Welcome back to another Tuesdays: Behind the Scenes. This week, I’m taking you along on one of my favorite long-running traditions, a family girls’ trip that turned into an evening of nail-biting Maggie Award suspense and an unexpected, joy-filled surprise.

Every year, I take a girls’ trip with my family to shop for arts and crafts. We spend the day wandering through booths, touching every soft scarf and sparkly bauble, catching up on life as we go. We’ve been doing it for 28 years now, and it’s become one of those touchstone traditions that anchors us all.

This year, though, I was a little distracted. I was up for a Maggie through the Georgia Romance Writers of America.

It was my second time as a finalist this year – along with being a finalist in a contest in 2024, so I didn’t have a lot of hope that this would be the year. But I was still crossing my fingers from three states away. My fellow finalist, Liza Farran, texted to let me know she was there in person. She sent me a photo of the program and promised to cheer the loudest if my name was called. I ate my Santa Fe chicken salad on pins and needles that evening at dinner, trying to focus on conversation while sneaking peeks at my phone.

About an hour later, my phone lit up.

Liza messaged with a giant, all-caps: YOU WON! A moment after that, my friend Robyn Hillyer-Miles chimed in to tell me how loudly everyone cheered when they announced my name. I was so humbled and honored—and honestly a little stunned. I jumped from my seat announcing to every table around, “I won!” My sister ordered me a celebratory witchy margarita at Chili’s. I sat there, margarita in hand while a whole room full of writers celebrated hundreds of miles away. More than anything, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for the fellow authors in my corner, cheering me on even when I couldn’t be in the room with them. Love all of you more than you know.

Thank you for coming along for another Tuesdays: Behind the Scenes peek into my writing life and the people who make it sweeter. I hope you’ll stick around for more stories, more traditions, and more little moments of joy along the way.

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