her Substack) and his Gigi dabbles a bit, lol!

Here it is:

But I don’t need to repeat it. Ever.

Hey there happy reader,

This is the winter that will go down in the record books as the most annoying of all time. Just when my lawn was starting to peek through the dense layer of ice that’s been there for almost a month, BOOM! A blizzard hit us, and it hit us hard!

We had two feet of snow drop on us over the course of twenty-four hours. 

The wind was incredible – at the far east end of Long Island, it was clocked at seventy-five mph! It was whistling around my house on Sunday night, and I feel so lucky that we didn’t lose any trees as some of my neighbors did.

And the worst isn’t over – it’s predicted that we get another round of snowfall today and tomorrow. Will it ever end?

The snow is beautiful if you don’t need to deal with it, but unfortunately, I do. 

I’m now watching every step I take when I’m walking outside, careful to look for black ice before moving from place to place. Parking lots are a mess! If you’re not cautious, you might find yourself upended on the asphalt!

There was one positive aspect of this natural disaster. 

I know I’ve mentioned before that I live behind an actual castle. During the storm, it looked like it was trapped in a snow globe, and even now, the setting is picturesque!

Speaking of castles, since I was stuck inside, I caught up on my latest obsession, “The Traitors.”

It takes place in a Scottish castle, and the incomparable Alan Cummings is the host. The aim is to not be “murdered” by one of the designated “traitors,” whose identities are kept secret from the other contestants. It’s an over-the-top experiment in trust… I can’t get enough of it (or of Alan’s fantastic clothing!) If you’re in the mood for high drama, I highly recommend this addicting and bingeable show!

Luckily, my husband was at home with me during this storm and I did a lot of cooking for us. 

It was nice to have the time to prepare a meal without rushing through it. Thankfully, I have a full set of Ina Garten’s cookbooks, so the sky was the limit. I made her yummy coq au vin, which was perfect for a cold, snowy night.

But now that we’re shoveled out, it’s time to get back to work. I’m days away from sending “From Below the Horizon” to my editor. That means it inches closer to being in your hands…