Introducing My New Pen Name (and a Whole New Genre Adventure)

I earned all those stickers (500 words =1 star) this past week on a new project!

I’m launching a brand-new pen name in a brand-new genre. If you want to watch me build it live, step by step—from messy draft to polished release—you’re invited to come behind the curtain as a paid subscriber. I’ll be sharing everything: strategy, structure, struggles, and small wins.

If you’re cool to wait, no worries—I’ll release it to all subscribers once the series is complete, likely in the new year. But if you're the type who loves seeing how the sausage gets made (and maybe learning a few tricks for your own work along the way), now’s a great time to upgrade.

Here’s what sparked this new journey...

The YA Vibe That’s Been Turning Me Off

Lately, I’ve been hitting a wall with books that call themselves “adult” romantasy but read more like coming-of-age. Twenty-something heroines unsure of their choices, barely into their lives, grappling with fresh heartbreak and dreamy angst. It’s fine, it’s popular. But I’m almost 50. I’ve had enough lived experience to know what I want. And I want stories about women like me.

Women who’ve built careers, lost marriages, had kids—or couldn’t. Women navigating menopause, aging parents, anxious Gen Z teens, and the chaos of starting over...again.

So I turned to the Later-in-Life subgenre. It leans more women’s fiction, but y’all know I need a strong romance arc. I did a little market research (because of course I did), and saw that there’s room in the category for new voices—especially Gen X voices.

The Plan: Six Books, Rapid Release, Full Heart

I mapped out a six-book series. Each book follows a woman in her 40s navigating real-life, emotionally resonant issues: divorce, infertility, blended families, empty nesting, career pivots, being sandwiched between aging Boomer parents and their not-quite-launched Gen Z kids.

I’ve blended Gail Carriger’s Heroine’s Journey with Gwen Hayes’ Romance Beats, because structure is life and this combo is clicking. I started drafting Book 1 a few days ago and the words are flying—I wrote half the book in four days.

Those are my writing sprints this past week along with the subplots I’m tracking.

Next week, I’ll finish the first draft and immediately move into edits, while drafting Book 2 in tandem. Why? Because the stories overlap and I want that juicy continuity that makes readers one-click straight into the next book. That’s the plan: hook, overlap, binge.

Next Step: Bake in the Heartbeat Moments

As I finish drafting and move into revisions, I’ll be paying special attention to what I call the Heartbeat Moments—those emotionally rich, one-click-worthy scenes that readers feel in their chest. The ones that make perfect reels, TikToks, and quote cards.

You don’t stumble into those. You bake them in. And that’s the magic I’ll be chasing next week.

Want to Watch Me Build This in Real Time?

If you're a paid subscriber, you'll get weekly behind-the-scenes updates as I develop the series, launch the pen name, test marketing strategies, and experiment with packaging and promotion.

Not just what I’m doing—but why I’m doing it. What’s working, what isn’t, and how it all evolves as I go.

If you’re ready to watch a pen name take off from scratch—or thinking about launching your own—I’d love to have you along for the ride.

Click here to upgrade and come behind the scenes!