This week I worked on a short story for an anthology. It’s all plotted, and I’m about 50% done the first draft. I also went to Artists’ week with the Alpine Club so climbed 3 mountains, and that ate into my writing time. But it was a great experience!

A cool thing at When Words Collide: I had dinner with a group and two editors suggested I submit short stories to their magazine / anthology. So I submitted to one of them this week. Yay!

YA Fantasy 4/5

Yadriel accidentally summons a ghost who won’t go through the ritual to set his spirit free in the afterlife until he finds out why he was murdered. I really enjoyed this book: the characters, the Latinx culture, the exploration of trans gay romance, and the ever-deepening mystery and magic. So many reasons to recommend it! I did find the pacing a bit slow, though.

Attended When Words Collide this weekend. Saw friends, made some good industry connections, presented at some panels, and had fun. This was set to be the last year for the convention, but a local organization is taking it over,  and so we are all very excited.

Also, got halfway through my edits on Gathering of Ghosts.

Science Fiction 5+/5

When Mark Watney is accidentally marooned on Mars, he “sciences the hell out of” every resource at his command to survive until he can be rescued. This nail-biting thriller-esque novel had me at the edge of my seat, turning pages—I read it three times. Then I went to see the movie.