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I normally like to do short blog posts so that you can get on with your day and back to things that matter like your book but this one is going to be a long one so get a snack and a drink and enjoy my journey.

I am starting this blog post well in advance of its posting. As I write this I hope that I will get an agent out of this process but this is March 2022 Cass, future me will have to let past me know what happens.

On March 7th, 2022 I sent out my first batch of query letters to 5 agents. It was a mixed bag of “Dream Agents” and agents who had a list of clients I loved and would be more than happy to be apart of. I have to say that I wasn't nervous opening/writing the emails, double-checking that the agents were still open to queries. But when it came to hitting SEND that's when the nerves set in and it took me a good 10 minutes staring at the screen before I could hit send on that first email.

Then came the fun part. WAITING!!! It took me a few days of constantly checking my inbox before I could focus on writing anything else, which is normal from what I have been told. But once that passed I was able to carry on with life as normal, still checking my inbox at least 3 times a day.

Then all that changed when the fire nation attacked… wait… no that works here. On the 26th of March, I got my first reply. There I was staring at the screen, heart pounding in my chest. Time seemed to be moving backward at this point. So I put my big girl pants on and clicked. It was a rejection.

I expected to feel gutted, like the ground beneath my feet dropped away but I didn't. There was one glaring problem with this rejection… Dear Mr. (Legal last name)

For those that don't know, I am a transgender woman and I made that blatantly obvious in my query as it states in my short bio.

“I am a transgender woman.”

Now you may be asking yourself “Well how did they get your legal name?”

Thank you random reader in my head that is a good question and the answer is I gave it to them.

You see I read and watched dozens if not hundreds of blog posts and videos on how to send the perfect query. The one common thread was if you are using a penname end your query like this.

“Signed preferred name” “Legal name publishing as Penname” “Other personal information”

So I finished my query like this Thank you for your time, Ms. Cass Cutting

LEGAL NAME Publishing as Cass Cutting she/her Other personal information

But you might be wondering “Ok so what's the big deal, they used your legal name?”

When it comes to trans people, especially trans people who tell you they are trans and everything from the name associated with the email to the email address to the signature all points to one name USE THAT NAME! It is rude and disrespectful to misgender a trans person.

Now I am not going to sit here and say this agent did it maliciously because I don't know for sure that they did but what I do know is they read my submission in full because of the way they worded their rejection. So I know they read my query.

Not going to lie I saw red when I saw the way the letter was addressed and I REALLY wanted to message them back or go on Twitter and say something but I didn't. Why? Because if you piss off the wrong person in publishing you can be blacklisted even if that person is in the wrong. So I held my tongue publicly (until now) but privately I was talking to all my writer friends.

I was put in contact with people who could help me. People who have worked in this industry for a while and thus are better connected. They could tell me what agents I should contact and who to stay away from.

In addition to a list of agents who are known LGBT supporters, I was also told that you do NOT have to tell an agent, in your query, your legal name (whether you are trans or cis) there is no need for this person to know anything like that until you are about to sign a contract.

Armed with this new information I edited my query slightly. I kept my legal name in my query for one reason I still had unverified agents on my list and while yes it pissed me off to be misgendered but that's all it did. Another trans person could be closer to the edge and being misgendered could cause them to harm themselves in the worst-case scenario or at the very least cause them to give up on their dreams.

So I kept my legal name in my query but the end of my query now reads like this

Thank you kindly, Ms. Cass Cutting LEGAL NAME (Writing as Cass Cutting) Preferred Name Cass Cutting She/Her Other personal information

With the changed query I sent out another batch of 5 queries. because its best to query in batches of no more than 10 at a time that way if you get an R&R (Revise and Resubmit) with suggested changes you like, you are then able to make those changes then send them to other agents. You can’t change your submitted chapter(s)/page(s) once you hit send. *That being said you can email a queried agent and as long as they haven't read or given a response to your sent query you MAY be able to withdraw and resubmit.

Since sending out the changed query I got 3 more rejections 1 from my first batch of 5 and 2 from my second and not one agent misgendered me. Which I was happy to see. That being said, that second rejection letter hit me like a brick wall, mainly because it was one of those “Dream Agents”.

Let's flash forward to present day Cass, I am sitting on 38 queries sent and 38 rejections. While I am disappointed I am not throwing in the towel.

There is one common thread I got from both the form rejections (aka the ones the agent has ready to go and are not overly specific in their reasoning) as well as the ones that came with reasoning. That thread is “It's a good manuscript BUT I don't think I can fight hard enough for it.”

That last part “I don't think I can fight hard enough for it” got me thinking. They may not be able or willing to fight hard for my book but I am!

In the coming weeks I'm going to make an announcement about the future of Project Rune 1 so stay tuned for that. Yes that means I am going to publish it myself so no that's not the announcement lol.

Where does that leave me with traditional publishing I hear you ask…

It is still a dream of mine to publish traditionally but I think starting with a planned 3-5 book series isn't the right move for me. I don't know which of my standalone WIP’s are going first but I will talk more about it once I get to the point of querying again.

Do I think this past year was all for nothing?

Absolutely not! Being a writer/author is all about the journey and learning as you go. I learned what not to do when querying. I learned that the query trenches are hard, a lot harder than at least I thought. But above everything else I learned that you have to be willing to fight for your work even if that means you have to adjust your plans.

There you have it, my year spent in the query trenches.

Tell me below where are you on your journey? What's your current WIP? Are you willing to fight for it if others arnt?

Good luck and happy writing.

#writing #books #book #goals #writing goals #self publishing #reading goals #writers #indie #traditional publishing #self published books #work in progress #independent publishing

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2023 Q 1 Goals

2022 is officially over... Well duh, its 13 days into the year so that obvious at this point in time. When my life went belly up in about June of 2022 my goals went with it. The only goal I was able to to keep is to Query my manuscript that I lovingly refer to as Project Rune 1. I queried 38 agents and have received 27 rejections and still have 11 that I am waiting to hear back on. 

But that was 2022 and we’re here in 2023 and somethings have changed though that is for a future post. Lets get into my Quarter 1 goals for this year shall we?

Writing

Project Rune 1

Write 3 new chapters

Finish overhaul edits

Because of the rejections I got I did another round of beta reads and got some amazing feedback from someone I look up to, author Becca C. Smith. So I want to implement those changes in Project Rune 1.

After edits and feedback on the new chapters I will send out my MS to the remainder agents and a select few that I have already received rejections from

Project Rune 2

Finish Outline

Reading

Read at least 3 books

I never set hard in stone reading goals for myself I always shoot to read multiple books a month and some months I read 2-10 and some I don’t read any at all and both are fine.

Blog

Relaunch blog 

I guess this post is the first part of that goal so can I check it off now? Lol Seriously though I’ve missed blogging and I have a lot of post ideas.

Write, Edit, and Post at least 1 Blog post a month, though I am shooting for more.

Shop

Finish setup

Launch Shop

I’ve been slowly building up a backlog of products and product ideas. I look forward to talking more about it closer to when I launch it.

Art

Complete at least 2 new projects

Work on new styles.

I’ve been itching to broadening my artistic ability this year and that's what I am going to do. No matter if I am successful or not in my ability the best this I can do is to try.

Personal

I have 5 personal goals that I won't talk about because they are personal lol

So these are my goals for this quarter and I will count them as a success if I get 3/4 of them.

#Goals #reading goals #writing goals #Blogging

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Shut Up and Write The Book Review

First, I wanted to thank Jenna for giving me an E-ARC in return for an honest review. That being said, all thoughts and comments below are my honest opinions and I stand by them.

If I could give this book more than 5 stars I would. If you are a fan of Jenna's YouTube videos where she shares her thoughts and opinions on different writing topics with her own brand of snarky humor then you will love this book, if you are in the market for a nonfiction book about the writing process that is.

I have read many writing craft books over the years. Everything from Save the Cat and Save the Cat Writes a Novel to books like The 38 Most Common Fiction Writing Mistakes and How To Avoid them, and Shut Up and Write the Book is by far the best at explaining its message of the writing process.

Shut Up and Write the Book succeeds where other books of the genre fail, by simplifying an already overwhelming process by explaining things in a more conversational manner. I found with books like Save the Cat and its spiritual successors; the authors take a more academic or clinical approach when explaining the process. Jenna takes what can be a difficult and very overwhelming process and makes it easily digestible. I don't know about you, but for me back when I was in school like 100 years ago, I had a hard time understanding the "rules" of any course when they were explained academically. A lot of times it took the teacher breaking it down conversationally for me to grasp the concept at hand. That being said, I have a learning disability that affects the way I learn, even to this day.

In addition to breaking down the outlining process there are other helpful hints and tips throughout the book. Jenna breaks down the editing process, which is more prudent for those who are going the indie route. There's a whole chapter devoted to critique partners, beta readers, and sensitivity readers. A chapter all about titleing your book and so much more.

I am outlining (truly for the first time) my next book and Shut Up and Write the Book has already streamlined what I found to be an extremely daunting process. Besides that, at this moment in time, I am querying a book and some of the feedback has planted a seed that was fully sprouted by reading this book. So I am going to make those changes and then re-query my manuscript to see if that makes any difference for me.

If you are on the fence about yet another craft book thinking, you won't get anything new from it. I feel you should give it a read for yourself before passing your judgment. I found this book 100 times more helpful than most of the craft books I've read, including those more popular titles.

You can preorder Shut Up and Write the Book in ebook, paperback, and hardcover here. books2read.com/suawtb Your preorder comes with a free workbook.

#5 star books #fivestars #jennamoreci #shutupandwritethebook #suawtb #thesaviorschampion #thesaviorssister #indie #writing community #writing #writers #self publishing #books #book #bookrecommendation #bookreview #arc #fivestarread #fivestarreview

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SHUT UP AND WRITE THE BOOK is available for preorder at nearly all major retailers!!! Apple Books is lagging, but otherwise that ebook is ready to go! 😂 Additionally, all ebooks on all platforms are 50% off, but only for those who preorder. If you want this insane discount, hop to it and preorder today! Don’t forget, everyone who preorders is eligible to receive a FREE SUAWTB digital workbook. Simply send your proof of purchase to [email protected] ♥️ https://books2read.com/suawtb https://www.instagram.com/p/Ckh6mnSOPRR/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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The Ai Art Book Cover Debacle!

There are accusations alleging that a highly anticipated book’s cover was created using an Ai program like DALL-E 2 I am not here to say if this book published by one of the “Big 5” is in fact created using Ai or not. Instead, I am here to give my take on the topic of using one of these programs to create your own cover.

I am of two minds…

As a graphic designer and cover artist, I get the fear/anger other graphic designers have when it comes to this. The better Ai programs get the more likely jobs could be jeopardized. But as someone who doesn't have the spare cash to pay big bucks for a professional service to make sure a book can compete with traditionally published books I understand the lure of using a free program to create a cover that at first glance looks amazing.

While the book cover that has caused this discussion looked really good at first sight, on closer inspection you can see where the Ai stitched together the different images to create the cover. That brings up another debate, is using these Ai programs theft? Putting it simply I don't have the answer to that. On one hand, it does use the internet to find images and then create a composite to match the prompt you give it. On the other hand, even though it uses other’s art to create its composite that composite is transformative. 

Should you use Ai programs to make your cover?

I am not going to sit here and tell you that you can't do something, you have to make that decision for yourself. However, what I will say is that if you’re a writer looking for a professional cover for your book there are cover designers out there with prices to fit all price ranges. Some designers will even be willing to work with you if you have a set limited budget, it's just going to take some internet “leg work” on your part to find. You can even ask a designer if they know someone who can work with your budget and depending on the type of person they are they may give you the contact info of another designer. 

How these programs are useful!

As writers, we usually have a design in our heads that we think would make an amazing cover for our books but can't get it out and words only go so far. Where programs like DOLL-E 2 come in handy is that you can tell it what you want and keep tweaking it to get that perfect image that you then can take to a designer and say “This is what I was thinking for my book cover.” As a cover designer, I LOVE when clients give me not only written prompts but cover inspiration as well. The more concise you are the better and easier the designer's job is.

Tell me below where you sit on this debate, are you for Ai-created art or are you flatly against it or like me do you see both sides of the debate and think they both have merit? 

#Book #self publishing #AiArt #Ai #Covers #Cover Design #graphic design #Book Covers

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NaNoWriMo 2021: Week One Review

First I guess I should tell you what I am working on for this NaNo…

I decided on Halloween (October 31st) that because I could not choose between 3 projects that I was going to work on all 3 this month. I would just switch projects as the mood hit me. However by 1 PM on November 1st I had decided to continue with that plan but I would focus on Project Rune 2 which is the sequel to the book I have been working on for a few years. 

I know what some of you are thinking at least the ones that have been here for a while “But Cass you are planning on going Traditional with Project Rune why are you working on a sequel when the first one hasn’t been picked up by an agent much less greenlit for a sequel?” Well, fine reader, as you may know, I am a slow drafter and even if this series isn’t picked up by a traditional publisher it will be published. I have said for years that I plan on being a hybrid author, someone who is both self and traditionally published, so it’s not a waste of time for me to write the Zero Draft of the sequel to Project Rune. 

Ok, so what’s the goal for NaNo? 

50,000 words overall would be nice but if I get to Midnight on November 30th and I have 10,000 words then I would be happy. I love the “competitive” nature that we writers have with each other every NaNo but this is my 6th NaNo and what I want now is just to enjoy all the things that come with NaNo and get whatever amount of words I can get. 

So how did I do for week 1?

I stopped updating the NaNo website after day 3 and just wrote. I had to go back and count but right now I am sitting at 5,774 words. For the most part, they are actually good words but I may change my mind once I go in for the next draft.

So how are you doing? Are you on track for where YOU want to be this NaNo? 

Happy Writing Friends

#nano #nanowrimo #amwriitng #am writing fantasy #Writer #Goals #writing goals

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The Overdue Update!

There is a lot that has been happening since the world went to shit in 2020. A lot of personal things that I’m not going to get into but what I will say is that I didn’t see how the pandemic was affecting me until I was in a deep dark hole of depression. I stopped blogging, I stopped writing, hell I couldn’t read a book for almost 16 months. 

But things have changed for the better. I allowed myself that break from everything to recover and I didn’t beat myself up for it either. I got my book into the hands of 10 beta readers god some really good feedback and got some that cut me to my core, though I should say that I told everyone to be brutally honest with their thoughts because the way I look at it no one is going to hold my hand when I query and if I’m lucky to go on submission then readers aren’t going to hold back if they don’t enjoy my book so it was fine. I learned a lot and there will be a full blog post coming breaking down my experience with the beta reader process coming soon.

So what’s going on now?

For those that don’t follow me on Instagram, I’ve been doing a Character Portrait series over there where I post the character are I’ve been working on for a while for my ongoing WIP #ProjectRune 

Aside from that I am working on my final rounds of personal edits for said book and I will be taking part in #DVPit on October 25th, 2021 For those of you who don’t know what it is, DVPit stand for Diverse Voices Pitch event... “#DVpit is a Twitter event created to showcase pitches from unagented, marginalized voices that have been historically underrepresented in publishing. This may include (but is not limited to): Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC); people living and/or born/raised in marginalized, underrepresented cultures and countries; disabled persons (includes neurodiversity and mental illness); people on marginalized ends of the cultural and/or religious spectrum; people identifying within LGBTQIA+; and more.” 

To put it simply it is a Twitter Pitch event that diverse writers from around the world hope to attract an Agent and potentially obtain representation. For those of you who don’t know, I am a Transwoman who suffers from several disabilities. 

As of writing this I have my 6 allotted tweets already composed and am working on refining my query letter because those lucky enough to receive interest from an Agent you will have to send a query letter and however much of your completed manuscript they desire. 

I am taking part in NaNoWriMo again this year though I am not yet 100% sure what project I want to work on. I also have a lot of blog posts in the works including taking some writing Master Class’s I am very excited about those. That being said if the past year or so break that I have taken has taught me anything is I am not going to stress myself out trying to come up with post ideas weekly anymore. I will post once or twice a month, not including book reviews. 

I think that covers everything for the time being. I will do a follow-up post on my DVPit experience as well as a NaNo Project Announcement post but until then…

Happy Writing, Friends!

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Book Review: The Keeper of Night By Kylie Lee Baker

First I wanted to thank netgalley for the ARC of this book. That being said, as always my opinions are solely my own regardless of how I came into possession of the book. Secondly this book is out today October 12, 2021 if this book sounds interesting to you I recommend you go out and get yourself a copy today!

The Keeper of Night By Kylie Lee Baker 5 Stars out of 5

The Keeper of Night is a Young Adult Historical Fantasy. The story follows Ren who is a Half British Reaper, half Japanese Shinigami and the living hell she has to deal with living among the other British Reapers, Her father and stepmother have shunned her her whole life. She is attacked and bullied by the other reapers. As Ren Half British Reaper, half Japanese Shinigami, is returning from a night of reaping she is accosted by three other female reapers. She is knocked and pinned to the ground and threatened to have her eye gouged out with a pair of scissors. For a human that could mean death but for a reaper that just means pain and waiting for your body to reform the eye, which sounds as unpleasant as having ones eye gouged out if I am being honest.

Instead of removing her eye they cut her hair which is a point of pride for Ren. Being part Shinigami she has the ability to control light and shadows and as the three girls are laughing at what the just put her through Ren is becoming more and more angry to the point she loses control and causes a gas street lamp next to them to grow blindingly bright causing the three girls to look up in surprise and when they do the glass explodes sending shards cutting into the girls faces and wait for eyes. Can't say I would not have purposefully done that if I had her abilities.

This sets the plot into motion. She hurries back to the cemetery to turn in her souls from the night before, the low level pencil pushing twat causes her to be late which comes with a whole other set of problems. After dealing with that dirt bag she races to her home that she shares with her half brother Neven who is sweet and sensitive and loves to find out how things work and he rescues animals all of which are looked down upon.

Neven is Ren's only friend in the world, the only one who treats her kindly and actually loves her. She is packing to go on the run so she doesn't face the consequences of her actions and Neven wont let her go alone so he goes with her. Together they set off on a years-long journey from London to Japan in search of Ren’s mother and the Shinigami.

After making it to Japan Ren must prove herself in order to be considered a Shinigami and have a place for her and her brother to live. But not everything and everyone is as it seems.

I did enjoy this book a lot, I was hooked from the first chapter and I am looking forward to book 2 in the series. I did have a problem with Ren towards the end but it was more so because of her choices. But she made her bed and has to lie in it now. I hope in future books more of the mythology from both sides of Ren’s cultures is explored. I felt that the author did an amazing job portraying emotion and creating atmosphere. Her understanding of the mythos shines through on every page without being dry or lecturey. 

There are some content warnings: death (on-page + discussed frequently), racism, sexism (brief), ableism, bullying, emotional neglect of a child, mentions of child abandonment, violence, murder, blood, gore. That being said if you enjoy mythology, dark fantasy, with historical settings then I think you would love this book.

#The Keeper of Night #Book #Book Review #dark fantasy #historical fantasy #japanese mythology #Kylie Lee Baker #Shinigami #5 star book #5 star reads

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Magical Readathon Wrap Up

The Novice path was treacherous and full of pitfalls but I made it through relatively whole. My overall goal was to read 11 books for the readathon. Two were required to complete the journey and advance to the academy next April. But I wanted to read all seven prompts, which I did, and I read 1 of the 4 character building prompts. Luckily I have until April to read the rest of them. I should mention that these aren't my full reviews for the 8 books I read; those I will be posting in the upcoming days/weeks. 

On my personal reading tracker, which I don't think I have ever shared with anyone I keep track of the following information because I am a nerd and like stats to look at at the end of the year. I keep track of: Date Started/Finished, Title, Author Name, Page Count, Hours Listened, Type Consumed (ie. Audio, Physical, E-Book) Author’s Gender Identity (if stated), Author’s Ethnicity (if stated), Author’s Sexual Orientation (if stated), Category 1 (ie. Fiction or Nonfiction), Category 2 (ie. Novel, Novella, Short Story, Poetry, Comic, Manga, Graphic Novel, etc.), Age Groupe (ie. Adult, New Adult, Young Adult, Middle Grade), & Genres

Reading Stats:

Page Count/Hours Listened: 2892 Pages / 74 Hours 

Type Consumed: 2 E-Books, 6 Audio Books 

Author’s Gender: 4 Male, 5 Female

Author’s Ethnicity: 2 Unknown/Not Disclosed, 4 White, 3 BIPOC Authors

Author’s Sexual Orientation: 2 LGBTQIA+, 5 Unknown/Not Disclosed, 2 Heterosexual/Straight 

Category 1: 8 Fiction

Category 2: 1 Graphic Novel, 7 Novels

Age Groupe: 4 Adult, 4 Young Adult

Genres: 5 Fantasy, 1 Dark Urban Fantasy, 1 Horror, 1 Mystery/Thriller

Ratings: 1: 3 Star, 2: 4 Star, 5: 5 Star 

The one Character building prompt I read was...

Province: Kerador - Read a book from an ongoing series.

Five Dark Fates ~5 Stars~ by Kendare Blake Book 4 in the Three Dark Crowns series

The Novice Path Prompts  The Novice Path Entrance: read a book with a map.

Pawn of Prophecy  ~5 Stars~ by David Eddings The Belgariad Book 1

Ashtorn Tree: read a book that keeps tempting you (or top of your TBR).

Saga Volume 1  ~4 Stars~ Written by Brian K. Vaughan  Art by Fiona Staples 

The Mist of Solitude: read a standalone.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue  ~5 Stars~ By V.E. Schwab

Ruin of the Skye: read a book featuring ghosts, haunted house, or other supernatural elements.

The Valley  ~4 Stars~ by Mike Salt

Obsidian Falls: read a thriller or a mystery book.

The Maidens  ~3.75 Stars~ by Alex Michaelides

Tower of Rumination: read a five-star prediction.

Blood Like Magic  ~5 Stars~ by Liselle Sambury Blood Like Magic Book 1

Orilium Academy Arc: book with a school setting. 

The Ravens  ~5 Stars~ by Danielle Paige & Kass Morgan The Ravens Book 1

Throughout the readathon there were questions asked and scenarios put forth testing our characters. Our responses to these would tell which guild our characters would best be suited for. Some people clearly had one guild, some had multiple choices like myself but at the end of the day you are allowed to chose one of the four. 

The guilds are:

The Archivists

The Mind Walkers

House of the Arcane

Order of the Crescent

Like I said I had offers to join two guilds which are The House Of The Arcane and The Mind Walkers. Both these guilds appeal to different aspects of myself, as do the other two but I have taken them off the table for now. I have until the end of March 2022 to decide where I will go. I am leaning towards the House of the Arcane.

Overall I had an amazing time and I highly recommend trying this out next time around if you didn't get the chance this time. This was the first readathon I’ve taken part in and completed. I am very happy about that and also happy to have been pulled out of my 18 month reading slump. 

Did you take part in the magical readathon? If so, how did you do? Which guild or guilds did you get letters from?

#magical readathon #what am i reading #readathon #Reading #Am Reading #Books #fantasy #Horror #Thriller #dark academia #DnD #The Ravens #by Danielle Paige #Kass Morgan #Blood Like Magic #Liselle Sambury #The Maidens #Alex Michaelides #The Valley #Mike Salt #The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue #V.E. Schwab #Saga Volume 1 #Brian K. Vaughan #Fiona Staples #Pawn of Prophecy #The Belgariad #David Eddings #5 Star reads #4 star reads

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My Magical Readathon TBR

For the month of September I have decided to take part in the Magical Readathon hosted by G from BookRoast. Now for those that don’t know G has been hosting a Magical Readathon for a few years now. Originally it was based around the OWL’s and NEWT’s from Harry Potter however when the author came out to the world as Anti Trans G didn’t want to support her any longer. I know that decision could not have been easy. As a lifelong Harry Potter fan and a Trans woman, even I struggled with what to do. G took some time and rebranded into this AMAZING Readathon. She created a whole new world with a rich history and I am in LOVE with it. G if you’re reading this PLEASE make it a book/series I would LOVE to read anything from this world. 

Click Here to watch G’s announcement video!

To briefly put everything into context. This readathon starts at midnight (your time) on September 1st and runs till midnight (your time) on September 30th. You create a character, if you love DnD or other TTRPG’s (Tabletop Role Playing Game) this will be right up your alley as it is heavily influenced by them. Your character is setting off on the Novice Path, which is a journey to the magical school, Orilium Academy, located in the center of this world. There are locations dotted across the map that correspond to reading prompts, which are:

The Novice Path Entrance: read a book with a map.

Ashtorn Tree: read a book that keeps tempting you (or top of your TBR).

The Mist of Solitude: read a standalone.

Ruin of the Skye: read a book featuring ghosts, haunted house, or other supernatural elements.

Obsidian Falls: read a thriller or a mystery book.

Tower of Rumination: read a five-star prediction.

Orilium Academy Arc: book with a school setting. 

There are also 3 prompts that are based around your character background, though I chose 4 because my character is interracial, which I don’t think there is a rule stating that if you have an interracial character you HAVE to read 4 I just chose to do that myself. However, there’s a caveat to these books while they are mandatory for you to read you have until April 2022 to read these 3 (or 4) so that’s good, though I am going to try and read my 4 making my TBR for September 11 books O_O

If you’re like me and you are a slow reader and the idea of trying to read 7 books in a month seems impossible don’t worry. In order to complete your journey and gain entrance to Orilium Academy next April you only need to complete 2 journey prompts.

So who am I and what am I reading, or trying to read in September…

Character Background

Hi, my name is Lohargrun (Low-har-ger-un) I am the trans daughter of a Skaimorn mother and Iltirian father. I was born in a small rural village in Kerador though I have spent a considerable amount of time in both of my parent’s homelands. 

I guess I look like both my parents equally. Unlike my mother’s people, I was born with a body and unlike my father’s, I love a good juicy medium-rare roast. 

But that’s enough about me here’s how I plan on taking on The Novice Path so that I can get into Orilium Academy.

Character Based Reading Prompts… Background:

Wilding - Read a book largely set in a forest/outside.

Across The Green Grass Fields  by Seanan McGuire Book 6 in the Wayward Children novella series

Province: Kerador - Read a book from an ongoing series.

Five Dark Fates  by Kendare Blake Book 4 in the Three Dark Crowns series

Heritage: Iltirian - Read a book with a crow on the cover or title, or a red cover book.

Autumncrow  by Cameron Chaney 

Skaimorn: read one of the oldest books you own or have on your TBR

The Children Of Odin: The Book Of Northern Myths  by Padraic Colum  Originally published in 1920

The Novice Path Prompts  The Novice Path Entrance: read a book with a map.

Pawn of Prophecy  by David Eddings The Belgariad Book 1

Ashtorn Tree: read a book that keeps tempting you (or top of your TBR).

Saga Volume 1  Written by Brian K. Vaughan  Art by Fiona Staples 

The Mist of Solitude: read a standalone.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue By V.E. Schwab

Ruin of the Skye: read a book featuring ghosts, haunted house, or other supernatural elements.

The Valley by Mike Salt

Obsidian Falls: read a thriller or a mystery book.

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

Tower of Rumination: read a five-star prediction.

Blood Like Magic by Liselle Sambury Blood Like Magic Book 1

Orilium Academy Arc: book with a school setting. 

The Ravens  by Danielle Paige & Kass Morgan The Ravens Book 1

So there you have my TBR for the month of September which is quite an undertaking for me as I have been in a year long reading slump thanks to my depression that was made worse by everything related to Covid 19. But I seem to be pulling out of this slump and am eager to read all the books. I will do a reading wrap-up at the end of the month with my thoughts and opinions on as many of the books I am able to read. I should have an ok time getting through them as I have found audiobooks for almost all 11 books. 

A special note for those who wish to bash me for saying Rowling is anti-trans feel free to DM or message me and I will be sure to file those thoughts and opinions in the trash with the death and rape threats I get all the time. K thanks KISSES ;) 

#magical readathon #What I am Reading #am reading #Books #Reading #readathon #fantasy #horror #thriller #dark academia #DnD

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Quarter 3 Goals

Well, it's that time again. Where the last 3 months ago?  it's time to talk about my successes and failures of which there are many.

My goals for Quarter 2 were:

Take part in Camp NaNoWriMo FAILED

Fully outline Project Oz FAILED

Fully outline Project Rune 2 FAILED

Start the outline for Project Rune 0.1 FAILED

One full first draft FAILED

Finish my CP Work FAILED But that was out of my control 

Complete CP Edits for Project Rune 1 FAILED But that was out of my control 

Continue to build Agent List SUCCESS

Query Agents* (*If I get my edits back and completed before the end of May if not this will be moved to Quarter 3 so I don’t have to be in limbo for an extra 2 months while agents are on holiday) FAILED But that was out of my control 

Newsletter I made strides but overall I FAILED

Create 30 Premade Book Covers Only got 15 so FAILED

Open up for cover commissions FAILED

Host a giveaway* (*Keep an eye out…) It has been moved due to computer problems

Read 3 books I read 2 full books and DNF 2 FAILED

In addition to these 14 I had 24 personal goals of which I completed 10. That’s 26 failed out of the 38 that I had OOF!

This last Quarter has been utter shit for me and I am sure for a lot of people. I have high hopes for this next Quarter, that being said I don’t have as many goals either lol…

Read 3 books

Take part in Camp NaNoWriMo in July

Write the 5 new chapters outlined for Project Rune 1

Rewrite the original 30 chapters of Project Rune 1 to include all new changes.

Outline Project Rune 2

Start Outline for Project Oz

Start the Newsletter

Host a Giveaway

Complete CP Edits for Project Rune 1

Continue to build Agent List

Create 20 Premade Book Covers

Open up for cover commissions

Send Project Rune 1 back to CP’s 

In addition to these 13, I had 13 personal goals. So in total, I have 26 goals I want to complete by the end of September.

Wish me luck, I think we’re all going to need some good mojo going forward because as a gamer I follow said: “2020 has been the equivalent of drying off after a nice shower and thinking you have to fart but instead unleash a rectal tsunami all over the floor.” I think this bit of poetry nicely sums up 2020. Sure there’s a lot of good things happening but 2020 as a whole I think needs to be set on fire so we can just start over.

Questions of the day: How did you do on your Quarter 2 goals? What are some of your Quarter 3 goals?

#goal #goals #writing goals #reading goals #quarterly goals #Quarter 3 Goals #Fail #Planning

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My Critique Partner Experience

I guess I should start off by saying where and how I met my CP’s (Critique Partners) My first official CP I met in December of 2018 through the #CPMatch event on Twitter, its usually held every month check out Megan Lally on twitter for more details and for the rules of the event CLICK HERE! Chris is the writer of an amazing urban fantasy book (series) that I am lucky enough to be a CP for. He is also an editor so I know he knows his shit. My second CP is a woman who I’ve been lucky enough to know for roughly 13 years. We became fast friends, she is my family, my sister. Sy an amazing writer, author, and poet and I can’t wait to read her current WIP in full. WINK WINK* My third CP is a dear friend as well I’ve known her for about 5 years. She is a retired English and creative writing teacher and a very good writer herself. 

They say never have a CP with whom you have a relationship with and while that is true for most people, however, I chose to ask these two friends of mine because above all else I knew they would be 100% brutally honest with me no matter what.

I’ve written other books in the past and sure I’ve had people read it in a manner similar to “CP’s” but at the time I didn’t know what CP’s were or what they did. At the time I just had people proofread my books and check for things like spelling and grammar and that’s it. No flow, no plot checks, nothing just grammar and spelling.  

When I recruited my CP’s I told them one thing, “Be as honest as humanly possible, because no agent, no editor, and most of all no reader is going to hold my hand and tell me “oh you did a good job” when they hated my book and thought it was utter shit.” 

My expectations going into this were a lot different from what actually happened, mainly the aspect of time. I don’t know why I had this unexpressed expectation that I send off my novel and poof in 3 - 4 weeks after I’d have my fully critiqued novel. That wasn't the case, on average it was about 8 - 12 weeks. That being said I am still waiting on one more CP. 

These were my expectations going into this process:

3-4 week turn around.

Plot hole locating.

Spelling and grammar checks.

The reality of the situation…

8-12 week turn around (Give or take.)

Plot hole locating with potential fixes.

Character checks ie. are your characters bland and one dimensional? With potential fixes.

Worldbuilding checks ie. is your world fleshed out? With potential fixes.

Suggested rearranging of scenes and chapters.

Suggested timeline fixes.

Continuity fixes.

Suggested additional chapters.

I think above all that, the thing that I found most helpful was them allowing me to brainstorm fixes with them. Let me explain, the feedback I got from both my CP’s (I’m paraphrasing) is that my world is fleshed out and believable as are my characters. I have good subplots but the big problem is that I didn’t have a unifying main story plot for this book through the groundwork for an overarching series plot was there. 

Now when I got that feedback from my first CP my first reaction was, my heart fell out of my ass then I was in a state of denial. However, when I got that same feedback from my second CP I knew it wasn’t some fluke (hopeful delusions of a writer lol) So I gave it a few days to let this feedback sink in then I reread my manuscript. They were right I didn’t have a main plot for this story. 

I was shocked because this is my baby, I have been obsessed with this story for YEARS and I thought that I had it down. In my mind, there was this awesome world with these awesome characters and an amazing plot. In reality, I had a good story with good characters, some of whom could use even more fleshing out. A world that seems real but small. Good subplots but no overarching main plot. Not gonna lie this was a blow to the good old ego that pesky little fucker that makes you prideful and blind to reality. 

I could have let this set back deter me from fixing the problems, which I have seen a lot with other writers. However, like I said before this story is my baby. It has everything I’ve ever wanted in a fantasy story. There is no way in hell I’m letting this story, this world, these characters sit on my shelf and collect dust. 

A lot of people talk about loving character driven or plot driven stories but I LOVE a story that can balance the two and that’s what I thought I was doing. I thought I had the plot figured out so I focused solely on the characters and world. Obsessed on making them as real as fantasy characters could be. But I’ve been so fixated on this story that even when I’ve put it away and am working on other stories I am still thinking of this one. That made me far too close to the story to see the problems. 

I’ve talked about it in the past, as has every writer/author at some point or another, you can never see the problems with your story if you’re too close to it. When you’re obsessed with that story its harder to distance yourself from it. That’s where CP’s come into the picture. It took two people who weren’t close to this story at all to tell me “Hey you have a good story but it’s lacking here, here, and here. This is how you can fix it to make a good story into an amazing story.”

I am currently working my way through the Save The Cat Writes A Novel book and actually outlining my story, I know strange coming from a pantser, though I think I may be a convert lol. I have, with the help of my CP come up with an actual plot for this story. It’s taking some rewriting (hence the Save The Cat book) I have come with 4 new chapters and there are more that I am working on. I already had some chapters from the perspective of my villain from before but now there’s more. The timeline drastically altered. But above all the story is going to be so much better. 

All this work throws my querying timeline out the window and that’s fine I’d rather query with an amazing book that will have a better chance of being picked up than one that may go into the rejection pile right off the bat. I am HOPING to have all the new chapters written and all the fixes finished by the end of September then back off to my CP’s in October then possibility off to agents in the first quarter of 2021 after final edits. 

If you take away anything from my experience with CP’s its that a good CP will make your story better but moreover they will make you a better writer. Which I feel is 100% true for me.

Question of the day: What are your experiences with CP’s?

#My Critique Partner Experience #Critique Partner #CP #amwriting #am writing #fantasy #SFF

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Black Lives Matter!!! Period!

The topic of today’s post has changed time and time again but I could not post anything other than this today. If you look at my social medias both personal and public I have posted and will continue to post about the Black Lives Matter movement and police brutality. But I haven’t posted here because I have been struggling to articulate my thoughts lately. But not speaking not posting here is a problem. 

Now I am not black, I am not a person of color. I will never know the pain that people of color go through on the daily. I do have family both biological and not who are black and I fear for their safety every day and have since I learned and understood what racism really is. I don’t have a large platform I don’t have millions of readers but that doesn’t matter what matters is standing up, speaking out, and taking action.

I have heard time and time again that white people need to be listening, hearing, and uplifting the voices of black people and other people of color. I have extended my blog to every black writer I have a relationship with to come on and use my platform to express how racism has affected them. Some have turned me down and if others choose to accept my offer I will be posting their stories to this blog.

If you don’t like that. If you don’t agree with this movement. If you don’t think that black people should be seen and truly treated as equals. Then you need to unfollow and never read another word I write. Because Black Lives Matter! Period, end of story. This is not up for discussion or debate. 

Linked below are petitions and other links on ways to help. I urge everyone to help in any way you can.

 Petitions To Sign: Justice for George Floyd:

https://www.naacp.org/campaigns/we-ar...

https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/#p...

 How To Call: https://5calls.org for bullet points and scripts to follow; contact your local government 

 Books To Read: Ibram's syllabus on how to be an antiracist: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/arc... 

Places To Donate: colorofchange.org

https://www.joincampaignzero.org/force https://www.communityjusticeexchange....

More Resources:

docs.google.com/document/d/1CjZMORRVuv-I-qo4B0YfmOTqIOa3GUS207t5iuLZmyA/mobilebasic

If you’re an American and you’re not registered to vote you need to now more than ever before.

https://www.whenweallvote.org/register/

#BLM #blacklivesmatter #black trans lives matter

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Book Review: The Savior’s Sister by Jenna Moreci

***NOTE*** I received an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review. All my opinions are mine and mine alone. Also, if you haven't read the first book in the series (The Savior’s Champion) the synopsis and my review contains spoilers for TSC. Now that that's out of the way onto the review.

Synopsis:

Leila Tūs Salvatíraas, Savior of Thessen and magical Queen of Her realm, is worshiped by all. Except Her father. He wants Her dead.

The Sovereign’s Tournament—a centuries-long tradition designed to select The Savior’s husband—is days away, but Brontes’s plan to overthrow his daughter ignites, shifting the objective of the competition from marriage to murder.

With the help of Her sisters and some unexpected allies, Leila must unravel Brontes’s network and prevent Her own assassination. But as the body count rises, She learns the deception runs far deeper than She imagined.

When She finds Herself falling for one of the tournament competitors, Her father finds himself another target for murder.

Can Leila save Herself and Her beloved, or is their untimely end—and the corruption of Her realm—inevitable?

TRIGGER WARNINGS: This book contains graphic violence, sexual situations, physical abuse, adult language, and references to suicide.

Overview:

OH MY GOD THIS BOOK IS SO GOOD! I gave the first book in the series a 5 out of 5 because it is amazing. I really didn’t think it could get better, but it did. The Savior’s Sister is so much better. If I could give it 100 out of 100 stars, I would in a heartbeat. It is hands down one of my favorite books of all time. This book takes place in the same timeline as the first but it is told from Leila’s point of view. Being able to see the other side of conversations. To hear the thoughts of that other character brings even more life to the story. I can not wait for the third book in the series. If you’re a fan of dark gritty fantasy, hot steamy romance, and a good assassination and revenge plots then you NEED to add this book to the top of your TBR today.

Worldbuilding:

Jenna was able to make the cold dank rooms of an underground labyrinth in the first book seem so real you could smell the blood on the walls, the mold and decay in the air. As well as the vastness of the palace. She was able to do the same this time around expanding on the grandeur of the palace and the claustrophobic walls closing in feeling of the labyrinth. Like in the first book this world seemed so real you could taste the air and hear the gut wrenching sounds of blade on flesh.  

Characters:

The characters of this series are all unique none of them are faceless puppets who need to be brought to life by the reader. I loved Leila from the first book but getting to see more of her and be inside her head made me love her even more. She witty and sarcastic and I want to be her friend. The same goes for Delphi. She is everything I wanted in an LGBTQ+ character and more. She is funny and smart. She’s not afraid to stand up to anyone including Leila or even Brontes. 

Speaking of Brontes he is just as vile and repugnant as ever and I’d personally like to stab him in the dick. Moving back to Leila’s sisters we get more time with the precious bean that is Pippa. Pippa is innocent and kind this world doesn’t deserve a little duckling (as Leila would call her) like her. Then there’s the grand high bitch Cosima. What is there to say about Cosima other than I hope she falls out a window and gets run over by a horse lol.

Then we have the man of the hour, the guy some woman (and some men) want to be with and the one most of the men want dead, Tobias. I love Tobias he is so sweet and selfless though there were a few times a good swift kick to the balls would have done him some good. It’s great seeing Leila’s first impression of him and how wrong she is. I look forward to spending more time with these characters in the future at least the ones that survived.

Plot Breakdown:

The story is full of action without being overwhelming and to balance that out there are the more slower paced parts that are never boring and drawn out. Jenna is really good at keeping the balance between the highs and lows of the story. This is a companion book and it takes place during the same timeline as book one. Even though I was well aware of how events unfolded I was still on edge about everyone’s fate. 

Last Thoughts:

I said it before and I’ll say it again I truly do not think 5 stars is enough for this book I’d give it a hundred if I could. I am eagerly awaiting book 3 and I know it’s going to be a little wait but once it’s here I am sure it will be amazing. 

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If you read this far good for you keep an eye out on my blog and social media in the coming weeks I will be having my own Preorder giveaway for The Savior's Sister. You won’t want to miss it, TRUST ME.

#Jenna Moreci #The Savior's Sister #the saviors champion #Book #Books #Reading #5 Star Book Review #book review #TSS #ARC #upcoming releases #bookish giveaway #giveaway

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Updated Publishing Plan

For those of you who are new here, my publishing plan has gone through several changes over the years. From Solely Traditional to Solely Indie to Hybrid, which is still the plan. However, I will look at my books/series on a case-by-case basis. For the time being, I will be talking about my Nordic High Fantasy series or more specifically the first book in the series. Because what happens with this book obviously dictates the publication path for the subsequent books. 

Before I get into specifics lets talk plans…

To put it simply if I choose to traditionally publish I will give myself one year to find an agent, then another year to go on submission and find a publisher. If by the end of the first year I don’t find an agent I will find an editor and go from there. If I find an agent and by the end of that second year I don’t get an editor I will pull my manuscript and again find an editor and go from there.

Now a little more specific for Book one of my Nordic High Fantasy I am still waiting for feedback from two CP’s so I’ve pushed my tentative query date to August/September 2020. 

My Agent list is still growing, but it also shrunk because my agent curse continues. For those of you who don’t know, I had a list of about 40 agents and except for 5, they all worked for different agencies. HOWEVER, about 15 of those 40 all moved to join those other 5 making 20 different agents on my list working for the same agency. 

If you’re unfamiliar with how the querying process works the rule, mostly, is that you can only query one agent per agency because your manuscript is usually shared among the agents that work together. In addition to those 15 moving, I had roughly 8 others that stopped agenting. 

Because of this, I’ve been keeping a close eye on my list of agents and several others have joined that one agency (it is one of the best agencies on my list and from what I know its a dream of a lot of agents to work there so its understandable) and 5 others have retired from the business or have moved into the realm of publishing.

I long ago resolved myself to not having a concrete list because agents move they retire they get different jobs so it's best to not get my hopes high for any one particular agent.  That being said I do still have a few that would be AMAZING to have as my agent but I won't hold my breath lol.

Question of the day:

How many agents do you have on your list?

#am writing #writers #writer #writing #publishing #Self published books #independent publishing #indie publishing #publishing strategy #traditional publishing

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Quarter 2 Goals

Originally today was going to be another installment of Cass’s Cover Do-Over but this past month has been interesting for me and really everyone else too. I’ve been constantly sick all month with what I am guessing is the flu (NOT COVID-19 Knocks on every wooden surface I can find lol) So in place of CCDO I will be discussing my Quarter 2 goals.

Now in the first quarter of the year, I did monthly goals and though I did enjoy that I also felt rushed and overwhelmed at times. Also, the fact that it seemed to me that I would put up a goals post then turn around and look its time for another goals post.

Like with everything else in life there are pros and cons with doing your goals quarterly and mine are the same as many other people and that my pro is also a con. I have three months to get these things done. Yay, I have so much time, but shit I could possibly be lazy and procrastinate.

Most people write their goals down in a document or blog post or in their planners and then never go back and read them. That has been a problem for me in the past but a method that I have found that works for me is having my goals out where I can see them all the time. In the business world, there is a tool that is often used called a Kanban Board. A Kanban board is a project management tool that’s designed to help you visualize work or goals, limit what you’re currently working on, and hopefully maximize your productivity output. I plan on doing a post in the future going over what Kanban boards and are how they are used.

Now on to my goals:

Take part in Camp NaNoWriMo

Fully outline Project Oz

Fully outline Project Rune 2

Start the outline for Project Rune 0.1

One full first draft

Finish my CP Work

Complete CP Edits for Project Rune 1

Continue to build Agent List

Query Agents* (*If I get my edits back and completed before the end of May if not this will be moved to Quarter 3 so I don’t have to be in limbo for an extra 2 months while agents are on holiday)

Newsletter

Create 30 Premade Book Covers

Open up for cover commissions

Host a giveaway* (*Keep an eye out…)

Read 3 books

On top of these public goals, I have 24 private/ business goals I wish to accomplish in the next three months.

Question of the day: What are you going to achieve in the next 30 - 90 days?

#goals #Quarter 2 Goals #quarterly goals #amwriting #am writing #amreading #am reading

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Camp NaNoWriMo: April 2020

Let’s talk about Camp NaNoWriMo…

For those of you who aren’t in the know, Camp NaNoWriMo is the less aggressive cousin of NaNoWriMo which is National Novel Writing Month, though it is international so I am many others feel we should rename it to InNoWriMo but whatever. NaNoWriMo takes place every November where writers from all over the world come together with the goal of writing a novel, well 50,000 words of a novel in 30 days. Camp NaNoWriMo takes place every April and July and each writer has a personal goal whether that is a word count, chapter count, or time spent, whichever it is they are aiming to achieve that goal by the end of the month.

Also unlike the normal NaNo in Camp you don’t have to start a brand new project you can work on an existing project (not that everyone follows that rule in normal NaNo anyway lol) I’ve been going back and forth on whether I will take place in Camp this year and I think I will and my goal for this Camp is 30,000 words with a stretch goal of 50,000 words. That would make my daily word count goal 1,000 - 1,667 words and I will be working on two projects. The first is Project Oz, my Wizard of Oz reimagining and the second I will be attempting to outline Project Rune 2, that being said if I get my CP edits back for Project Rune 1 I will either throw that into the mix or I will drop one of the projects in favor of working on my edits. 

Question of the day: Are you taking part in Camp NaNoWriMo this year? What are you’re goals for this camp?

#national novel writing month #nanowrimo #nano #CAMP NANOWRIMO #Camp #camp nano 2020 #camp nano april 2020 #writing #writer #writers #writers on tumblr #amwriting #am writing #writing plans