Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

There is so much going on in the world, so take a minute today to just find one or two things to be thankful for. I'm thankful for all of you!

Update: I witnessed the results of a motorcycle accident Wednesday night and saw a man die. I've had 4 shots of tequila and a glass of wine, and I am still not okay. Seriously, hug your loved ones. You don't know what the next minute promises.

A Quick Thank You on Thursday!

If you see my tweet to the left, here's a longer version of what happened: as I went to my Comments Awaiting Moderation tab to approve the comments I had received yesterday, I saw SIX MONTHS of comments that I never got an e-mail for! And when I don't get an e-mail, I don't look at that tab. I thought my blog was dying haha.

 

But it wasn't, so I just wanted to thank everyone who took the time to read and comment on my blog this past half of a year! I read each comment, and it's so appreciated to have this blogsphere support still! Love you guys!

 

 

Insecure Writer's Support Group: Updates!

 

Happy Wednesday! I was so excited to post that I almost posted a week early.

It's the first Wednesday of the month, and for us writers, that means it's time to throw our cares into the blogosphere and encourage each other through good and bad thoughts. A big thank you as always to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the mastermind behind this whole project. You can visit his website and the Insecure Writer's Support Group site to join and visit the co-hosts and other participants.

[Side note: I just change the format to justified, and now I hope I remember to do that always. It looks so clean!]

On October 22, I started my new job back with the State of Delaware, not back at my old department (those cats declined TWICE!), but it wasn't meant to be, so I am joyfully in a different department. From day 1, I've felt so much lighter and stress-free. My boss is everything my previous boss was not, and I feel like I really am part of a team and not just the help. Also, I HAVE MY OWN OFFICE!

(I just inserted this one because I love my computer wall paper.)

Never in my life did I ever imagine having my own 4 walls and a door. I've been in cubicles and shared spaces my entire career existence! Every now and then, I just stand around in awe that they hired me. I don't want that feeling to wear off.

On October 29, I received my last agent rejection letter, so I will now be researching how to self-publish. I want to get the ball rolling on a Kickstarter for my cover art and marketing, and this time next year, I want to have a published book. Wish me the best!

Insecure Writer's Support Group

I forgot to check on the last icon.  I have a feeling it's not only huge but not centered.

But happy October! It's the first Wednesday, and that means it's time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group. Visit the official website here, and stop by creator Alex J. Cavanaugh's site to catch up with him and the co-hosts for this month.

I'm going to start with this month's question, which I usually forget: How do major life events affect your writing? Has writing ever helped you through something?


Well, I posted about when my pastor died a couple of years ago. It was around the same time I got my current job, so those were two major life events in the same month. Not much writing happened for me that year.

A year ago, almost exactly, my mom was basically forced to retire from her job, which was in another department where I work, and the anger and bitterness I felt then helped me finally start working on my current project.

I've had several problems with my focus at this job since, to the point where I was put on a performance improvement plan a couple of months ago.

But this past Friday, I accepted a job back with the State, so I will finally be leaving this job I absolutely hate in less than 3 weeks now. I don't know how that will affect my writing, but we will see.

I've been on hiatus for the past few weeks, and I think I'm going to keep it up (except first Wednesdays) until next year. I have a lot of responsibilities after work now, so it's hard to blog on top of everything else. If I have anything particularly interesting to share (the Pitch Wars results are around the corner), I'll let y'all know.

Insecure Writer's Support Group

I'll know how big this is, and if it's centered  later.

Happy Wednesday! It's the first Wednesday of September, which means it's time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group, a day where we anxious writers her to share our worries with each other. Click here for more information and to join us. A big thank you to Alex J. Cavanaugh and co-hosts for keeping this going.

I answered this month's question last month, actually: What publishing path are you considering/did you take, and why?

I have entered my last contest, and if it doesn't pan out well, I will be self-publishing. I'm at an age now where I need some control over the things I love to do before I end up resenting them. I've said it before that my family is full of "what-if" people, and I do not want to be one of them.

That said, I'm also going to take a break from blogging the month of September. I'll know by October if I'll be coming back. Usually by the next month, I'm eager to post again, but at the moment I keep forgetting to, so I need to recharge.

In that break, I hope to finally get around to visiting other blogs again, so I hope to see you soon!

Friday Focus: Believing in Myself

Maybe one day I'll have a fancy graphic for this day, but once again it's the last Friday of the month!

Where in the world did August go?? I at least got to a beach this summer, but I still want to go to my own. Still have a couple of weeks, if it doesn't snow to rain the rest of Summer.

But anyway, I'm almost finished Children of Blood and Bone, and dear God, is it good. I think it's okay to say without spoiling at this point that if Zélie and Inan don't get together by the end (not sure if there's a sequel coming), I'll be hurt, but I know not all romances have happy endings.

This book is one of the many that have given me hope as a black female author that someone will want to read my stories. That's why I push Fractured Princess so hard: even though many would say to start writing something else, and I have fortunately, I know deep down someone needs to read a character like Jonnie or Brodie; both are teenaged black girls going against the grain. Jonnie is tired of letting others fight and die for her. Brodie doesn't want to follow in her family's footsteps. Someone needs to see a fantasy setting that hasn't already been done a million times (I know I did). Someone needs to see vulnerable young men like Cyan.

For a while, every rejection I received chipped away at my self-confidence. Many times it was just because FP wasn't quite there yet, which I get. But after a certain amount of rejections and years, I really started feeling like I've been wasting my time. And I know a lot of published authors say that have those moments where they feel like a fraud, but at the same time, they're published, so...It's like skinny people who say they need to lose weight.

I submitted FP to Pitch Wars earlier this week, and I'm excited that, first of all, they've created a more diverse panel of mentors. No offense to other contests,  but when you scroll the list of agents, judges, etc., and what you see is 1 person of color to 12 white people, as a black woman writer, it's easy to feel like your chances are just as small, if not smaller. People want to believe it isn't a factor , but when you're actually wearing the shoes, you learn that it is. They won't say it and probably don't see it, but it happens.

I'm also excited because I feel like the first time in years, whether through Pitch Wars or not, I'm confident that this one is ready. Or at the least, I'm ready. I wrote "the end" about 8 or 9 years ago now. After so many revisions and at least three overhauls, if I don't believe in this story, no one else will, so no matter what, I'm going to put it out there and see where it goes.

Thursday Thoughts - Midnight Thoughts

I don't have a clever image for this yet, but as I'm currently out of Tuesday Tales ideas, I might as well ramble to keep my schedule up to date.

I drank a Dr. Pepper late, so I'm still awake and watching The 100. I'm only in Season 1, but seeing commercials for the current season, I need to know how they get there. It's like Teen Angst Mad Max right now.

I have a kinesthetic (sp?) tape on my right wrist. I think I pulled a tendon lifting my bed frame up to my room. Luckily I'm left handed, but wrist pain is some of the most agonizing pain I've experienced. I guess because my wrists don't usually hurt. I'm going to Occupational Therapy twice a week for a few weeks. Hopefully that works on calming it down. I think I threw out my old wrist braces. =\

I'm also on 5 new medications for my allergies & asthma. It's annoying, but one is for acid reflux, and I'm glad I haven't had any for a few weeks now. I had a stick test and learned I'm allergic to dust mites, mold, dogs, seasonal stuff, and eggs. I love dogs and cooking eggs, so my feelings were hurt.

I have off Friday, so I want to take some time to catch up on reading. I have some writing I also need to do. I've been writing more scenes for later in my story than scenes in the beginning, and I'm trying to be okay with that.

Now that I've climbed in bed, I'm getting sleepy, so sleep well everyone!

Wednesday Words: Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

Happy Wednesday! It's the 2nd Wednesday of the month, which is the day I share with you all what I am reading. This week (and, with the way my days are going, the next couple weeks) I'm reading Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi.

This cover is amazing!

I've been waiting to read this for a while now, and now that I've started it, I'm so excited. Tomi used Yoruba mythology to create this story. My godparents are from Nigeria, so that's a plus on my interest meter. Add to that the setting of a world where there was basically a war on magic, and I'm getting Final Fantasy VI vibes, and I'm here for them.

There are 525 pages in this book! I can't wait to see how the story plays out. Random.org has given me page 158 to share with you all, so let me turn there and find a line.

All at once the flames lining the walls go out, just like Tzain's makeshift torch. But in an instant, they reignite with new life, blanketing every inch of stone with light.

I know the main characters Zélie and Amari are looking at a mural of the gods, who Zélie believes to be dead and the reason that the magic in the world is gone. I can't wait to see how they got to wherever they are. They have just met where I am.

What are you reading this week?

Insecure Writer's Support Group

Happy First Wednesday! It's time for another Insecure Writer's Support Group post! As always, thank you, Alex J. Cavanaugh and co-hosts, for keeping this going. Visit the official website to join us.

Where am I this month? Well, I decided to pen my resignation letter and have it waiting in the wings. Most of me wants to just turn it in, but the sensible side of me says to wait until I have a new job in the bag. I've applied to a dozen jobs in the last few weeks, so hopefully I hear from one soon.

This may also be the year I go ahead and self-publish. I don't think I have it in me to keep querying. I'll just be happy knowing my book is out there. Then, I'll just have to up my self-marketing, and it no longer sounds like a super scary thing to do.

So wish me luck!

Friday Freeday: Back From Vacation

Happy Friday!

This is usually the week I post a Tuesday Tales, but I was coming back from vacation on Tuesday. My agenda for this vacation was to do absolutely nothing, and it was wonderful. I flew down to Cocoa Beach with my friends, and we ate, slept, and lay out on the beach. I did some laps in the hotel pool, and aside from walking everywhere, that was the only exercise I got. So the only bad side to that is getting back into the routine. Disconnecting was exactly what I needed. I should've taken a couple more days off, especially yesterday, which was my birthday.

It was also IWSG Pit Day! I gave in and threw a few pitches out there. I didn't do as well as earlier pitches, but I did get a few likes, so I'm going to research and send out a few queries. This time around, I wanted to see if I'd get as many without my comp titles (FINAL FANTASY + GRACELING) because while I feel it's still true, it's an outdated comparison, one, and I think a lot of people who liked the comp were really looking for more Graceling than Final Fantasy, two. So, I think my experiment worked.

My sister took me to the movies for my birthday, and we saw Sorry to Bother You. I'm not going to give anything away. Just know it's amazing and extremely crazy and very relevant.

So that's all. I hope you all have a great weekend! Mine is a little busy, but hopefully I'll get to unpack.

Wednesday Words: Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson

Happy Wednesday! It is the day before a VERY needed vacation for me, but it is also the 2nd Wednesday of the month, which means it's time for Wednesday Words, where I share with you all what I'm reading.

This week that is Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson.

First off, I love this cover. It's a little mysterious, the shadow is ominous, and the light play is captivating and dark! Right up my alley. The blurb also starts off pretty dark.


TRIGGER WARNING AHEAD: infant death.
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Mary B. Addison killed a baby.

Allegedly. She didn’t say much in that first interview with detectives, and the media filled in the only blanks that mattered: A white baby had died while under the care of a churchgoing black woman and her nine-year-old daughter. The public convicted Mary and the jury made it official. But did she do it? She wouldn’t say.

Mary survived six years in baby jail before being dumped in a group home. The house isn’t really “home”—no place where you fear for your life can be considered a home. Home is Ted, who she meets on assignment at a nursing home.

There wasn’t a point to setting the record straight before, but now she’s got Ted—and their unborn child—to think about. When the state threatens to take her baby, Mary must find the voice to fight her past. And her fate lies in the hands of the one person she distrusts the most: her Momma. No one knows the real Momma. But who really knows the real Mary?



I haven't gotten too far into the book, but Mary is currently in the group home. There are many girls in there with her who did petty crimes, but if Mary did commit the crime, then they might not want to mess with her. I can't wait to see how this book turns out.


I'm also reading on my Kindle and sometimes struggle with choosing random lines while keeping my place, so I will share a line from the page I am currently on:


New Girl is crying. Real sobbing, snot-nosed tears. I'm jealous; I haven't cried in six years. The tears are frozen inside with the rest of my emotions. She probably doesn't think she did anything wrong. I was that girl too once.


Now I want to know what the new girl did, but I'll know soon.


What are you reading this week?

Insecure Writer's Support Group

Happy July! Happy 4th, and welcome to the first Wednesday of the month, which means it's time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group (whoops, this was supposed to go up in the 3rd)! Visit Alex J. Cavanaugh and the IWSG site to join the rest of us as we share our insecurities.

#IWSGPit is actually on my birthday this year. I'll most likely spend the next 3 weeks wondering if I should come out of my "I'm done with pitch contests" retirement to do it. I have so many jumbled thoughts in my head about whether or not I'm ever going to be published and how, and the pitch contests tend to get my hopes up really high and then drop them mercilessly. I'd rather not begin that process on my birthday, so we'll see what happens.

And on that note, the IWSG Day Question this month is: What are your ultimate writing goals, and how have they changed over time (if at all)?

My main goal is still to get published. I'm working on not being hyper-focused on one project no matter how much I love it. I have to keep writing other things.

The good thing about IWSG falling on a day off is that I'll get a chance to actually visit other posts this month, so I hope to see some of you soon!

Friday re-Focus

Technically, I did forget to post early today. However, due to IT tightening up our web security at work, I couldn't post on time anyway.

To be honest, I think I'm running out of things to say about Final Fantasy, especially now that I'm moving on to a new story that isn't based on the games. So, starting today, I'm going to open up my Fridays again to be about anything, but most likely related to books/comics, games, film/tv, and writing. I want to stick to my schedule, and this will help so I'm not tied to one topic.

If you've still stuck around to read, thank you so much! Have a great weekend!