What A Year

My wife and I are hustling to accomplish everything we still have on our plates. That was until I read her 2015 recap she’d prepared for a monthly newsletter. It was after reading this (below) that I realized – WOW – what a year.

Feeling like I’d neglected this blog, I looked back at some point and realized something had to give (or bend.) I’d worked so hard to build this site over the last years, but life’s demands had other plans.

It’s funny to become attached to a blog site, but I believe it’s been a natural extension of my life. I’ve introduced you to my family, my job as a Chief of Police and now an author and private business owner. You’ve traveled along my journey to turning 50, and the realization that life just gets better with hard work and a positive attitude.

My goal for 2016 is to return here. I look forward to seeing you and to meeting new friends. I also wanted to include this annual recap from Liliana Hart.

Merry Christmas,

Scott

2015 At A Glance

by Liliana Hart

January – I had no idea what was in store when the year started! RILEY: FIREWORKS released and we took a trip to Washington, DC so Scott could sit on a board of Chiefs of Police from around the country, and so I could take the Griswold tour of DC in the brief time we were there.

February – I had the honor of being asked to speak at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. on Romance in the Digital Age. It’s one of the greatest highlights of my life. We also broke ground on our new house (whose idea was it to build a new house anyway?)

March – CRAVE released, Scott had a milestone birthday (Yay for 50!), I had a birthday (29 again!), AND we got engaged. It was a busy month.

April – I’m sure a lot of stuff happened in April. I paid taxes. I remember that much. And THE WITCHING HOUR released. After writing the tax check I went into a coma.

May – In May we headed to Dallas for the Romantic Times conference, where we both sat on panels, signed books, and had a great time with readers and friends. DIRTY DEEDS, a novella in the JJ Graves series, also released.

June – We tied the knot in June in a lovely ceremony with only our immediate families. It was a complete and total surprise to everyone but us, and it was awesome seeing the looks on their faces. Weirdly enough, we both went back to work a couple days later, but we made a weekend trip to Biloxi, and then we did a four-day bike trek through wine country in California. I didn’t die.

July­ – COOPER: THE TIES THAT BIND­ released and we made a trip to New York for Thrillerfest, where we both spoke on panels and signed books. We saw Book of Mormon (which was Scott’s first musical ever), and he decided he wanted to still be married to me after it was over, so whew on that one. We took another trip back to New York the week after for the Romance Writers of America conference, where I spoke and had a lot of meetings with publisher type people. We made a second trip to Broadway to see Wicked this time. When we got back we took a family trip to Biloxi where my sisters-in-law taught me the wonders of the roulette table.

August –THE MACKENZIES: HAPPILY EVER AFTER released and we took a trip to Denver, Colorado, where we went whitewater rafting and didn’t die. We also rented a Jeep and took day trips to look at some amazing scenery. After two months of marriage, we still love each other and have discovered we don’t suck as traveling partners. My husband retired as Chief of Police at the end of the month and became a civilian for the first time in 26 years. It would’ve been a lot more convenient had I gotten my speeding ticket before he retired.

September ­– We made a trip to Indianapolis to give an all day workshop to writers. Then we traveled to the French Lick resort for a few days, where I discovered the wonders of lemon-drop martinis. Scott couldn’t wait to get out of there because the place was haunted. I couldn’t wait to get out of there because everyone went to bed at 9:00 and it was creepy.

October – We started the month by taking a team of 19 Cops in Kilts to the Warrior Dash in St. Francisville, Louisiana, where we raised a ton of money for breast cancer and got very dirty. Then we took a trip to Chicago to the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference, where my brilliant husband gave a workshop on data driven policing. Smart guys are hot, y’all. We also got the new idea for our co-authored series while touring the showroom floor, and we ate a lot of pizza.

November – This was the first month all year we didn’t travel. We sold our house in Louisiana and had to get out in just a couple of weeks, so we spent the month packing and shoving things into storage. It wasn’t until the week of Thanksgiving that we realized we should’ve waited until after the holiday was over to move out of the house. But we spent time with family and ate lots of pie anyway.

December – THE PROMISE OF SURRENDER releases, and I’m finishing up TROUBLE MAKER, which is a brand new surprise MacKenzie novel that will be out in February. It’s due December 21^st, which is perfect timing because Scott and I leave for Las Vegas on the 22^nd. We spent a week in Vegas last Christmas and had a great time, so we thought we’d do it again and get some adult only time in, because the day after Christmas we’re taking all the kids and our family (totaling 18 people!) to Disney World. We’ll be ringing in the New Year with fireworks at the Magic Kingdom. Pray for us.

I hope your 2015 has been as blessed as ours has, and best wishes to you all for a safe and happy 2016. I can promise 2016 will be a year of more books (including Shane MacKenzie’s).

WOW – we really were productive – Here’s to a Smashing 2016!! – Scott