Randa Hink's Blog

Over ONE MILLION pages read on Kindle. What an incredible milestone. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

I am honestly over the moon with how well An Unexpected Family has taken off and grown into my best seller. The love, messages, and heartfelt comments readers have shared about this little story have meant more to me than I can truly express.

That said, I wanted to talk about something real for a moment.

As I continue my journey from writing fanfiction into creating original stories, I am learning that not all feedback is easy to process. This book, like many stories, went through months of rewriting, re-plotting, renaming characters, and reshaping before it became what it is today. In my mind, it began one way and slowly evolved into something more independent, something entirely its own.

So when I see comments that question the authenticity of the work or how it was created, I would be lying if I said it does not sting a little. Writing is deeply personal. Creating something from your imagination and then releasing it into the world for others to interpret can be both beautiful and incredibly vulnerable.

For me, storytelling has always been about the moments. Not the scenery or elaborate surroundings, but the characters themselves. I tend to focus on dialogue, emotional beats, and the actions that move a story forward. I do not over-describe because I love when readers are able to build the world in their own imagination alongside me.

When a detail truly matters, when it is part of an emotional turning point, I make sure it is there. But my heart as a storyteller has always lived in the connections between characters rather than in the settings around them.

I fully understand that readers will have different opinions, and that is part of sharing any creative work. Still, I wanted to acknowledge that behind every book is time, growth, doubt, and a tremendous amount of heart. This story was not simply changed. It was rebuilt, piece by piece.

If you are a writer, how do you navigate feedback that feels more personal than constructive? I would genuinely love to hear your experiences.

And to everyone who has supported An Unexpected Family so far, thank you. Truly. Your connection to these characters is what keeps me writing.

We are a few months into the new year, and I have been doing a lot of reflecting and a lot of planning.

This year I am setting a bold goal for myself. I want to release one book a month if possible. It is ambitious. It is a little scary. But growth rarely happens inside comfort zones, and I am ready to push myself creatively.

I am also incredibly grateful to share that An Unexpected Family and Campfire Hearts have quickly become my two most popular books on Amazon. Watching Ava and Jamie’s story connect with readers and seeing Ava and Sara’s camp-to-forever journey resonate the way it has, means more than I can explain.

And we are almost at one million pages read on Kindle.

One. Million. Pages.

That number represents time. Time you chose to spend with characters I love. Time you gave these stories. Time you trusted me with your hearts.

There have been so many meaningful milestones lately, and instead of feeling overwhelming, they feel like fuel. Fuel to write more. Fuel to dream bigger. Fuel to keep showing up and telling the stories that will not leave me alone.

Thank you for reading.
Thank you for reviewing.
Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for being here.

Let’s make this year unforgettable.

Hi. Hello. It turns out I have not updated this in… an impressive amount of time.

2025 was one of those years where I was writing constantly while life was also aggressively throwing curveballs. There was a lot of back and forth with my 9-to-5, some unexpected pivots, and then a casual little move to Florida (oops, guess I live here now). It was chaotic in the way that only real life can be, and I definitely disappeared more than I meant to.

Through all of that, I kept writing. I spent a lot of time revisiting older stories, editing with fresh eyes, fixing things that made me wince, and trying to make my newer work much stronger than those early “learning as I go” books. Growth is good. Growth is also uncomfortable. Both things can be true.

In the last few months, I released a few new romcoms, which reminded me how much I love humor, heart, and characters who make questionable decisions but mean well. At the same time, I challenged myself with some heavier projects. One dives into the early years of the AIDS crisis (because apparently I process things by writing emotional devastation now), and another is a Jane Austen–inspired story that requires patience, restraint, and feelings I usually try to distract myself from with banter.

On a more personal note, 2025 was also about healing. Some things needed space. Some things needed honesty. Somewhere in the middle of all that, I found my way back to loving writing again and, unexpectedly, started finding a little more love for myself too.

Looking ahead to 2026, my hope is to keep going. Keep writing. Keep releasing books. Keep growing as a storyteller and finding the readers who want to come along for the chaos, the humor, the heartbreak, and the hope.

If you have read, reviewed, recommended, or quietly shelved one of my books, thank you. Truly. It means more than I can say.

Okay. That is my update. I will try to be better about checking in. No promises, but good intentions.

So I have been here at this computer for a couple hours trying to figure out how I have only written 5 pages. When I feel like I wrote twenty. Time is weird sometimes. Looked at my Archive today and realized that in 8 months I wrote over half a million words. That doesn't include The New World or My sister's keeper in the total because they aren't listed on the word count. And here I am bitching about the fact that I only wrote 5 pages in a three hour period. it doesn't help that I get distracted by my phone or some weird movie my daughter and wife are watching called the FALL on Apple TV. Which by the way if your afraid of height I don't recommend. even just being in the same room and looking up at random moments was making my stomach do flips. Oh well off to maybe write a few more pages before i call it a night.

So I finished the outline and I haven't done anything since. I worked some on my fanfics that I have on Archive but have fully neglected to work on the second book. But this weekend I will set aside a few hours and make sure to bang out the opening chapter. Going to work this process different this time. Google doc and share with my editors chapter by chapter. So they can review and update ASAP. that way when the book is done then editing is right behind me and we can set a release date. The Old World is coming....

I made a choice today for book 2 of The New World series. Main thing is I settled on a title. "The Old World" we are going to get some back story for out characters in the second installment.
Also I determined to write at least 2 chapters a week if I can, working full time. And making sure I update this regularly with some spoilers and maybe some other works. I am also working on some other idea's for another book,

I have to work in the morning, yet here I am trying to get some fanfiction done, and outlining a new book as well. All the while getting sidetracked over here on good reads making sure this profile gets setup! All the while keeping in mind that sleep is calling my name and trying to finish one paragraph before I head to bed.The New World