It's Gonna Be (May)
The Cat and the Comma Issue #9
I blinked and April vanished in an instant. Let’s talk about what I was up to this time.
Misc. Professional Update
Much like last month, I’ve been quite busy with insurance school and trying to finish up ASMLP and my tumblr interview series. Said series has taken a backseat lately (I have been… terribly busy) but it’s still being worked on. Regardless, here’s a couple of updates:
I’ve been maintaining my Patreon still. Subscribing grants you some cool benefits, like one I’ve recently added for the $5 tier: behind the scenes! Every so often, I’ll have an in-depth post going into the background of a story I’ve worked on or are working on, including where the idea came from and, if I have them, drafts of outlines and whatnot. Lower tiers grant you access to advanced chapters and copies of short stories ($3 tier) or advanced looks at excerpts and access to shorter short stories ($1 tier). Plenty of options, plenty of goodies to jump on.
I posted a new short story over on Ko-Fi, I Would Enter Haides. I wrote this short story for the first round of NYC Midnight (which I’ll talk about below) and after the results were posted, I decided to make this short story available. You can buy it here for just $1 (or get it if you sub to my Patreon). I am also planning a longer, alternate version which will cover the themes and scenes I really wanted to for this short, but couldn’t get to due to time or wordcount restraints.
Writing Update
I’m up to chapter 18 on A Sharper, More Lasting Pain, which is quite exhilarating to think about. I’m just a couple of chapters from the end… absolutely surreal. Here’s a bit from the chapter I’m working on.
“Aches and pains, mostly,” she says, and at once the joints in her fingers swell to attention. She flexes each finger until it pops, pretending she doesn’t notice the way both faculty members straighten in response.
“Any worsening symptoms? Mobility issues? Trouble concentrating?”
The nameless voice from her brief hallucination whispers to her from the back of her mind. This, too, she shoves away. “Some, I suppose.”
“How about changes in behavior?” Doctor Aiza pauses, gaze flicking from Nadia to Professor Darzi and back again. She holds her pen aloft, ready to record anything, and it’s enough to make Nadia’s stomach churn. “Increased aggression?” she continues. “Suicidal tendencies? Impending senses of doom?”
Nadia represses a snort. Every waking moment of my day. “No.”
Did you know you can read this novel online? I’m posting it once a week (on Wednesdays) on three different websites in the interest of being wide-spread and getting as much feedback as possible before I pull back and show the revised draft only to beta readers. But, until then, if you would like to read my sapphic fantasy dark academia novel about monsters and sigil magic and mind-melding drugs, you can check out the links below!
Otherwise, I have been entertaining the idea of a collection of short stories I write based on Greek Mythology. You can see my evolving thought process about it over here. Since this post, I have started an outline for my Eros & Psyche fantasy retelling, which I’m currently in the middle of fleshing out. The outline itself is almost 1,000 words, so I have the feeling this short is going to be a longer one. We shall see…
Also, I’ve been mulling over a completely unrelated short story, tentatively titled In Time for the Wedding, very loosely based on real events (in that the crux of the plot was going to happen IRL and then could not). This one I am also outlining.
Lastly, NYC Midnight. Much to my sadness, I did not make it to the next round, but I’m still quite proud of what I was able to write and that’s good enough for me at this point. And it hasn’t killed my drive in the slightest (though I did take a couple of days to mope about it).
Media Update
As previously mentioned, I have been… quite busy between all the things happening in my life, so I haven’t had as much time to read or write like I would like. That said, I saw there is an Octopath Traveler phone game and I’ve been having a blast with that when I have some time to play it. Right now, they have a Bravely Default crossover event, which has me quite excited because I love Bravely Default.
As for television, I’m still watching House MD. I’m up to season 5. I’m also rewatching an old Game Grumps playthrough.
Meanwhile, in bookland, I’m still reading through Out by Natsuo Kirino and I’m so excited to finish it. It’s been a blast so far. I’m also finishing up Notes From the Burning Age by Claire North and The Maltese Beastiary by Stephan D Mifsud. The beastiary is giving me a lot of story ideas, honestly. Maltese folklore is quite fascinating.
Blog Update
No new updates on the blog front since last time, aside from the fact I’m working on a couple of essays. One is a thinkpiece about being a trans writer when a lot of my audience for so long has been cisgender. Another is a thinkpiece on why traditional publishing will probably… never be for me. I hope to post both of them soon.
Which reminds me: patrons get an option to vote on future blog topics, just so you know!
The Cat Recommends
I like to use this space to shout out other indie writers, cause I think we could all use a boost from time to time. So, this month, I would like to shout out my friend Andromeda. He’s been working on a novel, Call Me Icarus, and it appears he’s entered into a program to try to get it published. Worth checking out, if the blurb interests you! You can see the details here.
The Cat Thanks
One of the perks for higher-tier patrons is shout-outs at the end of newsletters. Special thanks to Ceph the Ghost Writer, my first-ever patron and a NYT Best-Fanner!
And that’s a wrap! I hope this message finds you well.
Kind regards,
Alex