Feeling Like a Busy Music and Publishing Bee – April 2026 Wrap

Wow, I felt like the busiest bee in April. So many exciting things are happening in both music and publishing. Here are the highlights.

My Seven Nominations for the 2026 ISSA Awards

For the fourth year in a row, I received nominations for the ISSA Awards.

My seven nominations are USA Female Vocalist of the Year, Rising Star, Single of the Year for “If Your Heart Eclipses Mine,” Songwriter of the Year, Musician of the Year, Emerging Artist, and Radio Station/Podcast of the Year for Write on Track.

Thank you to all my Butterflies who voted for me this month. In May, I’ll find out if I made the finals in any of my categories.

Submitting for the 12th Annual Josie Music Awards

This month, I submitted nomination consideration forms for the 12th Annual Josie Music Awards. Nominations will be posted throughout May and possibly into June.

I still can’t believe that “Passive Aggressive” won the Songwriter Achievement Award in 2024.

My fingers are crossed for some nominations!

Happy Ever After Doesn’t Last Forever Is Coming

I couldn’t be more excited to share that my fairy-tale inspired EP, Happy Ever After Doesn’t Last Forever, is coming on May 29, the day before my birthday. After working on this project for years, I can’t believe release day is less than a month away. I love this collection of songs so much, and I’m looking forward to fully embracing my fairy-tale chapter in May.

“Four Leaf Clover” Became a Micromance Magazine Cupid’s Choice Recipient

Last month, Micromance Magazine published the lyrics of “Four Leaf Clover” on St. Patrick’s Day. As if this wasn’t special enough, I found out that I got picked as a Cupid’s Choice recipient. This means that “Four Leaf Clover” was a top performing piece in March.

Thank you to everyone who read my lyrics and checked out the song. If you would like to see the post on Micromance Magazine, click here. I’m so grateful for all the love.

Kaleidoscopic Quill Is an Indie Bestseller

The butterfly anthology of my heart, Kaleidoscopic Quill, has been out for a month, and guess what? It’s an indie bestseller. Pinch me!

Draft2Digital shared the March indie best seller lists in the Indie Advantage, and Kaleidoscopic Quill hit number four on the list of top ten fiction paperbacks.

Here’s the photo of all the books that made the list.

If you would like to see this exciting news for yourself, click here and scroll down on the page.

If you would like to grab a copy of the anthology, click here.

Thank you so much to everyone who made Kaleidoscopic Quill possible and to all the readers who purchased the anthology. I can’t wait to see what’s next.

Celebrating Three Anthology Publications

At the end of March, three new anthologies were published, and I got my paperbacks this month.

First, my young adult romantasy, “A Sealed Promise,” is out in Saltwater and Ash by Micromance Magazine, and I wrote all about the anthology in this blog post.

Second, my young adult spring meet-cute, “Two Bloomed Hearts,” is out in Tiptoe Through The Tulips With Me by KissMet Quarterly, and you can read more about the anthology in this blog post.

And third, my young adult folk horror, “The Dark Side of the Wolf Moon,” is out in Curse of the Sword by Dragon Soul Press, and I wrote about this fairy-tale anthology in this blog post.

This brings my total number of publications to twenty-one. That’s wild. I’m so glad these three anthologies are now on my bookshelf.

More April Anthology Awesomeness

Along with celebrating Kaleidoscopic Quill becoming an indie bestseller and receiving three new books, I have more anthology news.

First, I wrote and submitted two new stories, a young adult summer meet-cute and a young adult romance with an accompanying recipe. I may be a thriller girlie, but I genuinely love writing romance short stories.

Next, I’m so excited to share my interview for Linton Press ahead of the publication of Capture This in May. In the interview, I talked about my story, “Piano Sonata No. 1 in A-Flat Major,” reading, and writing. I absolutely loved doing this interview, so I hope you’ll check it out here.

Lastly, I submitted a writing sample for a super unique anthology opportunity. Only twelve authors will be chosen, so this is definitely competitive. My fingers are crossed that I’ll be one of the lucky twelve. I should find out in May.

Those are my awesome April anthology updates. I’m looking forward to what’s next in May.

Developing My YA Dark Academia Thriller

I spent lots of time this month developing my young adult dark academia thriller. This is the book I’m going to write after my young adult gothic thriller, so I’m having fun working on the story. Now that I started my chapter outline, I’m getting my plot on the page to solidify all the ideas I have so far. Since I plot for months to a year, I’ll be in the preparation stage for a while, but this is one of my favorite parts of the process. I love the magic that comes from outlining a new book.

Working With My RevPit Winner

After considering incredible stories for RevPit, I chose my winning manuscript, a middle grade paranormal mystery that absolutely stole my heart.

I’m busy working with Jaymi and having a blast. My fingers are crossed that this fabulous story will land representation, get a book deal, and hit shelves someday.

Write on Track Passed 14,000 Total Listens

In April, Write on Track passed 14,000 total listens. I’m delighted that this show is still getting so much love. Next month, I’ll celebrate hosting Write on Track for five years. I can’t believe it has been that long already.

So, those are all my April highlights. This month was amazing. I’m excited to see what’s next in May.