Finished reading Furyborn by Claire Legrand. The dual POV got to me sometimes, and it felt like Eliana and Rielle got knocked out a ton, but it definitely picked up in the later chapters and was still an enjoyable read. The worldbuilding was easy to follow and lent itself to the story. #booksky

Who was going to tell me how much math is involved in writing a fantasy novel? I've spent way too much time with a calculator figuring out dates, ages, and travel distance/time based on mode of transportation. I thought I chose writing because I wouldn't have to do math. #writesky

What was the last book that made you feel something? Not just made you think, oh, that's sad, but gave you a physical response. Made your throat clench in anticipation of tears or your cheeks hurt from grinning? I feel like i haven't read a book like that in a while, and I'm craving it. #booksky

Finished reading Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. Unsurprisingly a good read. Im happy to have finished it finally. I started this book 4 times over the past 6ish years and it always seemd to be the book I stopped my reading habit during despite it's engaging plot and dynamic cast. #booksky

10 years ago today I finished writing the first draft of Merrow for Nanowrimo. I've been working on it on and off all this time, but its crazy to think how far its come. In honor of its tenth birthday, here's Alec, Nerissa, and Quince in their original outfit designs. #writesky #writingcommunity

I'm thinking of doing an in-depth scene by scene breakdown of my manuscript for Merrow while I'm editing, and I can't tell if I want to do it because it will actually help or if it's a form of procrastination. #writesky #amwriting

As someone who doesn't network super well, I was extremely nervous starting my search for critique partners. However, I have been blown away by the critiques I've gotten so far in the best way possible. Everyone has been super helpful with their feedback, and I'm very grateful. #writesky #amediting

Finished reading An Accident of Stars by Foz Meadows. I started this book a 2ish years ago and forgot about it. Starting it again now, it was one of those books that no matter how interesting it was, and it is a well written and engaging read, I had to make a focused effort to keep reading. #booksky

Working on editing my second chapter and I feel I've hit a wall. I like what I originally wrote but also understand and agree with the feedback that it slows down the plot too much and now I'm trying to figure out how I can fix it. I'm sure something will come to me. #writesky #writingcommunity

Nerissa and Galya having a chat. They talk quite a bit to each other over the course of the book. #inktober

Another one of Quince! He's the leader of the group and as such he's gonna be making sure everything is in order. #inktober

Dylan is the last named character I had yet to draw from my book. And with this, every character has had their moment! I'll continue with inktober drawing more of my favorite characters. #inktober

It's Nerissa's dad's turn! One more character and then I'll have drawn all the named characters in my book. Which is super cool! #inktober

This is Alec's dad Walter. And the quotation that inspired this drawing was "I dont know the first thing about you." And this has less to do with the drawing of Walter than the fact that I really dont know anything about him beyond the fact that he's Alec's dad. #inktober

Meet Dorthy and Betty. They're fellow party goers with Nerissa. They play a very small role, but it was fun looking up 1950's fashion to draw them. #inktober

This is Wynn, Nerissa's mom. I was playing around with how aquatic humanoids would dress in my book, and for a short time I considered having their outfits be based off of ice skaters as the outfits are pretty but usually not super fabric heavy. #inktober

Finally got a line of dialogue that made me think of Quince! I could definitely see him saying this to his kids when they've been up to some mischief. #inktober

Finally caught up with my inktober posts! As with the previous two, character information is in the alt text. Hopefully now I'll be better about doing daily updates! These are more minor characters, and I think Rutherford is the only one I've drawn and posted before. #inktober

Inktober art dump continued. There will be one more after this. Info on who's in the drawings is in the alt text. This has a lot of really minor characters that I haven't drawn either at all or all that often so they were a lot of fun to design. #inktober

Inktober art dump. I promise I've been keeping up, I've just been terrible about posting it. More information about who's in the pictures is in the alt text. I'll post the rest soon so I'm up to date. #inktober

Inktober day 6. Cynthia is usually a quiet observer, but they're not afraid to assert themself when necessary. The quotation prompt is: "let's get one thing straight." From My Little Pony: A New Generation (2021) #inktober

Inktober day 4! Isolde (baby) and Elaine (mother) are only ever mentioned by name, they don't make an actual appearance in Merrow. Elaine led a sheltered life, so she's still learning. The prompt inspiration is: "I've never seen anything like it" from Game of Thrones. #inktober

I finished The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst. This was a much needed break from some of the more intense books I've been reading lately. The small island where it takes place is beautifully built, and its inhabitants give a real sense of place. I definitely recommend it. #booksky

Inktober day 3. Blanche (left) arguing with her sister Joan (right). Joan is technically older, but Blanche' leadership skills landed her the position of head of the house. The quotation prompt for today is: "ain't never coming back" from Where the Crawdads Sing (2022) #inktober

Inktober day 2. Kerri, a Nereid, is on the left and Lindsay, a selkie, is on the right. They're Nerissa's co-workers and are always down for gossip, especially if its work hours. The random line that was used for inspiration is: "cutest thing I've ever seen." From Anyone But You (2023) #inktober

Inktober day 1! Im not using the official prompt list, instead I'm using the website playphrase.me to generate a random movie quotation and then drawing my characters from Merrow inspired by the line as well as how it's said. Today was "go take a look around" from Orphan (2009) #inktober

Inktober is coming up, so I thought it would be a good idea to do some sketches for fun and as a kind of warmup. Nerissa is definitely my comfort character when it comes to drawing. #art #sketch

Finished reading The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door by H.G. Parry. There is a good cast of characters, and enough foreshadowing that I was able to predict what happened in the end. It was an interesting blend of historical and fantasy as it takes place after WWI. I would recommend #booksky

Finished reading A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid. Im a little late in posting about it. I enjoyed this book, but it shared a lot of themes with Blood Over Bright Haven, so I think I would have enjoyed it more if I hadn't read them back to back. Overall, though, I would recommend this book. #booksky

I won't say this was a productive week, but I at least did enough to keep the ball rolling. I read some really good books and did a little work on Merrow. I also began playing around with ink drawings because I want to try and do inktober again this year. #writingcommunity #writesky

Didn't place in the second round of NYC Midnight's Flash Fiction Challenge. Im looking forward to getting feedback so I can hopefully make it better as I still like the concept of it. Congratulations and good luck to all those who advanced!!

This week was mostly getting organized. I've been getting some great feedback, so I'm working on compiling it and figuring out what gets priority. I didn't draw anything, so enjoy this cross stitch of our cats that im working on. #writingcommunity #amediting

Finished Blood Over Bright Haven by ML Wang and I can see why so many people were raving about it. I absolutely loved it. From the world building to the characters to the magic system, everything worked so well together. #booksky

Here's my weekly update! Started the search for critique partners, and I think it's going well so far! Im excited to get fresh perspectives on what I've written because I know it needs it. #writingcommunity #writesky

Just a sketch page of nearly all my important book characters. Rare pictures of Blanche, Niamh, and Dylan as well. #sketch #writesky

I finished!! As always, there are still things I feel I can edit, but I've reached a point where I need an outside point of view. Next steps will be getting the draft copyrighted for my peace of mind as I start finding and sending it out to Beta readers/critique partners. #writesky #writingcommunity

Finished reading Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune. It was a good read. There were a couple of slow points, but I really enjoyed the exploration of grief. I also thought the characters were really well written. #booksky

Im sooo close to being done with this round of edits. Just a couple more scenes to polish and then I'll send it off to get more eyes on it!!! Chapter 29 is the last chapter, so it's all coming together. #writingcommunity #amediting #writesky

Is there a tool (besides etymology dictionaries) that takes a word and shows historical equivalents throughout the centuries? For example, the word hug originated around the 1560s as hugge, but what words were used before then to portray the same/similar idea? #amwriting #writingcommunity

I've always loved seeing how other people organize their bookcase. While I love reading, Im not a big book buyer, which means I can fit everything on one bookcase. I'd much rather go to my library and get books there for free. Support your local library! #library #writingcommunity

Finished Cemetary Boys by Aiden Thomas. I could not put this down. It was predictable in the best way possible. The clues were subtle but still noticeable. There was also a clear magic system and great characters who you couldn't help but root for. #booksky

I'm pretty happy with everything I did this week, and I hope to continue at this pace next week. #writesky #amediting #amwriting

What books inspire you to create? These are mine. It was hard to boil down everything I've ever read into a single image, but I think the result is a good representation of me as a reader. #writesky #booksky #amwriting

Finished Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore last night. This book did so many things so well. Characters, political, and emotional. Very happy to know there are 2 more books waiting for me, but for now, I'm taking a break to work through some of the books on my shelf. #booksky

Had a lot of free time today, so I was able to put the rest of the panel together!!! This was super fun, and I hope they will be able to answer lots of questions, whether they be serious or silly, together in the future. #writesky #amwriting #art

Im putting together a panel, just waiting on the last 3 characters to make their appearance. #amediting #writesky #art

Im reading Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore, and there's a character trying to put together the first dictionary, which reminded me of a My Favorite Murder episode about how the English dictionary was made. It was very interesting, and I recommend looking into it.

As im nearing the end of my edits, I did a deep dive into next steps and am reminded all over again there is so much I have to learn about publishing and the different kinds of editing, like beta vs developmental. Excited to get fresh eyes on Merrow, but there's a lot to do yet. #amediting #writesky

#questpit Nerissa hasn't aged since her fiancé Dylan died. She considers it a curse until an invitation manifests in her hand. An invitation from the very family Dylan was working for when he died. His death was always suspicious, now Nerissa has a chance to prove it. #W #F #amediting

Submitted my #nycmidnight flash fiction R2 story last night! This one was a struggle for me; I think I ended up rewriting it 7 times. It might not be my best writing ever, but considering where it started, I can't help but be proud of where it ended. Good luck to everyone! #writesky