A Chilly Start to February 2026…in Florida!

Sunday, February 1, 2026, Orlando, Florida

“Everything was frozen up and silent that morning. Even the wind was silent, but not really dead. It waved about a little and beat its tail gently against the hard sky. There was no sun yet. The sky was empty. It was all frozen up, like a sheet hanging out in the frost.” – Jean Giono, Regain

It’s a sunny but bitterly cold Sunday morning here in my nook of Central Florida on this first day of February. As I write this, the thermometer reads 33°F (1°C). When I woke up at 5:30 AM, it was in the low 20s, and as recently as half an hour ago it was still 29°F (-1.66667°C). The sun is doing its best, though, and the forecast promises a daring high of 44°F (6°C). Not exactly T‑shirt weather—but at least I’m not trudging through knee-deep snowdrifts out on the front yard.

There isn’t much news to report. I paid my rent, made a quick breakfast of instant oatmeal and two cups of coffee, and—as is my ritual—checked my Kindle Direct Publishing Reports page. I wasn’t expecting any sales this early in the month, but hope is a stubborn thing in a writer’s heart.

Still, it stings a little to open the dashboard and see nothing new. I don’t write solely to entertain myself, and the royalties matter. So I refreshed the page, took a breath, and…nothing. No sales recorded. No estimated payments on the horizon.

Oh, well. Tomorrow is another day, and the month is young.

And speaking of new beginnings: the Kindle edition of Reunion: Coda is on sale for $1.99 on Amazon.com from today through February 8. If you’ve been curious about the story—or if you’ve been meaning to add it to your library—this is a perfect moment to do so. Your support keeps this writer’s heart warm on mornings like this.