Greetings, all, and welcome to the last Saturday in March! It’s been a crazy month, hasn’t it? These past few weeks almost feel like a dystopian novel, if you watch the news. With everything outside of drive-thru closed and cancelled, a lot of people are finding other ways to occupy their time while they’re stuck at home, and I think that could turn into a good thing. It gives people the opportunity to slow down and think locally.
Of course, then there are those who’re going ‘stark raving mad’, as one lady put it.
For many in the writing community, this ‘social distancing’ is about the best thing for getting words on the page! Alas, I can’t say the same for myself. Life beyond the Writing Corner has picked up a LOT. The coffee shop I work at had their official opening just as all of this virus business really kicked up, and we’ve been doing curb-side service all week. It’s going well, but I am learning to function on a very different schedule than I’m used to, and by the time I get home in the afternoon my brain is shot. It’s hard to dive into a whole new project when all you feel capable of is curling up under a blanket and binge watching America’s Test Kitchen until you start dozing off!
Sooner or later I’ll settle into this new groove and peel my get-up-and-go from the pavement it got semi truck-smashed into.
But why don’t we talk about something a little more cheerful? This past week I gobbled up a brand-spankin’ new YA titled For Whom the Sun Sings, and it is AMAZING. Worth every penny I spent and then some. It’s set in a world where everyone is blind, and follows a boy who was born with sight. His struggles and journey of discovery is fascinating and brilliant, and the story is full of heartache and hope with an ending that made me have to sit quietly for a moment to take it all in. I can hardly recommend it enough.
Also, and you may have heard about it if you’ve been following along on my Instagram feed, I’ve just heard back from the team at Havok. Both of my stories for next month have been finalized and scheduled! I’m so excited, and positively floored that my first three attempts at submitting to the magazine were accepted, first in January, and now for April. I won’t spoil too much of them, but I will say that both feature the return of beloved characters.
On April 10, the intrepid duo of Sebastian and Kurt fight side by side against the greatest evil of their time, full of explosions and magic and the incorruptible bonds of friendship that so many of us can’t get enough of. I loved working on this one and can hardly wait the thirteen more days until you can read it!
On April 29, we get to see clumsy Skeer Umpee from the short story The Forgotten Hero as he asks a scatterbrained old wizard to save the world from impending, imminent doom. Emotions and marmalade will reach new heights in this tale of crickets, sweaters, and sibling rivalry! I’m glad to have had the opportunity to work with Skeer again and go on another adventure with him. It’s a bummer I have to wait another whole month to share this story with you, but hopefully by then the world will be cleaner, warmer, and more colorful with all those spring flowers.
So! What have you been up to this past week? What books have you read? Did you do any home projects? Marathon any movies? Cracked open that game cupboard, or tried a new recipe?
Nice to see you’ve been so successful. I have my fingers crossed for my submission.
Thank you!