SPFBOX

SPFBOX? Am I speaking in gibberish? Nope! It stands for Self-Publishing Fantasy Blog-Off 10.

It's been 7 years since I last entered the competition (I submitted Mind Behind the Mind the third year, in 2017). This year, I've offered up Dead As Dreams to be judged by the bloggers/vloggers!

So 300 enter, and only 1 survives. If you want to see the list of 300 entries and the current status of them all (links to reviews, which titles are cut, which titles are semi-finalists, etc), head on over to the official SPFBOX Phase 1 page. I can't thank Mark Lawrence (and all the bloggers who volunteer to read and review) enough for running this contest for so many years. It's a great way for people to see what's out there in indie fantasy book world!

If you're looking for a new fantasy to read, go through the list and take a look at the reviews. I've already added 12 books to my wish list!

This year, I've been assigned to Queen's Book Asylum. I'm pretty happy with where Dead As Dreams landed. The Queen (Timy) is highly organized, so I know exactly when to expect the possibility of my doom. XD There's also a resident demon, of course. My kind of place.

On Queen's Book Asylum, the 30 books they were assigned were divided between 6 reviewers. Dead As Dreams' initial fate is in the hands of Arina. She just cut 2 of her titles yesterday. Thankfully I was spared this time! Each reviewer typically picks one semi-finalist from their batch, and then all 6 try to read all the semi-finalists to pick a finalist.

Fingers crossed that Dead As Dreams makes it far! At the very least, the book will have a new review. =D

And good luck to my fellow competitors! I've been enjoying participating in the Facebook group with everyone this year.

Writing Update - June 2024

Why yes, it's that time of year again where I talk about how nothing has gone to plan, everything has blown up in my face, and my goals have been scrambled beyond recognition. XD

OK, OK... I'm being a tad dramatic. Honestly, while my plans have been lightly beaten, they're not as over whipped as they could be at this point. If you don't remember what my hopes for the year were back in January, go visit the post 2024 - Just Chill.

Without further ado, onto the updates.

2024 Publications

❦ Magic Morsel - Kindle Vella Episodes - I've finished writing and scheduling all the episodes for the first serial! A new episode goes live every Friday, with the last two episodes scheduled to be posted on Friday, August 16. So, if you've been intending to read it, pop on over to Kindle Vella and give it a go.

❦ Intricate Agony (Fortunes of Fate, 8) - No longer planned for 2024 (see details below).

❦ Leave No Dragon Stone Unturned (Magic Morsel, 1) - Working title for the revised first serial of Magic Morsel into a novel. Possible publication this year still to be determined.

2024 Writing Progress

❦ I added about 38,000 words to Magic Morsel to reach the end of the first serial, which clocks in at 73,967 words. Yay, words!

❦ Intricate Agony... I actually started drafting this in April and got 4,850 words written. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling the story. I have ideas aplenty, and I know how it will unfold, but I'm having issues with my main character. He's feeling like too much of a wet noodle. Plus the initial draft is insanely heavy on description, which is a departure from my usual style. I needed a break to let things settle and think things through, and I'll get back to it at a later date. This means there's no chance of publication this year, though. Sorry if you've been eagerly awaiting the next Fortunes of Fate story!

❦ What do you all think of Leave No Dragon Stone Unturned for the first Magic Morsel title? I like it, but I'm definitely biased. ;) I've started in on a read through of the scenes, making notes for my world bible and revision plans along the way. This is taking longer than expected. And as I note down some questions I need to answer about this world (at least to myself, even if it doesn't show up in this novel), I realize the fleshing out of details and answering questions before I dig into revisions might take a while, too. So, right now I'm not sure if it'll be published this year or next. I may also be taking August off to tend to kids and house, which will disrupt my plans as always.

❦ I've sent out 4 of my 8 planned newsletters, 3 of which had SHU-WPF Spotlights.

❦ Capricon in February was fun! Met up with a couple writer friends, relaxed, bought yet more dice... I'm hoping we can go again next year.

❦ Facebook Ads were pissing me off, so I'm taking a break from them. I'm planning to run one in July, though, as Dead As Dreams will be discounted. Actually, several of my titles will be discounted on Smashwords for the whole month of July. Check out the Summer/Winter Sale starting on July 1!

❦ Finally, I entered Dead As Dreams into the SPFBOX contest (Self-Publishing Fantasy Blog-Off 10)! I'll have a more detailed update about that in my next blog post.

And that's my writing year so far! Trundling along, moving forward, making progress. All good things. I still wish I'd move faster, due to all the stories I want to write and release into the world, but I'm trying to remind myself not to be too hard on myself. Just chill, right?

1001 Reasons Not To Clean - #66 through #70

Welcome to 1001 Reasons Not to Clean! The main goal of this series is to see if I can actually reach 1001 reasons, 5 reasons at a time (the final post, if I get there, will be 6 reasons). I'm sure I can. It's not just my crazy brain being unrealistic, right? Links to previous posts are below. And feel free to share your excuses, and they might get added to my list (with credit, of course)!

#1 through #5 ~ #6 through #10 ~ #11 through #15 ~ #16 through #20 ~ #21 through #25 ~ #26 through #30 ~ #31 through #35 ~ #36 through #40 ~ #41 through #45 ~ #46 through #50 ~ #51 through #55 ~ #56 through #60 ~ #61 through #65

❦

66. You have a new kitten. And it's way more entertaining to play with the kitten than it is to clean. Let's face it, this zoomie ball of fluff is just going to make a mess anyhow!

67. Even though your to do list is insane, especially all the organizing and cleaning you need to do, you pounce on a grand idea to open an Etsy shop called Speculative Stitches. Well, setting the shop up is a lot more interesting than cleaning, that's for sure.

68. You need stock for your Etsy shop! So instead of sorting through a bunch of kids' toys that need to be sold or given away, you binge watch FBI while working on your Questionable Splatter Coasters.

69. Even though you still have a black thumb (don't ask how many bonsai or cacti I've killed in my lifetime), you feel the need to plant seeds outside in the hopes that they'll grow. Far more productive than cleaning, right? At least it makes you feel better when the marigolds and morning glories sprout. You've finally found a couple plants that won't wither just from your glance.

70. You'd rather roll many different characters for your upcoming Dungeons & Dragons game. Character creation is an addiction. And look at these shiny dice! Much prettier than a shiny toilet.