Quarter 1 is Done!
March doings, readings, watchings
April 2025
Hey Friend!
March has been a very busy month for me! I had day job travel which is always nice in some ways, hard in others. Unfortunately, I didn’t meet my goals as steadily as I usually do. I had a couple of days where I was just too exhausted and didn’t manage my time well and couldn’t get things done. But I’m trying to have grace and to remind myself that rest is important, intentional or not.
Beyond me, the world remains difficult to cope with. At home my wife and I are thinking a lot about the community we moved into which was different when we moved but post-election feels a bit sharper in its difference. I’m sure there are a lot of people who feel this way, that thought they knew their neighbors and are seeing a whole other side of them now. I try to take comfort in some of the positive things I see in the news. Judicial blocks of these orders, people protesting, and the utter destruction of Tesla. These are the kinds of things that are making me smile.
And life moves on, so there are other things to focus on as well. Birthdays, anniversaries, retirements. There is joy to be seen too. What’s keeping you positive?
I hit 60k this month! Which means I wrote another 30k words. And what am I realizing? Either this book is going to be much longer than I thought it was or this is a book that is going no where.
I really hope it’s the former and not the latter.
I’m just continuing to write and hoping for the best. What else can I do? Writer friends, you might hear from me once this is done for you to tell me if what I’ve done is basically useless lol.
Goals Review:
Write Shorts/Novelettes: 3/5
Write novels: 0/2
Edit shorts/Novelettes: 3/5
Edit Novel: 0/1
Beta Novel: 0/1
Not that recent but the Eaton Symposium is now on Youtube for you to watch!
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I don’t have any upcoming panels or speaking gigs at the moment! If you know someone whose looking for panelists, don’t forget my name ;)
Reading
 | I think this might be one of my favorite reads of the year. The stories in this anthology weren’t all scary but they all had the energy of blackness that you just can’t manufacture. Some of the stories stick with me more than others. A couple of my faves: Harvesters by L.L. McKinney, Ghost Light by Erin E. Adams, Black Pride by Justina Ireland, Black Girl Nature Group by Maika and Maritza Moulite, Local Color by Eden Royce and Foxhunt by Charlotte Nicole Davis. Just a great anthology! I might also recommend the audio version if you get the chance, that’s how I read it and I really enjoyed it. |
 | My second Anthology of the year and this one was wayyyyyy creepier. I don’t think much about the arctic and who is there and what stories are told there so I really enjoyed this. That first story, whoo very creepy. This is your pick if you like a scarier story with deeper roots to the Arctic lands and its peoples. |
 | You all know by now that I am a romance lover and you might have realized that I am a monster romance lover. I don’t generally love spiders but I made an exception here. Not to mention this story has a bit of horror, a bit of investigation and most importantly a sapphic relationship with a spider woman. Check this out for a read that is short and sweet! |
Also are you on StoryGraph? That’s where I’m doing all my tracking. Come find me.
Watching
 | This show is incredible. It follows one shift of an ER in Pittsburgh. The acting is great, the medical knowledge awesome and the storylines are great as well. Each episode represents one hour on the shift. Noah Wyle has come back with a vengeance. The wife and I are sat each weekend (me crying and her watching the medical stuff with rapt attention). Just so good. If you haven’t watched yet, now is time. |
 | You should know by now that I will always tell you when the Housewives arrive and Atlanta is the old favorite around here. I’m glad to have this newish group of ladies, though I miss Kenya being a fulltime housewife but if you want to hear the drama around then then send me a message, happy to share my opinions! |
 | I like to do a bit of learning, particularly financial knowledge. This is a pretty corny but insightful show about getting your finances together. If that’s a thing you’ve been dreaming of, check it out. |
Listening
Back to just a fun playlist. I do a lot of driving and when I feel like I’m falling asleep, this is what I put on to wake me back up.
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