I’ve written SIX novels!
While I’m sure Danielle Steel is not losing sleep worrying about that meager number surpassing her nearly 200 novels, I feel a sense of accomplishment.

I admire anyone who writes a book—whether it’s a novel, a memoir, a self-help guide, a religious thesis, or a how-to manual on baking better chocolate chip cookies. WTG!

A good author invests time and energy into the process, wanting to produce a quality product.

Disclaimer: Not every book is good, nor is it written by a good author, especially these days when anyone can throw some words together in a computer, give it a title with a stock photo cover, slam it online, and call it finished.
To hell with structure, editing, spell check, or basic rules of grammar.

I know that sounds belittling, but I’ve read books that seemed more like a transcript of drunken, free-association ramblings from someone with untreated ADHD.

For me, writing a book—from conception to completion—is a lot of work.
It takes months of dedication and concentration.
In addition to the actual writing of the narrative, there’s research, outlines, and extensive character bios.
It’s about the details that make the story relatable, and the characters believable.

People often ask me if I have a favorite novel.
The simplest answer is that when I’m working on a novel, that’s my favorite.

As an author, I’m proud of all of my books, and I think they’re all special, while I admit that each is different in their own.
That said, they do share a commonality of being set in the Bible Belt.
They’re not religious novels, but my characters are placed in this deeply ingrained religious culture.An idealist Youth Minister moves from Southern California to take a position at a large, affluent Baptist church.

The son of a nationally known televangelist loses his memory after a violent attack. His father employs risky procedures and makes consequential decisions to change his son’s sexual orientation.

During the AIDS pandemic, a young man who’s lost too many friends makes a desperate decision. Then a casual wish. With the help of a flamboyant guardian angel, he gets to see what might have happened in a world where AIDS had never happened.

Christian counselor and recent widower struggles with the conflict of his faith, while confronting feelings he’s ignored all his life.

In a rural lake community, a professor at a small religious college is keeping a secret from those around him. He meets an intriguing summer resident who has his own secrets.

I think the Deep South is a vibrant, powerful backdrop. Often, it’s the key antagonist in the lives of my characters. The area is complicated and convoluted, fascinating as well as frustrating, historic and frequently histrionic. There’s an inherent, accepted heritage of injustice and inequality, steeped in long-held traditions that are slow-as-molasses to change.

“Knowing your place” can be viewed as preferable to knowing who you are.
The respectability of “fitting in” is better than the stigma of being different.
Decorum and appearance might matter more than authenticity.
A passive-aggressive veneer of politeness sometimes masks genuine feelings, true motives, and usually the real person.
(e.g., Don’t get all warm and fuzzy when someone says, “Bless your heart.”)

I’ve invested some of myself in each of these six books—my imagination, my experiences, skills, abilities, energy, effort…and love.
They each live in me, and I like to think some of me lives in them as well.

That said, my latest book is a bit…unique.
I call it my Legacy novel.

Part of that is because characters and places and events from all my previous books find their way into this story.
Which makes sense. Even though the plots of my books take place at various times, over a period of forty years, as mentioned earlier, they share a geographical proximity—Birmingham, my hometown.

Author’s Note: The exception is my third novel, A Time to Every Purpose, which is more speculative fantasy.
(Though it’s possible we might have a fleeting reference to one of the main characters from that story as well.)

It was so wonderful for me to re-visit folks who mean so much to me; I’ve “known” some of them for more than 20 years! I enjoyed “catching up” with them and getting insight into what’s going on with them now.

Six novels.
That’s a lot of ME in those pages.

When I finish a novel, I usually get asked about the next one.
I also get suggestions of what the next one should be, and who it should include.
I’m humbled that people care about my stories and characters enough to want more.

I have plenty of story ideas.

Author’s Note: When I get a “flash of inspiration,” I jot it down immediately. It could be a character who catches my attention, an interesting plot situation, the vivid description of a place, or even a single line of dialogue.
For years, I kept it all on paper, in a physical file folder. These days it’s electronic, using a cloud-based, password-protected notes program that syncs to all my devices.
(Ain’t technology wonderful?)

There’s no shortage of potential materials for future projects.
Some of these ideas have expanded to include a basic outline.
There’s even a few that bounced around in my brain, prompting me to write longer sections that could become a chapter or two.
I also have other (non-fiction) writing projects I’d like to complete.

Together, it’s enough to keep me busy…for decades!

But all of that has to be put into the context of a major personal matter taking up valuable “space” in my life these days.
(Cancer sucks!)

So, I don’t know if Mirrors Forged in Metal will be the last novel I write.
If that’s how it works out, I’m happy for this book…and these characters…to be my Legacy.