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Hello, and welcome back to my newsletter!
Summer is here, and with the time off thanks to my school job, it's a great opportunity to focus on my writing. There's lots in the works, so check out my plans for the summer and June updates below. Bonus kitty picture at the end for those who make it that far! 😉
I'm still experimenting with the newsletter template, so bear with me as I play around with different formats and ideas during the upcoming months! |
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June was a busy month, and not as productive as I would have liked. I lost a week to sickness, and then with school ending and a longer than normal list of social outings, I had to let writing take a back seat for a while!
Despite this, I did complete a revised outline for the second draft of the sequel for When Shadows Fall, as well as finalizing the website and getting some work done on my *story-bible for the trilogy.
*If you are wondering what on earth a story-bible is, it is simply a document or binder where a writer keeps all of their notes pertaining to a series; characters, timelines, world-building details, and information of every kind. Unfortunately, I started mine late; instead of keeping everything in one spot, I have book-related notes strewn across multiple Google Docs and Scrivener files, countless loose pages, and a notebook. I'd like to consolidate all the info into a single Scrivener document so that it's more accessible, but as this is a massive undertaking, I'll have to chip away at it slowly!
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Summer is here, and I'm lucky enough to get the next two months off. I intend to make the most of this time, and so have prepared a number of goals:
I hope to finish the sequel's second draft by the end of summer so that I can send it to beta readers in the fall. I'll do the writing in July, and then use August to read over it and edit.
The first draft was roughly 125K words, and my second drafts are typically longer than the first. In order to finish the writing in July, I'm aiming for 5000 words a day. I've already completed 30K words, so we're off to a good start!
I'll also be receiving feedback from my last beta reader for When Shadows Fall in the next few days. I hope to get through her notes as quickly as possible, making changes to the manuscript as I go, and then find an editor to do line edits. The line edits will target word choice and sentence structure, and will be the last step before proofreading.
Additionally, I hope to do some research on cover art and look into potential cover artists if time allows. It's going to be a busy two months, but I'm excited for all the summer has in store!
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I've added a few new designs to my Redbubble store, my favourite of which is the chibi girl below. I actually put some effort into the background, and it turned out fairly well, much to my surprise!
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I've been doing some manga sketching as well, something I haven't taken much time for since developing my chibi style and opening my Redbubble store. The result is a number of pencil and digital sketches that I feel quite pleased with!
Here are some of my more detailed digital sketches, focusing on shading techniques:
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Additionally, my mother had the clever idea that I could turn my chibi drawings for Redbubble into colouring pages. I gave them as gifts to my students, and I may eventually open a shop on Etsy to sell them.
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Reading: I reread a couple favourites in June, including Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine (finished in three days!) and The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson. I'll soon be starting Skyward to serve as my 'summer read' for the year.
Watching: Thanks to my sick week, I binge-watched "The Good Place" on Netflix, as well as watching the Doctor Strange sequel. Right now, I'm enjoying "The Floor is Lava" on Netflix, a light, short watch that's perfect for the nights I need to unwind before bed!
Playing: While sick, I also spent some time playing "The Long Dark", a survival video game set in the frozen north of Canada after an apocalyptic event. It will be a while before I have time for video games again, though I suspect I will be playing quite a few board games with my Dad now that I'm home for a visit!
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If you've stuck around to the end, then congrats! You get the customary bonus kitty picture. As always, thank you for your support, and for accompanying me on this exciting journey. There's lots still to do, but with each passing month, the finish line gets a little closer!
Happy summer everyone. 🙂
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Morning cuddles with Kaylee. |
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#11 1305 23rd Avenue, Regina, Saskatchewan, S4S 3S4, Canada |
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