In chapter 23 in Year of the Dog , I mentioned Auntie Nell’s acerola cherry jam. I promise I didn’t make that up—except my grandma made it, not my Auntie Nell. Grandma had an acerola tree in her front yard and would gather cherries every summer. It’s suuuuuuuuuper sour, so we didn’t often eat it fresh, but Grandma added truckloads of sugar to make it into jam, which we loved. Come to think of it, we probably tasted more sugar than cherry, but we were kids, what else is new? I only just learned that acerola cherries have 32 times the amount of vitamin C as orange juice, and tons of antioxidants! I wonder if that’s why Grandma lived so long! Now I’m missing that jam. Isn’t it awful how we take so much for granted as kids? Have you ever had acerola cherry jam?

In Year of the Dog , Mari discovers a moldy tote bag in chapter 18. She describes it a bit more in chapter 21. I actually bought fabric specifically to make the bag, although I haven’t yet hired anyone to make it yet. Here it is! The fabric is Golden Garden - Teal from Alexander Henry Fabrics Indochine collection. Isn’t it pretty? I saw it on Etsy and simply fell in love. I specifically wanted wooden zipper pulls for the bag, so I bought these hibiscus earrings made out of koa wood (from Etsy), and I’ll attach them to the zippers once I have the bag made for me.   The hibiscus will be significant for the story, as will the koa wood. When I get the bag made, I’ll be sure to post pictures!  

After the craziness of the Kickstarter, I hope to put Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 7: Spinster  up on Amazon probably in the first week of March. I am currently working on a Christian contemporary romantic suspense, Year of the Dog , because it’s due for the multi-author anthology I’m in that releases in May, Danger in the Shadows.  I’ll probably post the chapters (including the annotated chapters) on my Patreon, but I won’t be able to give a free .epub copy to my paid subscribers since it’ll release in the anthology in May 2025. The chapters will be taken down in May, so be sure to read it while it’s still up on my Patreon. I’ve been posting my Christian contemporary romantic suspense, Protection for Hire , but there’s a chance I might pause it in order to post Year of the Dog , because I am realizing I’m not very good at juggling two contemporary projects at the same time. If I do pause it, I’ll start up again after Bento and Betrayal  is done, probably sometime in the...

I joined two Christian suspense multi-author anthologies that will release next year in May and October! The May anthology is Danger in the Shadows , and the October anthology is Don’t Blink . I have taken down Year of the Dog from my blog and will instead finish editing/rewriting it for the May anthology, Danger in the Shadows . I decided to do this because I was only working on Year of the Dog sporadically, and I wanted to set a deadline for myself to finish it sooner. To complicate matters, I’ve been unhappy with my decision to leave Sushi and Suspicions as a stand-alone rather than putting it in a series. And I’ve also been unhappy with putting The Lone Rice Ball as a 5th book in the Sushi series when it’s more romantic suspense than the other books in the series. Now that I’ll be writing Year of the Dog for the anthology, and because I haven’t yet released Sushi and Suspicions and The Lone Rice Ball as individual ebooks, I decided to switch things around. I’m rem...

My Sonoma series started with 3 books starring the 3 Grant sisters in Sonoma. Book 4 starred Nathan, who was a minor character in book 3, and then I wrote Necessary Proof , which stars Jane, who was a minor character in book 2 and a cousin to the Grant sisters. In the next book, Unshakeable Pursuit , I brought in the Whelan family, Jane’s cousins who are also second cousins to the Grant sisters. It was rather confusing to come up with the family tree! The way I have it set up, the Whelan siblings’ mom, Emma Whelan, is sister to Jane Lawton’s mom, Eleanor Lawton. The Grant sisters’ mom and her sister, Aunt Becca, were first cousins to Emma Whelan and Eleanor Lawton. I thought it might be fun for you guys to see my created family tree, so here it is! It’s rather large, so click on the image to see the larger version.

Everyone on my newsletter list can get an ebook copy of The Wedding Kimono free! It now has a new cover, so be sure to download it. The Wedding Kimono is a prequel to my Warubozu Spa Chronicles, and book 1 is tentatively scheduled to release in 2024. Get The Wedding Kimono ebook

I posted an excerpt of my Christian contemporary romance novella, The Wedding Kimono , on the Sweet Romance Reads blog. Click here to read the extended excerpt. Already one of my newsletter subscribers? Click here to get The Wedding Kimono free!

My novella, The Wedding Kimono , was released first as one of twelve novellas in the Christian Contemporary Romance anthology, Save the Date , but earlier this year, I released it as an individual e-book exclusively for my newsletter subscribers. When working with my graphic designer for the cover of The Wedding Kimono , this is the photo I originally wanted for my cover. Isn’t it absolutely adorable??? Unfortunately, while the photo was available as a stock photo, it was only for non-commercial use. :( So my graphic designer instead found this beautiful photo of a wedding kimono that she could use for the cover. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love the cover, but I still do sigh a bit about the cover that never was. Click here to subscribe to my newsletter and get The Wedding Kimono free!

The following is a mashup from my November Camy Tang newsletter and Camille Elliot newsletter which both went out this past Wednesday, but I thought it might be nice to post it on my blog, too. *** My health this past month has been like a particularly gruesome car wreck. I’ve had IBS flareups and also sinus headaches, sometimes both at once. I had really thought I had finally started to get control over my IBS and the foods that I need to avoid, but I made a few mistakes (didn’t read ingredients lists closely enough). The sinus headaches have been a little more frequent because of the change in weather here in California and the increased rain showers. I’m finally feeling better and continuing work on volume 4 of my Christian Regency Romantic Suspense epic serial novel, Lady Wynwood’s Spies . I started trying to train myself to write via dictation because once I get used to it, it’s supposed to be significantly faster, and it will help ease the workload on my hands and wrists...

I’m happy to announce that my first Contemporary Romance story in 5 years releases today! The Wedding Kimono is one of TWELVE novellas in this massive Christian Contemporary Romance collection. Here’s the back cover description: Weddings for every season and occasion. Adventures, mishaps, and dream destinations—this collection has it all! As our guest of honor, you’re cordially invited on a journey through twelve heartwarming and inspirational novellas that will take you from small-town America to romantic Paris, from the sunny shores of Hawaii to New Zealand. Office romances, friends-to-lovers, second chances, and more await you in these stories full of forgiveness, redemption, laughter, and love. Say “I do” and claim your copy of this limited-time anthology by your favorite USA Today and bestselling Christian romance authors! January Hope by Kari Trumbo Clothing historian Cleo goes on the hunt for an 1880s fashion magazine wedding dress. Discovering it's part of a mu...

This year, I'll be releasing my first Christian Contemporary Romance in 5 years! The Wedding Kimono is the prequel novella for my new series, the Warubozu Spa Chronicles , and will be released in Save the Date , a Christian Romance Wedding anthology, on October 12th. Here’s the back cover description: Raised by a single father with two older brothers, tomboy Lila has often been mistaken for a young man because of her androgynous looks. However, she's very popular with the women at the massage therapy spa where she works, who love her older-sister vibe. She feels this is where God wants her to be, helping women feel beautiful and good about themselves. Secretly she's attracted to her boss at work, spa manager Fred, but she holds no hope since there's nothing feminine about her, and she's four inches taller than he is. Then, when cleaning out the attic for her father, she finds her maternal grandmother's gorgeous antique wedding kimono. Being half-Japanese...

Lisa Prysock posted this really cute online jigsaw puzzle with the cover of my novella, The Wedding Kimono . My time for the 24 piece puzzle was 2 minutes, 33 seconds. Solve the puzzle and post your time!

This year, I'll be releasing my first Christian Contemporary Romance in 5 years! The Wedding Kimono is the prequel novella for my new series, the Warubozu Spa Chronicles , and will be released in Save the Date , a Christian Romance Wedding anthology, on September 15th. Preorder Save the Date ebook for only 99 cents!