Happy early Thanksgiving everyone! I wanted to take this post and focus on some of the positives that have happened over the year. As NaNoWriMo wraps up at the end of the month, I'll need to start editing and rewriting in preparation for the Golden Heart Contest in January, as has been my goal since beginning Firemark last year. More on that contest later. For now, here's what I’m thankful for:

1. I am thankful for everyday things.

My family is healthy, and I have a job, I have a house, a car, and a couple of close friends. My husband Kevin believes in my writing and supports me *cue vacuuming in the background.* The further I go on my journey, the more he has to take up the slack to keep things running. He does so without (much) complaint, and I know were it not for seeing his own experiences of starting and then making a living from his own business, I wouldn't even be considering this as a viable career. No lie, as I'm writing this, he just put a glass of water on my desk without a word. I am thankful for him.

2. I am thankful for new friends.

Summer before last, I packed up and headed to the Writer's Digest National Writing Conference in New York, husband and infant in tow, and met a lot of inspirational people, all of whom are on the same journey as myself. Coming back on the train, I got out a yellow legal pad and drafted out the idea for what became Firemark. As I work on the sequel now, I can reflect on the number of people I've met since then. I am thankful for the Virginia Romance Writers for welcoming me with open arms. I am grateful for the feedback from about sixty judges from all twenty of the contests I've entered. I am thankful for the Pitch Wars community. I am thankful for the NaNoWriMo community, both the individual people and the classes I've been able to take because of it through Coursera. Every other writer I’ve met has helped me, even if in just a small way.

3. I am thankful for luck.

Pure luck brought Jeanne Oates Estridge into my inbox. Jeanne is from the Golden Heart Network, and author of The Demon Always Wins which won the 2015 RWA Golden Heart award in the paranormal romance category. For those of you who don't know, I recently won a lottery they sponsored, meaning a Golden Heart winner would critique my entry in preparation for this critical contest. I can tell you that Jeanne's comments were the most meaningful feedback I've received yet. Having now read her suggestions, I believe I had taken Firemark as far as I could on my own and needed an expert eye to help guide me along in revisions. Not everyone who entered the lottery came away with a critique, so I am thankful for sheer luck and the opportunities that come my way.

4. I am thankful for you.

Yes, you read that right. To those of you who are reading this, I can't tell you how much I appreciate you. I am thankful for Maria who suggested in July that it was time I started a website. I am grateful for Jennifer who even in the chaos of work asks me about my contests. I know she'll be one of the first to review me on Goodreads and Amazon. I am thankful for Mary Beth who out of the blue in the lunch line at work cheered me on saying, "Girl, I see you hitting your word count goals! I see you!" I am thankful for every person who talks about my writing with a smile (all y'all know who you are), including one of my administrators who casually mentioned my writing and books last week. I am thankful for my best friend, travel buddy, emotional support counselor, and word sprint pal, Jenn, who when I asked her to come with me this July to New York to the Annual RWA conference, didn’t even have to think twice before saying yes. I am thankful I now have a way to tell my family what I'm actually up to so that when I offer to bring a pie to Thanksgiving, my mom answers with this text.

All of you are the reason I can't give up. I don't want to let you down.

With thanks,

Kathryn