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What Am I Working On?

Photo by Luke Lung on Unsplash

Spirits of Salt and Sea: I’ve finished it! The first draft is finally done. I’m going to take a short break away from it and will be jumping into editing drafts probably next month.

The Blackbriar Coven: I still have to do a read-aloud draft of this one. After finishing the second book in the series, I gave myself a few days off from writing. I’m planning to start this one next week and should finish it before the end of the month.

The Bed and Breakfast Between Worlds: Still waiting on feedback for this one, then will do my final two editing drafts.

Amhrán Gan Choinne: Okay, when I said a short break, I meant from serious writing with deadlines and publishing goals. I’ve allowed myself to work on this one a little bit, with no set deadline, no daily word count goals, and no expectations. The title is nothing but a placeholder, and I have no idea what this book will shape up to be. I’m having fun with it, though, which is the point.

What Have I Been Reading?

I’ve been slowly making my way through In Sunlight and in Shadow by Mark Helprin for way too long a time. I started it quite some time back, and pick it up every now and then. I allowed other books to steal my attention for a while, but have finally come back to it, determined to finish it. Mark Helprin has written some of my favorite books of all time (his Swan Lake trilogy and Winter’s Tale), and while this one hasn’t held my attention quite like those books, it’s still good, and I would argue that he’s one of the best writers alive today.

Phill and I participate in Jolabokaflod every year, choosing books for each other to read on Christmas Eve while drinking hot chocolate.

This year he chose The Late-Night Witches by Auralee Wallace for me, and it was a really fun read. I just finished it before the New Year, and am tempted to try some of her other books.

It’s finally that time of year where I start my re-read of the Hakumei & Mikochi series.

I love this series so much. It was one of those random finds in Barnes & Noble years ago, one that I decided to give a try rather than just adding it to my wishlist for later. I’m so glad I did as it has become one of my absolute favorite series. It’s so comforting and wholesome.

Part of the reason I started a yearly re-read is because the series is still ongoing and a new volume releases every January (the English editions are sadly a year behind the Japanese editions, but I’ll take what I can get). So every re-read culminates in getting to the newest volume, which is a brand new read for me.

There’s also an anime series that covers the events in the first volume or two. It’s been a while since I watched it, but I may have to remedy that soon.

What Have I Been Watching?

Phill and I have one episode left of Stranger Things. All the feelings. This is a show we both have loved from start to finish, and we’re tempted to start over from season one and watch it all the way through.

I’m not sure what we’ll watch next. We still need to finish season two of Carnival Row, seasons two and three of Resident Alien, and there are a few other things we’ve been wanting to watch. Guess we’ll see what we’re in the mood for.

What Have I Been Playing?

I finally finished Little Witch in the Woods!

This was a really fun game, and I can easily see myself replaying it again in the future.

Now I’m back to LotRO, exploring Dunland and seeing what horrible things Saruman has been up to.

My Elf minstrel, Aiwelin, in her winter witch garb

What Have I Been Listening To?

I chose something a little different this month.

One of my absolute favorite movies is The Fountain starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. I swear I notice something new in it every time I watch it. It’s a sad story about a man trying to fight against death itself to save his wife, and is told through three parallel stories: the present, a novel his wife is writing that could also be considered the past, and the future, which has strong parallels to a mythology story his wife tells him.

I’ve used the film soundtrack as writing music for years (and almost exclusively while writing Jack of Crows). For this month, I’ve decided to share a tune from that soundtrack: “Together We Will Live Forever.”

January Events

Photo by Raimond Klavins on Unsplash

We’re still in hermit mode, but we’re getting a lot done! One more month of rest before travel starts in February.

Language Corner

In this section I like to share words from languages I’m learning. This month I’ve chosen more Irish words.

Patreon, Ko-fi, & Substack

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 of whatever book I’m working on. It would mean the world to me if you considered joining.

Join My Patreon

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 patrons 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. At this point my Ko-fi page exists solely to allow one-off donations.

Join Me On Ko-fi

I decided to try Substack, since I’ve seen so many people join it recently. I’m curious to see if I like it, if it’s any better than some of the other platforms out there, or if maybe it will be worthwhile long-term. Time will tell.

Follow me on Substack