Life has kept me super busy…between a fairly new job in which I’m currently doing four roles, preparations (shopping, packing, etc) for The Daughter’s departure to University, and various visits to the physiotherapist for a shoulder injury…so I’m a little behind on my posts.

This week’s post is courtesy of Boroughs Publishing Group’s monthly newsletter, where I had a piece in their INSPIRED section

Real Life

They say to write what you know. In some cases, this could mean what you like to read and a genre that you are familiar with. In other cases, it could mean drawing on your life experiences. There are three things – three beings – that inspired me to write YA Romance: Lauryn, Kathryn and Victoria…my daughter and two stepdaughters.

Familiar? I have definitely read my share of YA. Life experience? Our girls are 18, 19 and 21, and many eons ago, I, too, was an idealistic, fantasy-fueled teen.

Strawberry Summer It is difficult as a mom not to sound preachy. In Strawberry Summer, one of the young teens gets really drunk. Underage drinking? Never! We’d like to think it’s never our own children, but it happens, even if it is only a friend or schoolmate.

And while most young teens aren’t forced to choose a society based on personality or fight to the death in a post-apocalyptic world, the struggles and challenges a teenage girl faces – from a new school, to her changing looks, to young love – are enormous. Even if only to her.

I like to think my heroines are strong and confident young women. They follow their heads as well as their hearts. When they say “no” they mean “no,” and when they say “yes” it is the right thing to do.

In the end, what I really hope is that my stories inspire dreams and fuel imaginations. After all, everyone deserves a happily ever after.
– See more at: http://www.boroughspublishinggroup.com/about/enews/july-2015-e-newsletter#sthash.QlHU6o85.dpuf