THE STOLEN MOON is here!

Today marks the publication of my second book, THE STOLEN MOON. I'm so happy that this book is out in the world, and incredibly pleased at the good reception it's gotten so far. After spending multiple years working on the first book as a labor of love, I was really proud to get another book written in less than a year, even if most of that writing happened in a panic-fueled haze.

I got a lot of help with this book, from my husband who cheered me on and left me alone when I needed time to write, from my boss who let me take a three-month leave of absence from my job to write, from my writers' group who are an awesome and supportive group of ladies, from my wonderful agent Joanna and her then-assistant Danielle who heroically read the whole book and got me feedback in two days so that I could make changes before my looming deadline, and to my editor who has been so wonderfully enthusiastic about this series.

But my biggest thanks go out to my critique partner Liz Briggs, who you may already know is a master plot whisperer. When it got down to crunch time and I only had a half-finished first draft and four weeks left to finish this book, she cheered me on through my chapter-a-day writing rampage and critiqued for me every single day, sending me mid-morning her critique of the chapter I'd sent her the night before. Some days she said, "This was awesome!" and my spirits went soaring. Other days she said, "This was terrible," and I had to nod my head and agree. Twice I had to rewrite the entire chapter. I wouldn't have made my deadline without her help, and the book probably wouldn't be nearly as good. So thanks, Liz, for your exceeding generosity and for keeping me sane. And thanks to everyone who's read THE LOST PLANET! I hope you enjoy this next chapter in Chase's adventures!

2014

I can't believe it's already the last day of 2014. This has been a long, weird, happy year for me, marked by some major life moments and a lot of change. It was my debut year! Seeing THE LOST PLANET hit bookshelves--that little book I plugged away at in 2010, determined to finally finish something--has been surreal and exciting. I'm so grateful to everyone who worked with me, helped me out, and cheered me on during that time.

And speaking of major life moments, it was around this time last year that I found out I was having a baby, though it was less like oh surprise we're having a baby! and more like thank heavens something finally worked! That whole experience ate up a lot of my attention this year, and in August we welcomed a sweet little girl into our lives. She is the happiest, giggliest baby I've ever seen, and we are having so much fun with her. The best part is how she makes everything we do matter a little bit more because we're always conscious of the fact that we're shaping her childhood memories. Christmas this year = awesome.

Of course, not everything was peaches and starshine in 2014. We got bumped out of the house we were renting and had to scramble to move across town. My husband stepped back from his career for a bit to make some long-overdue changes. With everything that was going on, I got really frazzled and lost the ability to focus well for a very long time, meaning that everything took me ten times longer than it should have. I read little. I wrote even less. For the first time in my life I was unable to get simple tasks done not because I was procrastinating, but because I actually never got the minutes I needed to empty the dryer or answer an email or put the leftovers into the fridge. It's crazy-making. (And just lolololol that I thought I could join in NaNo this year. L. O. L.)

But just in the past month or so, I've started to get my groove back. I'm learning how to make time for myself again. I've been writing more, skipping around on multiple projects and feeling creative joy instead of stress. Regular reading might actually be a possibility again. I'm heading into 2015 with a healthy, happy family, and high hopes for what I can accomplish this year. I can't wait to watch my daughter grow and change (so fast!). And to start things off with a bang, January 2015 will bring the publication of my sequel, THE STOLEN MOON (aka the book that nearly broke me). I'm proud of this book and excited about the great early reviews it's getting, and I can't wait until it's out in the wild. I'll post news very soon about the launch event.

Wishing you all a happy, safe, and successful 2015!

Cover Reveal Day!

Happy Thursday! I hope you're all enjoying the summer with beach visits and popsicles and lazy days spent reading. I'm so happy to have made it to July after three and a half weeks of travel and an accelerated move across town. I survived! We're all settled into our home, the cats approve of their new digs, and I can finally hunker down and prepare for the arrival of our newest family member next month. New words like Dreft and diaper pail are starting to make their way into my vocabulary, and I'm rearing and ready to start this new phase.

But let's get to the main event, shall we? Today the cover for my second Lost Planet book, THE STOLEN MOON, is being revealed over at the YA Buccaneers!! Hop on over and check it out: http://www.yabuccaneers.com/blog/2014/7/9/cover-reveal-the-stolen-moon-by-rachel-searles. To celebrate, I'm also offering up a future ARC of the book. I haven't gotten them yet, but when I do, the winner will be at the top of my mailing list. Writing this book was an experience I'll never forget, and I'm really pleased with how it turned out. I can't wait to share it with the world in January!