August Review

 

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It is the last Friday of August. Kids are starting to go back to school, and I am one month into my new job. It's close to an hour commute, so I switch between taking the bus and driving on the days I work in-office. I get to telecommute Wednesdays and Fridays, so I get some semblance of rest between the tiresome driving. Our office is relocating next year about 7 miles south, but there's also going to be an office down the street from me, so maybe I can beg my way into there one day a week. We'll see.

My sister and I are preparing to amp up our housing search before anything else breaks down in this one. We had to replace our whole HVAC system last month, a highly unexpected cost. When we sell, we'll be able to pay off the loan we had to take out. We're looking at renting, because we don't want to live together forever, but the market is not for buyers or renters right now. Adulting is highly overrated.

I finally finished Black Leopard Red Wolf, and oh my God, what a story. Figuratively, I can't wait for the next book, which I think is out (*looks* yes, it came out in February), but mentally, I need a break from the density and rawness of Marlon James's writing. The action and the dialogue were my favorite parts of the story. Overall, it is not a happy one, but how many epic fantasies really are?

I officially finished the first part of Divided Princess, the sequel to Fractured Princess. (The books are split into three parts as a nod to my old Final Fantasy games that were three discs on Playstation One.) I had written "Book Two" much earlier in what I had been writing, but the scene I completed this week felt much more like a suspenseful ending. Whereas the first book has 15-16 chapters per part, so far Book One of Divided Princess has 20. A few are short, because Cyan talks a lot more this book. What does a Watchman do when his Watch no longer needs him for protection but is still his baby sister? Little things like that. I like getting to explore his mind more. He's my favorite character.

For the rest of the month, I plan to finish The Bellas' memoir that I started some time last year, do some more writing, get my next two Patreon posts ready, and slide into September excited for whatever will come. See you there!

August Writing Update



Happy Friday!

It is the third week of August, and having been reading more this month has really gotten my motivation to write back up. The only thing I have to do now is figure out how everything I want to write will make sense in the grand scheme of The Shattered Chronicles. There's a really big scene I wrote forever ago that I realize won't make sense yet, and I either have to scrap it (don't want to!) or move it. The plight of being a writer.

I'm also trying to figure out if I'll ever have more exposure than I do. Trying to restart this book series, I know people usually say your first book isn't the one to get published. Of course, self-publishing breaks that rule for you. I love this story and the characters, and I want other people to love it too. People who aren't my friends and family. So once I'm able to actually promote it, maybe I'll get more followers and patrons.

On that note, I'm hoping my Patreon takes off. I have a tendency to quit things when they get ignored after a while. This can't be one of them, but it's also only been a couple of months. I need to be more patient. It's just hard.

All right, didn't mean to get bleak, so I'm going to go! Have a great weekend!

I'm in a GAMING Tournament!

Happy Friday!

The second Friday of the month, I usually share what I’m reading, but I’m still reading the book from a few months back. I’m reading it faster, though, so I expect to have a new book to share in September. Today, I’m sharing something special!

This Sunday beginning at 4:30pm EST, I will be in my very first Apex Legends Tournament with other Black Girl Gamers, hosted by Benefit Cosmetics!


The tournament will be featured on the front page of twitch.tv. You can view it on the BGG channel, where they will be having a “Get Ready With Me” makeup session before the tournament, and I will also be streaming on my channel, twitch.tv/debthebird. I haven’t done in months, so I need to make sure my stuff is set up. I hope you’ll join me. It’s going to be fun!

Black Author Spotlight: AJ Woodson

 


Welcome to August! It is the first day and the first Friday of the month, so it is time for another Black Author Spotlight! The goal of this segment is to highlight black authors who are often marginalized and ignored in the publishing industry. Black writers usually turn to self-publishing--an already densely populated industry--to have their stories seen, and it is said that we have to work twice as hard to get half of what our white counterparts have. Hopefully, shining a little light on these authors will help to signal boost the work they are putting out there.

Today, I am highlighting AJ Woodson.



AJ Woodson is the creator and Editor-in-Chief of Black Westchester Magazine, a webzine for people of color in Westchester, NY, and the tri-state area. As the website states, "BlackWestchester.com is committed to be a platform to profile life, culture, economics, politics, sports and entertainment and those who are representing vision in these marketplaces and who can both encourage and provide role models to other men and women. BlackWestchester.com, through its online magazine, monthly newspaper, weekly talk radio show and editorial content, will be a vessel of community information throughout Westchester and the Tri-State area of New York. Our mission is to promote the concept of “community” through media." Black Westchester Magazine currently has close to 1,000 articles, with topics ranging from entertainment to politics, and hosts seven radio shows.

AJ also wrote a book about the creation of the webzine called Black Westchester - The Origin Story And How My Faith Was Instrumental in This Great Experiment, which tells of how the magazine came to be.


It is currently available on Amazon, but you can purchase an autographed copy through Paypal or Cashapp via $MrAJWoodson. Click here to read the article with the news.

You can follow AJ on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at MrAJWoodson.
His website will soon be available at www.mrajwoodson.com.

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If you are a Black author who would like to be in the spotlight, email me the following information at debreneebyrd@gmail.com

Name or Pen Name

Genre

Website/Blog

Social Media handles

Book (if any) and where to buy

Permission to use photos