Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

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Confessions Of An Author Tortoise

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Mission: Purple HeartsDreams do come true. I wrote my first romance book at age ten. This week I published my first romance novel, fifty-two years later. A dream deferred, but not denied.

Wanted to give you a quick synopsis of the years in between. In Junior and Senior High School, I worked on the school newspapers and took tons of writing and literature classes. Entered the Army with the idea of writing a book, so I kept notes, letters and continued my love of photography.  Getting out of the Army I used my G.I. Bill to attend community college. Seems the consensus of my two career choices of writer or marine biologist were not the largest job pools, so I chose a business degree.

Graduated in the middle of a recession, couldn’t get hired, worked temporary jobs. After six months decided, screw this, I’m going back to college. Since I had overloaded on coursework for my business degree, I still had four terms of benefits. Enrolled in the Journalism Arts Technology program at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, Oregon, and earned my Associate Degree.

During my last term, my internship at The Gresham Outlook newspaper led me to apply for a job with the Newport News-Times on the Oregon Coast. I became the feature section editor and proceeded to write and photograph for eighteen months in what turned out to be an invaluable school of its own.

Next I moved on to Public Affairs Officer at the Portland VA Medical Center. While I built the first public relations program at the hospital, I enrolled in Dee Lopez’s beginning and advanced novel writing classes.  There I adapted my journalism skills into the fiction world, not an easy transition from “just the facts” of journalism to the “how does it make you feel” galaxy of fiction.

I met Cindy Hiday, my fellow aspiring student, and we became good friends. I joined Romance Writers of America and Willamette Writers, went to many local and national writing conferences. My first romance novel was titled Wings of Ice, about the world of Air Force Reserve Aerovac, which I’d joined in 1989. Because I wasn’t busy enough, obviously. But, still I wrote.

When my first novel was sent to Dee’s agent in New York, and I ended up being mobilized for Desert Storm, life got tricky. Romance publisher Silhouette requested my first and then second novels, but both were rejected with very nice letters. After a year of Desert Storm impacting my life state-side, I went to work for the feds again. Then I enrolled in Cindy’s novel classes, now an author herself, taking over from the retired Dee Lopez.

In Cindy’s course I saw the need for a writing class for my fellow veterans. Using Dee’s course as a guideline, I developed and taught Writing War Stories for three years at Mt. Hood Community College. Life is a loop. When I quit teaching, I wrote Do Bar Fights Count?, the non-fiction book on how I taught the class and self-published it in 2006. Before Kindle. It’s still on my Amazon author page in paperback. (June 2024 only used print books available, second edition in progress)

Right after that life got nuts on all levels. We had family challenges, I changed day jobs, and tried to save an aircraft carrier, the USS Ranger, to become a museum. All while working full-time, but now for a local government agency. In the meantime, I started a writer support group, because I really needed one. We still meet. And, I wrote when I could.

Fast-forward to December 2016, I retired two years earlier than I expected from the day job. I hear that happens to forty-one percent of us. It’s been a roller-coaster ride of helping move my Mom, clean and sell the family home of fifty-seven years, dig out my own house and try to figure out a new schedule. The fiction critique group Cindy and I started in November 2016 still meets and helped keep me honest on my writing and grounded. Plus there are fabulous snacks.

Along the way I’ve written one screenplay, (while taking several terms of Bill Johnson’s screenwriting class at MHCC) attended tons of writing conferences and classes, read volumes, kept working on my craft, and learned about the ins and outs of today’s indie publishing requirements. To make this book happen I’ve used at least nine different computer software programs, moved my legacy web site to this one, and almost threw my computer out my home office window. Many times. I refrained. Barely.

But this week I finally uploaded my first romance novel, my fifth one written, and pushed publish. I can’t even explain how good that feels to send my little book on its way. And you know the best part? After all the editing, proofing, beta readers, formatting, and business side of things is mostly set up, I can get back to the real fun.

Because to keep me kinda sane, I wrote two more books and they now need to be edited. Plus, it’s time to start the next book in the two series. I still consider myself a rookie fiction writer, but it is truly my joy, not a job. 

Don’t give up. Don’t deny your dreams, no matter how long they take. Grab life and hug it!

For the curious, Mission: Purple Hearts, a military romance, is available in ebook at  https://amzn.to/2YztBT7  You can get the free Vintage Veterans series prequel, Desert Devils, at https://www.kimberlyacook.com/signup 

How about those covers? I picked the artwork and my cover designer rocked it!

I may sleep with them. Seriously.

Desert Devils

March 2021 Update: And the quest continues. Since posting this about my first book, I have published three more fiction books with two more on deck, plus nonfiction on the way. My Amazon author page http://amazon.com/author/kimberlyacook

Since an indie author’s life resembles trying to tap dance while scrubbing the decks of a floundering ship in high seas, here are some things which have tried to impact my writer determination.

October 2019. Published Spec Ops Pig – The day I published this book my mom was delivered to my front porch after a neighbor saw her fall while on her daily walk. The concrete won. Mom was okay, after we cleaned her up. Hard to take down a former Marine, no matter the age. But keep your eyes open for ambush curbs.

March 2020. Pandemic lockdown. Right after we moved mom into assisted living. Trying to provide tech tv remote support from outside the building is not one of my best skills. But I’m good at delivering bags of stuff. Life is logistics!  

July 2020. Published Mission: Canine Hearts – I only check the news, social media, and turn on my cell phone after lunch. I carve nine to noon for writing time five days a week. Getting ready to upload this book, the news said the city the book is set in had blown up. That day. Again. Could not believe it. What are the odds? Hard to fathom more loss of life in that town. Said a prayer, then pushed publish, and moved forward.

September 2020. Wildfires hit and my entire family was on evacuation notice. Packing the car and preparing to flee screws up your writing schedule. We didn’t have to bug out, but the killer smoke inversion tried to make breathing optional. Humans need oxygen. Semper Parrot was delayed and Merry MisMouse, holiday book, bumped forward for the second year. It’s half finished! But the holidays keep getting jammed up.

December 2020. Published Semper Parrot – As far as I know, no parrots were impacted by this book’s launch. I’m getting a bit nervous about pushing publish these days. Who knows what havoc my books might unleash?     

February 2021. Massive winter storm power outage. Four plus days without heat, but plenty of outside ice. Balmy twenty-six degrees out. Launched an extraction mission to get my mom to my sister’s house, since they had gas heat. I will only own a Subaru. And my dad’s hard hat prevented me from a concussion when I got clocked with falling ice. Proper gear people!  

At some point, you just go with it. Flying vampire zombies must be next. One looks skyward and yells, “Bring it!” The Army and Air Force Reserve taught me valuable lessons. People first. Eyes on the mission. Zig. Zag. Gas. Go around. Evasive maneuvers.

But since I’ve broken every book marketing rule known to women, I march on. Perseverance. And a ton of Dove dark chocolate. Peanut M&Ms for backup. And cookies. Always cookies.

The only constants are change and chaos. To quote Marine slang; Semper Gumby – Always Flexible. Or something like that.

Now my marketing plan is to study the Ads for Authors course I bought last year to learn about Amazon ads. If the entire Amazon web site goes down, it’s not my fault. Caveat emptor. If they let me pay to use their system, I’m not responsible for what happens.

In the meantime? I keep writing. Because when the world gets too crazy, I can hide in fictional Hat River, Oregon. I find out what my characters are doing and how their lives are going. Writers escape inside their heads. So do readers. Stay tuned for more crazy.

Books ahoy!

February 2022. Published Mission: Disabled Hearts.  

October 2022. Where was I? Lost a lot of the last year when my mom went on hospice, then died in September 2021. (She hated the term “passed away,” so not using that!) A journey of grief and transitions is tricky, but one day at a time usually works. Writing was my anchor and therapy these past years, however editing was beyond me until earlier this year when I published Mission: Disabled Hearts. 

And because I never do what I’m supposed to, I wrote a book in a new connected series this year, which is with my editor. Because that was the book I needed to write. I should take Vegas betting odds to see if I finally get Merry MisMouse, the holiday book, finished this year. Who knows? Stay tuned! 

November 2023: Published Forbidden Biker, which I’ve come to call mom’s book. It started a new series, Moonstruck Makeovers, and I kept writing. I wrote it to avoid working on Merry MisMouse, truth be told.

December 2023: Finally published Merry MisMouse! Miracles do happen. Started writing this book in August 2019, and life kept shoving it past the next Christmas. For years! But finally, I prevailed. Note to self, write all future holiday books in July. 

December 2023: Published my first novella, Gingerbread Gorgeous, in the Single Santa’s Club series. Because I wrote this novella to also avoid working on Merry MisMouse. Which means I ignored all of my notes to myself and somehow published three holiday books in a row. I’m still digging out my office mess from that escapade.

July 2024: Getting ready to publish Mission: Runaway Hearts, due back from my editor any minute. Plus, I’m editing the Writing War Stories nonfiction writing book for veterans, published in 2006 titled Do Bar Fights Count? Give me chocolate! Shouldn’t I be writing a holiday book too? It’s July! And I am up to my eyeballs creating a streamlined series bible to keep track of all my characters in Hat River, Oregon, where ALL of my connected series are set. I’ve built an entire town, people, it’s a lot. In a fictional small town, not so far away…

November 2024: Published Mission: Runaway Hearts. Don’t ask me what happened to the fall. It was a blur. Pretty sure there were some tech issues which I have banished from my brain. 

December 2024: Published Chef Gorgeous. A holiday novella out before the holiday. Imagine. Miracles do happen! I must write the next one in July. Seriously. And since I can’t write a series in a straight line to save my life, next up is book two in the Moonstruck Makeovers series. Because I am not the boss of my muse. Plus, the series bible is turning into an octopus. And I am doing a fabulous job of avoiding the final edit on the nonfiction book. Romance books are so much more fun to write….

The adventure continues…     

 

“Confessions of an Author Tortoise” Copyright © 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019 by Kimberly A. Cook. Cover images Mission: Purple Hearts ID 62380801 © Sashkinw at Dreamstime.com and Desert Devils ID 140447199 © Ag042d at Dreamstime.com  Cover Designs by Robin Ludwig Design Inc.

Welcome Summer?

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First lawn swing day. Put the canopy on for the first time in decades. Upside down. If at first you don’t succeed, you’re human!

Is it just me or has the world gone whack-a-doodle? Its been a wild and wacky couple weeks since we last chatted. I’ve been up to my eyeballs in the glamour(?) of book editing, formatting, and tech programs beyond my level of expertise. So when I get too frustrated, I go clean or sort something. Which does not make me that happy. Really.

So then I go buy discount craft supplies at Tuesday Morning. That makes me very happy. Then it is time to organize those new supplies. It feels like the movie “Groundhog Day” around here!

But I try to focus on the simple things in life to save my sanity. Because in a life well lived, it’s the little things that truly matter. Here is my list from the last several weeks:

  • Novocain is fabulous. Especially when you really need it. Twice in one week.
  • Avocado peels and coleslaw do not make the garbage disposal happy. But, you get a free shower when you pull the sink trap.
  • Power surges can cause smoke alarms to go off at 3 a.m. I am grateful they work and there was no fire. Good heart-rate test. 
  • Brooms are fabulous tools. Especially to reset smoke alarms on high ceilings. See above. 
  • A pair of Mourning Doves visit my backyard every afternoon. And do the wild thing on my fence. Pretty birdies?
  • Fresh strawberries are finally in at the farmer’s market. In spite of the two biblical hail storms we had.
  • On birthday week you eat chocolate cake, blackberry pie, chocolate cupcakes, BBQ potato chips, and pancakes! Once a year.
  •  One of my favorite romance authors, Jill Shalvis, released a new book; The Lemon Sisters!
  • Penny Black kitty stamps are my new obsession. I do not apologize. Keep calm and sniff the ink.
  • Potato salad deserves to wear a crown. Especially when someone else makes it.
  • Flip flops! Naked toes! Pink toenail polish! With glitter!
  • Kitty hugs from Spec Ops Cat. Even though I know he is just trying to get warm. Or fed. Or brushed. Or scratched.
  • First summer swing on the lawn swing. With Mom. On the Fourth of July.

What’s on your simple pleasures of life list? 

Memorial Day – Never Forget

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Last week I was watching a YouTube video where widows of service members were being brought together to make new friendships and heal. The Gary Sinise Foundation hosted their visit to Los Angeles, California.

One widow voiced the pain of all families and friends of fallen service members: their worst fear is their loved ones will be forgotten.

That is why this Memorial Day, pause and take time to remember, reflect, and respect the sacrifice of those who gave all when asked to by our country. This holiday is to show these families we will not forget their loss and their loved ones service, whether man, woman, or military working animal.

Let us also remember the families who still don’t have answers about the fate of their missing loved ones.

World War II  72,719

Korean War  7,661

Vietnam War  1,589

Cold War    126

Gulf Wars   5

El Dorado Canyon   1

Enjoy the holiday weekend, be safe, and never forget.

Happy May Day!

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Blooms for you!

Sun. Finally. I’ve been cooped up in the house for the last month with four unruly teenagers. Not humans, but book manuscripts. Making progress, but these kids are driving me nuts. So sunshine is a very good excuse to grab the camera and wander around my neighborhood after lunch. Instead of taking a nap. That hard job falls to Spec Ops Cat. He excels at it, trust me.

I’d noticed the rhododendrons blooming down the street and wanted to get a picture of the PINK blossoms. So pretty. There are some gorgeous red ones on another sunny corner, but they are almost bloomed out. Sun spots matter. 

Then what I thought was candytuft turns out to be something else, which I have no idea what it is, but it’s beautiful.

Very pretty. Something or other.

While I continue to slog through the technical side of indie publishing, wanted to let you all know I am still at it, giving it my best, and whining. Er, writing. A lot. That means I get rewarded with chocolate, so I’ve created my own fat monster. I’ve had to resort to giving myself a sticker on my calendar every time I complete another chapter. Fun stickers. Now I’m hoarding stickers.

The sticker fetish coincides with my new hoarding, er, hobby habit; stamping. I started with Anna Griffin card kits and it’s a slippery slope to Crafters Companion dies and stamps. Yesterday I almost grabbed a plastic wrapped magazine out of woman’s hands in Barnes and Noble because I thought she had the British stamping magazine I was stalking.

Lucky for her, she did not have the edition I wanted. My military background aside, I watch a ton of pro football. I’ve seen tackling moves. Consider that a warning to the stamping gals cruising the magazines at my Barnes and Noble. Just saying.  

When I did find the coveted issue on the stands, I practically yelled in glee. The holy grail. Swan stamps and dies. They GIVE you cling stamps with the magazine. There should be a law against that, really. Monday I actually went on eBay to purchase two back issues I had to have. No judgments. Stop me before I stamp again!

But stamping is a great stress reliever from dealing with said teenagers. I even get to switch chairs in the office. Purple for writing, pink for crafting.

There is nothing like coloring in the lines of the stamp and then using water and a paint brush to turn them into watercolors. If you use permanent black ink and watercolor pencils. Only a few of the thousand needed accessories. Including a baby toothbrush to clean my stamps with baby shampoo and water. Scrubbing the ink off the stamps calms me down too. Simple pleasures. That whole cleaning and scrubbing calm does not apply to the rest of my house. Not the same thing.     

So I wanted to show you my first effort at making stamped cards. Since no guts, no glory, I started with probably the largest and most intricate stamp I own for my first project. Also, the first time using a rocker block too. Did a couple of test stamps that came out great, and then on to the watercolor cards. No fear!

Three cards. One for Mom, and the others for friends dealing with health challenges.

I’m a rookie stamper. I admit it. So all I can do is improve, right? And I bought some glitter ink. Because of the teenagers! That’s my tale and I’m sticking to it. It helps me relax. Fun colors and it’s cheaper than therapy. I think.

Got the crazies? What’s your craft therapy?

Happy May Day! 

And the promised pink blossoms. In today’s sunshine. The bees were very busy on these blooms, but I couldn’t get a bee butt picture. They move. The quest continues!

  

Sun, Sand, And Spring?

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View from outside the restaurant. Perfect.

Sometimes the best thing to do is leave town. For fun. Just for the day. Last week on Spring eve, the weather folks said it was going to be 74 degrees at the beach. What? My friend, Kathy, and I decided to beat feet to the coast for lunch and a stroll in the sand.

We promptly got stuck in a traffic jam on the freeway, but we didn’t care. We were off on an adventure. Stopped at the Oregon State Park rest stop at VanDuzer Corridor, one on either side of the road. Besides improving personal comfort, I always like to go and check out the streams close by and watch the burbling brook. (On the South side rest stop it’s a full river)

We made it to Gleneden Beach in no time to have lunch at the Clarion Inn Surfrider Resort, which has great food and a killer coastal view. My halibut sandwich was amazing and I ate the entire thing. I do not apologize.

Warm sand and sun. I didn’t notice my footsteps until after I took the photo.

Next we drove over to the Gleneden Beach Day Use beach access and broke out our flip flops. Due to coastal wave erosion, the excellent path down to the sand ends in a rather challenging climbing access the last seven feet to the beach. I chose to go down in flip flops, but saw the error of my ways and used bare feet on the return trip. A guide wire to hang onto would be an improvement, but we charged on.

Great trail except for the last seven feet. You can see the cliff erosion.

The ocean was topaz blue, the sun knocked your eyes out and a slight breeze let us sniff the fresh sea air. The booming waves reminded us it was still winter water out there and the high waves required respect. I began picking up rocks and treasures from along our walk and after several blocks, we decided to perch on a driftwood log high above the shoreline.

Winter waves require respect. The rest of the year too. Sneaker waves are real.

Back home seemed like a million miles away. We even started to get a little sun kissed. We moseyed back to the parking lot and got rid of sand between our toes, then prepared for the trip back to the valley. We had spied a Joann Fabric store in Lincoln City and then a Michael’s in Tualatin. Stopped at both for bunny booty and unneeded craft supplies.

A fabulous way to spend evening rush hour, shopping the craft aisles. Got home around 6:30 p.m. with Spec Ops Cat waiting at the door for his dinner. A cat waitress’ work is never done.

Some days a girl just needs to get sand between her toes.

Here’s to more spontaneous beach trips for everybody!

On the way home we spotted this quirky forest restoration project. Not too bad a photo at sixty miles per hour through the car window! See the happy face?

 

 

Happy Spring Moon!

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True sign of Spring? Wall of flip flops at the store Monday!

Spring! Finally! We’ve had a great couple days of nice weather and it gives me hope the sun will return again this year. For those of you still freezing your body parts off, my condolences. Mother Nature will share the sun again. I promise.

This is my favorite season, to see the daffodils peeking open, the pollen launching itself into the atmosphere and the plants showing up at the garden center. I did prevent myself from buying a five-foot tall metal flamingo the other weekend, but now there are three-foot ones in at my garden store. I might be tempted.

Carnations have arrived at the Garden Center. I did stop and take a whiff.

My yard art needs makeovers, the garage needs a major and continuing muck out, and all I want to do is nap in the sun spots like Spec Ops Cat. And read some good books. Which I have piled on the floor in my office and bedroom. I corral them in the rest of the house. Kinda.

Renewal. Hope. Bunny supplies! It’s time to buy the Easter candy and stock up before all the good stuff is gone. That includes accessories, basket booty and colored plastic eggs. With glitter. I have been in four bunny retail sections this past week. Two of them twice. Bunny bliss.  

Bunny candy! Bunny bags! Bunny cling stickers! Make me stop…..

My craft addiction continues apace and I ordered some Penny Black bunny stamps too. I know I can’t draw, but I can color inside the lines. Of course, I couldn’t stamp until I bagged a bottle of vegetable glycerin to help clean the stamps. Every endeavor requires equipment. I am a go for bunny stamps arriving soon. 

Now I get to plan the Bunny Brunch I am going to host for the family next month. Thought about bringing all my collected bunnies into the dining room for the event. But the living room may not be big enough. I’ve got BUNNIES! Will have to work on that idea. My own personal bunny rodeo.

Enjoy today’s first day of Spring and tonight’s full moon.

Spring is back!

Hug a bunny!