2026: Reclaiming My Writing

I’m proud of myself, because I finally finished writing a book.

I know. I’m a writer, I should have finished several books by now. But I haven’t, and that has been a problem I’ve had to deal with.

Onyx was the last book I wrote and published. I’ve outlined several stories. I’ve began writing some of them and rewrote what I had written multiple times, but I didn’t finish any of them until just a week ago. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to write. I think it was a combination of things that got in the way. I went back to working full time after a year of retirement. I lost my fur baby who was my constant writing companion. There were evenings, I went to sleep still holding a pen over my notebook, and other evenings I sat down for a few minutes, and wake 30 minutes or hours later. And then, I started to having stress/panic attacks. 

At the beginning of January, I made the decision to reclaim my writing career, my creativity, and my health. The day job is necessary but it’s time to reclaim the extra time the day job likes to steal from me.

Stolen Wolf (Starlight Bar, book 5) is the first result of my efforts to reclaim the writing I love to do. 

Stolen Wolf is Liam and Lily’s story. Decades ago Liam Carter found his mate, but death stole her from him, or so he was led to believe. He and his monster have mourned her all that time. 

For the last thirty years, Lily Owens survived being a prisoner due to her parents’ greed. During her imprisonment, she gave birth to Liam's pup and kept believing Liam would find them. Finally free, Lily goes to find Liam, hoping he still wants and loves her like she still loves him.

Have too many years passed for Liam and Lily to reconnect? Will lies from the past keep them apart? Or will a new threat permanently separate them?

This story is a little different from my other stories. Lily and Liam are older. They both have been through traumas and are having to reconnect with each other. Because we meet Lily only days into her new freedom, anything stronger than hugs, kisses, and cuddles felt appropriate during their reunion. 

Stolen Wolf will be released toward the end of this month. It is currently in edits. The other books in the Starlight Bar series will also get new covers. When they come out, let me know what you think about the covers.

So, what is next? Last week, I went through the partial manuscript for Diablo (Brimstone Heat, book 5). I cut what didn’t work and what I didn’t like. I found scene ideas that will work. Now, I need to start writing.

I’m excited to be writing stories again.

Rayne Rachels