Remember the Roadtrip Romances I've been talking about for almost two years now?

Guess what!

​They're coming!!!!!

Last week, I signed a contract for all three of my Roadtrip Romances. The first, Destination: Fun (Romance) will release June 2022. Roadtrip for One (Two) will release December 2022. And Operation: Find a Job (Guy) will release June 2023. I'm so excited to share these stories of the various trips Katie, Bree, and Skye take and how they don't turn out quite like expected. Tons of fun locations, friendships, and of course, romance, is on its way.

But that's not all!

I also got a contract for another novella. This will release in a collection called Love in Any Season. My story will be called The Missing Piece, about Beth and Tommy and a quilt shop their moms run. It's going to be a fun collection with authors Regina Merrick, Sarah Crouch, and Heather Greer, and I know you're going to love them all. Look for that collection to come out September 2022.

In case you don't know what this all means, it means I better get busy and quit letting my muse take a vacation! Ha! I have some rewrites and first writes to do as well as polishing a few other things, but I'm thrilled to continue releasing stories to share with you.

And now I want to know. Are you as excited as I am? Which story intrigues you most?

I don't think I realized how burnt out I was getting. I mean, I wasn't completely frazzled, but I was close. From getting edits for my October release last year through the release of my January book this year and finishing a few other things, I hadn't stopped. Seriously. I'd written and/or edited something almost every day through all of that.
And that's good. Because it means forward momentum.
But it's also bad. Because it means I was tired.

Hello! This month, I'm interviewing a fellow Scrivenings Press author, and very interesting guy, C. Kevin Thompson. I've gotten to know Kevin a bit over the last year, despite not living anywhere near each other, and I'm thrilled to help you get to know him, too. So, without further ado, read on to find out more about him and his amazing story, The Letters, which I just read recently and enjoyed.

Kevin, your bio says your love of writing grew in middle school (mine, too). Is there a book or two you can think of that really stuck with you and made you want to write something like that? Or was it more the teacher?

I liked the creative aspect of writing, I guess, like many other kids in elementary and middle school. As I grew up, I was always thinking of scenarios and coming up with spoofs of stories or situations that I always thought would make great commercials. That’s why I appreciate so much the GEICO commercials. They are so creative. The Pinocchio as a motivational speaker one is my favorite. “You have potential! And you have potential. And you have—oh boy…” So good.

Although I liked the creative aspect of writing, I was not much a reader until I hit the age of 13 (So, there is hope out there, all you Moms with boys.) The book that got me interested in reading was Jaws. I wanted to be a marine biologist growing up, until I realized spending months at sea was part of the job description. I get deathly seasick, and when I attempted to take up scuba diving, I knew that was not something that would work for me. However, marine biology was what got me interested in Jaws. That book got me interested in reading. Reading got me interested in so many other things. Now look at me. Award-winning author. Two Masters Degrees. Former ELA teacher and now an administrator. You see? It can happen.

Congratulations on being a Finalist for the 2021 Selah awards. Can you tell us a little about The Letters and what inspired you to write it?

Thank you (He says with a smile). The Letters came from a heart and desire to deal with an issue that I didn’t feel was handled very much, if at all, and when it was, not very well (abortion). I also was working on a personal study at the time wherein passages like Psalm 90:4 and 2 Peter 3:8, where it talks about a day to the Lord is like a thousand years, and vice versa. This coupled with a conversation about abortion and what happens to all the aborted children caused me to seek a Biblical perspective on how God views time and redemption. Other passages like, Jeremiah 1:5, made me realize that time to us and time to God are two entirely different things. We are tied to clocks and calendars. He isn’t. He can stand over time and see the past and into the future simultaneously. How else could he see Jeremiah in his mother’s womb and know he’s going to be a prophet? How else could He know to put two angels on the Ark of the Covenant, creating the Mercy Seat, and then hundreds of years later, recreate that same concept at the Resurrection when the two angels sat at the head and foot of the place where Jesus was laid (and no doubt sat when He rose from the dead), thus recreating the Mercy Seat all over again (cf. John 20:12)?

This study came on the heels of when The Shack came out and took the Church by storm. I personally had trouble with the theology of that book, and wanted to make sure I dealt Biblically with the theology of The Letters.

It also is written with a tinge of allegory sprinkled in for good measure, but instead of giving everything away, I’ll let the reader determine who plays the role of Satan and who plays the role of Jesus.

Do you ever have one of those moments when someone asks you to join their group and you're like, "Who, me?" And just like, you're on the ball field in elementary school once more, thrilled that you're not the last picked. And even more thrilled because you got on the team you were hoping for.
Well, I had no idea I even wanted to be on a team I'm joining this month. But when they asked me, I knew I had to say "Yes," despite wondering if they were sure they wanted me. Me? I'm not well-known or even all that amazing. But you know what? They asked me anyway.
Ready to know who I'm talking about?

InspyRomance!

This month I get to join the group of authors over there who chat all things Contemporary Christian Romance. And y'all, I'm fan-girling a bit. To be included among other authors I love to read and have been looking up to ... it's a pretty amazing feeling. So, that being said, come over and check it out. I'll be posting on that blog about once a month, getting to take over their social media every now and then, and participating in giveaways, among other things. I'm expecting lots of fun!
So, what about you? Have you ever been asked to participate in something you didn't even know was an option, but ended up being an honor and joy?