Just came from our local convention which was scheduled to end last year when the con chair retired and no one felt they could fill his incredible shoes–but the local writing college here (the one I work for–I actually midwifed the transition) has picked it up. AND–it has the same awesome vibe it’s had in previous years. I got five panels/presentations (and one of the changes under new management is an honorarium for each) and attended some good sessions. Biggest perk: seeing so many other writer-friends and hanging out. Also sold a few books, which is nice.

Once fall hits, I will be working on Book 4 of my series, so I read over my completed first draft this week. Now I plan to re-read the first 3 books (they were published between 2019-2023) just to be sure I keep continuity when I jump into the rewrite.

YA Horror 3+/5

High School student, Bella, moves to a small town in Washington state and falls for a charismatic vampire—whose obsessive love for her complicates her life. I had to read this book—everyone else has, and I wanted to know what the draw was. Be prepared for some discomfort, insofar as the love story between Bella and Edward is really unhealthy.

Not a ton of writing last week, but I did finish my sister’s biography (I think–I just sent it to her to do a final check before submitting) to the publisher. Also, I met with the co-author of my nonfiction book on courage, and we have pretty much set the details of the launch. It will be held in an art gallery! It’s August 15th, the night before our local convention, and fairly close to the hotel so hopefully we’ll get some readerly / writerly traffic from that.

Fantasy 5/5

Angel Crawford wakes up dead—or, not quite. Revived after a car crash as a zombie, her family see no difference in her, but now she has an insatiable hunger for brains. This book amazed me. The characterization is perfect, as is the setting that gave birth to Angel and the circumstances that drive her forward. Highly recommended!