Change is never easy...

Today I was reminded why I both love and hate change. I received a call from my editor at Steeple Hill telling me she is leaving. My first thought was "No! You can't leave me!" After my heart returned to a regular rhythm, she assured me that I would be well taken care of by my new editor, but the thought of letting go was just too scary. I thought about it a second and began to think it was fairly selfish on my part to expect her to stay at Steeple Hill just for me(after all, I'm not her only author and I'm sure everyone was saddened to see her go) so I wished her luck and hoped to stay in touch.

It reminded me about how much I have a love/hate relationship with change. While change can be exciting, new directions, new ways of looking at something, there is definitely something comfortable about the familiar. If I hadn't just come off a marathon week of revisions on my next book, Her Only Protector, I'm not sure I would feel quite as strong about not wanting change. When I'm writing, my characters become so real to me that the thought of changing them in any way feels like I'm violating some deep part of them. Cutting out scenes, changing motivation, rewriting scenes I'd come to love is sometimes painful. In the end, I've trusted my editor to show me the way, let me see things from a different perspective and learn something new about my story and my characters. That change is good. It doesn't always feel good when it's happening, but it ends up good for the story.

So while I sit here sad that the editor who saw me through my first Steeple Hill book and part of my second is leaving me, I am exciting about the changes she has coming up in her life and about developing a new relationship with my new editor. Jessica, if you are reading this, I will miss you, but I wish you all the best. Elizabeth, I can't wait to meet you and work on many manuscripts for Steeple Hill with you.

Until next week, many blessings to you all, Lisa