fiction stories

dedication + crossing finish lines 🎉

The Sunday Muse vol. 36

Good morning my friends, I know I’m a little late things morning, but better late than not in your inbox this week — amiright!? So grab your warm drink (THE FIRST DAY OF FALL IS UPON US SOON!!!), and lets catch up really quick.

The reason I’m late this morning is because late last night I finally finished my book (novella) — Scandal in the Dark Part 2 set to be released October 1st.

Now, finishing this wasn’t easy. As you all know, I have a lot on my plate including graduation coming up soon!!! I just registered for commencement last week!!! So many exciting things happening. But yes, finishing this was not easy by a long shot. I had fell into a writer’s block with this story because I have so many other stories that I am working on… but for my readers, I had to finish this first before dropping anything new. I am working on a BIG series right now that will be set in post Katrina New Orleans and I think that is going to be my biggest series yet. It’s an entire world that is interconnected — lots of stories, characters, and places to fall in love with or hate, LOL.

But honestly? This book wouldn’t have gotten done if I wasn’t off for an entire week last week. My daughter got sick and had to be out of daycare for the entire week. Something awful is going around and finding out I had to take a week off of work was hard. But my babies come first and if my job doesn’t understand that? I’ll find a new one. Regardless, thankfully she wasn’t as sick as she could’ve been with the illness that she caught, but she was still irritable and needed my attention more than usual.

During the last 5 days — between medicine, naps, snacks and meltdowns — I was able to finish my book! Closed in on close to 24k words!

It was a struggle and it was hard. I doubted myself a few times and I cried. But I know that I’m a great writer — I stand on that. So after I finished my own little meltdown of “is this book even good!??” I got in the zone, put on the GNX album and finished that shit! I did it!!! I wrote ANOTHER book and before I graduate on Dec. 13th I will have 2 books, published under my publishing company: Soul Noir Ink House.

It doesn’t get anymore dedicated than that in my life to be honest.

God works in mysterious ways, ya know. He gave me this ability. He gave me this gift. He opened up some time in my busy life to allow me to do what I love and finish it because that’s what I had been wanting. He knows that one day I hope to be a writer for a living. He knows how hard I’m working. He knows the stories I have built up in my story bank and how amazing they are.

I will be able to live my dream out one way or the other, but for now — we are celebrating my dedication + the crossing of another finish line.

So many finish lines crossed this year:

~~published first book in March ✅~~

~~started my own publishing business and paid for my LLC✅~~

~~got married ✅~~

~~moved back to Louisiana (my fucking dream)~~ ✅

~~finished my second book! ✅~~

It feels amazing to know that I did so many things this year that I truly wanted to do. It got done because I was dedicated. I tell people all the time, when I really want something, I get it. Every single time. Because I let NOTHING stop me from getting what I desire.

So cheers to me, cheers to you, for making it to the finish line of things that we’ve been going after. Whatever it is in your life that you’re working towards right now, I pray to God you cross that finish line. All it takes is the fire in your chest to want it bad enough and you’ll find a way.

See you soon!