Storage Trouble And More Canadian Book Recs - March 25th, 2025 Newsletter
Happy Late March, Readers!
It feels like March flew by really quickly for me - I had a lot of writing to do.
However, with a lot of writing comes figuring out the following problem: How do I properly store and back up everything?
Losing your files can be one of the worst things to happen to writer’s work, so backing them up is especially vital. As much written work is digitized these days, it makes them easier to lose. Yes, I do have USBs, but they can only store so much (and some are so old that they have incredibly small amounts of storage space). I know that cloud storage is available, but I’d rather not rely on it.
Also - thank you to those letting me know that the new font for the newsletter is readable! I’ll be keeping this font moving forward.
Interview With Alan K. Dell
I was recently interviewed by Alan K. Dell about my poetry chapbook, “Refilling The Well!” Check out the published interview at the link below.
Also, thank you to Alan for interviewing me!
Poem Published In ROOTed Rhythms’ virtual poetry exhibition!
I'm happy to share that I have a poem, "Mooncakes," published in ROOTed Rhythms' first-ever virtual poetry exhibition! The theme for the exhibition is "The Colours Of Culture." 🥮
Thanks to the ROOTed Rhythms’ team for featuring my poem!
Win My Book (and 17 Other Books) In Introverted Indies’ Givewaway!
You read that right - my poetry chapbook “Refilling The Well” is featured along with 17 other books by 17 other indie authors (all the books are in different genres) in a big book giveaway, hosted by Introverted Indies!
To enter the givewaway, all you have to do is:
🎁 Follow Introverted Indies on Instagram
📚 Subscribe to Introverted Indies’ YouTube channel
🥰 Comment "indie books" on this Instagram post to let them know that you've subscribed!
The winner will be announced on March 31st! Also, the winner will be asked to provide an email address and e-reader email address for delivery of the book bundle. Good luck to everyone entering!
What Am I Writing Lately?
I finished writing the first draft of a new fantasy novel during this past weekend! This is the same one that I talked about in one of my bullet points in my past newsletter, if you’re wondering which one it is (yes, I know, I have many fantasy WIPs and I promise I’m trying to keep track of them). I admittedly gave myself the task of writing most of the major combat scenes for when I’m writing/editing Draft #2, so I’ll have gaps to fill in later, but that’s okay. No first draft is perfect anyway. I also gave it a working title: “Memorable Misadventures!”
Note to self: Try to write a fantasy book that doesn’t require more than three combat scenes. It will make your writing life much easier.
I also wrote a fourth draft of “Found,” my 2nd-person narrative fairytale-inspired short story collection, which included me writing one more extra short story to add to the collection! I think writing Draft #5 (whenever that occurs) will be the final draft based on its progress, which I’m really glad about - mainly because that means it has a higher likelihood of me releasing it in 2026!
I’ve updated the WIPS page on my website accordingly.
I also have:
Submitted even more short stories + poems to lit mags so they can (hopefully) be accepted for publication!
Formatting “Stay Magical!” for publication later this year
Did a fourth round of edits for my King’s Quest-inspired fantasy novel, “A Most Unusual Adventure.”
What Have I Done Other Than Writing Lately?
I was interviewed about “Refilling The Well” as I mentioned earlier in this newsletter! I also prepped even more social media posts and very-heavily did more advertising of my books on socials (particularly Bluesky). I also updated the author interview masterlist by adding one entry.
That’s honestly all I did these past two weeks. Again, my focus is more on actual writing right now.
What Have I Watched Lately?
No podcast or audiobook rec this time around, unfortunately - I just didn’t get around to listening to any specific podcast or audiobook during these past two weeks!
However, I picked up a DVD of “The Barbie Movie” from the local library and watched it. Yes, I’m at least one and a half years behind on watching it as of this writing. It was also, coincidentally, just after International Women’s Day when I watched it.
It was probably the most fun I had in a long time with watching a movie. I love how the cast just leaned into the ridiculous and fun moments that the setting and the writing provided, but also still sent me on an emotional rollercoaster! The themes of sexism, Barbie’s effect on pop culture, and self-worth were really fun to explore in this film. I wish I’d seen this sooner - and now I have the songs “Dance The Night” by Dua Lipa and “Choose Your Fighter” by Ava Max stuck in my head.
What Am I Playing Lately?
I’ve been playing Pokémon White 2 and Little Goody Two Shoes, which are drastically different games.
Pokémon White 2 is the sequel to the events of Pokémon White, as White 2 takes place about 3 years after White does. The player character is different, there’s a new legendary Pokémon to catch, and Team Plasma is up to some new, nefarious tricks.
I didn’t get this game when it first released, but obtained a copy last year and finished playing it during this past week. I was skeptical about how good the “sequel” story to the game would be in terms of its writing, but the actual main story is pretty good!
Little Goody Two Shoes, meanwhile, focuses on a young woman named Elise who dreams of riches and fortune - but after discovering a pair of red shoes, they lead her to some deep dark secrets in the woods surrounding her town. During the day, you do odd jobs to earn money and survive, and get to know your fellow townsfolk (and potentially romance one of three bachelorettes in the game). During the night, you navigate the spooky woods. You have to be careful not to raise too much suspicion about yourself, however, or else it’ll lead to a bad ending.
This game was recommended to me by a fellow gamer and writer after I wrote about my experiences playing through ebi-hime’s It gets so lonely here and The end of an obsession. Unlike these two games, Little Goody Two Shoes is exclusively available through Steam for the computer. Again, if you like dark takes on fairytale settings, this is absolutely for you - and the art and music are gorgeous.
What Have I Read Lately?
I may have scared my local librarians with how many books I borrow from the library and read within three weeks (or less). This is not the first time I’ve done so. I also believe I’ve seen some fellow library patrons stare at me, stunned, with how many books I intended to borrow. They were even more stunned when I explained that I was the only one reading them.
In an effort to read more Canadian books, I scoured my local library’s ebook catalogue and discovered “The Other Side” by Chevy Stevens. This is a short story where the heroine hunts for a serial killer - but things get way more complicated when she finds out a lead related to her mother’s death. I enjoyed the twists that it had involved - and I won’t write too much about it for the sake of keeping spoilers hidden.
I also got really into reading fairytale-inspired books or at least books with fairytale-inspired settings lately. One of these books I read, “The Tragical Tale Of Birdie Bloom” by Temre Beltz is an absolute must-read and probably one of the top books I’ve read this year so far (and I do not say that lightly). The book questions the usual roles that tragic orphans and evil witches play in fairytale settings and subverts it really well. No, Beltz is not a Canadian author and therefore an outlier in this book rec list this time, but I enjoyed reading the book so much that I had to rec it anyway. (I promise the other books listed below are Canadian though!)
Other books I read include:
“As Birds Bring Forth the Sun” by Alistair McLeod
“A Quiet Kill” by Janet Brons
“Son Of A Trickster” by Eden Robinson
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).