Reading Roundup - Second Quarter 2022
Things I've read and enjoyed over the past quarter. I tried to keep this to a top ten, but, well, didn't entirely succeed. Bookshop links included. Winter's...
How May I Help You 5
Eden: I got a secret baby! Rita, can you forward me what the process was. Ben: How can a baby be secret? Rita: It's a trope name. Eden: Apparently they only...
How May I Help You - 4
"Hello," the caller said, "I have sort of an unusual situation." "Okay," Rita said. "So, I had removed my spouse from coverage last year during open...
How May I Help You 3
Quick Note. The prior installment is here. "I would like to make sure my intern is covered on my health insurance," the voice announced after giving her...
How May I Help You - 1&2
How May I Help You Rita Ulani Lai checked her headset and answered then phone. "Global US HR consulting, how may I help you?" She had tried to convince her...
How May I Help You - Seven Things
So, I teased this story a while back. And here we are. A lot of my story ideas start with a thing that isn't really a story idea. In this case I started with...
LTAFS Addendum: LGBTQ Teens and Sex Ed
Lol, I wrote a whole series thinking, cool, I'll never have to soapbox again. And here we are. So I was reading a middle grade where the mom is telling her...
First Quarter Reading Roundup
I read a lot of things this quarter, which means the amount of things I read was a little higher than normal. I also quit more things than normal for this...
Reading Roundup - Fourth Quarter 2021
The final quarter of 2021, I gobbled up a wide variety of things. Here is my top ten, with bookshop links. [A Phoenix First Must Burn](...
Things That Made Me Happy
While the calendar year isn't quite over, so my quarterly and annual wrap up will show up next year because more reading to be done. I thought I would list...
Cover Reveal! - Bored By the Billiionaire
Lulu Williams is bored with dating billionaires. She has just ditched the latest and is on a late night train back to DC when she encounters a handsome...
Reading Roundup – Third Quarter 2021
Hey, I drafted this, and then through a series of unfortunate things, managed to lose the entire thing, so here we are. Technology. (Yes, I had a backup....
My Own Ripped Bodice Summer Bingo Report
So, while there’s still a few days to finish if you yourself are playing along, I thought I would share my progress. The post about the suggestions I had...
And the Book Version is Here!
Yeah, for those of you who dislike learning via email, and/or who want to have all the info in one place, the newsletter info has been compiled into book...
LTAFS: Question Box
In the class I teach, we do what we call a question box. Everyone has to write something down and pass it forward, and then the instructors review, research...
LTAFS: Sex scenes and Character Growth
An analogy I use a lot is this. If you go to the movies by yourself, it can be a wonderful and exciting experience. You get to choose the time, the place,...
LTAFS: Sex and Power Dynamics
I know we touched on power dynamics a little in the consent topic, but let’s talk in a little more detail. In almost any configuration of a relationship you...
LTAFS: Sex and Mood-Altering Substances
Because we are talking about drugs and alcohol today, and how they affect a character’s ability to consent, we are going to brush up against some discussion...
LTAFS: Ableism and Sex
Before we dive in, I’m going to note that ableism is an area I am still working on myself. As we are discussing some ableist myths, this may be a tough read...
LTAFS: Sex and Money
So let’s talk about something that often goes ignored in some fiction. Money. Sure, it comes up when a character needs money to save the community center, it...