The emails went out about this title this morning so I get to announce it on the blog today! I have a new release! It's the fifth and final short story in the Kami No Sekai series, SECRET KEEPING SAKURA. I wrote it this summer as I was getting back on the writing wagon, and it was the perfect story to get me back in the swing of things. About a year ago, I asked my Facebook audience, “If you could talk to any inanimate object, which would you choose?” And many chose to talk to trees. I think trees have a special place in our hearts as humans. We take shelter under them. We hear their leaves rustle in the wind. We admire them as they flower, grow green leaves, and turn those leaves brilliant colors in the fall. Plus there are so many different kinds of trees! Palm trees don't change color in the fall and only grow in warm climates. Some trees grow fruits and others do not. Trees are almost as diverse as humans, when you think about it.
Anyway, so I knew I would choose a tree for the final story of the series, and what better tree than the favorite of pretty much all Japanese people, the cherry tree or sakura. I thought about all the things a tree would see in its lifetime, all the secrets it could keep, and I came up with my story pretty quickly. I wrote most of the story poolside this summer on my trusty Alphasmart 3000.
I need to get back to writing on that. It really got rid of distractions.
So today, this bittersweet and hopeful short story is ready for you!
