2025 In the Books

WRITING

​Today marks the end of a second year since deciding to retire from my writing career. I still feel confident that I’ve made the right decision. Do I miss writing? Yes. Do I miss the grind of publishing and marketing my books? Not one bit. It is still thrilling when someone discovers one of my books and leaves a great review. It’s especially fun when a newer friend reads one and is pleasantly surprised to find the book doesn’t suck. That momentary joy is the only thing that ever makes me consider trying again.

​I did write *a little* earlier in the year. The publisher of most of my books announced that they were still needing a few Christmas romance titles and wanted them by the end of June. At the time, I was finishing directing a February show, and I thought I might have some extra free time. I decided that my ¾-finished romance novel that I’d started in 2023 might easily be adapted to work during the holiday season. I altered my plot outline and then started rewriting the first couple chapters.

​Ultimately, though, I realized I didn’t have quite enough time to finish it and decided to audition for a show instead. Zero part of me regrets that decision, but the story does tickle my mind from time to time. So, I may come back to it someday.

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The only other thing I did for my writing career was to, once again, try new covers for the Nashville Songwriter Romances duology. I was kind of excited to finally find two pictures of the same couple that I could use for each of them. I've uploaded them for the ebooks and audiobook, but I haven't done the print ones yet (but no one buys those, so it doesn't matter that much.) What do you think of them?

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 THEATRE

My main creative focus has continued to be managing The Keeton theatre in Nashville. Our seasons run from August to June, so 2025 saw the second half of my 2nd season as Managing Administrator and the first half of my 3rd season. I am very proud of the quality of the musicals and plays we’ve put together this past year (see video below). We continue to attract great local talent from our onstage performers to our production teams and band members. Every show this past year featured first time Keeton performers in leading and supporting roles.

I only performed in one mainstage show this year. It seems like more because I’m always at the theater, but it really was just one. I auditioned for Company, our spring musical, and was thrilled to get to play Joanne, a bucket list role. What a sassy, complicated lady. And I was fortunate to have such talented scene partners as Tommy Anglim as Bobby and Elliott Winston Robinson as Joanne’s husband Larry. I loved this cast and crew so much. This show wasn’t our biggest ticket seller, but those who did come were pleasantly surprised by it. We also had a huge turnout of actors at auditions for it, so I know choosing it for our theater was a good decision.
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I try really hard to mix up the season with selections that hit in the bullseye of what our typical audience wants (big, happy, well-known musicals and comedies) and more challenging work for our actors like Ragtime, Company, She Loves Me and Big Fish (which will start off 2026). 

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​As of right now, I don’t have plans to direct a show in 2026, and I’m hoping to audition for at least one. This could all change, of course. I’m working on securing rights for our 2026-2027 season, which we will most likely announce in February.

READING

And now, time to get into what I read this year. I didn’t meet my Goodreads goal of 45 books. I came way under, actually, and even picked up some short books in December to try to pad the number a bit. Most of the books I consumed were audiobooks. Physically reading books this year was harder than previous years. I don’t have regular lunch breaks like I used to at my old job, and I only read at bedtime now. However, that is also when I tend to doomscroll to catch up on all the news I’ve missed all day. Not a healthy habit, I know, but it is important for me to stay aware of what is going on in our world. By the time I finally pick up a book, I’m too tired to read much at all. 

PLUS, my eyes are getting worse all the time. I tried reading two hardcover books, and even with my 3.0 readers, I could barely read the type. My eyes strained so hard, that I had trouble enjoying the books at all. I do better with the giant font on my Kindle, but even that has been hard at times. The struggle to read makes me tired and unable to focus. This makes me sad, and I will make an effort in 2026 to find more time to read when I’m not so exhausted.

So, of the 33 books (plus a couple plays that didn’t make the list) that I read, here were my favorites:

​Best YA Novel: Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins. This powerful prequel to The Hunger Games tore my heart out and smashed it to pieces. Brilliantly written, but absolutely devastating. 

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​Best Big Publisher Novel: The Women by Kristin Hannah. I knew this book would also tear at my heart because that’s what Kristin Hannah does. I had been in a play years ago with some similar plot points to this book, so the subject matter was very interesting to me. The characters were thoughtfully created, and the story held me in its grasp the whole time.

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​Best Small Press/Indie Book: The Foster Daughter by Laura Wolfe (Bookatoure) I always enjoy a Laura Wolfe book. This one was twisty and interesting. It definitely kept me guessing as to how it would end.

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​Best Thriller/Action Novel: Drowning by TJ Newman Normally, this goes to the newest Stephen King book, but his latest one wasn’t great. This book, though, had me in its grip. It was a disaster story paired with a “trapped” story”, two genres that are guilty pleasures for me. Yes, it was a little predictable, but I still cheered at the wins and teared up at the losses. I wanted some escapism, and I got it with this. Plus, the audiobook was read by Steve Webber and Laura Benanti, so that was pretty awesome.

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​Best Romance/Women’s Fiction: Night Music by JoJo Moyes. Ooh, I hated the antagonist in the book. Hated. Him. I couldn’t wait to see if he would get his. Meanwhile, the very slow buildup of the real romance in this novel and the need to see if the main character was going to pull her life together had me longing to get back in my car to hear more of this story. I enjoyed this book and the setting very much.

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​Best Non-Fiction: Everything Was Possible: The Birth of the Musical Follies by Ted Chapin. All the nonfiction I got this year was about theater or TV backstories. I listened to this while rehearsing Company, and it was fun to hear all the details of how Stephen Sondheim’s follow up to Company, Follies, got on Broadway. The story was told from firsthand experience and full of great anecdotes and information. Truly fascinating.

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​Best Historical Fiction: James by Percival Everett. Huckleberry Finn told from the perspective of Jim? Yes! Masterful writing. Every single word.

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Most Surprising: A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna. My daughter recommended this one, and I’m so glad I picked it up. It was absolutely lovely. It had magic, but it also had all the tropes of a good sweet romance. All of the characters were so fun and charming. I would read a library full of books like this.

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​Favorite Book of the Year: Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid. This woman can write books. Every time I get one, I’m blown away. It’s winning all the awards for a reason. Brilliant.

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Did you have any favorite books of the year? I’m always looking for recommendations, so comment below. Of course, if you want to try one of mine, feel free to roam through the other pages of my website and see if anything catches your fancy.
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Thanks for reading. I hope you have a wonderful 2026!