Quarterly Goals


We are back at the beginning of a quarter, and this month has been BUSY for me! Fractured Princess was released the weekend of my birthday! It's been a whirlwind of emotions for me. My older sister set up a release party for me, which took place this past weekend. It was amazing! Most of the people who said they would come did. THEN, my Pastor announced in church that I was published, and so the books that I had left over from the party were SOLD! I even have a list of people who ordered the book. I'm so happy.

Now, of course, I just have to keep on pushing myself to market the book. Jodi Meadows posted it on her Instagram yesterday, and I love her so much! I wouldn't have had the confidence to keep going without her help. And I cannot wait until When She Reigns comes out. This series is just amazing. I'm so proud of her.

I'm finally reading An Ember in the Ashes. Someone told me Sabaa and I have similar styles, and I definitely see it. This book is also amazing. One of my goals is to catch up to my Goodreads goal; I'm currently 1 book behind. On a good note, I'm actually down to three books checked out of my library, I believe; even though I put another on hold the other day. I can't be stopped. That said, I'm probably not reading It before the second movie comes out.

So, my ultimate goal for the rest of the summer is to write more in Divided Princess and The Queen's Daughters. I would like to have one of them published by 2021, but I know it's going to take some time.

I hope you're all enjoying Summer! Tell me some goals you have in the comments.

Monthly Review: July 2019

© Creative Commons Zero (CC0)

All right, I have 77 e-mails to sift through, so let me hammer this out quickly!

So, first, the Ace/Aro Conference in New York was AMAZING. Just to see so many asexuals and/or aromantics in the same room was refreshing. We had small breakout groups for individualized spaces, such as POC, and to see that many black people and other people of color who are ace/aro was especially exciting. I hope they do it again next year.

Oh! I also met an ace/aro fantasy writer who had a panel, Ashia Monet. She actually lives in Philly, so I'm going to keep up with her work and hope to see her again! Her book is called The Black Veins, and here is a list of places where it is available.

I went on a stay-cation last Wednesday until today for my birthday. I had time off from work, but definitely not church. I didn't spend one full day home. At least I have a real vacation coming up in September; my sisters and I are going to Trinidad & Tobago!

So, I turned 35 on the 19th, and I went to the beach to eat and see The Lion King, which sent me right back to my childhood. I have very few complaints about the movie. The moment it ended I quietly yelled, "Yay!" It was great, and the additional jokes they threw in for Timon and Pumbaa were PERFECT. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. If you cried when Mufasa died the first time, you will again (I didn't either time, but maybe I'm dead inside).

Also on the 19th, at 11:51pm, Fractured Princess was released through Amazon! The ebook released on the 20th like it was supposed to. I was so nervous because I had to resize the title at nearly the last minute, and I thought the processing would be delayed. Thankfully, it was not! People I know are already buying the book, and I've purchased my Kickstarter backers' books as well as books for purchase at the RELEASE PARTY my older sister set up for me. It is this Saturday, and I am nervous. That's a lot of people putting their attention on me!

Before that, I will be speaking with Young Adults from my church about the process of getting this book published, and geez, what a process it was. I started writing it in 2004, put "the end" down on Draft 1 in 2010, and then the rest is rejection after rejection and revision after revision until I knew it was ready and took the helm to publish it myself. After I decided that, it only took 7 months to get it done! I'm so thrilled.

I have a quarterly goals post for next week, and then it will be AUGUST. Slow down, time!

Has your month gone well? Let me know!

July Writing Update


First of all, I need this year to slow down. Second, this is going to be short.

Since going full steam on preparing Fractured Princess for publication, I haven't done any writing. It's starting to bother me now. After Saturday, I should be able to focus on my other projects again. Hopefully. I did look over old short stories I wrote in my teens last night, and one from that series I started a little later but never finished. I still don't think those stories will see the light of day. They were my first attempt at teen romance, and they were a little messy, so, I might just leave them on my computer and reminisce when I can. We'll see.

And as you can see, I did update my blog design.This is the first time I haven't had a pink blogger, and it's hard. haha But this looks so much more professional and definitely gets my book out there when people look at it. Pre-orders are coming in for the Kindle edition, and that's exciting! I can't wait to release my baby to the world! She's ready. I hope I am.

Wednesday Words: Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh


I just remembered it's Wednesday, the 2nd Wednesday, to be exact! That means I'm supposed to be sharing what I'm reading with you all. You know I almost never get these posted when I mean to.

Anyway, I am in the middle of Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh (not to be confused with Sarah J. Maas, sheesh).


Here is the book blurb:

Odessa is one of Karthia's master necromancers, catering to the kingdom's ruling Dead. Whenever a noble dies, it's Odessa's job to raise them by retrieving their souls from a dreamy and dangerous shadow world called the Deadlands. But there is a cost to being raised--the Dead must remain shrouded, or risk transforming into zombie-like monsters known as Shades. If even a hint of flesh is exposed, the grotesque transformation will begin.

A dramatic uptick in Shade attacks raises suspicions and fears among Odessa's necromancer community. Soon a crushing loss of one of their own reveals a disturbing conspiracy: someone is intentionally creating Shades by tearing shrouds from the Dead--and training them to attack. Odessa is faced with a terrifying question: What if her necromancer's magic is the weapon that brings Karthia to its knees?


Using Random.org, here is a good emotional line from page 120:

This isn't love. This is just two people, shaking and sobbing together in the semidark, breathing hard in each other's ears as we try to forget our worst nightmares.

This is survival.

What are you reading this week?

IWSG: Fractured Princess Cover Reveal!


Happy July! It's my birthday month, and I have a lot to be excited for!

But first, please visit Alex J. Cavanaugh and the Insecure Writers Support Group website to join us and/or visit the co-hosts and other participants. It's a great space to share our insecurities as writers, as well as our successes!

Late Update: I forgot the question of the month! What personal traits have you written into your character(s)?

Some of my characters are a little emotional, indecisive, or say what's on their mind without filtering it. I try to break those traits up so you don't have one big mess of a character, but you can definitely find those traits of mine in my stories. And any time I get to mention my character is left-handed, I do! South Paws unite!

All right, and now, I have a cover reveal to share with you all! Since I started the journey to self-publish my YA fantasy, things have fallen into place at a great pace. I was only a little delayed with the cover, as you may remember (my cover artist went into labor!), and after not even waiting that long after that, I was able to share the cover with my backers yesterday.

So now, I want to share it with you guys! Fractured Princess will be available through Amazon on July 20th. Here is the blurb:

Jonnie is the last princess of the Crystal Bearers, once a powerful people. When she was a baby, the metal army destroyed what was left of them, and now it is hunting her. Her watchmen keep her just out of the metal army’s reach, but she has spent her seventeen years running and hiding. Instead of standing by while her watchmen keep risking their lives for her, she decides to learn how to fight alongside them.

On the journey to hone her skills, long hidden secrets about her people reveal a connection between the Crystal Bearers and the metal army that only fuels Jonnie's will to defeat it. But the more she learns about her own powers, the more she realizes she may be responsible for the metal army – and the destruction of her people.


And now, here we go! . . . 

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Also, enjoy your 4th of July!
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It's so pretty! I keep looking at it. If you've followed my character Q&A's and remember my sketch of Jonnie, that's her face. Racheal is a master. I love it. Please follow her on Instagram at rsarts if you love her work and ever want to commission her.

All righty, I will be going around to visit other blogs, so I hope to see you soon!