“Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.” – William Shakespeare

Summer is winding down. It went by so fast. In the blink of an eye, it was gone. Where did it go? So many things happened!

First, I had the good fortune to take my yearly girl's trip down to Thirty-A (the Florida Panhandle), which I excitedly look forward to every year. Nothing compares to a vacation with close friends. It's a writer's paradise, and it was very motivating to me. Both my current manuscript and my WIP (work in progress) have a special place there. I also took part in my first Instagram Live event while visiting, along with a writing colleague and friend. I was so outside my comfort zone, but I was thrilled to be included.

Later on, I enjoyed a wonderful family vacation to Sea Island, Georgia—the place where I feel at peace. My most creative inspirations have come from watching the waves break on the shoreline while seated near the Atlantic Ocean. What could be better than the sun, the beach, bowling, and bingo? This island is a gem.

After my holiday, I attended two destination weddings. They were wonderful and exquisite, yet I felt incredibly old being there because I distinctly recall going to the hospital to welcome both the bride and groom. Am I that old? Unfortunately, the answer is YES.

Then, my daughter introduced me to TikTok (check us out @Hopegibbs71). We had a blast making them. It’s harder than it looks, but under Ansley’s guidance, I think I’ve found my way. She’s a little marketing diva.

On our second family vacation in July, I had a wicked bicycle accident that my daughter promptly turned into a TikTok. She tried turning a lemon into lemonade. At that point, what I really needed was a lemon drop martini instead to dull the pain. Thankfully, no bones were broken. Just some skin and ego were taken off.

On top of all of that, I was busy trying to get my last two kids (out of five) ready for college. The empty nest has me in its cross-hairs. I cannot escape it. My garage has been full of Amazon boxes since June. Yesterday, I moved my daughter into her dorm room. I’m still in a state of denial that I’m leaving her in an unknown city with strangers. I will be moving my son on Friday!

But what’s taken up most of my summer has been my content edits for my debut novel, which will be published by Red Adept next year. I should be finished in a few weeks! Oh, and did I mention that I changed the name of my book? Yes, that gave the summer a new, little twist. It will now be known as WHERE THE GRASS GROWS BLUE. I'm so excited about it. More to come on that later.

So this season has been wonderful, painful and crazy. What did I do in my down time to relax? How did I calm myself? Reading, of course. Whenever the moment allowed, sitting next to the ocean, when I had writer’s block (that’s a real thing), exercising, avoiding the prospect of my empty nest, or recovering from my accident, I read.

We still have five weeks to go in the summer, and I have some fantastic recommendations for you (click on the arrows to read my thoughts on each book!). Look them up and enjoy!

EIGHT HUNDRED GRAPES by Laura Dave

IN A NUTSHELL by Cindy Dorminy

THERE'S A WORD FOR THAT by Sloan Tanen

THE DIVORCE PARTY by Laura Dave

THE YOUNGER WIFE by Sally Hepworth

FOOL ME ONCE by Ashley Winstead

Until next time…