November was a huge success for me in terms of meeting my goals. I had two major goals: writing at least 20k words and finishing the second act of UNTETHERED. I did both! The Dirthhallow arc is wrapped up with a neat little spiderwebbed bow. Ten chapters of creepy, grotesque goodness, and a huge turning point for Deirdre in her journey. Finishing this section puts me about 2/3 of the way through the draft. I have two more sections to go and roughly sixteen chapters.
Getting back into the swing of writing has made me feel very accomplished. Though I am not at the level of writing I used to be, I am still writing consistently every day, and some days I’m even managing larger word counts and clearing whole chapters. I’m making real tangible progress. Finally. Not only have I reached my goals, I also hit the milestones of reaching chapter thirty and 80k words. UNTETHERED is happening y’all!
While it would be nice to finish the draft by the end of the year that’s not my goal this month…
I will be starting this month out with finalizing my edits for my short story for the Tales of the Tongue anthology. I am super excited to share this story with the world in all it’s filthy, disgusting glory. There will be an announcement soon about ARCs for those who backed that tier on KS, as well as the release date.
Since it’s December and we’re super close to starting a new year, I want to take some time to step back and reevaluate. I want to make sure the changes I’ve made to how I view writing will stick so I can keep up the consistency because I am happiest when I am writing. I also want to rethink how I’m doing marketing. Right now, I’m currently not doing anything because I haven’t hit the point where I can balance focusing on writing a lot and admin work. Admittedly, it’s also disheartening to put a lot into marketing and very little return. Stepping back to look at the bigger picture will be helpful. I’m also hoping to do some admin work such as updating my websites and organizing my WIP ideas.
And, of course, I will be spending some quality time with my family during the holidays. Having an elderly parent, I never know when a holiday is going to be the last one so I want to make sure they’re all good.
What I’ve been playing
Murder on the Orient Express: A very fun game with puzzles that were challenging without being too difficult. The addition of another playable protagonist and another killer was a fun way to refresh a case quite a few people are familiar with. I hope to pick up the sequel, Death on the Nile, next time it goes on sale.
Stardew Valley: I’m still working on my perfection farm on the Switch. I wasn’t sure I would be able to do it because the fishing is difficult without a mod, but I did it! I can’t begin to describe the satisfaction of catching the lava eel and the legend. Now it’s just a matter of the recipes, one final monster slayer goal, the friendships, and decorating my farm.
Crime Scene Cleaner: Several of my friends recommended this one and I treated myself for my birthday since it was on sale. It is so satisfying cleaning up 100% of blood and tossing floppy dead bodies into a garbage bin. Can’t get a basketball in a hoop for the life of me though.
Tiny Library: Another birthday gift to myself. I love selling my books out of a tiny wagon attached to my car. Though sometimes I’m befuddled by how the books categorized, it’s a blast to play. I can’t wait to unlock the storefront!
What’ I’ve been listening to
Critical Role Campaign Four: I’ve been wanting to watch Critical Role and when the new campaign was announced, I was excited to be able to watch from the beginning. I am behind a couple of episodes, but it’s been fun to listen/watch with mom.
D3: I love Neil Newbon, and it is hilarious listening to him DM at a table with his friends, mostly wrangling them, while they go on a raunchy DND adventure. The episode where they spend most of it trying to catch and/or kill a fly had me laughing so hard I was in tears.
What’ I’ve been reading
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
There is no Antimemetics Division by QNTM
The Troop by Nick Cutter
Untamed Shore by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The God and The Gumiho by Sophie Kim
