One of the reasons I went to work for the CIA was September 11th. Iâll never forget seeing the Pentagon burning on the horizon that day. I had just been in New York City looking at the Twin Towers a couple of weeks before. Typically, the Washington DC area was such a cutthroat, grouchy area, but after the attacks everyone came together, regardless of beliefs, and people were actually nice and respectful to each other – even while driving in the miserable traffic of the area.
I am very happy to announce that a limited quantity of signed copies of Single in the CIA are now available at the Swan Bay Resort in Alexandria Bay, New York! Get them while supplies last!
…While most of the men I encountered in the Agency were a particularly narcissistic and womanizing bunch, the women of the Agency definitely took the cake when it came to viciousness and backstabbing. It was as if destroying your fellow female colleagues was a requirement for success as a woman in the Agency. This was rarely accomplished in public view, it was most often a behind-the-scenes demolition of another womanâs reputation…
I was recently on the show Politics & Profits with Rick Amato to talk about my first book, Single in the CIA. I was pretty nervous, but it was a great experience. I’ve never been a good speaker, and you’ll see what I mean when you watch this. Also, please forgive my recording – my internet froze for a moment while I was taping it.
You can check out my very first media appearance here.
I am so glad August is over. I’m not a fan. No offense to those of you with August birthdays, it’s nothing personal, I just find August to be terribly long and boring. It’s still super hot where we live and school starts in early August these days (at least in the last couple of places we have been), so summer vacation comes to an end. With the average temperature where we live ranging from 99 to 108 (sometimes 115!) degrees every day the weather is not conducive to outside activities with small children.
In my mom life I’ve come to look forward to fall, with its cooler temperatures and string of birthdays leading into the holiday season. I used to hate the holiday season – back when I lived on my own so far from my family. I spent many a Thanksgiving and Christmas alone, wishing for the time to pass, first in the D.C. area and later in South Florida. Of course in South Florida that loneliness was accompanied by a beautiful beach view from every window of my condo, and the constant sound of crashing waves, and maybe a bottle of scotch…. But I digress….
How times have changed. I look forward to the holiday season now – I guess having young children does that for you.
Anyway, I have a few projects that should be wrapping up before the end of this year. One is the release of my first full-length book since Single in the CIA. This latest book, a spy thriller full of humor, is set to release in October. Mission: Stand Down is the result of a compromise with the CIA. Apparently it is very controversial. After many appeals, I am very excited to have the green light to publish this one.
Many of you know that I have a page on this site where I post book reviews. Lately I’ve had some authors and publishers send me free books to review, and I’m very flattered by the attention. I only wish I had more time to read – but rest assured, I will get to reading all of them. Soon I will be adding children’s books to my reviews to go along with my CIA officer-turned-Mom brand. Most likely I will stick to “vintage” children’s books – ones I read as a child or were out when I was a kid.
All in all it has been a one-step-forward-two-steps-back kind of year for me. I have a couple more surprises up my sleeve that I was hoping to reveal before the end of 2017. Due to the constant roadblocks I’ve encountered this year I’m not so sure they will all be realized by December 31st, but I’ll keep trying.
There’s always next year, right?
#wakemeupwhenseptemberends
I hope everyone is having a great summer so far and has a very happy 4th of July!
Just a quick summer update…
As most of you know, my books are available on Smashwords as well as Amazon and many other book retailers. Smashwords is having their 9th annual Summer/Winter Sale beginning July 1st and running through the month of July. All of my books will be 50% off for the entire month of July!
You can’t beat this deal, so check it out on Smashwords.
Lately I have been expanding my own personal brand as a former CIA officer-turned-Mom. This means lots of surprises to come during the next few months. In response to finding myself getting a lot of questions about how to go about self-publishing a book I decided to create a short instructional eBook on how to self-publish on Amazon. It was a little experiment, to see if I could create my own PDF eBook, all by myself. Created for busy moms (or anyone who doesn’t have much free time) who have always wanted to be published authors!
Check out the result on the eBooks page.
Stay tuned in the months ahead! I have lots of surprises in store for you!
As I just had my second baby, I havenât had much time for writing lately and will likely be absent from this blog for a little while. But, I want to thank all of the people who have been supportive of my books so far. It means a lot to me to hear that someone has taken the time to read something I have written, whether they like it or not.
I have a new book in the Mingling in the CIA series ready to go, but am still waiting on the CIAâs Publication Review Board to grant its approval for me to publish the latest in Annieâs adventures. I had fully intended to have the book out prior to my daughterâs birth, but that was not meant to be (sigh). I hope to hear some good news in the near future, and get on with the business of publishing in the few spare minutes I have each day.
Again, thank you to all of you who have been supportive, and stay tuned for more soon.
…A feeling of complete emptiness came over me. I was lost. I had no job, no boyfriend, no car, no direction. I began to question all of my recent life choices…
What a difference five years makes! As I celebrate my five year anniversary of leaving the horror of my CIA employment, I cannot believe how much my life has changed post-CIA. A loving husband, a beautiful son, a daughter on the way, a new house, and three (going on four) published books. It just goes to show that risks are worth taking.
…I was living alone again for the first time in more than seven years, and even though I was much better off, it was quite an adjustment. I suppose I reached a true low point when I started going out for drinks with Annie on weekends. Years of emotional abuse from a porn-addicted boyfriend can do that to you…
“Make love to her right now!”
It was a wild night. I really did not feel like pursuing a relationship with Fiona; I was becoming increasingly creeped out by Archie’s request for me to find a girlfriend. After about the millionth text message pushing me to make out with her, I decided to keep him interested and fed him an imaginative story about how the night was going… He was practically slobbering through the phone…
…Later, Archie cited my supposed inclination toward lesbianism as justification for our break-up…
I dodged a bullet there, didn’t I?!