Getting Inspired And More Writing Galore - May 27th, 2025
Hello, readers!
Where did the rest of May go? It’s already close to the end of this month, and I feel like I’ve been, once again, writing like I’m running out of time (and yes, the song “Nonstop” from the musical Hamilton once again reflects my mood). I’ll elaborate a bit more on what I’ve been up to in this newsletter, but first:
Harlow Mystery BIRTHDAY SALE!
To celebrate the book birthdays of every book in the Harlow Mystery series coming up in June (since they were all published in June, albeit in different years), all ebooks in the Harlow Mystery series will be 25% off throughout all of June 2025!
Purchase "Winner Takes All" (Book 1): https://books2read.com/u/4EL8ro
Purchase "Engagement To Die For" (Book 2): https://books2read.com/u/38Wn7V
Purchase "Bloody Fantasia" (Book 3): https://books2read.com/u/38veQa
Please note: The sale doesn’t apply to Amazon, but it does apply to all other retailers (including Itch.io, where I have a discount sale bundle for all three books).
The sale starts on June 1st, 2025, and ends at the end of June (June 30th 2025)! Mark your calendars and let your fellow murder mystery readers know about this sale coming up!
Interview with The BookStack Catalog
I was interviewed by The BookStack Catalog about my poetry chapbook, “Refilling The Well!” I got to talk about the inspiration behind the chapbook, as well as my upcoming projects.
Thanks to Hazel from The BookStack Catalog for interviewing me!
What Am I Writing Recently?
I FINALLY figured out what to write, after taking time off from writing, and started drafting a standalone urban fantasy book! As of this writing, all I know is that I have the main character house-sitting for someone…but the house is also a hotspot for lots of magical activity. Chaos ensues.
Another book, Claris!? Why are you writing more!?
If it hasn’t been made obvious by now, I tend to write a lot. New ideas come up in my head pretty often, and I’d hate to let them go to waste. This can be a blessing, since I never run out of ideas.
However, it’s led me to having a significant amount of of unfinished work. I really want to work on finishing more WIPs instead of constantly starting new works that are put on indefinite hiatuses at the end of Draft 1 being written.
With that in mind, while I’ve been drafting this new standalone urban fantasy book, I also just finished the final edits for “Found,” my fantasy short story collection! I’m really proud of this being finally done writing-wise, and now I can move onto figuring out the book cover and formatting for later publication!
Additionally, I’ve resumed writing the “Unusual Adventure” trilogy. For those also unaware, this is the book that started off as a standalone book, but then I ended up connecting a different standalone book to the world of the first book…and also outlined a third book taking place after the events of the first two. The inspirations for this trilogy are the King’s Quest game series by Sierra Entertainment (mainly for Book 1), Dungeoneer Adventures: Lost In The Mushroom Maze by Ben Costa and James Parks, and Raven (a kids fantasy gameshow that was aired by the BBC network back in the 2000s). There will probably be other media that I realize, later on, had an influence as well.
As of this writing, Book 1 is nearly done for all its written content. I’m still writing Draft 2 of Book 2, and Draft 1 of Book 3.
I also just got the final layout work done for “Sadie Rowe And The Missing Necklace,” my debut fantasy kids book! For those who don’t know about “Sadie Rowe,” this was a book I first drafted back in 2022, finished writing the final edits in 2023, and worked with an illustrator to get illustrations done for the book during 2024. With the layout work for the book finally being done this year (2025), I can confirm that I’ll publish this book sometime in 2026. I’m super proud of how this book came out, and it wouldn’t have been possible without those I worked with to make it happen.
I’ll make an announcement about “Sadie Rowe And The Missing Necklace”’s official release date (and reveal the book cover) in very late 2025 or in January 2026, so keep your eyes out for one during then!
What Have I Listened To Lately?
After looking for some podcast recs from fellow writers, someone recommended that I should try listening to “Writing Excuses,” hosted by Erin Roberts, Dan Wells, DongWon Song, Howard Taylor, and Mary Robinette Kowal. Each episode has the writers discussing the craft and business of writing. Each episode is about 15-30 minutes long. One observation I have, however, is that their most recent episodes are about 20-30 minutes long. They might want to change their catchphrase claiming that each episode is only 15 minutes long in the near future.
Episodes I recommend include:
20.12: Fashion As A Writing Metaphor
18.40: How To Make Money From Your Hobby (with special guest Sandra Tayler!)
18.53: Funding The Writing Life
What Am I Reading Recently?
I borrowed 21 books from the library earlier this month. Yes, I read through all of them. I’m pretty sure the local library knows me as “that one patron that checks out so many books that she uses a bag with wheels to drag them around vs. normal tote bags or grocery bags like other people do.”
In fairness, a lot of those books I borrowed were hardcover books. Those get really heavy over time, and I’d rather not strain my arms lifting them the normal way. So…at least I’m carrying the books safely, right?
One of the books I read was “Pocket Peaches: At The Fair” by Dora Wang. I’ve read the previous book in the Pocket Peaches series before, and it was really cute and fun to read! “At The Fair” continues that trend, and - just like the last book - the art is adorable.
I also read “The 12 Secrets Of Highly Creative Women: A Portable Mentor” by Gail McMeeekin, and I loved reading this book. I’ve read many books about getting creatively inspired, but this one was exceptionally good. It features excerpts from interviews with 45 women who pursued different creative disciplines, highlighting their struggles and triumphs in their paths. I highly recommend reading it!
Other books I read include:
“The Women In Black” by Madeleine St. John
“12 Bytes” by Jeanette Winterson
“The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina” by Zoraida Cordova
“Dangerous Business” by Jane Smiley
“Stolen Focus” by Johann Hari
Thank you for following my writing journey!
I hope you look forward to seeing more of my writing process and work. I also look forward to giving all of you more frequent updates as well, so stay tuned for more!
If you have any questions, feel free to email me at clarislamauthor@gmail.com! I’ll respond within 48 hours (except on weekends and holidays).