Contemplating 2015

As the new year begins, I have been contemplating what's coming for me in 2015. I have again made a few resolutions. Among them are to lose more weight, have a positive attitude, read more, write more, no more pack ratting, and quit smoking. Those are the goals, now to make a plan which I will do below.

1. Lose more weight - While I have stuck to my diet pretty well and lost 30 pounds in 2014, I would like to lose 10 to 20 more pounds this year. I've come to somewhat of a standstill with my weight loss. In my last blood test, my total cholesterol was higher, but the good news is that I had raised my HDL (good cholesterol), but my LDL (bad cholesterol) was also higher. So I need to change some things. I had started eating more ice cream which I need to limit to maybe once per week. I gained a few pounds too over the holidays, about 3 or 4. Anyway, the plan is to eat better by eating more fruit and vegetables and less carbohydrates and sweets. I've already started adding broccoli, Brussels sprout, asparagus, carrots, collards, and other long leaf vegetables. Also I plan to eat more fish and chicken and less beef. I've already started this. Last year, I pretty much removed all pork from my diet, eating bacon only every few months. We did have ham for Christmas and New Year's, but that's it for a while. I've started eating grapes and apples for snacks. I've never cared much for fruit, but do love grapes, strawberries, peaches, and oranges. From what I've read, it appears the old saying is true about apples keeping the doctor away. Need to start exercising every day--at least some type. Since I sit at work and sit and work at home on the computer, the plan is to do some type of cardio or stretch exercise every time I get up to get something or go to the bathroom.
2. Have a positive attitude - I try to do this anyway, but I've found myself at times being pulled into negative comments or conversations, and I'll share something political that has a negative statement. I stopped doing this a couple of months ago and I plan to continue not to fall into that negative trap. So the plan is to focus on the positive by staying away from negative influences, comments, and conversations.
3. Read more - This is easy since I have a pile of books both physical and electronic that I've not read yet. I want to read more  in line with the genres I plan to write in order to become a better writer.
4. Write more - I plan to write at least 3 books per year, but hoping for 5. Of course there will be some short and long books mixed in. I have five books planned for release in 2015. The first book is All This Time a romantic suspense I started in 2000 and was stuck about three-fourths of the way through. Yay! I finally finished it and plan to self-publish in January. Here's a cover and blurb:  

At thirty, Jenny Morgan’s biological clock is ticking. But as a fashion magazine CEO with a busy schedule and no significant other, her wish is unlikely to come true. When her father receives a terminal diagnosis, he wants a grandchild before he dies. With her religious beliefs, a sperm donor isn’t an alternative. Jenny’s only option is her single co-worker and best friend, Trevor Drake. Can she really trust him to be a good husband?



Trevor has loved Jenny since college, but she only sees him as a friend with no ambition. After he finds out about her predicament, he proposes and sets out to prove he can provide everything she needs. Jenny is determined to have a prenuptial agreement with an “out” clause after one year. Can Trevor convince Jenny of his love by then?


As if Jenny and Trevor don’t have enough on their plate, someone at the magazine is out to sabotage their marriage, their impending parenthood, and the magazine. Jenny is nearly killed in a sabotage attempt. Can they work together to uncover their common enemy?
You can find an excerpt on my Web site at kimcoxauthor.com.

About March 30, 2015, Haunted Hearts will be re-released and self-published as a stand-alone novella, book one in A Lana Malloy Paranormal Mystery series with editing and new scenes. Here's a cover and blurb:

Will Lana Malloy solve the twenty-year old double murder of her great aunt and her great aunt's finance by Memorial Day? If she can, they'll spend eternity together; if she can't, they'll be stuck as Haunted Hearts for another year.

Around July 5, 2015, Get Out or Die will be re-released and self-published as a stand-alone novella, book two in A Lana Malloy Paranormal Mystery series. See the cover and blurb below:

Since the news of her first case, Lana Malloy's Private Investigating/Mediator business is booming. At one pro-bono job, Lana helps a window communicate with her late husband and learns of a frightening new ability she wasn't aware she possessed--an ability that could give the spirit the upper hand if she's not careful.

Lana struggles for control when she encounters the angry ghost who doesn't want to leave and who doesn't want the occupants of the house to stay. Will Lana be able to control the situation or will the ghost sense he can overtake her? Does she have other abilities she can rely on to save her?

About September 15, 2015, The Wedding Crasher will be released and self-published as a stand-alone novella, book three in A Lana Malloy Paranormal Mystery series. See the cover and blurb below:

Lana Malloy is getting ready to marry the love of her life, Tony Calabria. The night before they
marry, she has a vision of a disturbing wedding and wonders if it’s a premonition of her own. Feeling silly for thinking that, she proceeds with her plans as scheduled.

During their honeymoon in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Lana has visions of a young woman abducted by a madman who will be forced to marry him if he isn't stopped. She senses marriage isn't the worst thing that could happen to this woman as she feels the threads of death circling her. She believes this isn't the first woman the man has abducted and murdered; he’s killed before.

Lana can’t ignore her visions. Will Tony understand this isn't an obsession, but a calling, and Lana has to do what she can for this young woman? Will she find the victim in time? If she doesn't, life will never be the same.



Last but not least, book four of A Lana Malloy Paranormal Mystery series, Christmas Cruise will be self-published just in time for Christmas around the mid to end of November 2015. See cover and blurb below:



Lana Malloy and Tony Calabria are ready for a much needed vacation. The first time they met, they’d talked about taking a cruise together but haven't had the chance, so they decide to take a Christmas Cruise.

As Lana boards the cruise ship, she has an eerie feeling of death surrounding them. She ignores it at first thinking it’s her fear of the large ship since this her first cruise after all. The first night she has a vision of one woman’s rape and murder. It’s not long before she is confronted by the spirits of young women who had also been raped and then murdered. Now it’s up to her to find their murderer, someone who could be one of the crew members. Can she help these women find the justice they deserve?



Btw, I also created all the covers above. Now back to my 2015 resolutions:






The next resolution is to stop pack ratting. This is more for my husband than myself. But I do have a lot of magazines that I've saved over the years thinking someday I'll have time to read them. I've given up on that. I plan to have them recycled. I also plan to take books that I will never read to a second hand book store and trade them in for books I will read. I also plan to help Lee stick to his side of this resolution. Lee is always finding STUFF and bringing it home because we may need it some day. He has already started cleaning out the library/junk room and the shed and has come a long way.
This last one, stop smoking will probably be the hardest, but I will be 60 in 2016 and I want to stop smoking before that. I've tried before and I've tried all the stop smoking patches, eCigs, and even prescription medication. None have worked for me yet. By the end of December 2015 I will quit smoking.

So that's it. I wish you all much luck and happiness for 2015. It's a new year that I hope will hold many exciting opportunities and possibilities.