From cover design to content to
release date ,
Cross stays in control of her books and their progress .
to Cross , few authors can release their book in all three formats simultaneously , but hers are available in print , eBook , and audio formats all at once on launch day .
She didn ’ t start out as a novel writer and business owner . She was a charge nurse in a pediatric hospital . Then she met and married her husband , who was in the Army , and the new couple moved halfway across the country . Coming from the state of Idaho , with mountains and a dry climate , to the Deep South , where high humidity magnified the effects of the heat and the cold , was a drastic change . The climate concerns paled when she realized that transferring her nursing credentials to a new state couldn ’ t keep pace with the Army ’ s rate of moving the young couple to different bases about every six months .
Cross realized her nursing career was over and decided to pursue what she had always loved to do — write . She had written stories in her journals since she was five , so she began to write a novel . She dubbed it a disaster . “ It was horrible , horrendous , and it will never see the light of day .”
Then she wrote another one . In her opinion , her second effort was really good . She liked it and let her friends read it , and they gave her positive feedback . “ Miss Mabel ’ s School for Girls ” became her first self-published book and the first book in the “ Network Series .” The “ Network Saga ,” “ War of the Gods ,” “ Historical Collection ,” and “ Dragonmaster Trilogy ” came into being as collections of books , novellas , and short stories set in the fantasy world of Alkarra .
Cross also has written a series of “ Coffee Shop ” mysteries and a few romance novels .
When asked if her books are age-appropriate , she says , “ I have readers of all ages , from teenagers to grandparents .” She writes family-friendly stories free from profanity , sexual content , and extreme violence .
Schedule and planning are an integral part of the Cross method . She balances her writing business with her family , which includes a husband and two children . Her family comes first , and her writing business second . For 2021-22 , she devoted many hours of effort and resources to paid advertising . Still , she found that the time element interfered with her writing , and she became tired of living and breathing advertising . She changed her business plan to eliminate paid advertising . She focused more on writing new books and communicating with her readers . Her future plans include easing back into a small-scale paid advertising model , so that she can find new readers and grow slowly but steadily . She says she will regularly try , test , and refine her business plan .
Schedule and planning are an integral part of the Cross method . She balances her writing business with her family , which includes
a husband and two children . Her family comes first , and her writing business second .
In addition to the yearly goals , Cross spends Sundays checking in with her objectives and planning for the next week . She gets up at 4am every weekday , takes care of her personal needs like exercise , breakfast , and shower , and works on the business essentials that have to be done each day . She has a checklist for these tasks . Then she takes her children to school and works in onehour increments until she is out of hours and it ’ s time to pick up the kids . The rest of the day is spent with family , except for an occasional audio recording session . “ I have learned to work around my personal and family needs and have figured out how to work in the margins of time .” Like everyone , she admits that life is never predictable , so she has learned to adapt . Sometimes
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