WIP-It Wednesday for June 9, 2021

 PG Forte: I accepted an invitation this week to join a Halloween Short Story Anthology for THIS Halloween. Which will be the FIFTH story/novella I've committed to putting out in the next six months. Luckily, the theme of the Anthology--not just Halloween stories, but REVENGE stories set on or around Halloween, worked in my favor. I'm carving ONE short story out of my novel Visions Before Midnight (Oberon, Book 7), a book that's made up of three separate (but deeply intertwined) revenge stories and a (mostly) unrelated romance. 

I'm calling the short story Only the Lonely, and I think it will be delightfully creepy. I'm also soooo excited about the cover. 

Get More Wins by Reevaluating Expectations

by Maureen Bonatch 

This year was already going to be different. My twin daughters had started college in the fall, so we contemplated how we would celebrate Easter. My husband and I decided we’d drive down to the college that weekend. It would be the first Easter we’d ever celebrated without our parents and extended family, but we knew things were going to change now that our girls were in school. We just didn’t realize how much things would change this year—for everyone.

Chaos and Corona

The coronavirus caused chaos for just about everyone’s life in early 2020. Outside of concerns about health and wellness, many plans were cancelled or delayed. The virus had taken control of our lives and left us with uncertainty, and stress. That Easter weekend at the college didn’t happen, along with many other things, and the girls are finishing their second semester virtually from home.

Changing Expectations

Changes often lead to a lot of disappointment when things don’t turn out how we expect, unless we look for ways to reevaluate our expectations and make the most of a situation out of our control. We still didn’t get to celebrate Easter with our parents and extended family, but we got the gift of having the girls at home for Easter—the first one we’ve ever spent with only our immediate 

family.

Scruff has a lot of toys- but he can have just as much fun with a stick.

Winning With Writing

Nothing gives me, and most authors, more pleasure than sharing my stories and characters with the world. I wrote a lot of flash fiction when I started writing. Most of these short stories are tucked away on my computer, until I found an opportunity to unearth one, Detective Paws and Lip Gloss, and release it in an anthology. It gave me great pleasure to revisit these characters and release it in an anthology for a good cause.

Detective Paws & Lip Gloss is featured in Book 1

I have many stories in draft form. Some need polishing, while others are far from finished. These stories weigh on my conscious. They’re more impatient for my time and attention than a toddler, filling me with guilt at leaving them unfinished.

One of those partial stories was from last November. It first year in many that I didn’t ‘win’ (write a 50,000 word story) in National Novel Writing. I had a great story idea, but with an overloaded day-job schedule, I didn’t get very far. It left me very disappointed. I’ve decided to change my expectations for that story and release it in an anthology this fall. So perhaps I didn’t fail, and I can still ‘win’.

Other Ways My Expectations Have Changed During COVID

• Less going out to eat = more time having dinner with my family & save money

• Less time for concerts, and getting together with friends = more time to walk and exercise

• Girls not getting to return to campus = more time together, including Mother’s Day

• Challenges getting paper products and cleaning supplies = becoming more mindful of what I use

Look for Happiness Today

Sure one day I might be one of those old ladies hoarding cleaning wipes and toilet paper because of COVID-19, but for now, I can challenge and change my expectations to be happier today.

How Have You Changed Expectations to Increase Your Happiness?

Author Bio: Maureen Bonatch grew up in small town Pennsylvania and her love of the four

seasons—hockey, biking, sweat pants and hibernation—keeps her there. While immersed in writing or reading paranormal romance and fantasy, she survives on caffeine, wine, music, and laughter. A feisty Shih Tzu keeps her in line. Find Maureen on her website, Facebook & Twitter

Be the first to know about Maureen’s book sales and new releases by following her on BookBub, Amazon and/or signing up for her newsletter

Help Australia Relief Efforts by Reading

I've always wanted to fly. Or to be able to do magic, or at least some of the cool moves from the Matrix movies. I didn't really want to be a superhero (too much pressure), just maybe have the ability to do a little...more.

Who knew that as a writer—and a reader—I could do more by just writing a story, or buying a book. It turns out, you can too. When people bring all their amazing talents together, fabulous things can happen. 

A Little Help From My Friends

My publisher (The Wild Rose Press) has authors all over the world, including authors from Australia. So when Australian author, Stephen B. King reached out about help for recovery efforts with the worst wildfires Australia has seen in decades, people volunteered in droves:

• Over 40 authors offered stories
• Countless others planned to promote
• Editors, and cover artists stepped up
• The Wild Rose Press volunteered all the time and effort involved in creating a 3 book anthology

The Wild Fires of Australia 

If you're not familiar with what's happening in Australia, here's a snippet from someone who's there: 

"Recent rains have helped enormously, still there are fires, but not to the same extent as there were, and the focus now is more on recovery and rebuilding. To that end there are advertising campaigns now to stop what’s called the second wave disaster and that is people staying away from tourist areas and business who rely on travelers and visitors to survive. Most of our tourist destinations are unaffected, yet people think the whole country is gone, which of course isn’t true. The problem of course is that if people stop visiting, businesses will go broke, making the overall recovery much harder. With the rains, re-growth has already begun and some burnt out areas have grasses and shrubs recovering already.

Then of course there is the wildlife, and those organizations such as the RSPCA, and others are doing remarkable work rescuing animals and rehousing them. A lot of our native trees are Eucalyptus, and with millions of trees gone, Koalas only eat those leaves, so regrowth and resettlement is going on in huge numbers to save a cuddly species from extinctions in the wild. Kangaroos will bounce back, and in time, the feeling is most other animals will to, but the key words are – in time. In a lot of cases we hope the burnt trees themselves will regrow as they have evolved to grow after bushfires. I’m told with heavy rains in recent days some are showing green growth, which is encouraging."   – Wild Rose Press Author Stephen King

Preorder Book One of the Anthology Now

The Anthologies are grouped by genre— and my story, Detective Paws and Lip Gloss (a cozy mystery flash fiction story I was thrilled to find a home for) is in Book #1. 

Book #1: A collection of Short Stories in Mainstream Fiction,

Women’s Fiction, Thrillers, and Mystery

Order Book One Now from The Wild Rose Press

• A Solicitous Wife by Madeleine McDonald
• No One Knew by Larry Farmer
• Pinochle by Brenda Whiteside
• The Tuesday Night Meeting by Peggy Jaeger
• 911, What’s Your Emergency? by D. V. Stone
• Tall Tales by Laura Strickland
• Fare Gain by Alexandra Christle
• The Note by Stephen B. King
• Three Ghosts by Julie Howard
• Detective Paws and Lip Gloss by Maureen L. Bonatch
• The Ring by Margaret Ann Spence
• Portrait of a Gunfighter by Hywela Lyn
• Six Hours or So by Lisa Wilkes
• Prussic Acid by Melody DeBlois
• 
  

Blurb: Detective Paws and Lip Gloss by Maureen L. Bonatch

Catherine, with her basset hound, moves out of her father’s home, to prove she has what it takes to be a cop. 

But when two menacing women inadvertently share their killer secret, Catherine wonders if she can solve the mystery or end up being nothing more than a `Fraidy Cat.

Book #2 of the Anthology 

Book #2: A collection of Romance, Young Adult, and Women’s Fiction Short Stories

Order Book 2 Now From The Wild Rose Press

• Che Gelida Manina by M. S. Spencer
• Recipes for Love by Carol Henry
• Waiting for Caleb by Gini Rifkin
• Wings of Fire by Jana Richards
• A Lark by Gabbi Grey
• Apple Crisp by Terry Graham
• Goody Twoshoes by Mark Love
• The Number by Barbara Bettis
• Deadly Homecoming by Peggy Chambers
• An Egg-Cellent Witness by Marilyn Barr
• Season of Withered Corn by Judy Ann Davis
• Beneath the Pines by Debby Grahl
• Christopher Reisner by Linda Griffin
• Unexpected Love: Chase Allen by Anna Lores
• The Cowboy and the Lady by Jean Adams
• The Heart Necklace by Amanda Uhl
• The Relaxation Response by Darcy Lundeen
• Dancing Through Tears by Jeny Heckman

Book #3 Information Coming Soon

Like We Need a Reason to Read

Every single state in Australia is suffering major fires, many hopelessly out of control. Estimates of how many and how big vary, but one source says 17.9 million acres of Australia have burned in one of the country’s worst fire seasons on record. Another report says that well over one billion native animals and birds have lost their lives…one billion.

Please help and show Australia some love by purchasing one or more of these anthologies. ALL proceeds will be donated to organizations aiding the victims of this horrific event and assist those still battling the flames. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.

Order now at The Wild Rose Press.

I may not have the Matrix moves down yet, and maybe I never will, but I can live many lives, and explore new worlds many times over by reading.

P.S. You CAN order these books through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or other online book retailers, but this reduces the funds going to the Red Cross. 

Author Bio: Maureen Bonatch grew up in small town Pennsylvania and her love of the four seasons—hockey, biking, sweat pants and hibernation—keeps her there. While immersed in writing or reading paranormal romance and fantasy, she survives on caffeine, wine, music, and laughter. A feisty Shih Tzu keeps her in line. Find Maureen on her website, Facebook & Twitter Be the first to know about Maureen’s book sales and new releases by following her on BookBub, Amazon and/or signing up for her newsletter