*** Nothing would ever be the same after this, she wanted to hold onto it for just a little longer, just a second more, before taking the plunge from the warm comfort of the familiar into the cold darkness of the unknown. *** #WIP, Serpent in a Cage, Prologue

Shaymin Shaped

First art of 2026

First rejection of 2026 has arrived! Really hitting the ground running this year, folks!

I regret to report that my homemade tamale bowl did not heal me. It's going to be a ROUGH three more hours....

When the last day before a couple of days off after a long slog of workdays is exceptionally difficult, we call that a Boss Battle. And my GOD, is today trying to be the most Boss Battly of Boss Battles......

First Godzilla Illustration of 2026

A brief look back on some of my best pieces of last year, defined broadly and generally by popularity, or pride, or just plain neat.

Well, now it's just sort of...a day after all of the named holidays. We know though, that there is no ordinary time. Enchantment knows no calendar, if you are alive to it.

In 2026 I want all of the decent people to remember one thing. You aren’t meant to be this disciplined, this self-sacrificing to survive. The environment is supposed to support good living. We can have that. You are not a failure. That is politics. That is all.

🐈📦

Reader, I coloured it.

Me, opening a carton of eggs to find half of them cracked: "Somebody better call Nintendo, because these eggs are SUPER smashed." I swear, my talents are wasted here.

Maaaan, all it takes, apparently, is one video essay about the Haunting of Hill House to make me think that I should get back to my Big Scary Haunted House novel again....

The start of the New Year means recaps on the old one, and first up is the Rejection board! I take the 100 Rejections challenge with my short stories each year. 59 is a solid showing for Rejections overall, but having only one acceptance shows how rough it's been! The one meant a lot, though.

Happy New Year to all! 🖼️ Eugène Grasset, 1896.

All it takes is one bad gig.

Today has been an absolutely garbage and mostly worthless day, and I cannot wait to be just done with it AND this year. Good riddance.

I love, love, LOVE that tonight's DnD session started out with dumb jokes about scissoring and ended with deep philosophical debates about religions, gods, and magic ❤️❤️❤️ Things are REALLY getting interesting (and serious!) now!

Wow. I might really actually be the sleepiest girl in the whole wide world today

Favourite ghost sighting of the year was January in Ramsgate #ghosts #haunting

I have side characters I loved writing SO MUCH that in my latest draft, they've stolen the show enough that the guy who was originally the main character now feels like a side character. Whoops? Whatever. They're all badasses.

Well, now I'm an English professor...

I just thought of THE dumbest thing ever for my DnD campaign and I cannot WAIT to implement it omg

The little guys broke into the cafe and were subsequently trapped in a latte #loot #fleem #Fblthp #tinybones #mtgart #mtg #magicthegathering

*** She barked out a rough laugh. "By who?" she challenged. "By what? Panthers? Snakes? Trees? Are you worried that ke'eiffers and gnats and grimy little grubs are all spies now, too?" *** from Serpent in a Cage, Prologue #wip

Aw, sweet! Nothing like one more rejection to add to the tally right under the wire!

Work tonight is draaaaggging, and after a good productive morning, it feels like such a poor use of my time. But then I remember that I'm basically being paid to be bored right now, so that makes it seem way less terrible.

Lavender.

I'm very pleased to discover, as I start writing SiaC's follow-up, the Sun-Scorched Land, that it will continue the trend of me being convinced that whatever character's POV I'm writing from is my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE character ever. I LOVE this first chapter so far, bringing it in with a banger.

*cues up the Frodo meme* I set out this year with a plan to finish a new draft of Serpent in a Cage. I fell behind at one point and figured it was a wash, ut then a new momentum struck and I did it. I actually finished it after all! It's a goddamn mess, but it's DONE. Now onto typing and edits!

Another day where I'm pretty much tasked with the work of around 4 people, but at least it was only for about 2 hours this time, not most of the day? Anyway, totally unrelated, my ko-fi is open for tips and comms! Ahem. ko-fi.com/lsengler

The Angels' Kitchen, Eugène Grasset, originally the cover for the 1893 Christmas issue of l'Illustration magazine.

This morning's SiaC chapter took sone vibes from my short story "Moon Night," and I love that for it. Almost finished! I'm hoping to finally get to that last page tomorrow!

What is the best Christmas movie, and why is it A Muppet Christmas Carol?

GM.

Awwww! Work got me several hours of doing the job of 3-4 people all by myself and no time to take my lunch break until an hour before my shift ends for Christmas! 🥰🥰🥰 They REALLY shouldn't have!

So my day started with a supervisor telling me things "weren't that bad" with 19 orders in queue AND me having to finish up a coworker's order because apparently he has "issues" with the meat department and couldn't ask them to get the 8 pounds of pork chops he needed to finish himself

Apparently, the solution to getting out of my battle problem was to just kill another dude. The body count between this draft and the last one has gone up, like, 400%

I'm currently working on a novel and at the end of an average day, I'm wiped out. The sheer amount of analysis, synthesis, making of connections, layering of prose, deepening of characterization, supplemental research... all the mental work is intense and exhilarating. Which is just to say, fuck AI.

Large Snowflakes | Uemura Shoen

Good morning, everyone! Let's get this week started right with an adorable big-headed chibi Summer Smith, which is always a good time! www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/8534...

I sort of wrote myself into a corner with the end of SiaC, so I'm just as eager to see how I manage to write myself back out of it as I am to finish the damn thing at this point.

This stunning sculpture, "Embraced by the Elements," by Sara Masciullo beautifully captures the eternal cycles of life. This is piece is part of the exhibition "Elemental Verses". at @poetictigergallery.bsky.social #beautifulbizarre #sculpture #heart #artcollectors #artmagazine #artinspo #art

The Ghost Story, Alfred Bestall, 1930 #Christmasghoststories

My friends, I say this with all the love in my heart: Right now might not be the moment for “But we should be TOLERANT and NUANCED about the plagiarism machines!” Your tolerance and “nuance” will be weaponised by the grifters and their apologists. Please respect yourselves more.