So I'm in the middle of editing, and I need a break. Since I looked up what Hayden's heart and dagger tattoo might actually look like(after I'd already written about it), I tried to find what I envisioned his angel tattoo to look like. 

These images were as close to what I envisioned as I could find. Now I know in the novel his tattoo took a single afternoon, so some of the more intricate ones here would have taken much more time and more than one visit. I just thought it would be fun to check them out.

In my head I thought I knew what Hayden's tattoo looked like.  But when I began looking through images, nothing I found was what I had envisioned. I thought I'd post some actual tattoos that might resemble some aspects of his tattoo.

I follow some really great blogs and wanted to share some of them.  Please know these are just a few. For many more, please check out my Goodreads page  https://www.goodreads.com/jnathan

So I received my manuscript back yesterday and I'm excited and eager.  Excited to get someone else's feedback-someone I respect as an author.  Eager to dive back into the world of Alex and Hayden.  I've missed them while they've been gone.  Desperately.  

So, right now, I'm in the process of welcoming them back with open arms:-)

Upon reviewing Stephanie's notes, I have a lot to consider.  She sent me three pages of amazing comments and a completely marked up manuscript.  She did exactly what I wanted.  She offered suggestions, told me where things took her out of a moment, told me when things didn't add up, told me when things were too hard to believe, etc. Her comments totally refreshed me, and hopefully my story.

I've been working on my revisions.  Her notes are marked up with post it notes of ideas I had based on her thoughts, and I already eliminated pages from the manuscript based on her suggestions.  I'm down 20 pages, but she did recommend cutting it down 50-70 pages. I would love to do it if I knew where to even begin cutting.  I knew it was long(420 pages).  But I'll have to ask her more about that when we have our phone conversation.  

The great thing about Stephanie Elliot is she is completely open to me asking questions and running ideas by her.  Thank God, because I want to be sure my revisions are not ruining the story.

So my manuscript is in the hands of the wonderful Stephanie Elliot being edited.  I've found a cover I really love and now I feel lost.  I am so used to coming home to work on Alex and Hayden's story, not having them with me has left a void.  Crazy, right? 

So, I tried working on This Time,  the story Alex and Hayden interrupted a year ago.  But the problem with that is I was not loving the story the way I once had.  

I need to get reacquainted with the characters, Brendan and Morgan, and I'm making some major changes to the story line.  Right now, I'm not sure how they will affect the remainder of the book.  It's a huge undertaking that I am not ready to begin...yet.  Not until Alex and Hayden's story is out for the world to read. 

But I do know I need to get back to it.  Brendan and Morgan deserve their happy ending.