It’s been a couple, very hot months in my neck of the woods. I spent the last two months trying to stay cool, and work as much as possible without wearing myself out. Because I had no news and little progress, I decided to take a break from the newsletter to put what little focus into writing while I could, and trying to find a writing schedule and routine that worked for me. The problem with having ADHD, is that routines and schedules works right up until they don’t, especially when my schedule revolves around the care of another person. So, I had to throw some pasta at the wall to see what would stick. I have found a routine that’s working so far, and I’ve made real progress on some projects. I hope this productivity continues.
August is the months for edits. I have a few deadlines for other projects, but once those are met (about mid-August) I will begin working on the edits for UNTETHERED. I already have some notes from when I was drafting, but I am sure I will have more by the time I finish my re-read. There is no release date for UNTETHERED yet, but I am pushing for it to come out by the end of this year. If that doesn’t happen it won’t be because I didn’t want it to.
I am also planning on breaking my newsletter up into two parts. Not this month but potentially next month or October. The first newsletter at the beginning of the month will be for announcements, updates, and wrap-ups. The second will be a short essay about anything from behind-the-scenes look at my stories to lore dives to whatever media has had a profound effect on me and my work, and will release about mid-month. I’ve thought about this for awhile, and finally decided to do it because, unfortunately for y’all, I like to yap.
What I’ve Been…
Reading
I am currently reading NEVER WHISTLE AT NIGHT PART II: BACK FOR BLOOD. A sequel to the NEVER WHISTLE AT NIGHT anthology edited by Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr. I was excited that the first anthology did well enough that they were able to do it again, but this time curating a selection of Indigenous horror stories. And they sure are horrifying, though the specter of colonialism is just as scary as the monsters. I highly recommend adding both anthologies to your TBR.
Since April, I’ve also read:
THE SEA HIDES ITS DEAD by Megan Bontrager: An ancient monolith rises from the ocean and a group (with no damn sense, really) decide they’re going to go inside and explore it. It’s disturbing, gruesome, and exceeded all of my expectations.
SOMETHING FOLLOWED US HOME: Tales of Latiné Horror Edited by Cynthia Pelayo: Another excellent horror anthology; this one a landmark collection of Latiné stories that touch on folklore, faith and spirituality, and the generational fears of immigration and colonization. I ended up with several authors I wanted to read more of.
THE NUDGE by Joseph Fink: If you’re a fan of Welcome to Night Vale then you should know who Fink is, and probably know what to expect from this short, and bizarre, story. I really like how dread builds as the narrator tells his harrowing tale, and then pays off.
WHAT FEEDS BELOW by Tatiana Schlote-Bonne: This one was not what I expected, but that’s not a bad thing. I ended up really liking the concept, and the ending, while not unexpected, really got me. A good mix of bleak and yet hopeful throughout, flora and fauna do so some funky body horror stuff, and contains a good lesson about how extreme co-dependence is not great.
RELIQUARY by Hannah Whitten: I have yet another ocean-themed horror. What can I say? I grew up in a shitty little backwater beach town, and it shows. This time a woman loses her fiance in a sudden medical event, and is invited to his rich family’s home for his funeral even though she has never met them before (red flag number one). The rich people are just as scary as the monster.
PASHA THE STORM by Linda H. Codega: Go buy this book. Seriously. I’m ambivalent on pirates, but Pasha is that drunk dyke auntie that makes everything into a sexual joke, and is also the one that gets shit done. I text the group chat at 10 am that morning that I had started reading it, and then text them again at 11 pm to tell them that I had finished.
MILKTEETH by Caitlin Starling: Ever wondered what it would be like if newly-turned vampires needed a wet nurse? Wonder no more. A bloody allegory for the horrors of breastfeeding, post-partum physical and hormonal changes, and how society treats motherhood and child rearing. Though every time they used Broodmother, I kept thinking about Dragon Age: Origins.
THE BEWITCHING by Silvia Moreno-Garcia: A multi-generational horror story that is told by three different characters. From a family ranch in Mexico experiencing disappearances and unexplainable happenings to a university dorm in the Northeast where a woman went missing years before, and a young woman is determined to figure out what happened.
Watching
I’ve watched a lot these past few months so I’m going to keep it to what I’ve really enjoyed:
Backrooms: I kind of knew of the Backrooms lore from watching others play some of the games, but I hadn’t watched the video series by Kane Parsons. Still, I love horror movies, and I love Chiwetel Ejiofor, and the trailer had me interested. My BF and I went to the movies, and I am so glad I experienced that movie in theatres. The way the sound would just reverberate through me and add to the overall dread was just chef’s kiss. I still think about this movie months later.
Mortal Kombat 2: BF and I are gamers and grew up on Mortal Kombat so, of course, we had to go see it. It’s funny, ridiculous, bloody, and I’m really glad that Johnny Cage just got his ass kicked for most of the movie. This movie doesn’t take itself too seriously, and leans into the campiness of the games, which I really liked.
The Woman in the Yard: Grief really does a number on families, and this movie dug into the sides of grief that people don’t like to talk about. Creepy and also a little sad, but well worth giving a watch.
His House: Another one that is scary and sad at the same time. Also, a look at how absolutely infuriating the process is when people are seeking asylum in another country. If you have Netflix, and have thought about watching it, do it.
Project Hail Mary: When this was announced, I decided to read the book to see if I would like it because I’m very picky about my sci-fi movies. The book had me in tears, and I loved it so much I convinced my bestie to read it. I always keep expectations for movie adaptations low, but this one exceeded expectations. I recommend the movie, but I also recommend the book.
Lee Cronin’s The Mummy: We have so many mummy movies that are just titled “The Mummy” that Lee Cronin had to slap his name in front. I love body horror, and I have a decently strong stomach, but some scenes in this one had my stomach flip-flopping all over the place. It hit on very specific body horror stuff that gives me the willies (feet stuff), and there’s just so many bodily fluids everywhere.
No Other Choice: Despite the title, there were so many other choices before murder, but then we wouldn’t have had such a darkly funny comedy about trying to survive under the unforgiving hammer of capitalism. I knew very little about this movie other than I liked the main actors and the director, and that was for the best.
Ringu, Spiral, Ringu 2, Ringu 0: I really love that Tubi has older Japanese horror movies because it was such a treat to watch all of these back to back. While the first one is the best, it was fascinating to find out that the first sequel, The Spiral, did so badly (even though it follows the source material) that they made another sequel to replace it.
The Expanse: I read the first two books and liked them so much that I decided I wanted to watch the show. The show is good, but there were some changes from the books that I didn’t really like. I decided to pause reading the rest of the series until we finished the show because I know mom was tired of hearing me say “that’s not how it happened in the books…” We’re at season six, and I’m excited that I’ll be able to get back to reading soon.
Playing
I think when I last updated, my BF and I were playing Diablo 3. We finished the main game and the DLCs, and while I couldn’t fully make my own character, I enjoyed it way more than Diablo 4. We moved on to, and finished, Resident Evil 5. Which is absolutely silly in terms of story, but really fun to play co-op. It’s also a crime that they’ve done nothing else with Sheva. Next we’re going to tackle Resident Evil 6!
On my own, I’ve been playing Coral Island (again), Crime Scene Cleaner (nightmare levels and challenge levels), and Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood (because making my own Tarot deck is really fun).
We’re all caught up! See you next month!
