Kelli Ireland
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Spinal Surgery, A New Tattoo and Starting Fresh

1/7/2017

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The rumors you've heard are true. 
I'm still alive.
I had (very) unanticipated surgery on October 31, 2016 wherein I had my spine fused at two levels. It was an anterior approach meaning the surgeons (plural) went in from the front. In my pre-op appointment, one of the surgeons apologized for the scar he'd have to leave and promised to try to get it straight. I laughed and told him not to worry. Unless I was waking with not only a fused spine but a bikini body, my belly button would never again intentionally see the light of a noonday sun. He laughed. I was serious. This little "inny" is past her prime, and that's all well and good.

Everything went incredibly well and I am now the proud owner of two titanium implants, six titanium screws and a new tattoo. Yes, it's true. We had to pay an alarmingly huge amount on the surgery--enough we could have bought a compact car. New. I told my husband that, if I had bought a car, I'd have had the option of Sirius XM radio, wi-fi hotspot and navigation. As it was, I only got the bill. No wheels. Then it hit me. I could have a version of wi-fi! So after the surgery and two months of recovery, it was off to my tattoo artist to get teh wi-fi signal tattooed to the left of the base of my spine (extreme lower back/upper butt). It's about 1 1/2" x 1 1/2", but it's there. I'll post a picture when it's properly healed because, hey, I have no shame. No butt shots, though! Yet another part of my anatomy that need not see the light of day...

Anyhoo, the surgery meant I had to request extensions on my projects. I wasn't (at all) happy to have to ask, but my editors were gracious. It has pushed some of my projects out beyond what I had promised you, but the good news is there are still two new books coming in April. One is a standalone (One word? Two? Help! I need an editor!) cowboy contemporary and the other is the next in my paranormal series.
The cowboy cover is a handsome, shirtless man. Can't go wrong there. :)  But the other book... Oh, the other book. I realize it's not in the author's best interest to ever comment on a cover, but this one is just not my favorite. Quite the opposite. However, the hero, however, IS one of my favorites. Ethan Kemp stars in this story of a love that defies the boundareis of time. Both hero and heroine are strong individuals, and Ethan is just irreverant enought to be fun. I hope you'll look past the cover design and give the story a chance to entertain you.

With the holidays over, I'm back to writing. Not as much as I'd like because recovery and physical therapy are both still part of my everyday existence. The neurosurgeon says it will be a full year before my spine fuses. A. Year. I'm not inherently patient by nature. Oh, I used to be, but then something happened--not sure what--and I became a do-it-all-right-now-yes-please-and-thank-you person. So I'm pushing myself to get back to it, to write more every day and get back to burning up the keyboard. But some days? I won't lie. The pain is more persistent than my stubborness, and the most I can do is lie in a cool, dark room and focus on getting by until I can turn the calendar forward another day. Days like those are the ones where breathing is a win and I'll take it because...yeah. There are times you simply have to  celebrate the little stuff or the big stuff gets too big and then your brain threatens to eat itself and wow, the crazy comes out. I prefer to keep my skeletons dancing happily in their closet, paired with the crazy of their choice. :)

I hope you and yours had a wonderful holiday season and that the New Year has already proven to be full of joy and prosperity. As for me, I need to get back to writing. I've proven the stories don't write themselves! (snort)

I'll be back here soon with more chatter and updates!

xoxoxo,
​Kelli
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    About Kelli:

    Armed with nothing more than (excessive) caffeine, a Mac (named Cheese) and a (warped) sense of humor, Kelli Ireland typically tackles her daily word count and endless emails in her pajamas while sporting bed head. She expects the trend to catch on by next Wednesday.

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