Category: General

It’s that time of year to look forward and figure out what to do with myself for the next year.

Release a trilogy

That’s right, three books are coming out next year! I’ll be letting everyone know more about it soon! It’s in editing, and in the mean time…

Do a preorder campaign

Like, an actual one! I’ve done preorders before, but I’ve been working on plans to do more of a campaign around it this time around, just to see what that’s like. Given that it’s going to be very different from The Looking Glass Saga, I’m thinking this is the best time to give it a try!

Write some books

It’s me. Of course I have plans to write books! But this time, writing them outside of NaNoWriMo and just seeing how that works out for me next year. It’s been a while since I wrote a draft outside of November and I’m kind of excited to see when inspiration strikes.

Make more zines

I just really want to make more zines. I have some ideas I’ve been playing with, so I think it would be fun to get them down and out there. Short stories, some non-traditional narrative stuff, and some more personal stories are all on the docket for stuff to try making next year!

Make more other stuff!

I have been experimenting with designing other kinds of products over the year and I want to do more of that. Clothing, bags, stickers, buttons, all sorts of things! I want to do more experimenting and seeing what I can make.

This year has been really rough for a lot of reasons. The world shut down and I’ve had a lot of very large and small changes in my own life before and after the pandemic decided to change life for everyone. But now that the year is almost over and I’m going to start planning for next year, I thought it would be good to look back and remember the things that I actually managed to accomplish this year.

Started a new job and career!

Look, after starting the year out pretty rough, a new job and made an official career shift and I am so happy about that. I got incredibly lucky with the timing and I am now settled, doing well, and comfortable. For me, this has always been a remote position and that makes things a lot easier to get settled.

The Looking Glass Saga is done!

My advice to new writers: Don’t take on a ten book series. But I can also tell you that there’s nothing like finishing and putting out a series that long. I feel fantastic! It’s sad to see the end of Alice’s story, but I feel good having finished it and I hope other people have enjoyed her story as well.

All of Tales from the Twisted Eden Sector books are in paperback!

It has been so long since I started writing the series and then finished the books. 2012 is when I put out the first book. 2005 was when I first conceptualized the start of the series. I finished the series in 2016, but now it is finally out and done! And I am never going back. ((Until I go back.))

I made more zines!

I’m still finding my footing for the medium, but I have been making more zines! I have been wanting to do more of them and this year I found the time to make some new ones. And, now that I’ve gotten more into it, I think next year I’ll be expanding not only into more zines, but a few other things that have been inspired by my zine exchanges.

I’ve done a major decluttering!

It’s not done yet, but I have made a major dent in the cleaning of my place and getting rid of a lot of the stuff that I don’t want or need anymore. It’s a work in progress, but I have made such huge strides in it this year, and getting around to making my place the way I want it to be. It’s fantastic and I’ll be making more strides next year to do more.

Generally survived

Really, it’s been a rough year. Surviving is a huge accomplishment all by itself. I am going to count this as a thing I have accomplished, and I feel like everyone else can do. And now, I am going to make plans for the next year.

If you’ve got a friend in your life that wants to be a writer, who has always wanted to write the novel but just hasn’t quite finished it up yet, here’s a few gift ideas to help them get started on that project!

Scrivener

The old standby for writing programs, Scrivener is used by many writers to both work on drafts as well as keeping their notes in order.

Storyteller’s Workbook

When your writer needs to get their ideas together, this book is filled with worksheets to help them take notes and organize their thoughts on their story projects!

Emotion Thesaurus

Sometimes your writer might want to figure out another way to describe what a character is feeling. For those times when they can’t find the word, the Emotion Thesaurus can be a great help!

Aqua Notes

Ideas can come from anywhere, including in the shower! This is a notepad that works in the shower, so that there’s a place for your writer to write down their ideas.

Writer’s Toolbox

For those times when writing is hard and inspiration is hard to come by, there’s a toolbox to help your writer with that! This has a lot of ideas and prompts to help get through some of the rough parts of the writing process.

Journal of the Month

If your writer wants to publish one day, then a literary journal might be the thing to help inspire them! This subscription service will send a literary journal to your writer to show them what the markets are like out there.

A wrist rest

Your writer is going to be doing a lot of writing (Hopefully!) and that means a lot of time typing on a computer where their wrists are probably going to get sore. Something to help make the hours spent on drafts and rewrites would probably be welcome!

Grammarly

Speaking of rewrites, to help your writer along they may appreciate some software to give them a hand! There are a lot of alternatives, but Grammarly is one that will check for spelling, grammar, and tone of voice to help with those second and third and twelfth passes on their drafts!

I know. It’s been years! Tales from the Twisted Eden Sector finished ages ago, but I’ve only just managed to get the final book in the series out in paperback!

Not all magic is equal.

Even hard work and determination is no match for skills passed on from generation to generation, each time being built upon and growing stronger. These old magic families have hoarded their secrets with every generation, using them to get ahead where they could – or leaving a mess for their progeny to deal with as soon as they have passed. 

Legacy delves into the people who have had the responsibility of generations passed down to them and how they use their family’s magic with the time they have left. This generation knows that eventually the End will eventually come for them and that they might not have much time to stop it. If they want to stop it at all.

The winner of the annual NaNoWriMo poll this year is The End! Thank you so much everyone for participating and deciding what I will be writing first this year.

I’m going to be at Canzine all weekend! It’s a zine festival based in Toronto, but since it’s online this year I can join in! I have also submitted a couple readings and have a few books available in the festival. Do come check it out!

Now available in paperback and ebook in stores all over!

Happily ever after. That’s how it was supposed to go, right?

There was no reason to be suspicious. Her grades were better than they ever had been. Lance was withdrawn, but Adam wasn’t itching for a fight for once. Her friends talked about their plans for the future and carefully avoided mentioning the past. Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that they were hiding something.  

She looked into the mirror, feeling there was something she was missing. From the other side of the looking glass, a pair of purple eyes and a too wide smile stared back. 

1. An account!

Sign up for NaNoWriMo and get used to the site! You’ll be able to track your stats, connect with other writers, and get some graphics so that you can tell everyone about how you’re going to write a book in November!

2. A brand new pen

Of course you need a new pen. A Pilot Metropolitan is a great starter fountain pen, and just what you need to get started on a truly unhealthy pen habit.

3. Ink!

After all, what good is a fancy pen if you don’t have any ink to write with? I’d suggest getting a fun colour to start to inspire you to use it and get you in the mood to write your novel.

4. A pretty notebook

You’re writing a book! Of course you’re going to need a new notebook to capture all of your ideas and organize your thoughts into something brilliant. And you deserve something nice to write in now that you’ve gotten yourself that fancy pen.

A caveat: You’re not actually going to use the beautiful notebook. It’s too pretty for this rough idea. You’ll save it for a really good idea later.

5. A workbook to actually use

This is either going to be a cheap notebook from the dollar store or something a little more structured like the above. I’m biased in that I made this one for my own plotting, but it has all the bits I need to do my story planning and prep for the month.

6. Snacks

Take a little bit of time to consider what you’re going to be eating during those long sessions. You may get to a point where you don’t want to leave the keyboard, but you’re also in need of a little sustenance. I suggest something that isn’t going to melt or get on your hands.

Alternately, chopsticks for messier snack foods.

7. Drinks

It’s also good to have a drink on hand. Now is a great time to stock up on that coffee or tea you like so you don’t run out when you’re on a roll.

8. An idea

That’s right, you actually need to come up with an idea for your book! This part is going to come entirely from you, but you have some time to figure that out. Once you have your ideas, you’ll be all set to write your book!

Good luck and happy writing!