A Bright New Year Ahead

The good thing about enjoying a cup of tea together is that we can do it any day of the year. It has been wonderful interacting with all of you in 2015, whether talking about new books launched or life events.
     I promised to share a major life shift that occurred over the past two years. It wasn't always easy, but in the end having our son and his family live with us while he earned his degree was totally worth it.
     And if living with the seven of us wasn't interesting enough, after our son got his degree and an amazing job in Frisco, Texas, my husband decided it was time to downsize.
     Okay. Pack up and move. Not an easy task for someone who collects beautiful china, teacups, teapots, floral arrangements, and paintings. Sigh. But as my daddy used to say, "There's nothing more certain than change." How true in this case. We're moving north to a small town where we'll be living out in the country. Literally.
     Being an eternal optimist, I decided to look on the bright side. A smaller home to maintain will be good. A new home is always nice. I'll be getting the cozy cottage I've always wanted and with not much to do living waaaay out in some pastureland, there will be more time to write!
     Some great news! My husband Ted (yes, I named Teddy after him) has carved out some time to join my writing as publicist and marketing manager which will allow me even more time to write. A good thing.
     Look for three new short stories in the poplular Happy Homicides anthologies - the first, a Valentine's tale called "Sweets, Treats and Murder" will be out for pre-order in January. A beach read called "Birthday Bash" launches in Summer, followed by a story for the Fall edition that I've yet to come up with, and then Book 11 "Murder at the Met" due to launch in November of 2016.

     I hope you're as excited about the new year as I am. As always, it's my great pleasure to entertain you with adventures of Jillian and Teddy. 

Cheers! And Happy New Year!

~Nancy Jill

GLOOMY TO GLORIOUS!

A trip to a government office was not my idea of fun, so I procrastinated as long as possible before forcing myself to go. What I discovered helped me understand that attitude really is everything. As I started out on the 37- minute journey, I could have grumbled that I had more important things to do, such as adding borders to my cover images or catching up with my social networking. Instead, I listened to my favorite radio station, which always puts me in a good mood, and admired the lovely scenic route I'd chosen over going the freeway.  Driving along the bucolic countryside, I saw couples taking walks, a herd of goats clearing a meadow, and arrived at my destination without suffering at all! Even the 30-minute wait was interesting as I watched all kinds of people come and go. I was having such a wonderful time that I decided to continue having fun by going shopping, which I rarely do, and came home with some nice things to wear. My day went from gloomy to glorious because I chose to look for the good. Isn't it lovely that we have the choice?