The hard part is over now. Sort of.

Cross-posted on Substack.

Have you heard???? Not a Strong Enough Word is out now! Have you read it yet? What are you waiting for?

Is May a good time to cut back on coffee? It absolutely is not! Am I doing it anyway as part of some (misguided) attempt to be healthier and sleep better and lower my stress levels? Yes, I am! I suspect this will last about a week, but I’ve started replacing just my first cup of coffee of the day with a smoothie this week, and I gotta say…I feel pretty good.

Everyone always asks me what I do to celebrate a book release, and the truth of the matter is…I generally just go about my daily life. Sometimes, I’ll have a glass of wine or something special at night, but I’m a teacher and a mom and my kiddos are in a million activities and I have more books to write (in fact, by the time one book is out, I’m already well into the next one) and…yeah. Life goes on! The world keeps turning! This is the ninth book I’ve written—the eighth I’ve published—and while I say every time that I’m going to take release day off, sometimes release day lands in May amidst a bunch of other days off for other stuff, so I tend to just wake up, post a few things, bask in the glow of having put something beautiful out into the world again for a few extra minutes, then pour a coffee and start getting everyone ready for school.

Honestly, I don’t mind. There’s something special about letting go of release day expectations and just allowing myself to enjoy that feeling of crossing the finish line. And, of course, the work is just beginning because now I have to remind people to read this thing and hopefully keep up whatever momentum I’ve built, but putting art out into the world is its own kind of finish line. It’s a success in and of itself.

But on release day, I did treat myself to an extra coffee in the morning. (See? Reducing my coffee intake didn’t last long.) I cried happy tears over all the beautiful reviews people tagged me in. My husband took both kids to school (they go to two different schools) so I could have some extra time to pack orders, and then he dropped the orders off at the post office for me. I forgot to eat breakfast (I am Scarlett), so I grabbed an extra protein bar on my way out the door (I am also Trina). I wore my purple pants just to give a little extra Not a Strong Enough Word energy to my day. We ordered tacos for dinner (IYKYK), and got ice cream because it was 80 degrees on release day, so that felt like the right way to celebrate. I tried to keep up with all the wonderful messages and tags throughout the day and, honestly, that filled my cup more than anything else. This book seems to have found people who need it right now, and for that, I am eternally grateful.

Art is vulnerable. Being an artist, no matter your medium, is to open a piece of yourself and share it with the world. This book in particular was incredibly vulnerable for me to share. So even if it doesn’t look like I’m celebrating outwardly with huge release parties or events, I am still celebrating. Because I am beyond grateful that I have done the hard work to get to a point in my life where I am strong enough to share a story that means so much to me—that contains such a piece of me—and know that whatever people think about it or however they feel about it, I’m fine. I’m proud of this book. But most of all, I’m proud of me.

If you’ve read Not a Strong Enough Word already, thank you. Please leave a review everywhere you can! (Especially Amazon, even though I know people are trying to avoid the site right now.) Tell your friends! Request your local indie bookstore carry it! Request your local library carry it! All of these things will help get Scarlett and Ryan into the hands of people who need to read their story, and it will help me continue making this dream of writing novels a reality.

Looking for another romance with characters who have some history of grief and who are looking for their second chance? Check out Never Left You by Stefanie Steck!

After the death of her husband, Abi Hartwell Acosta poured her heart and soul into two things: her son and her family ranch. Hartwell Hills Ranch is her home, and Abi is the sunshine to everyone on it. With the responsibilities of the ranch falling to her more and more, she’s finding it harder to wear that happy face all the time, especially when an old ‘friend’ shows up, bringing way too many memories with him.

Cash Callahan is the epitome of the saying ‘when push comes to shove’. Everything in his life fell apart after his best friend died: his career, his marriage…the friendship he valued more than anything. He never thought he’d find himself back at Hartwell Hills Ranch, but when the opportunity pops up for him to use the training arena, he can’t say no. Even if that means he’d finally see Abi after assuming he’d lost her forever.

Tensions rise as Abi and Cash find themselves battling for the same space, one that isn’t big enough for all the feelings they’ve been bottling up over the past five years. Can they find a way back to each other? Or will they finally realize that neither of them ever truly left the other behind?

I hope you can cozy up with Ryan and Scarlett this weekend if you haven’t already! Thanks for being here, and happy reading.
-Allie