A year in my life is about to come to an end. TMN has reached the home stretch.

While the writing portion was approximately 6 non-consecutive months in duration, I’ve been thinking about and living with TMN pretty much nonstop for twelve months.

I wrote the first line, the basic premise, and a couple of scenes in July 2023. I didn’t think about it again until I was desperately searching for something. I pitched it in December 2023. It sold to Berkley in January 2024. And now, in February 2025 developmental edits are coming to an end. There’s still copy edits and pass pages to go, but you’re not really allowed to make any drastic changes at those points. The story will essentially be locked once it goes into production.

For once, I agree. There’s only so much more I can think to change and add and tweak. It feels like a cake baking in those last crucial ten minutes. Take it out too early and it’ll fall. Take it out too late, and it’s overcooked.

These past two weeks, I’ve also been working on something new: TWE.

I knew TMN was ‘essentially locked’ because I’ve been able to focus on both romances at the same time. Once TWE kicks into high gear with Draft 2 in March, there won’t be room for any other stories, as it should be. Z and J will be off on their HEA journey. They won’t need me anymore, but N and H will.

The timing couldn’t have been better, honestly.

Until next time,

Claire ❤