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What Am I Working On?

The Witch of Myrwist Wood: I’ve received my edits back and am eager to start working on the next draft. I’m not starting it just yet as I’m prioritizing another book at the moment, but I’m planning to come back to it this summer.

Untitled Ghost book: I’ve set this one aside. Again. I’m still hoping to finish it this year, but some things came up that have changed my priorities for the next few months. Which brings me to…

The Queen of Wind and Wave: At long last, I’m returning to my Call of the Fae series with book 4. I actually started writing it a few years back and set it aside to work on other projects. I’m excited to dive back into Birdie and Goose’s world for a while. I’ll have more updates on this series soon!

What Have I Been Reading?

I finished rereading Something Rich and Strange by Patricia A. McKillip, which was fun to come back to. I can’t recommend her books enough.

The only Brandon Sanderson books I’ve read are the three he wrote to finish out Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time. I started The Way of Kings on audiobook a while back, but wasn’t really drawn in (other people have said it’s better to read the physical books for that series, so I may return to it at some point). Anyway, all of that to say that Tress of the Emerald Sea is closer to my favorite style of fantasy and I’m enjoying it so far.

What Have I Been Watching?

We paused Resident Alien for a moment to watch Severance, a show I’d been curious about.

Let me just say now, holy crepes. If you haven’t watched this show, do so. We typically only watch a single episode of a show a night (or half of one, depending on how long it is), but we ended up bingeing several episodes of this show. It’s just the sort of twisty, thought-provoking sort of story I’m drawn to, and I can’t wait until season 3 comes out.

Since we’re caught up on Severance, we considered going back to Resident Alien or starting a new show. While we’ve enjoyed Resident Alien, we decided to give Ted Lasso a try.

I’m not a sports person at all, so I’ve enjoyed that this is a sports show that isn’t actually about sports. The focus is more on relationships, dealing with tough situations, and being a good person. We’ve really enjoyed it, and just recently finished season 1.

What Have I Been Playing?

I finally got around to starting Echoes of Wisdom, the latest in the Zelda franchise. I’m a big Zelda nerd, so it was about time I picked it up.

I think I might have already passed the halfway point, and I’ve been really enjoying myself. It’s neat that Zelda is basically a mage. It creates a unique playing experience for a Zelda game, and the story has been interesting.

That said, I’m still thinking about Wytchwood. It may have to replay it sooner rather than later.

What Have I Been Listening To?

Music has been such a big part of my life (I almost pursued a music career instead of a writing career) that I thought I’d share some of my favorite artists and songs here.

To that end, I have to start with Loreena McKennitt. Her music has been the soundtrack to so many of my books and stories. Below is the first song of hers I ever heard, “The Mummers’ Dance” from her album The Book of Secrets.

June Events

May 31 - June 1: This is the final weekend of the Oklahoma Renaissance Festival. It’s always bittersweet when it comes to an end. On the one hand, this is the sixth week it’s been going on, so my body is ready for a break. On the other hand, we’ve made so many friends there over the years—cast members, shopkeepers, and performers—and this is the one time of year we see them, so saying goodbye is tough.

June 5 - 8: Right after this final weekend of the Renaissance Festival, we’ll be heading to Kansas City for the Nebula Awards. This will be our first time attending and we’re really excited about it.

June 20 - 22: SoonerCon! We’ll be returning to Norman, OK for one of our favorite conventions.

Language Corner

In this section I like to share words from languages I’m learning. I decided on more Irish words this month.

New Language-Learning App

I’ve tried all sorts of language-learning apps over the years: Duolingo, Memrise, Rosetta Stone, Mango Languages, Drops. They all have their pros and cons, of course, but I came across a new one recently that has stuck out to me.

Lingo Legend.

What makes this one different? The fact that it’s not just a language-learning app. It’s also a game.

After the intro, there are two different paths you can choose: Farmstead or Adventure. The Adventure path is interesting in that your character has to fight various monsters, but the way you do that is by completely language lessons. Meanwhile, the Farmstead option is basically a cozy farming game with animals called naala (they sort of look like llamas). Most of the farm tasks have to do with planting and growing crops and making various foods, but you can also decorate. Some tasks require you to use your naala, which will get tired as a result. The only way to recover their stamina is to complete language lessons. You can also switch between the Farmstead and Adventure paths as often as you like.

Sometimes doing my lessons every day on my various apps can feel like a chore, especially if I’ve had a long day. But with this app, I’m having fun again, which is sort of the point.

They have several different languages to choose from (and I’ve heard they might add Irish in the future), so I definitely recommend checking it out.

Patreon & Ko-fi

I post once a week on Patreon about all sorts of things: writing, books I’m reading, things going on in life. Once a month I also share sneak peeks at whatever book I’m working on. It would mean the world to me if you considered joining.

I am also on Ko-fi, which is sort of like Patreon, but with one key difference: you’re not locked into a subscription. Ko-fi allows readers to donate however often they’d like to creators they follow. No subscriptions if you don’t want them, no commitments, and you have control over when and how you donate. I don’t post quite as often on Ko-fi, but I’ve been having fun sharing little micro-stories there, if you’re interested.

Get in Touch

Thanks for reading!