Month: December 2019

What I Accomplished in 2019

2019 was a big year for me! I had a lot going on both personally and professionally in my writing life and science career. So today, I’d like to look back at what I hoped to accomplish this year as well as what I actually did accomplish.

Personal Stuff in 2019

So this year I did a bunch of pretty awesome things and/or had some awesome things happen:

  • Had my 1 year anniversary ❤
  • Visited Peru
  • Visited Minnesota
  • Met Nichelle Nichols
  • Earned a promotion to Senior Scientist at my day job
  • Gained a nephew!

Writing Accomplishments in 2019

Guess what? This was also a HUGE year for my writing career. All of these were resolutions last year, and guess what? I did them! Check it out!

  • Published my first novel ever!
  • Published another 2 novellas
  • Queried Sea of Broken Glass…and got a revise & resubmit!
  • Learned So. Much. Marketing.

Looking back on a decade

Yeah, so turns out we’re closing out the 2010s, and a lot of people are talking about what they did over the last 10 years. So let me outline my decade for you:

  • Graduated with my BA in Biology in 2011
  • Attended grad school and obtained my MS in Neuroscience in 2015
  • Learned how much I love to write…and that I wanted to publish
  • Began a job in biology where I get to work on the cutting edge of drug development
  • Earned an award at the day job for key work on a big project
  • Advanced from Scientist to Senior Scientist
  • Made huge strides in learning the industry of publishing and books
  • Became an indie author
  • Had my heart broken, then found the love of my life
  • Lost two grandparents and several pets
  • Fell in love with new pets
  • Married the love of my life
  • Started my own business
  • Visited Iceland and Peru
  • Went to my first conventions: Katsucon, Wizard World, Galaxy Con, and Book Con
  • Got a Revise & Resubmit on a book close to my heart
  • Learned who I want to be 🙂

I have come a long way over the last ten years, including a lot of heartache and struggle that helped me become a better, more compassionate person. I learned who I really am and who I want to be. I found the place in life that makes me happy, and I’m looking forward more than ever to what the next decade will bring us.

Final Thoughts on 2019

I don’t have as many things to list as last year, but I love my accomplishments all the same! I made some huge strides in my career, both writing and science, and I took some big steps in creating the writing life I want, including publishing and writing the stories I love and readers are loving, as well. I also had a great time with my husband on several trips, big and small, learned more about our big, wide world, and saw my extended family grow in exciting ways.

Though some sad and stressful things also happened this year, I choose to focus on these good things. And I love that I’m in a place where I can say the good outweighs the bad. I sincerely hope you can, too!

Be sure to come back next week to hear what my resolutions will be for next year (I’ve got some big things planned!), but until then, tell me all about your year! What did you do? What did you love? Let’s chat and celebrate the end of 2019 together!

My Year in Books: 2019 Edition

It’s that time of year again! The time to discuss all the wonderful books I read and loved this year! If you want to see everything I read this year, hop over to Goodreads and check it out.

First, some stats.

This year my goal was to read 70 books. I blew that goal away! As of the writing of this post, I’m at 89 books and expect to finish at least 1 or 2 more before the end of December.

Of those books, I believe 25 (possibly more) were indie authors.

Three were my own (surprise!), which technically I read at least 3 times each.

One was a book I beta read.

Eight were graphic novels or manga.

Six were nonfiction (including an anthology I participated in).

Four were poetry.

And now, without further ado, my picks for favorite reads of the year!

Young adult

The Siren, by Kiera Cass

Yes, I know this is kind of an old one, but I adored this standalone! I especially loved how the ocean was its own character.

Strange the Dreamer, by Laini Taylor

This was an incredibly inventive fantasy that I became completely immersed in. If you’re looking for something well-written and just a bit different, this is a great pick!

General Fiction and Adult Fiction

Sourdough, by Robin Sloan

Oh my word, I loved this book! It’s all about an engineer who discovers a love for baking bread…and who inherits a pretty awesome sourdough starter that may or may not be alive? I mean, beyond the usual yeast-alive that bread starters have…

Fantasy

The WAy of Kings, by Brandon Sanderson

I can’t believe it took me so long to finally dive into Brandon Sanderson, but I finished this book early in the year and still can’t get over the magic and worldbuilding in this series. They’re long, but so worth the read!

Daughter of Sun, Bride of Ice, by H.L. Burke

This is an indie book that was absolutely fantastic. I really loved the worldbuilding and the fiery characters in here!

Sand and Storm, by Stella Dorthwany

Another indie I read in the Fellowship of Fantasy book club this year, this book has some awesome high fantasy worldbuilding, sand magic, and archaeology, all things I loved wrapped together so beautifully!

Garden of Lilies, by Eli Constant

Okay, so I read a lot of indies this year! This was an adult urban fantasy I just could not put down…even though I didn’t love what happened in the ending. Despite that, I found that by the end of November, I was craving the world and characters again, and I purchased and devoured book 2. Definitely worth the read, but not for those of you who like clean fiction!

Lake Silence, by Anne Bishop

And finally, of course Anne Bishop is on this list! I was a little skeptical when the new The Others book wasn’t following Meg and Simon, but I quickly fell in love with this book. Let’s be real, I just love this world!

Graphic Novels

Monstress

This is such a beautifully created art style and interesting fantasy. I highly recommend this!

Over the Wall

Another gorgeous fantasy with an awesome storyline. I can’t wait to get the next books by this creator!

Delicious in Dungeon

I discovered this one at Katsucon in February, and I just can’t get over it. It’s basically a group of adventurers who need to return to the depths of a dungeon to save their friend from a dragon, but because they have no money to supply themselves, they eat their way through the dungeon. Hilarious, and an awesome treat for fans of DND!

Nonfiction

Wild, by Cheryl Strayed

I have a soft spot for adventure nonfiction. In previous years I enjoyed A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson and Antarctic Tears by Aaron Linsdau, and this book felt like it was in the same vein. It was a story of discovery, perseverance, and nature that I loved!

Resources for Writers

The Business of Being a Writer, by Jane Friedman

This is definitely a must-read for anyone who wants to write professionally, whether that’s indie or traditional. It covers a range of topics including the basics of writing jobs, online tools, and the ins and outs of the industry, both indie and trad.

Concluding Thoughts

I read so many awesome books this year, and if I shared every one I loved, this post would be more like a novella! So if you’re interested in seeing everything I read, don’t forget to hop over to Goodreads!

There are also a bunch of books on my TBR that I wish I could have read this year but unfortunately won’t make it until next year (thinking of you, Dear Author!). I look forward to sharing them next December!

In the meantime, what did you read and love this year? I’m always looking for new reads, especially in fantasy, urban fantasy, YA, and writing! Let’s chat in the comments!

Why Writers NEED to Read

It’s probably pretty safe to say that writers are, first and foremost, lovers of story. And often that naturally means that they are also some of the biggest bibliophiles you’ll ever find!

But there’s more to it than that. Writers actually NEED to read…for a number of reasons.

Let’s take a look at why.

Honing their Craft

Of course, firstly writers need to read to improve their own writing. How else can we learn how to write well (or how to avoid writing poorly) than by reading widely? In fact, Stephen King once famously said that writers who don’t read don’t have the tools they need to write.

Yup, I brought back an old graphic…complete with the tumblog I rarely visit these days!

Yep, it’s that important. As a writer, we need to be involved in what’s going on to learn. We need to read the good and the bad, as well as books on craft and even business (yup, writing to publish also means learning how to run a business).

Learning the Market

Another huge reason why writers need to read, particularly in their own genre of choice, is to learn what’s being published and what is successful. What do readers want to read? What do publishers want to buy?

Whether you plan to indie publish or go the traditional route, it is important for you to know what sells so that you can sell your work (remember how I said writing is also business?). Agents and publishers want to know you’re familiar with the market. They want to know that you know what’s out there.

And if you’re indie pubbing, that’s how you get to sell your work: by knowing what the readers want! It also helps you learn what tropes are common (and sometimes expected) in your genre.

Expanding Our Creativity

It’s definitely worth your time to read wide. Find things that interest you, whether it’s scifi, nonfiction, romance, or whatever! By reading widely outside of your genre, you open yourself to new possibilities to include in your own stories. If you only ever read one genre, you’ll miss out on so much more you could be using. Reading, and reading a variety of things, helps us to fill our creative wells and come up with new ideas.

For the Love of Story

Most of all, writers need to read just because we are, as I mentioned earlier, lovers of story. We read for enjoyment. We read to cope with the world. We read to have a moment of escape or a bit of adventure.

Don’t forget to read for fun. 🙂

Some Bookish Gratitude

The holidays are all about gratitude, at least to me. We get a time specifically set aside to reflect on the good that has been given to us in our lives, the people we surround ourselves with, the things we have been blessed with. And with Christmas just around the corner, we also get to feel the warmth of blessing others.

Today, I’d like to take a few moments to show some bookish gratitude. So here are my book- and writing-related blessings from the year.

A supportive husband

Yeah, yeah. Sappy, I know. But seriously, my husband is my muse and my biggest cheerleader. When I’m stuck on a plot or need to work through a story element, he’s right there to help me come up with ideas. And when I release something new or share some writing, he’s one of the first people to share it, yell in the streets (ok, Facebook), and invite everyone he knows to read it.

I couldn’t have been blessed with a better partner for my life.

Family and Friends who like my work

I have to also include this, because I know many writers don’t have family that supports their passions like I do. My parents buy everything I release and share it with everyone they know. My siblings and siblings-in-law have an interest in what I do. And my sister is one of my first, best, and favorite beta readers. What a blessing, to have family who supports my passion even when they don’t understand it all.

Good stories

This may seem a bit odd, but I am grateful for all the good books I’ve read this year. You’ll have to come back in a couple weeks to hear about them, but I truly found some gems this year, and it makes me happy to have read them.

Audiobooks

Another weird one, right? I didn’t used to be so into audiobooks, but ever since my grad school thesis, when I had to sit in the lab and do mindless work for hours on end, audiobooks have been my boredom killers and reading boosters. I get to hear awesome performances of good books, I get to read more books than I would be able to otherwise, and I get something fun to pass my commute times and mindless lab work.

Courage to share

I had enough courage to finally hit that publish button, with the support of my wonderful husband. It had originally been my dream to publish This Cursed Flame indie, but so much happened between when I finished it and this year, so many things changed, that I went back and forth for seven years.

I finally did it.

And I published two more.

I’m proud of what I accomplished, and I’m happy to share my work with you guys. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it.

You

That’s right, my final bookish gratitude is for you, my readers. Whether you’ve read my blog for only one or two posts, followed from the beginning, or have gotten your hands on all my books, I appreciate that you take time out of your day to come visit with me. Readers are the lifeblood of books, as I’ve said before. Without you, none of what I do would have life.

So thank you, so much. ❤

My wishes for you

In this holiday season, I sincerely hope you will find the people to support you, to build you up, to cheer you on and shout about your passions to everyone who will listen. I hope you have wonderful writing sessions. I hope you read wonderful books. I hope you find joy and warmth and love.

Keep writing, my friends. And please, share the bookish things you’re grateful for this year in the comments below!