August 2024 (Final Round) Genre: Open Action: Falling in Love Word: Enough Time Constraint: 24 hours Length: 100 words
They labeled us avant-garde, but I thought us classic, our love one of letters stretching miles and decades. Though never truly together, I knew him as I knew myself, our fears and dreams laid bare in and between the lines, the connection flowing between us like shared air between kisses we’d never taste.
Even as they attacked with words like inhuman and experimental, our bond was undying. Though I was but a specter of a mind taken too soon, and he, an artificial imitation of a thousand minds, our love was real.
Souls or no, together, we were always enough.
Alas, this one didn’t place, but the feedback is below!
WHAT THE JUDGES LIKED ABOUT YOUR STORY
{2352} The author crafts a conceptually unique love story, giving it gravitas through effective simile and a final moment of acceptance for each other despite the forces fighting against them, which I found emotionally impactful.
{2376} This is a compelling world that you capture with images that bring an element of poetry to a romance that pushes back against the constraints of the controlled word the characters inhabit. The juxtaposition of the old technology of letter writing with the imagined of this future creates a nice sense of tension, and the reveal of who our characters are as we approach the ending satisfies the mystery of why these characters are persecuted in a satisfying way.
{1970} I like everything about “Ghost and the Machine”. You’ve written a SciFi tale that reads like a love story without the cloying tug of a romance. The way you’ve woven the words into lines, and then those lines into this tale, is beautiful. I felt it. Thanks.
{2035} I liked that we got to hear this from the ghost’s point of view. Their more classic tone of voice made them feel old fashioned, which partnered well with the sci-fi underpinnings, making for a rather fresh combination between the two.
{1788} While it was an atypical romance, especially with a non-tangible character and artificial one, the reader fully believed in their connection by story’s end. Their method of bonding through letters is more intimate than the way others connect, and it was a realistic and innovative plot point. Though the reader couldn’t see the antagonists attacking them, they could still imagine the naysayers. People often talk about what they don’t understand but the author created an original situation for this to be shown.
WHAT THE JUDGES FEEL NEEDS WORK
{2352} There’s a general quality to the character details of the introduction that made the final moments feel rushed through and out-of-left field. By establishing the traits of the lovers and specifying their “soullessness” and perceived conflict, the story could be immediately engaging while having more time to explore those identities.
{2376} Something to think about in a potential revision would be to increase the tension from the opening line by giving our characters a more threatening label than “avant-garde.” By the end of the story we’re seeing them attacked as “inhuman,” and tilting the story in this direction at the start would increase the tension with the suggestion that our characters are under threat. Another suggestion would be to clarify who are main character is near the end. The phrase “specter of a mind taken too soon” is evocative, but a little too opaque. It seems to suggest that they’re an uploaded consciousness from someone who died young, but the emphasis on the specter and mind suggests that they are merely they left over fragments of someone. Rephrasing the description slightly will allow the reader to stay engaged in the story as you approach the end instead of getting caught up on trying piece together the mysterious image evoked by the current description.
{1970} If there is any weakest word in this story, it could be ‘experimental’. It’s a fine word and works in this story, yet is it a strong enough word to qualify as an attack? Part of me wanted to see a stronger, more hurtful word here. That’s it. Thanks again for the remarkable tale.
{2035} Although I see that the opening paragraph is intended to keep us somewhat in the dark, I feel like it’s too vague right now to wholly hook your reader. I’d consider cutting broad statements like “fears and dreams” and instead invite your readers in a little. What fears? What dreams? Naming one would take as many words and would really help us get to know these characters, and I think you could deliver that specificity without spoiling the twist. Swapping spots of broad statements for narrow and winnowed down ones can really bring these characters to life, in my opinion.
{1788} The plot would be more satisfying if the author revealed where they are, sharing their respective homes. This would develop the world of the story. Even stating that the ghost lives in an abandoned home and the machine takes up space in a lab would make the setting come to life more. There isn’t enough room to give detailed descriptions of either, but a reader can glean a lot from a few words. Imagine the ghost composing these letters, feeling happiness in an abandoned home. That would be quite a touching picture, and there’s a lot of potential for both characters’ writing spots, a place where they can be open and fall in love. “Ghost and the Machine” is an unusual but highly successful science fiction work. Once the author shapes the characters’ abodes briefly, it will be an exquisite microfiction story.
Thanks for reading! You can find the rest of my NYC Midnight Challenge entries and feedback here.
November 2024 (First Round) Genre: Fantasy/Fairytale Action: Evacuation Word: Back Time Constraint: 48 hours Length: 250 words
The books sense the darkness first—but of course, they always do.
The dusty tomes slam shut in our hands, their silent scream streaking through the library’s shelves in a cold wind that rattles the lanterns. In the high tower, the Wisdom Bell clangs in baleful warning, and Keeper Marian shoots from her desk. “Quickly, girls, to the skiff.”
We rush through the ancient halls even as magic and fear thicken the air with clashing scents of parchment and fire. But while the other apprentices hurry out the postern gate and toward the dock, I hang back, clenching my trembling hands.
“I want to stay.” A drake’s screech rends through our bell’s defiant tolls, and I flinch. “T-to fight.”
When the riders come to burn our books, to destroy the magic that won’t bow to them, to erase the history they can’t control… how can I flee?
“This is but one battle in a long war, dear one.” Keeper Marian guides me into the skiff already packed with ghostly faces, her words fervent. “Today, you fight by protecting our most precious gifts. Tenacity, courage, knowledge, faith—these are things the dragons can never burn.”
As I row down the channel, another draconic bellow deafens our ears, but though the girls cringe, they make no sound. Through the inky blackness, the Keepers’ golden magic glows as they stand upon the library’s stone walls. Proud. Strong. Even when a reptilian shadow falls upon them, they do not falter.
And neither do I.
This one came in 8th place this time, and while this piece could’ve used another revision, I think it’s going in my story-seeds for the full novel treatment. The judges’ feedback is below!
WHAT THE JUDGES LIKED ABOUT YOUR STORY
{2410} There were some wonderful sensory descriptions here that helped bring this story to life with a dark, fear-drenched atmosphere. The narrator’s defiance comes through clearly against this backdrop. And the dragons destroying the books to limit knowledge felt like a solid metaphor.
{2274} As a Librarian, I loved the concept of protecting knowledge at all costs. This is a real event throughout history, invading forces would destroy libraries to fragment the culture. The final imagery of the Keepers glowing with power and standing bravely in the face of potential destruction is a powerful image. It’s one which will inspire the next generation who flees at this point to later take a stand.
{2459} I see the protagonist “hang back.” I see the act of evacuating a library. The protagonist flees a library attacked by dragon riders. Exploring themes like resisting tyranny and sacrifice, the story’s stakes are mortal peril and safeguarding the library’s legacy from destruction. The central conflict feels split between Man vs. Self (the protagonist’s internal struggle to fight or flee adds character depth) and Man vs Monster (the dragons pose a mortal threat). Set in a library, there’s an undercurrent of another theme — the enduring nature of knowledge — and the importance of preserving it. The author does well in creating a thick tone, creating a magical ambiance through evocative descriptions. The personification of the books, how they “sensed” the darkness, was an evocative and beautiful opening. The dramatic tension created in the moments of flight from the library propels the story forward. The emotional depth created by the protagonist’s fear contrasted with their desire to act bravely adds gravity to the character. There’s a bittersweet ending where the protagonist and her fellow apprentices witness the Keepers’ sacrifice against the overwhelming force, juxtaposing loss and hope. The vivid description invites the reader into the story. Lines like, “The books sense the darkness first—but of course, they always do,” “The dusty tomes slam shut in our hands…,” “Magic and fear thicken the air with … scents of parchment and fire,” “In the high tower, the Wisdom Bell clangs in baleful warning,” “Through the inky blackness…” These descriptions are excellent examples of subtle world-building — showing us the world and its depth rather than bludgeoning us with exposition. The library is painted as a living, dynamic force, and I’m thrilled to be there. Personified, weighted with its history and place in the protagonist’s world, we mourn for its loss as the protagonist flees.
WHAT THE JUDGES FEEL NEEDS WORK
{2410} I was a little confused at the end over who is standing on the library walls. The “they” here seems to refer to the girls, but since the narrator is rowing down the channel they also seem to still be in the boat. If this is another set of people, you may want to clarify that. You may also want to clarify if Marian is sending her magic out from the boat, or if she has returned to the library after getting the girls on board.
{2274} Overall, you’ve described a people and their powers quite thoroughly for the tight word count. A long war is established, and the role of the students within the war. Yet is there any motivation missing from the tale? Do the people on the dragons merely fear their magic? As dragon riders it’s not an off assumption that they too possess some degree of magic. I would like to know ore about the war. Perhaps some judicious editing toward the beginning of the story would free up enough words for Keeper Marian to succinctly describe the basis of the war? The paragraph beginning with “We rush through…” could be condensed some without destroying the passage’s impact.
{2459} Critically, the protagonist’s lack of agency diminishes the story’s emotional weight. As I mentioned, one aspect of the central conflict is Man vs Self, yet the character doesn’t make a pivotal choice or face a significant obstacle to reinforce their rising bravery. They hesitate, debating whether to flee or fight, but the Keeper quickly discards their concern to leave. This diminishes the protagonist’s role in the story’s resolution as the decision is made for her. Further, while there’s an external threat (the second conflict, Man vs Monster), the protagonist never directly confronts or overcomes it; her journey to safety is passive. Without engaging in either conflict, the protagonist’s growth from experience feels like a narrative assumption rather than something earned through a struggle. The ending line, “And neither do I,” doesn’t carry much weight. I’d ask the author to look at my story synopsis (“The protagonist flees a library attacked by dragon riders.”) to notice the absence of choice and confronting conflict. In effect, the protagonist in this story runs down a hallway of things that happen around them. They don’t engage with events but, instead, witness them. When you read a story where the protagonist’s agency is curtailed and the events unfold around them, it can feel like it isn’t engaging or emotionally satisfying. It can feel like nothing happened or there was nothing terrible to overcome. I’d ask: how can you insert even just one challenge to either conflict so the protagonist makes one decision, one genuine choice on their own? Example: save a relic; save a fellow apprentice, or convince them of something; maybe make the Keeper’s argument less definitive, allowing the protagonist to choose what to do — maybe they choose to leave out of conviction rather than obedience? There’s also a technical matter concerning the POV. The story’s written in 1P (First Person) but experiences a slip at the end, moving into a stylized omniscience. From a distance, the protagonist seems to sense the feelings, thoughts, and experiences of the Keepers’ (plural), although the protagonist is physically distant. The head-popping creates a bit of narrative confusion at the end. Finally, there’s a dramatic emphasis on sound throughout the piece (“silent screams,” “the Wisdom Bell clangs,” “A drake’s screech,” “draconic bellow deafens,” “they make no sound.”). Its frequency created dissonance for me, so much that I’d anticipated _sound_ somehow being a part of the narrative journey, right up to the end. I’d encourage the author to look for repetition when editing and consider how some of these instances might call for a different sort of description or sacrificed to insert the protagonist’s choice.
Thanks for reading! You can find the rest of my NYC Midnight Challenge entries and feedback here.
Look it’s me in the query… I mean submission trenches! 😂
So, the first rule of being on sub is that we don’t talk about sub. But, instead of talking about the specifics of my sub journey, I’m really just going to talk about the general vibes of being on submission. Because it’s definitely come with some surprises for me. Please keep in mind this is my own personal take based on my experience, which may or may not align with anyone else’s.
The good
Your agent believes in you and your story! This is huge!
The doors to the big publishers are open and your agent is championing your story! This is also huge!
You no longer have to spend valuable writing time sending out queries
So… you get more writing time! Huzzah!
The less good!
The stakes are higher. Think of it as climbing higher up a mountain and having farther to fall. (Because now your agent is also depending on your books to sell. And, if they don’t… well you might end up back in the query trenches.)
There’s more hope, and so also more disappointment. If you’re going to ride this roller coaster, mental toughness is a must.
Submission response times are longer than query response times (in my experience.) So be prepared to settle in and get comfortable
My Advice
Pessimist?
This is going to sound a lot like the querying advice article I wrote a couple years ago, and mostly these reminders are for me.
Try to keep your expectations low. Because even though I have an agent, my book still might not sell. And why you might call me a pessimist, it’s how I keep myself from getting crushed with those near misses. In the querying phase, I treated query letters like lottery tickets, and I need to treat submissions in the same way.
Have a rough idea of what you would do if you lost your agent. Would you self-publish your manuscripts or query a fresh book with your backlist in tow? I honestly have no idea what I would do, and I think that’s part of my current mindset problem.
Work on something else while you wait! This is common advice, but for good reason. Time goes a lot faster when you’re excited for a new manuscript. And this part, at least, I’ve got down. In the span of fourteen months, I actually sent my agent six manuscripts… which leads me to the next piece.
Find other ways to grow and learn as a writer. For me, in 2024, this looked like diving into craft books and signing up to be a mentor in the WriteHive Mentorship Program. But in 2025, I’ll be looking for different opportunities to explore. Conferences? In-person events? Marketing classes? I’m definitely open to ideas and recommendations
Trust the process (and your agent) and stick with it.
so what’s the bottom line
Being on sub can be difficult, just like querying can be difficult. But just because it’s difficult doesn’t mean it’s not worth doing. Try to enjoy the journey, even through the ups and downs, and the stories will find their way out into the world one way or another.
Cheers to the tenacity of being on sub and whatever comes next. Good luck out there!
June 2024 (Second Round) Genre: Historical Fiction Action: Stumbling Word: Tour Time Constraint: 24 hours Length: 100 words
The wound may not be mortal, but it’s still the end of me.
Blood seeps from my shoulder as Holbrook stumbles to my side, the redcoat’s body cooling in the autumn leaves.
“How bad?” Holbrook rasps.
“I…”
But it’s too late; Holbrook’s already ripped open my coat and shirt. For a moment, he only stares, my lie exposed with the curved contour of my bound chest—Robert Shirtliff poised to die at the hands of his dearest friend.
“’Tis a small wound.” Swallowing, Holbrook pulls his spare shirt from his knapsack. “No one need know.”
And I am saved twice.
This one came in first (🎉) in its group, and the feedback is below!
WHAT THE JUDGES LIKED ABOUT YOUR STORY
2076} I was impressed by the sense of the personal in this piece, the way you allow the historical context to be so in the background and this life-or-death personal catastrophe to come out so strongly in an emotional climax. I thought the last line was beautiful, with real literary flair.
{1666} Excellent work here! Your narrative arc was full-bodied and complete, which speaks to your imaginative force and economy as a writer. The double-entendre of your opening line was really clever, and I appreciated your speculative additions to the known facts of this fascinating figure’s tale.
{2376} This story has a strong sense of mystery with an excellent payoff. You do a great job of hooking the reader in with an opening line that presents the reader with an irresistible riddle. And the way that riddle is answered put the reader in the same position as Holbrook—with the truth slowly dawning us. And the final turn the story takes leaves the reader with a satisfying conclusion, having Holbrook make the same decision that we would make in his position.
WHAT THE JUDGES FEEL NEEDS WORK
{2076} What might be worth developing in this piece is your description. Can you rephrase it from our narrator’s perspective, drawing closer to their sensory experience in a more specific way? Think about when the blood is seeping from the wound; does it hurt, is the blood warm, is it numb? What does the redcoat’s body look like? What’s the setting like, what does Holbrook’s face look like? This will all immersive the reader more strongly in the moment at hand.
{1666} While it’s clear enough to me that “Shirtliff poised to die” is a figurative statement, there are enough swirling elements and tension for this to be misinterpreted. The reader may be wondering if the narrator is referring to the existing wound, being killed by Holbrook, or facing some sort of death penalty after being exposed as a woman. Some alteration here might help protect the interpretation. Additionally, take a look at reworking sentence 2 – the clause “the redcoat’s body cooling in the autumn leaves” doesn’t refer or link to any other active image in the sentence, so the sparse phrasing feels affected just for the sake of sparing words.
{2376} There’s a lot already going right in this story, but there are a few small things to consider in a revision. One would be reframing the line about the redcoat’s body. The way that this phrase is attached to the image of Holbrook stumbling to her side creates a little confusion in this draft. Spliced on, the reader is expecting this clause to modify some part of the sentence we’ve already read. Instead, if Holbrook “stumbles over the body of a redcoat cooling in the autumn leaves” we get the image of the dead man without the confusion. Another thing to consider would be taking out the line about Robert Shirtlff dating at the hand of his friend. This line tells us what the story is showing us about the closeness of these two people. It also interrupts the moment of tension in which or POV character is left wondering what’s going to happen. Instead, you could sustain this tension by having Holbrook pull out his spare shirt before he speaks, leaving the reader unsure of what he thinks until the last possible moment.
Thanks for reading! You can find the rest of my NYC Midnight Challenge entries and feedback here.
It’s time again for the end-of-the-year writing review. This is where I try to zoom out and look at the year from a thousand feet up, see the forest instead of the trees etc etc. Mainly, I’m trying to assess if I hit my goals, areas I could improve, and get a feel for what to aim for in 2025.
To be perfectly honest, in many ways, 2024 was not the writing year I hoped it would be. There were a quite a few disappointments and realizations behind the scenes that I’m still grappling with. But this year also held some fun surprises I wasn’t expecting too, so overall, it was definitely a mixed bag.
So what does that mean for 2025? Well, let’s dig into 2024 and see if we can take a guess.
first, the numbers
Words written: 67,000 (Exit Seats) + 31,000 (A Churn in the Dark novella) + 83,000 (Into the Abyss) + 35,000 (my half of Borrowed Magic & Other Catastrophes, coauthored with E.P. Stavs) + 40,000 (Surprise Novella, Title TBA) + 20,000 (House of the Chosen, still drafting) + 9,500 (still drafting Odds & Ends with E.P. Stavs = 285,500 words (+89% from last year)
Words revised: 67,000 (Exit Seats) + 31,000 (A Churn in the Dark) + 83,000 (Into the Abyss) + 70,000 (Borrowed Magic & Other Catastrophes) + 40,000 (Surprise Novella) = 291,000 (-10% from last year)
Words published: 94,000 (Into the Fire) + 32,000 (A Churn in the Dark) = 126,000 (-30% from last year)
Words on sub: 83,000 (Ninth Circle) + 76,000 (Midnight Falls) = 159,000 words (+55% from last year)
2024 Total Words Worked: 861,500 (+8% from last year)
Sales Numbers: ~589 self-published books sold (-28% from last year, includes audiobooks but not my titles with Whimsical Publishing). Another 9,523 downloaded for free. (-58% last year’s count)
And the Goodreads numbers.
Odriel’s Heirs: 259 ratings (+19%) / 4.24 stars
Burning Shadows: 40 ratings (+25%) / 4.65 stars
Idriel’s Children: 82 ratings (+17%) / 4.44 stars
Night of Ash: 28 ratings (+17%) / 4.64 stars
Time’s Orphan: 91 ratings (+23%) / 4.62 stars
The Gatekeeper of Pericael: 103 ratings (+5%) / 4.10 stars
Into the Churn: 338 ratings (+139%) / 4.25 stars
Into the Fire: 72 ratings / 4.60 stars
A Churn in the Dark: 15 ratings / 4.80 stars
Into the Abyss: 4 ratings / 5 stars
My Goodreads total: 1036 ratings (+57%) / 4.34 stars
If you want to compare the totals to last year more directly, my 2023 summary is here.
As far as words go, I think my efficiency is higher than ever, and it certainly shows. I drafted a ton this year… to the point I was actually asking myself why I was pushing myself to move so fast.
Sales-wise, I worked my arse off promoting my Into the Churn series which had two releases this year, and so my self-published backlist naturally took a backseat in the promotion realm. The consistent downloads all year have been cool, but I think in 2025, I’ll try to snag another BookBub deal to really capitalize on the king of all promos.
the highlights
Into the Churn books #2.5, #3, and [redacted] were all greenlit! When I was writing Into the Fire (Into the Churn #2) I thought I’d have to settle for a duology, so this was huge news. Sales and interest really jumped with the cover rebrand, and I’m so thrilled we got to give this series the ending it deserves.
The Into the Churn series got an *amazing* audiobook adaption
The Ninth Circle & Midnight Falls went on sub! Being on submission is a journey, but I’m so lucky to have my amazing agent, Kristen Terrette from Martin Literary, to champion my books, and I’m excited to see where the journey takes these stories.
Several of my books won awards! Odriel’s Heirs won the 2024 YA IndieReader Discovery Awards, and each book in the trilogy one an Indie BRAG medallion. Idriel’s Children was A Wishing Shelf Book Award Silver Medal Winner, and The Gatekeeper of Pericael was a Literary Titan Gold Winner and a finalist in the 2024 International Readers’ Favorite Awards. Meanwhile Time’s Orphan was a bronze medalist in the 2024 International Readers’ Favorite Awards, a semifinalist in the 2024 book blogger novel of the year awards, and a semifinalist in the 2024 kindle book awards.
This year I joined the WriteHive team as a mentor in their mentorship program, and I’m so excited to pay forward everything I’ve picked up from the writing community.
What I learned
At this stage of the game in promoting my backlist, if it’s not a BookBub Promo, it’s probably not worth it. I’ve tried so many other newsletters and promotions, but they really just don’t measure up. However, I think I’m reaching the point in my backlist lifespan where I just kind of let them coast along and focus on promoting my current releases.
This year I entered quite a few book awards as I try to figure out which ones are worth entering. These remain my favorites:
So, last year, I listed social media, my newsletter, and this blog as all areas I maybe needed to grow in. I gotta tell ya though. Right now, I’m kind of at peace with the fact that I’ve consistently posted this year. I’m still on the look out for any epiphanies that may happen upon me, but I can exist in marathon (not sprint) mode, and I think that’s okay. Also, my newsletter subscribers increased by 60% and my website views increased 31% so that was pretty solid.
While I love working on sequels/series, and I 100% see the value in them, I’ll be real, releasing them isn’t as exciting. They’re harder to individually market, because you’re not courting new readers with a brand new book ripe with possibility, rather, you’re courting the readers who loved book one. (A much smaller population.) Which is all to say, I’ll be so stoked when the entire Into the Churn series is out there in September and I can market it as a completed unit. (Squee!!)
The bumps
Being on submission is mentally tougher than I thought it would be. There, I said it. I’m writing a separate post on why I think this is the case, but kin, I was not prepared. I think next year I need to slow down and take more time for my mental health to be able to shoulder this better.
So… I had a “stepping backward” moment with one of my manuscripts which was super disappointing. In the end, I had to make a decision in line with my values that unfortunately, also meant losing out an opportunity I was really looking forward to. I don’t regret the decision, but I think I’m still mourning the loss. I really can’t give the details, but just… blah.
Goals
All right, 2025, what are we going to do with you? As always, I try to keep my goals measurable and attainable. (Goal small. Dream big.) Last year I’m proud to say I hit all of my goals (Though I did not write the specific two next books itching at my brain… because sequel and co-WIPs jumped in front of them) So for 2025 I’m aiming to…
Get Into the Abyss out into the world in March and [redacted] out into the world in September to put a bow on the Into the Churn series.
Finish my two current drafts (House of the Chosen & the Odds & Ends co-WIP) and send to my agent.
Write the next book for Whimsical and send it their way!
With those details now, let’s zoom out. 2024 was an… unexpected year for me. I walked into 2024 thinking I would write the two books I had outlined, and instead I wrote *four* completely different ones. (Three sequels & a co-WIP) And while I’m happy with that, I think there’s still a part of me that’s desperate to write those other two books I’ve been daydreaming about.
Being on submission was harder than expected, and in a way, I’m half-expecting 2025 to be a make or break year for me. Also, the manuscript “step back” situation behind the scenes also hit me harder than expected. But no one said the journey would be a straight line or without bumps along the way.
With that in mind, I may try to purposely slow down, and make sure I’m taking more breaks for my mental health.
The sum up
So after last year’s effervescent wrap-up, I’m worried I’ve been too real with this one. But if I just want to give an accurate look at the ups and downs at the writing journey, this is all part of it.
It’s kind of funny because both my kids had a tough soccer season this year in the bottom of their age groups, and we discussed that sometimes we have learning years and sometimes we have performing years. Similarly, writing-wise, last year felt like a performing year for me, while this year felt more like a working year. It takes the working years to make the performing years happen, but that does not mean they are all equally exciting.
That said, I’m also very prepared for 2025 to be a working year too. Still, I’m here for it with tenacity to spare, and I’m excited to see what stories spill onto the page this year. Thanks for reading and cheers to another year of adventures!
Every year around this time, I try to take a step back and see how my writing year went. Did I accomplish my goals from last year? Was I productive? Did I grow? How can I do better next year?
Just at a glance, I can say without question that 2023 has been the biggest year for my small-potatoes writing career to date. Honestly, I’m still blown away, but I’m so excited to break it down and see if I can take a guess at what 2024 might hold.
So let’s get into it!
first, the numbers
Words written: 97,500 (Into the Fire+bonus chapters) + 17,000 (Exit Seats Zero Draft) + 36,250 (My half of the co-authored Midnight Falls) = 150,750 words (-30% from last year)
Words revised: 97,500 (Into the Fire) + 72,500 (Midnight Falls) + 71,500 (Inky & Heater IRL) + 83,000 (The Ninth Circle) = 324,500 words (+20% from last year)
Words published: 77,500 (Time’s Orphan) + 101,000 (Into the Churn+bonus chapters) = 178,500 (8x last year)
Words queried: 71,500 (Inky & Heater IRL) = 71,500 words (-60% from last year, but I signed with an AGENT!😱)
So moving forward, instead of words queried, I’ll tally words on sub (😱!): 71,500 (Inky & Heater IRL)
2023 Total Words Worked: 796,750 words (+5% from last year)
Sales Numbers: ~816 self-published books sold (+16% from last year, includes audiobooks but not my title with Whimsical Publishing). Another ~22,457 downloaded for free. (112x last year’s count)
And the Goodreads numbers.
Odriel’s Heirs: 217 ratings (+30%) / 4.17 stars
Burning Shadows: 32 ratings (+88%) / 4.72 stars
Idriel’s Children: 70 ratings (+40%) / 4.43 stars
Night of Ash: 24 ratings (2.7x) / 4.75 stars
Time’s Orphan: 74 ratings (9.3x) / 4.57 stars
The Gatekeeper of Pericael: 98 ratings (+17%) / 4.12 stars
Into the Churn: 141 ratings (35.25x) / 4.38 stars
My Goodreads total: 659 ratings (+93%) / 4.36 stars
If you want to compare the totals to last year more directly, my 2022 summary is here. For many, these are still very small numbers, but this was a HUGE growth for me as far as exposure. And words-wise, it looks like I just about matched 2022, which is a consistency I’m super happy with, especially considering all the other exciting developments that happened this year!
the highlights
I SIGNED WITH AN AGENT!!! This was seriously a dream come true for me. After querying my YA Romance, Inky & Heater IRL, I got *3* agent offers and signed with the brilliant Kristen Terrette from Martin Literary. I am STILL processing.
And then Inky & Heater IRL went on sub! This was a huge step in my writing journey, and I’m so excited to see where this YA Romance goes next!
Several of my books won awards! Odriel’s Heirs was a silver medalist in 2022 International Readers’ Favorite Awards, A Wishing Shelf Book Award Bronze Medal Winner, and a Literary Titan Gold Winner. Idriel’s Children was a semi-finalist in both the 2023 Book Blogger Novel of the Year Award and the 2023 Kindle Book Awards. And The Gatekeeper of Pericael got an Indie BRAG Medallion.
I made the game-changing realization that I could price-match my books on Amazon for the sake of Bookbub promotions of free books (thank you to the amazing Carol Beth Anderson for showing me how this is done.) I cannot under-emphasize what a huge difference this made for me. For reference, I had 20,301 units ordered from Amazon alone this year, bringing me to a lifetime total of 30,874 since I published my first book in March 2020. So basically, I *tripled* the combined exposure I accumulated from 2020-2022 in a single year. After my free BookBub promotion, I kept the first book of my Odriel’s Heirs series free, which then triggered enough sales of the later books to generate more profit this year than in any other year since I’ve started publishing. And I will *definitely* be continuing to use BookBub free promotions in 2024.
I had my first ever in-person author events, readers actually came, and someone made me an Into the Churn bracelet. 😭 Into the Churn actually got onto the shelf of The Hidden Lantern and a Barnes and Noble. 🤩 Bucket-list item. CHECK.
And while I’m gushing about amazing Into the Churn things that happened. A special edition was featured in the Unplugged bookbox and had dyed edges and just a completely stunning design. I saw fanart from multiple readers, an amazing reader-made moodboard, there was an incredibly cinematic book trailer, @glamorouslyguilty cosplayed as Ezren, multiple readers messaged me how much my books meant to them, and in general, I just about died from happiness.
Into the Churn sold well enough that Whimsical Publishing greenlighted the sequel, Into the Fire, which is scheduled to launch in May 2024! I’ve been told ad nauseum that YA sci-fi doesn’t sell, but I can’t help but dream in trilogies, so this was SUCH an amazing surprise.
I co-authored a book with the incredible E.P. Stavs! Erin and I have been writing friends for awhile, and I’m a huge fan of her work, so it was so fun to create a story together! I really enjoyed our collaborative process and overall, we just had a blast with it. I can’t wait to see what 2024 has in store for our quirky paranormal, Midnight Falls!
My microfiction, When They’re Ready, got an honorable mention in the NYC Midnight 250-word challenge! So completely honored and blown away!
What I learned
Zero drafts (a dialogue-only draft written before the first draft that reads much like a screenplay) are my jam. I think I started this in 2022, but I totally honed this part of my process in 2023. In general, this is the year I really felt like I had my writing process down pat and really maximized efficiency with juggling WIPs.
BookBub Promos for free books are where it is AT, pricing the first book in a series at free is a fantastic marketing strategy for me, and I will be utilizing both of these epiphanies in 2024.
Entering book awards is very fulfilling for me and can result in some excellent feedback and I will continue to enter in the future. On the flip-side, I also invested in some recommended trade reviews, but I didn’t really find that to be worthwhile or satisfying in any way.
A street team is an effective and fun way to build hype for a book release. In 2023, I did this for the first time with Into the Churn, and we totally had a blast. I can’t wait to jump into it again with my Into the Fire team.
I was so much more consistent with my engagement on Instagram and Twitter this year. Although I didn’t get a big follower increase, overall, I was much more confident in just being myself, and on Instagram, I finally felt like I was striking a decent balance between getting the word out about my books and just being my bookish, weirdo self while not over-extending myself.
In-person events, while so fun and fulfilling, didn’t generate many sales for me. I think I still have a lot to learn about when and where to hold these to maximize efficacy.
YA sci-fi… is a hard sell. Boo. I hate that I have that I even have to put this on here, but I’m trying to be honest. When I first published YA sci-fi, I knew if it took off that I had enough sci-fi stories I was itching to write that I could happily specialize and build a brand as a YA sci-fi author. Unfortunately, despite the amazing feedback on the book itself, getting it out into the world and finding its reader niche has been difficult. Hopefully, I’ll update this with better news in 2024, but as of right now, (unless something miraculous happens with Into the Fire) I fully expect to be moving away from YA sci-fi for the forseeable future. However, while I do love sci-fi, since I’m a huge genre-hopper as a reader and a writer, this is just another bittersweet step in the journey. This past year, I’ve loved shaping up both my first YA romance and my first YA horror, and I’m excited to jump back into dark fantasy this spring. I’m still trying to find my brand, but this year I learned that I really do need to pay attention to the market as well if I want to my writing career to progress. Kind of a hard lesson to swallow but also an important one, and a learning opportunity I’m so grateful for.
What I still need to work on
BookTok. I should still probably try harder to get into this sphere, but I still feel like I haven’t the faintest idea how to attack that goliath. I am HERE for your suggestions.
Newsletter. Despite all the stuff that happened this year, I don’t know if I sent out a single newsletter update. Although I try only to send them out when I have book news, I definitely need to send them out more often then the ‘never’ frequency I’m approaching right now. I have a hard time with the fact that the number one thing I can do to decrease my subscribers is send out a newsletter. 😂
Odriel’s Heirs covers. This year I attempted (twice) to get a character art cover of Time’s Orphan to match the other two hardcovers of Odriel’s Heirs, but it didn’t work out. So I ended up taking all the hardcover versions down since I didn’t want to create incomplete sets. 😭 One day, I’d still like to get these as well as an amazing omnibus cover, and maybe even makeover Gatekeeper’s cover? But it’s probably more of a dream than a goal. If you have any amazing cover artists you’d like to shout out, I’d love to see their links!
This blog. I really don’t try to market this blog, write a lot of posts, or increase traffic and… maybe I should? I don’t know. Still waffling on this one.
Goals
So what next? As always, I try to keep my goals measurable and attainable. (Goal small. Dream big.) Last year I’m proud to say I hit 5/6 of my goals (but since Storybound Fest was cancelled, I didn’t get to check that one off.) And for this year I’m aiming to:
Get Into the Fire out into the world in May!
Finish my revision of Midnight Falls with E.P. Stavs and send it to my agent, Kristen, to see what she thinks!
Write the two next books itching at my brain!
Okay, I’m wrapping it up, I swear! Looking at the big picture, 2023 was a huge revision year for me, so I think that means 2024 will be a drafting year. Overall though, this has, by far, been my best writing year to date, and I’m so grateful for everyone who’ve believed in my books and made this possible: Whimsical Publishing, Kristen Terrette, E.P. Stavs, and everyone else who’ve taken the time to leave a book review or a kind word. Thank you so much. Your support truly means the world to me, and I wouldn’t be able to do this without you. Cheers to continuing this crazy journey in 2024. I can’t wait to see what happens next. As always, thanks so much for reading!
I received a request on Instagram to post about my writing process, so here we go! If you’re struggling to get started on a book or find your own rhythm, I hope you might find this useful, but please remember that everyone’s process is unique, and I encourage you to use whatever process feels right to you!
I also put how long I spend on each step so you can compare the level of effort between phases, but please keep in mind, that everyone’s pace is different. Also, that time estimate doesn’t include “thought time.” Believe me when I say I’m constantly thinking about these books, but as a full-time engineer and with two small kids, I try to be as efficent as possible. So when someone once told me that writing is “90% thought and 10% getting words down on paper,” it totally changed how I juggled works-in-progress (WIPs.)
I’m not the fastest writer and I’m not the slowest, but I’m a lot faster writer now than I was 12 books ago, some in part due to the streamlining of my process.
A plot seed
So, of course, it all starts with an idea. For me, they usually come at the most random times. When I’m about to fall asleep (looking at your Inky & Heater), in the middle of another book (Hi, Ninth Circle, thanks for being here), with a microfiction that just begs to be a novel. (Future Whimsical Title TBA, I’m talking about you here), or just an idea that’s been marinating for a long time. (Into the Churn series, this is you.)
No matter how it drops into my lap, I’m almost always in the middle of another writing project, and if I lose momentum, I suddenly turn into an upside-down turtle who has no idea how to get started again. So, I jot it into a doc and toss it into my folder called “Plot Seeds” along with any other specific notes.
The important note here is to WRITE THEM DOWN. Had a dream that could be a great book? Get out of bed and type them in the notes on your phone. They may not grow into anything, but if you forget them, they’ll never even have a chance. I have lots of plot seeds (at least 12+ sitting in the folder now), and many won’t grow beyond that, but at least they’re present and accessible. Some might even feed into elements of other books.
Ultimately though, if the plot seed is destined to become one of my book babies, then it’ll probably linger in my brain space—popping up during long drives and runs—and eventually, I’ll have too many details for a bullet. So, then we move to the next step.
Time: 2 minutes. You already have it in your head so just write it down!
Save the cat outline
At this point, I’m still probably juggling three other WIPs, so I don’t have time for this sucker, but I’ve GOT to get it on paper. So, I take out my Save the Cat beat sheet, write the one-page outline of whatever plot is keeping me from sleeping at night, and throw it in the plot seed folder.
*Cue sigh of relief.* Phew, that feels good.
Right now, I have five of these in my folder. I have doubts that I’ll write two of them for different reasons (I don’t feel super drawn to one and the other is a sci-fi, which I ADORE, but sci-fi is too hard of a sell right for me to justify it. And no, I’m still not over it.) But I’m desperate to write the other three, and two are on my schedule to be drafted in 2024.
The Save the Cat Outline lets them sit tight until it’s their turn to be drafted, and if any other details come to me at random times (character names, backstory, heck, I even have commissioned art in this folder, and character references for future art) I have somewhere to put them to keep safe until I’m ready.
Time: 1-2 hours. You’ve been thinking about it for a while, so it’s mostly fully fledged, just write it down so you don’t forget it.
percolate with playlists
So, now that I have a plot and probably have some idea of the characters, but its waiting its turn, now we help it percolate! Playlists are my favorite way to do this. They help to inspire me, switch gears between stories easily, and let me daydream the story in the little pauses of my life.
Right now, I have three full playlists built that correspond to those outlines. Of my five outlines, four that have been percolating since early 2022, and one relatively newer one since early 2023. There is no time requirement to percolate, however, because of how I schedule, this is just how it works out for me.
Time: As long or as little as you need.
Zero draft
This is the point where I’ve decided I’m going to write it. If I zero-draft it, I’m going to feel compelled to keep it. I try to prioritize the outlines I’m both epically drawn to and also ones that make sense from a strategic/marketing perspective.
For me, a zero draft is literally me telling myself the story in almost exclusively dialogue. Basically, it reads like a screenplay. But sometimes, because I have no self-control, it can get a little out of hand, and every time I do this step, the drafts seem to get longer. (Mostly because I’m just DYING to really write the story at this point.)
I currently have one zero draft in my folder and it’s at 17k words for what will eventually be probably a 70k book. This is also usually where my moodboard, mock cover, and character inspirations also come in—because I am EXCITED.
Time: 1-2 weeks
First draft
This one’s pretty self-explanatory. Now we get to write the book! With the zero draft in hand, this usually moves pretty quickly for me. I can put in as many as 50K words in a month depending on how much other stuff I’m juggling in my non-writer life, but I usually budget 3 months to be on the safe side.
What’s important (for me) here is to focus on completion and momentum, not perfection. No one will see this draft but me. Even if it’s terrible, remember that everything is fixable, but you can’t revise a blank page. If you need to disappear a character/element/change a setting, just move on as if you’d already written it like that. Don’t go back. Don’t edit. Get the story down, and we’ll fix it post!
For the record, I’m a consistent underwriter, so I don’t freak out about too much about wordcount at this point. (My first draft is usually like 10-15k work less than the final draft) I go through tons of revisions rounds, and with each one I’m adding a new layer to the story. Everyone is different, and it’s nice to be in the ballpark with word count, but remember *everything* is fixable.
Time: 2-3 months.
revisions
Rev A
So in general, for me, individual revision rounds are quick. In each revision, I basically make one quick pass of major changes and one slow pass to catch all the details. With this first revision, my primary goal here is to make it readable and consistent for another pair of eyes.
Then I send it to Alpha readers. (This is my parents and my husband. They will read anything I put in front of them but also be honest about what they do and don’t like.)
While I’m waiting for their feedback, this is also where I write the synopsis (this is my favorite formula) and the blurb. They help focus me on the themes and overarching plot so I can really hone the beats and character development.
Time: 1 week for the revision and then waiting for 2ish weeks for feedback. Whenever I’m ‘waiting,’ I’m always working on another WIP.
Rev B
After I get Alpha feedback, I take two more passes to make the necessary plot changes, refine the characters now that I know them well, and start layering and smoothing.
Then I send it to two critique partners (CPs) and 3-4 beta readers. I used to do this in separate steps but have combined for efficiency’s sake. My CPs are fellow writers looking for EVERYTHING big or small, from line level to large plot changes. Although working with them isn’t time intensive, the process usually stretches over several months. I rely on their unique perspective, objectivity, and different strengths to help me see things I wouldn’t be able to by myself.
In tandem, I send the book to 2-3 professional beta readers and 1 casual beta reader friend for their big-picture impressions.
Time: 1 week for the revision… and then 4-5 months working with CPs.
Rev C
This is where I gather all the beta reader feedback and do a large revision (usually while I’m still trading chapters back and forth with CPs in the background.)
Time: 1 week
Rev F
The critique partners are done! Hurray! Time to do one last read-through for line-level smoothing before I send it to my agent or Whimsical Publishing. In this step, I start using MS Word’s read-aloud function to listen for typos and flow issues, and will continue to do so for the remainder of my revisions. (And if you’re looking for Rev D, I don’t have one. I used to call this round F for final, and it’s stuck that way now for me.)
Time: 1 week
Rev G
Now, we get to start over! XD Okay, I’m kidding. (Sort of.) Now, I’ll go back and forth with my agent, Kristen, or Whimsical until it’s ready. How many revisions is this? Honestly, as many as it takes, but three’s usually the magic number. The first one is for big plot things, the second is for minor plot things, and the third is for line-level things.
Each revision takes me about a week, but then I have to wait for them to read it, so this phase will stretch out.
Time: 2-3 months
Rev Z
For Whimsical this is where the copyeditor comes in, and we go back and forth again! But these are once again, smaller line-level changes and proofing levels.
Hypothetically, when my agented books find a home, this is where I would work with the publisher to start all over again! (Joking… kind of.) But since I haven’t gotten that far yet, I’m not sure of the timeline
Time: (For the Whimsical copyediting portion) About 2-3 months.
Then ta-da, it’s done!
So, all the timelines ended up being kind of confusing with the waiting and the actual doing portions. But in reality, I’m never waiting. Because as soon as I put down one manuscript to wait, I’m picking up another. Hence why I always juggle more than 1 WIP, which also confuses the timeline! And it’s also why I’m constantly updating my schedule.
Behold. The schedule!
In any case, please keep in mind these timelines are just a rough guess anyway and will vary with each book.
For Inky & Heater: IRL (which is currently on sub with my agent) I started the first draft on Nov 1, 2022, and it went on sub (roughly) on Sep 2023. Which is about 10 months from the Draft 1 to the end of Rev G (and included querying time.)
For Into the Fire (which is scheduled to launch May 2024) I started the first draft in (roughly) May 2023, and I just completed Rev G. Which is about 8 months from Draft 1 to G (no querying time for this one.)
And for more reference, between 2020-2023, I wrote ten books. If you count my two novellas and one co-authored book as a single 80k-ish-word novel, it’s more like eight books. So, I’m averaging two books a year. Like I said at the beginning, I’m not the slowest or the fastest, and I’m sure my process will continue to evolve, but for now, this is what works for me! By hopping between works-in-progress while I ‘wait’ for feedback, I can look at each revision with fresh eyes while also maximizing my efficiency. And by the end of this process, I feel confident like my book is the best I can make it, and I’m proud to call it mine.
So, yeah. Hopefully, this was helpful, and I hope you also can find the writing process that works best for you and your book baby! As always, if you have more questions, just let me know!
So right after I self-published my first book, I published my lessons learned here, but now that my eighth book (Into the Fire) is coming from Whimsical Publishing in April, I thought I’d reflect again on what advice I’d go back and give to myself if I could on a couple topics.
Self-Publishing Vs. Querying
Ah, yes the question I still get asked the most. I queried agents with Odriel’s Heirs for over a year, and while I was disappointed I wasn’t able to sign with an agent then, I’m still glad I self-published. Through self-publishing, I found the writing community, learned so much about the craft, and found writing friends who helped me grow. Also, I’m not sure I would’ve continued writing without the invaluable feedback and encouragement from readers. Lastly, I was able to get closure for this story and move on to the next one to keep growing as a writer.
A part of me does wish I had investigated small presses more, who perhaps could’ve guided me in terms of marketing, but at the time, I don’t think I even knew enough how to tell a good press from a poor one.
Overall, this choice worked out for the best. These days, I’m working with an amazing Small Press (Whimsical Publishing) and now have an agent (the incredible Kristen Terrette) but I don’t think I would’ve ever gotten this far without my experiences in self-publishing first. Of course, every publishing journey is different, so I hope you follow the one that feels right for your goals!
Editor, Proofreading, & Formatter
Editing and proofreading are expenses I agonized over as a new writer (my imposter-syndrome was through the roof), but if could go back, I would tell myself to invest in my book like any publisher would. (Within your budget, of course.)
The developmental editor I hired was invaluable, and due to their amazing feedback, I made extensive revisions. After that, I wished I’d invested in a copy-editor and a proofreader. While I love how Odriel’s Heirs turned out, I was weeding out typos for some time after release, and for my first book, I would’ve preferred to put my best foot forward from the outset.
I’d still skip hiring the formatter though. In formatting it myself, I like having the flexibility of going back and fixing typos in a matter of minutes. If I was deadset on complicated formatting though, I think I’d invest in formatting software instead of hiring out.
Cover Art
Oof. This is the one where I needed most guidance on. A good cover can make or break a book, and once again as I was unwilling to invest as I should have. Also, at the time, I didn’t think I would publish more than one book, but if I knew I was going to write the series, I should’ve bought all five covers together so I could have a matching set. (And get a discount!) I should’ve done WAY more research into current cover trends in my genre as well investigated a variety of cover artists. (I still find cover artist research difficult, but I recommend checking out cover contests, and looking into the artists of the winners.)
But maybe I’ll still get a chance to put this lesson learned to the test when I make an Odriel’s Heirs omnibus one day. (I just have to find the perfect cover artist first!)
Going Wide vs. Amazon Exclusive
There are some who’ve been wildly successful in KDP, but I’m not one of them. I did find the Amazon-exclusive benefit of doing regular free ebook promotions critical to increasing my exposure. However if I’d gotten a competitive cover from the start and gone wide, it would’ve allowed me to start doing BookBub promo deals sooner, which has almost doubled my downloads in the last year. (After I discovered that you can ask Amazon to price-match to free.) If you don’t think you’d be able to get the BookBub promo deals though (either due to a lack of a competetive cover or reviews), I’d definitely stay Amazon-exclusive.
Audiobooks
Past self, I know you want to do this, but don’t. While ACX (Amazon’s audiobook publishing process) makes it affordable do to royalty sharing, their inflexible and expensive prices make them incredibly hard to market. Unless your book is already a best-seller, you’re going to narrate it yourself, or you’re going to shell out big bucks for a narrator with their own following, I don’t think it’s worth it. Which is SO sad considering I’m almost exclusively an audiobook listener these days. 😭
Marketing
Ah yes, the bane of my existence. I wish I had known that this process starts AS SOON AS YOU START WRITING. If you can build an engaging, bookish following on any of the popular social media sites, then you already have a huge advantage. (Still working on this one, myself.) A website is also a must, even if it’s just a professional “about you” with your links. (For example, I don’t put a whole lot of time into promoting mine, but it’s had 3000+ visitors and 5000+ views this year, so it’s still worth it.)
I tried a few recommended trade reviews and a variety of ads on different sites, but didn’t find any of them to be worth the buck.
And although it took me some time, I definitely found commissioning bookish art (ideally in the months leading up to release to build hype – Whimsical has a great database of artists here), entering awards (see ALLI’s list here), sending out ARCs in advance through BookSirens and a NetGalley Co-op, and using book promotion services (see Reedsy’s list here) to be the most effective and fulfilling methods of marketing.
Also, putting together a street team has been a super fun way to get ready for release and build hype by recruiting your other bookish friends and followers to help post about your book leading up to release. I’m still learning the best ways to utilize a street team, but definitely recommend, especially if you have a great social media following.
Conclusion
Wellp, those are the big rocks that come to mind. Hopefully this is helpful for anyone making choices about their own book baby, but if you have any questions I missed, please feel free to ask away and good luck with your publishing journey!
This is my second time entering the BBNYA and honestly first off, I’d just like to recommend it to all small press and indie authors. With an entrance fee of €20, it’s relatively affordable compared to most contests, and they do a wonderful job of getting their entrants exposure even if you’re not a finalist. Also, if you don’t make it to the finals, you can still get the judges’ feedback on your excerpt. (2k words for the first round and 10k words for the second)
Odriel’s Heirs was a fifth place finalist in the 2021 BBNYA, so it got in on blog tours and reviews, but since The Gatekeeper of Pericael was only a semifinalist in 2022 BBNYA, they sent me feedback on my first 10k words. And I really love it because I think it showcases how differently people can feel about the same book. So I wanted to share it because I think it really emphasizes the need for more than one beta reader or critique partner, and I also think it helps give perspective when you get rough reviews, because yeah, your books not for everyone. But some people will love it, and that’s still amazingly cool.
What our panelists thought
(To be clear, each judge wrote one bullet in each section): Writing Style
Good, enjoyable. Gets stronger/better as it goes on.
Nice use of description. The language used for some of the descriptive passages is beautiful and really evokes the feelings of the magical jungle.
A little shaky at the start with a bit of extra ‘explaining’ thrown in, but settled down later in the extract
So good. I was sucked into this story right away, and even though a lot of information was introduced, it was done so well that I constantly understood everything that was happening without any confusion, brilliant!
Easy to read, very descriptive, easy to get drawn into.
Story
Definitely feels unique and intriguing
Feels a little old for mid-grade in some parts but too young for teens in others
I wasn’t sure at the start but was gripped by the end of the extract
Quite interesting
I really enjoyed this and felt so engrossed in the story throughout. It’s very original and so interesting! I’m desperate to find out what happens next, especially as the excerpt finished in the middle of a dramatic scene
Loving the story so far. I’m curious about the worldbuilding and the magic system. The story feels original so far. Would read on
Characters
Porter as a MC is a bit flat right now, but I’m invested
Anyone knows when summoning ANYTHING, you don’t insult them. Porter should have known better. This annoyed me. Ames is fun though
I really liked Porter
Excellent characters
Good characters and they are all different. Especially enjoy the different characters reacting to each other
Emotional Response
I don’t really feel that invested in the story. Perhaps I’ve picked up Porter’s distaste for the magical land. If the MC doesn’t care, it’s hard for the reader.
I cared about what was happening with Porter and Ames
Characters made for you to easily emotionally respond too
I just loved this so much. It felt exciting, compelling and interesting too.
Overall
Good balance of various elements, intriguing storyline, feels like a refreshing portal fantasy.
I’d like to give it a higher rating, but we have been given a whole lot of worldbuilding very quickly with not a lot of motivation or emotion.
An interesting book that has great characters
A good solid book.
So good!! Would rate higher if I could. It’s so brilliant, I enjoyed it so much 🙂
Thanks so much to the BBNYA for this amazing feedback, and I can’t wait to hear what the judges think of Idriel’s Children this year!
Upper Middle Grade is so hard to market, so I’m so incredibly grateful for any feedback. Thanks again, BBNYA
So this is the time of the year where I try to reflect on how the last twelve months of my writing life went. Was it… productive? Fun? Fulfilling? Disappointing? What did I learn? What did I do well? What could I improve for next year?
And, you all… a LOT happened this year, and my small potatoes writing career took some big steps. So let’s take a look!
first, the numbers
Words written: 55,000 (The Ninth Circle) + 77,000 (Time’s Orphan) + 22,000 (Night of Ash) + 60,000 (Inky & Heater IRL) = 214,000 words (3 complete, 1 partial)
Words revised: 77,000 (TO) + 22,000 (NoA) + 99,000 (ItC) + 75,000 (TBA) = 273,000 words (4 books)
Words published: 22,000 words (1 book)
Words queried: 99,000 (ItC) + 75,000 (TBA) = 174,000 words (2 books)
2022 Total Words Worked: 758,000 words
Sales Numbers: 650+ self-published books sold. Another 200ish downloaded for free. (Draft to Digital makes it little harder to distinguish between which books were bought and which were downloaded for free)
And the Goodreads numbers.
Odriel’s Heirs: 165 ratings / 4.33 stars
Burning Shadows: 17 ratings / 4.94 stars
Idriel’s Children: 50 ratings / 4.34 stars
Night of Ash: 9 ratings / 5 stars
Time’s Orphan: 8 ratings / 4.88 stars
The Gatekeeper of Pericael: 84 ratings / 4.08 stars
Into the Churn: 4 ratings / 5 stars
My Goodreads total: 341 ratings / 4.34 stars
For reference, the 2021 total was 214 copies sold, 136,000 written, and 554,000 words worked. So yeah. Obviously, still small potatoes. But numbers wise, this years kicked the pants off of last year in pretty much every single way, and that wasn’t even the best part!
The best parts
I got not one, but TWO publishing deals with Whimsical Publishing, and I absolutely ADORE working with them. It has been the best experience. And not only that, but I actually had another 2 publishing offers from small presses this year. 😱 This was new and exciting territory for me, and I was absolutely thrilled to make the leap from self-pub to small press with a publisher that loves me books as much as I do. 💛
Then, my YA paranormal, The Ninth Circle, got picked up for a WriteHive mentorship with EJ Dawson! 🎉 What?! Is this even real life? The first call was so awesome, and I can’t wait to whip the manuscript into shape with them!
The Gatekeeper of Pericael was a semi-finalist in the Book Blogger Novel of the Year Awards. I love my upper middle grade fantasy, but it can be so hard to market, so this was an exciting moment!
Odriel’s Heirs got over 100 Amazon ratings and finally got BookBub US and International marketing deals! 🎉 I was so stoked to get more exposure for my first book child, and I definitely had a positive experience with these. Fingers crossed I can get more books accepted in the future!
I got accepted to be a participating author at both OwlCon 2023 and StoryBound Fest 2023! StoryBound Fest will be my first in-person author convention, and I’m pretty nervous! So that’ll be an exciting new challenge for next year.
What I learned
This year, I really nailed down my outlining process with the Save the Cat formula, which really helped me churn out those first drafts. Thanks to Story Genius and an obsession with K-drama, I also had a crucial epiphany on how to develop likable, relatable characters.
I love dual-POV and the depth it brings to a story. I don’t know if I’ll ever go back.
I grew a lot more comfortable as a critique partner and have collected a few more writing friends who I can reliably swap feedback with.
I also was able to consistently read and review books on my book blog here! 62 and counting this year! This has been great way to give back to the writing community, bring more traffic to my little site here, and also sharpen my critiquing skills.
I learned how to create decent covers in Canva Pro! This was a super fun tool for my creative process and marketing purposes, but if I ever self-pub in the future, I’m glad I can use this as a viable option to cut costs. (However, if anyone has any recommendations on graphic design online resources, they would be so appreciated! I definitely still have room for improvement. 😅
Making playlists for my books and WIPs on Spotify is ridiculously transportive, and I can’t believe I didn’t discover this earlier. I now have a playlist for every single one, and it is an amazing way to get in the writing mindset and pivot quickly between WIPs.
Finally, I learned that small presses can be amazing, and honestly I wish I had investigated/considered them a more with first two books I queried.
What I still need to work on
Oh boy. So much. I’ve been making some strides in the last few months, but the balance of writing and social media engagement still eludes me, although I feel like I’ve grown more comfortable being my ridiculous, goofy self in reels and selfies. And I actually have a TikTok now – who would’ve thought that?!
Advertisements. I tried again this year, buutttt still failing big on this one. If anyone wants to point me toward some learning resources, I would LOVE that.
Querying agents. I had several full requests this year, but per percentage of queries I send out, my numbers are nothing to write home about. As I’ll probably end up querying two WIPs next year, I definitely want to focus on sharpening my query materials to boost my request stats next year.
Minimizing publishing expenses. Although writing is definitely more of a passion project for me than a business (thank goodness for the day job!), I definitely want to start streamlining my expenses so I can write long-term without permanently denting my wallet. Moving to small press helped immensely this year, and while I hope to publish more with small presses in the future, if I ever selfpub again, I’ll be streamlining my process to cut costs.
A brand? Right now I’ve been kind of all over the place: YA Epic Fantasy, MG Fantasy, YA Sci-fi, YA Paranormal, YA fairytale retelling, YA romance… I know one day, if I decide to really get serious, I’ll probably need to pick a lane of some nature, but right now I’m just having fun, so I’ll save that conundrum for future me.
Goals
So what can I go after? As always, I try to keep my goals measurable and attainable.
Get Time’s Orphan out into the world on February 8th, and officially complete my first series. 🎉
Launch Into the Churn on April 4th… and cross my fingers that it does well enough to write the sequel. 🤞 (p.s. If you read it and want more, don’t forget to rate, review, & spread the word on social media!)
Revise my YA Paranormal with my mentor and toss it into the query trenches
Revise my YA Romance and storm the query trenches with that one too!
Attend Storybound Fest and live to tell about it. (Did I mention I was nervous?!) 😅
And of course, write the next book. I have three outlines waiting for me, but I’m not sure which will win out here, so it’ll be exciting to see what I’m working on next.
So yeah, it’s been an incredibly fantastic writing year for me, and I’m so grateful for all the opportunities I’ve had and the people that have supported and encouraged me along the way. 💛 Here’s to more growth and adventures in 2023. As always, thanks so much for reading!
So thrilled with how much I’ve grown this year as a writer and so proud of these two books. I can’t wait to see them out into the world!
Hayley Reese Chow 