Tonight, a bunch of my oldest, best friends are coming to visit. They’ll spend the weekend helping us warm our new house in our new city, and we’ll cook some turkey and eat some pie. For those of you who don’t live in Canada and might not realize it, yes, we celebrate Thanksgiving in October, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. October is far and away my favourite month – it’s crisp and beautiful, full of great food and long walks through the colourful Canadian forest. As far as I’m concerned, it’s the perfect time to reflect on all the great things that have happened over the previous year.

I’m obviously grateful to have published my first novel. I’m amazed every day that WAY TO GO is rolling around out there in the big wide world, and I’m thrilled to have met so many great people – readers, bloggers, and other writers – who’ve enriched my life in ways I can’t even begin to describe. I’m also incredibly fortunate to have a huge and solid group of friends and family who have, as always, provided lots of support and enthusiasm during this exciting step in my life – it’s a great feeling to know that I have so many great people backing me up in every possible way.

I’m excited that I received an email today containing the first round of edits to book #2 – TAG ALONG. When editing WAY TO GO, I had such a great time with, and learned so much from, my editor Sarah Harvey at Orca Book Publishers. WAY TO GO wouldn’t have been half the book it turned out to be without her guidance, and I’m thrilled to get started on this next book. I haven’t so much as glanced at TAG ALONG since I submitted it last November, so it’ll be cool to come at it with fresh eyes.

By the way, Sarah’s latest book – THREE LITTLE WORDS – was just released into the world and it’s a doozy!  I’ve read it, and I’m here to tell you that it’s going to make some serious waves. If you are so inclined, I highly recommend buying a copy. It’s a great story, and has an incredible cover to boot. Congratulations Sarah!

Finally, I am especially excited to finally announce some awesome news that I’ve been holding in for a few weeks. Today I signed two new contracts with Orca, and I couldn’t be more excited about these books. Orca’s new series – LIMELIGHTS – will be launched in Autumn 2013. Books in the LIMELIGHTS series will focus on teens in the performing arts, and I’m happy to say that I’ve been working on two great stories as part of this exciting new endeavour.

FAMILY BAND is set in Deep Cove, the same Cape Breton Island town featured in WAY TO GO, and focuses on Shamus McClintock, the middle child in a very special, very musical family. Shamus has been playing Celtic music since practically the day he was born, but what he really wants is to break away from his famous family and do his own thing. When a new opportunity throws his commitment to his family into question, Shamus is forced to confront his priorities, and his future, head on.

BIG TIME tells the story of Gerri Jones, who has dreamed of becoming a professional singer since as far back as she can remember. Gerri grew up singing old school country tunes with her granddad, and she knows she’s got a good voice. When the popular reality TV singing competition, Bigtime, comes to town, Gerri stands in line for hours to try out, but when an underwhelming audition and some harsh feedback lead her to question her abilities, Gerri begins to wonder if a life devoted to music is really all it’s cracked up to be.

I feel very fortunate these days. I’m doing something I love, and I have some great projects on the go that make me excited to get out of bed in the morning – what could be better? This weekend, when the turkey’s been picked clean and I’m collapsed on the couch, barely able to move, I will definitely have a lot to be thankful for.