Batman turned thirty-six. High-five to the best husband for keeping himself alive over three decades and still being able to keep up with the housework. Well, sometimes.

To celebrate, we took a weekend trip to Amelia Island. It’s only a little over an hour away, but we stayed Friday and Saturday night to give ourselves plenty of time to explore all the nifty thrifty places, the main downtown scene, and my personal favorite, Fort Clinch.

Have you ever been to a fort? It’s like going back in time without having to give up deodorant. We have one in St. Augustine which is around forty-five minutes away, and that one is pretty impressive too, but Fort Clinch was straight up magical. Not only does it overlook the Atlantic Ocean, but the outer ring (?) had so many little stone archways and twists and turns, I was for sure Lancelot was about to pop out of one of them. And then, the most magical thing happened. I found this:

I’m a sucker for stone stairways. I don’t know if it’s because I was obsessed with Prince of Thieves as a kid (remember when Kevin Costner was trying to race up those stone steps?) and I’ve even incorporated the environment into different stories like Rozmarie & Josiah. I LOVE twisty stone stairways. So, naturally, I ran right up, completely expecting to find a Go-No-Further sign, but there was none. None! I kept ascending until I reached the very top:

Magic. How else to describe finding a twisty-turny stone stairwell? It might not be a big deal, but it was like walking into one of my stories, like watching it come to life around me. Pretty fricking dope.

Batman had a good time, and after a long-awaited couples massage, we explored the city until the weather had other plans for us. All in all, it was a great weekend.

Writing-wise, I feel severely behind schedule and even contemplated about pushing back the release date. I should be advertising like, now, and I’m still working on the edits. At least I’ve revealed my cover, but it doesn’t do me much if I have no idea how to market the thing. Yes, I should’ve been figuring it out this whole time, but I’m also writing book two, have a full time job that’s recently demanded longer shifts, and, to be honest, the whole thing is terrifyingly overwhelming. I was hoping the newsletter might help, but I really just need to learn advertising. And how to successfully launch this book, which, unless I figure it out quickly, will be launched the same as all the rest. But, who knows? Maybe I’ll get my act together with the AROG, because I really want to release ARPIP in June.

You guys want that too…right?

Feeling anxious…

Just need to breathe and concentrate on the spiral stone stairway. I’ve got this.

~Lady Caitlin

More pictures of the magic because…why not?