Did anyone else feel like July just flew right by? Like, you blinked and POOF it was August?

No, that was just me. GREAT!

Anyway, here’s how July shook down as far as productivity goes.

You probably already know that I have a set of year long goals that I’m working towards in 2021.

ZERO DRAFTS

In January I played around in the idea journal.
In February I picked the theme for that anthology and wrote the first two stories.
In March I focused on my husband’s surgery and did practically nothing.
In April I added onto a little side project for Fraun then picked the “new thing”.
In May I worked out the kinks to that new thing, lovingly called the Apocalypse Project.
In June I added words to the Apocalypse Project.

In July I decided to step away from the zero drafts. My justification for this, which you already probably know if you read June’s update, was that I’ve already made great progress on them. I’ve worked out the kinks for that short story anthology and picked the second zero draft project. BUT that editing section had gotten ZERO love at this point in the year.

So, if I’m honest, I didn’t do much on the drafting front in July.

I did write 14k words but about ⅓ of those were words added to the GhostlyYA when I was editing that.

I also did some serious thinking about the blog (more on that when I get to that section) and I want to get back to putting things on here more regularly. More fiction, more poetry, more posts in general.

So, planning and thinking … but not a lot of writing zero drafts.

EDIT/REVISION

Thank you to EVERYONE who voted on the poll to decide which project I should edit first. You all voted for the GhostlyYA, so that was my focus! I made it my project to get all 28 chapters edited and I’m happy to report I DID THAT in July!

I do have 8 more notes from past me written on margins of the draft that need to be typed up/worked out and then I’m completely finished with this editing pass.

Perfect timing, too! My proof copy of the MagicalYA just arrived last week. This is the copy I’ll use to check for final grammatical changes, spacing, and all that fun stuff! The MagicalYA will have a cover reveal SOON and I’ll be calling for Advanced Readers … so get ready for that.

The official release date for the MagicalYA is November 9th. GET READY!

PUBLISH

BOOM … we’re going to make this one!

Seriously, stay tuned to this blog for more information about being an Advanced reader or for preordering the paperback of the Magical YA when it’s available.

Heck, I really love this one, if there’s enough demand I may even do a hard cover.

Let me know in the comments if you’d be interested in a hardcover.

YEAR LONG GOALS

READ 104 BOOKS

So far I’m at 74 (not including the 1 DNF). That’s 71% of the year long goal so we’re looking good.

In July I added 8 more books to my total:

5 Star Reads

Orphan Monster Spy (which earned my JULY book bracket spot), a YA historical fiction novel taking place during WWII

4 Star Reads

Esme’s Wish, a MG portal fantasy with a main character you’ll ADORE and excellent world building
Good Me Bad Me, a psychological thriller that examines a terrifying question of nature vs nurture in the child of a serial killer
Out of the Pantry, a memoir about one woman’s battle with compulsive eating
The Necklace, a mystery/thriller that makes your heart race as it draws closer to the conclusion

3 Star Reads

The School for Good and Evil, a MG fantasy that attempts to play with stereotypes in a unique fantasy world

2 Star Reads

Seasons Between Us, an anthology tying science fiction elements into stories meant to be emotional (for me it was forgettable because there was no character development)
Palo Alto, a series of YA short stories set in 1990s California which fell flat for me because of a lack connection to any particular character

So What’s Coming Up in August?

1 ARC: Our Biggest Experiment (nonfiction)
3 Review Requests: A Touch of Jen (Horror, just published in July), The Garden of Golden Children (Fantasy, just published in July), The Bull Option (Mystery, published in 2019)

52 YOUTUBE VIDEOS

I’m going to have to relaunch this channel at some point. I’m getting closer to that point. All input regarding what you might like to see (or not like to see) on the relaunch should be dropped into the comments section. THANK YOU!

BLOG REVAMP

Same answer as previous … except I think I’m closer to when I may relaunch this one.

Anyway, that’s it for me and my July progress report.

Thanks for reading through this whole thing to help hold me accountable. I love reading your comments so don’t be shy about dropping one below.

See you next time!