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November 2022 Roundup

Welcome to the November 2022 roundup!

Can you believe we’ve just finished the second last month of 2022? While the end of the year always goes by super quick, it feels like the whole year has been like that and I’ve been trying to make progress on as many goals as I can so I can take some time off at Christmas and enjoy it.

That has meant lots of writing/working, while at the same time, feeling like I’ve made no progress . The joys of being a writer, hey? I’ve also done the majority of my Christmas present buying and wrapping, and I think I’ve remembered to do, or put in motion, everything else that needs to be done when the pointy end of the year hits.

How about you? Are you putting everything in place to finish up 2022, or realizing there’s so much to do and only a few weeks now to do it?

As for the rest of November, this is what I got up to…

What I’ve Been…Writing

Blackbirch 4 – This month, I’ve managed to work from chapter 1 to chapter 20 of what is currently 47 chapters. The draft is very far from being ready, and I still haven’t rewritten the final chapters, which need changes, but each sweep of a chapter/scene, has added new layers of backstory and character development, so I’m pretty happy with the progress.

Watching…

Inside Man – This four-episode series starring David Tennant and Stanley Tucci is a great example of telling a solid story without dragging things out. When the Vicar of a small town agrees to hide a flash drive for a parishioner, he doesn’t realize it will lead to accusations against his own teenage son and the accidental kidnapping of Janice, a tutor in the wrong place at the wrong time. Fortunately, Janice has a journalist friend that she manages to send a blurry picture to before her phone is broken, and her friend starts an investigation with the help of a death-row inmate who spends the time he has left solving crimes. That doesn’t mean he’s a good guy, in fact, he’s pretty despicable, but played so greatly by Tucci, you can’t help but feel sorry for him. You also can’t help but feel for Tennant as the Vicar who is pushed into the unthinkable trying to keep his family safe. Told tightly in the 4 episodes, this quick series is worth checking out if you like good, old-fashion British crime dramas. Don’t forget to stick around for a post-credit scene in the last episode.

One Of Us Is Lying (Season 2) – Simon Says is back, texting and torturing the unluckiest detention group who have now infamously evolved into Murder Club at Bayview High and aren’t hiding the fact they’re all friends now. They do, after all, have two murders between them: one they were framed for, and one a member committed in self-defense that the rest are covering up. Somehow, Simon knows what happened, and the hunt is on to find out who they are. Thankfully, by the close of the season, we do, but there are still dangling threads left, a new murder where the suspect needs to be found, and a flash-forward that shows graduation for the Murder Club members ends in a bloody scene.

Dead To Me (Final Season) – Dead To Me started with the bonding of two grief victims, Judy, who accidentally hit a man with her car, and Jenn, who was married to the man Judy hit. While Jenn didn’t know who Judy was when they met, by the start of the final season, they’d both (spoilers) accidentally killed each other’s husbands and have been trying to keep each other from being jailed for the crimes. Anyone who hasn’t watched the show might ask why, but if you’ve seen the performances from Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini, you’ll understand. They play these messed-up characters perfectly, and the final season is all about their friendship and what they’ll do for each other. It has a bittersweet ending, but one that is perfect for the characters, what they’ve been through, and what they deserve for the choices they made.

Spirited – This musical re-telling of A Christmas Carol was my first Christmas movie watch of the 2022 season, and it didn’t disappoint. Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell sing and dance their way through Christmas night as Roberto (Ferrell), the Ghost of Christmas Present, and Clint (Ryan) a media consultant whose dirty tactics will have some severe consequences if he stays on his current path. Clint isn’t ready to change his ways, and Roberto needs a change, and how these problems are dealt with and resolved is actually quite refreshing. While the ending is predictable, it’s the good kind that you want to see happen. Spirited also has some very catchy tunes, especially one song that will forever change the way you view the phrase “Good Afternoon.”

Reading…

The Christmas Trip by Sandy Barker – It was so fun revisiting the characters from The Christmas Swap for this sequel. Once again, Sandy Barker knows how to lay on the Christmas nostalgia and you’re sure to find something relatable, whether it’s the longing of missing loved ones during the festive season, to fun holiday traditions shared with friends that come to mean more than family. The May Ladies are back and all loved up a year on from their Christmas Swap where they found themselves paired up. Chloe’s world-famous actor boyfriend, Archer, has organized for everyone to spend Christmas together in Hawaii, but beautiful location aside, not everything goes to plan. Archer’s ex continues to cause problems for them, Lucy is sick of feeling like she’s the only one doing the work in her long-distance relationship with Will, and Jules is afraid of moving in with Matt. Add to the mix some unexpected house guests, and their perfect Christmas is looking anything but. By the closing pages, however, you’ll be glad you joined the May Ladies, their beaus, and the new characters introduced because their drama and humor-filled adventure is a great way to get into the fun of the festive season.

The Crow’s Heart (The Stones Of Power #3) by Laurie Bell – This was such an action-packed read and a worthy third book in the Stones Of Power series. After the events of book 2, Tracey and her friends, both normal and Mage-kind, are off to London to look for the next stone. Cue vintage English mansions, life-like visions, prophetic dreams, hidden chambers, double-crosses, and everything that’s awesome about power-filled YA stories. Author, Laurie Bell, continues to create a unique magical world and layer it with history and mysteries that are expertly revealed and hinted at as the saga goes on. The friendships and blooming romances between characters are also a highlight of the book. It’s good, clean fun with characters that you care about and The Crow’s Heart leaves enough of the mystery solved and unsolved to satisfactorily lead to the next book, which I can’t wait to read!

Welcome To Denver Falls by Sim Alec Sansford – A quick read with a lot crammed in, Welcome To Denver Falls kicks off when 17-year-old Harper takes a road trip to a town she’s been researching. It was once the place of multiple murders, with the suspect seemingly disappearing into the surrounding woods. Harper believes she can help bring fresh leads to the investigation, but the Sheriff isn’t keen on her help. Neither are some of the townsfolk, who begin to follow her. Harper finds friends, too, and becomes close to fellow-teen Kendra, who works at the local bookstore, and Gideon, a boy their age who seems to only appear at night. With Gideon hiding a huge secret, and Harper discovering some truths about the horrific history of Denver Falls, this first book in the series plays all the right notes. There are enough answers and unresolved questions to complete this story but still keep you interested in what’s next for Harper. There are also some great reveals about Harper’s own dark past, family secrets, and what really ties her to Denver Falls. Highly recommended for fans of supernatural YA series.

Not Dead Yet by Hayley Walsh – This was the first book I’ve read by Hayley Walsh, but it won’t be the last. When Mary loses her husband to a heart attack and then has a fall that lands her in the hospital, she realizes it’s time to move into a retirement community. Her best friend lives in Queensland in an assisted living facility, so Mary decides to head to the sunshine state, moving from her two grown children and young grandchildren, and away from her nosy neighbor, Gertrude, a woman who Mary has wanted to tell off for many years. Through flashbacks, we learn of Mary’s life as a child who moved to the city from a country town, and of her teenage years when she had two loves. The first was Neil, the boy who moved away in their senior year of high school, and his best friend, Bob, who Mary eventually married. We also dip into the life of Mary’s best friend, Barbra, once a talented ballet dancer who had to give up the love of her life due to a secret she’d kept from everyone, including Mary. The story flows easily, and I honestly wish some chapters had been longer so we could learn more about the events and the characters. Each character is filled with such humor and heart, especially Mary, who deals with loss, big secrets, rediscovered love, and a cat who loves butter in a fun and feisty way. Recommended for readers who are fans of feel-good stories.

If you’ve got any good book recommendations, let me know in the comments, or be my friend on Goodreads and share your books/recommendations with me! You can also find and follow my reviews and book recommendations on Amazon and BookBub.

If you’d like to add the Blackbirch books to your Goodreads “Want to Read” shelf and/or check out the reviews, click the following links:

Blackbirch: The BeginningBlackbirch: The Dark HalfBlackbirch: The Ritual Taking Photos Of

Writing lunches and a rainy spring. For the first time since March, I met up with my writing friend, Belinda Grant, for lunch and a writing session. We talked all about our current WIPs and then added words to them after some delicious food.

I’ve also been taking photos of the very rainy spring weather we’ve been having. It’s officially summer here tomorrow, yet we’ve hardly had any warm days yet, so here’s hoping for a more heated turn come December.

On The Blog…

In case you missed any of my posts, or want to read them again, here are the latest blogs.

October 2022 RoundupHow To Add Unpredictability To Your Story3 Tips To Kick-Start Your Blog Post IdeasWriting Tip Of The Month…

#WritingTipWednesday posts are added to my social media feeds every week and here is the most popular tip for this month. It’s taken from my blog post, Underwriting: 6 Problems And Fixes.

For more tips, visit my Writing Tips Pinterest Board.

Blackbirch Teaser Of The Month…

This teaser is from Blackbirch: The Ritual, and was the most popular posted this month on my social media feeds.

If you’d like to read the books released so far or find out more about each novel, here are the links:

Blackbirch: The Beginning (Book 1)Blackbirch: The Dark Half (Book 2)Blackbirch: The Ritual (Book 3)

If you’ve read any of my books—and haven’t done so already—please consider leaving a review or even just a star rating. It really helps indie authors get their books noticed, and also helps fellow readers find books they’ll like.

Quote Of The Month…

I hope you’ve enjoyed my November Roundup. What did you get up to this month?

— K.M. Allan

You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

3 Tips To Kick-Start Your Blog Post Ideas

Whether you’ve been blogging for years or only a few weeks, there’s always a point when you will sit at your desk, laptop open/computer screen on, and you’ll have absolutely no idea what to write.

Maybe you’ve already covered the topics you wanted to and don’t know where to go next. Or maybe every idea just doesn’t make it past an initial paragraph. You want to write, you’re just unsure what to say or are having trouble putting it into words that make sense to anyone but you.

It happens to even the most prolific of us, but here are a few tips you can try to get the ideas rolling again.

3 Tips To Kick-Start Your Blog Post IdeasLook At What Content You’re Missing

Even regular bloggers have topics they’ve missed over the years or haven’t covered in a while that might need an update as they’ve learned new things.

If you’re stuck for post ideas, look at what content you have covered in the last year or two, or even as far back as the start of your blog, and see if there’s content you’re missing.

Sometimes we had grand plans of writing about something particular, but never got to it, or didn’t feel we knew enough about it. Look back at any notes or ideas you made that you haven’t taken further and see if you can address the topic now.

Another suggestion is to check if there are any topics you talk about but haven’t covered in a singular post. For example, you might often mention conflict being an excellent addition to any story but haven’t written a specific post about it.

The content you’re missing might just be what’s needed to fill the gaps when you’re struggling for new ideas.

Study The Content That Has Worked In The Past

If you’ve been blogging regularly for longer than six months, chances are you had a period where you were producing your best content. The ideas were flowing; the posts were getting good feedback, and you were at your creative peak.

You then discovered what bloggers who’ve been around for years have: those peaks ebb and flow. You’re most likely in an ebb right now, so go back to when things were flowing and look at what content worked well in the past.

Were you a little more inspired with your words? Did your posts have some fun about them? Were you covering topics that were just as interesting for you as they were for your readers? Look at what made those posts such a joy to write, and see if you can re-capture that glory.

Get More Mileage Out Of Your Ideas

Sometimes when writing a post, it might start out as one thing, but then go in another direction. This means you didn’t cover what you intended to, but that is a good thing because now you can, giving you another piece of content!

Or you could find your post has become longer than most as multiple ideas came together as you were writing. When this happens, check to see if you can use the abundant creativity to your advantage and spit the idea into separate posts.

So, instead of covering scenes and scene sequels in one post, write a post covering just scenes and another one discussing just the scene sequels. If there is a way to get multiple pieces of good content (and this goes for good content, not just splitting ideas for the sake of it), try it!

See how much mileage and separate blog posts you can create. You could end up giving more depth to a topic when writing about it separately than if it was a few paragraphs in another topic—which is always a win.

When you combine that kind of win with studying your past content and looking at what topics you haven’t covered yet, you should kick-start your ideas and end up with plenty of new blog posts.

— K.M. Allan

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

How To Add Unpredictability To Your Story

When you think of a compelling read, the fact you couldn’t see any of the twists and turns happening is probably one reason why you couldn’t put the book down.

Unpredictability in a story is such a fun feature to come across as a reader, and something any writer will benefit from in their own work, so here’s how you can!

How To Add Unpredictability To Your StoryDouble Down On The Doubt

Making your readers doubt a character’s motives, actions, or the truth in a story can make your book a page-turner. How to take it to an unpredictable level is to double down on that doubt.

As an example, imagine that you’ve hinted at the actual killer, dropped everything on the most obvious suspect, but also left some doubt about if it’s really them by focusing things on a side character too.

The reader thinks they have it all worked out until the closing chapters where you double that doubt and suddenly everything points to your MC being the true villain!

No reader will know where the story is going after that. You’ve most likely blown their minds, and they won’t be able to put the book down.

If you’d love that outcome for your own tome, brainstorm how you can work doubt into your scenes, and then how you can turn it on its head for a dose of uncertainty that is sure to keep your reader guessing until the last sentence.

Play Into The Familiar Before Flipping It

When you set up your story or characters familiarly, readers will play into those known tropes and stereotypes and predict exactly where you’re going with your story.

It’s a blessing, as in it gives readers what they expect and want, but also a curse because when it plays out like they know it will, you’ve got no unpredictability.

There is a way around that, however, and that’s flipping those known things.

A good example of this was a movie I watched recently called Don’t Make Me Go. It’s about a road trip taken by a single father called Max and his teenage daughter, Wally. Max has raised her alone after his wife cheated on him with his friend, and has been happily living his life, working, and enjoying a booty-call relationship he’s not ready to commit to. It’s full of stereotypes and familiar plots, including the fact his daughter wants to find out more about the mother she barely remembers and doesn’t want to go to college like her dad is expecting.

Wally wants to tell him her fears and future plan on this road trip, not knowing that Max wants to let her know that he’s just been diagnosed with cancer and the procedure to have it removed is so risky he has decided to die instead.

Taking Wally on this road trip is his way of teaching her everything he knows in life before he goes, and he’s hoping to reconnect her with her mother at the end of it so she still has one parent. Cue more stereotypes of the mother not wanting a relationship with Wally when she turns up because she has a new family. Max also finds out the affair fell apart and his ex-wife and ex-friend aren’t even together anymore, and Wally rebels on the road trip, sneaking out to parties, crashing their car as Max teaches her to drive, and everything else you can imagine in a road trip movie.

It’s all very familiar until there’s a twist. Something so unpredictable (but ingeniously foreshadowed when the movie flashes back through scenes after the twist happens) that this clichéd, familiar movie is flipped on its head.

I won’t spoil it, and encourage you to consider looking up where Don’t Make Me Go is streaming and giving it a watch. It was full of predictability until it wasn’t, and a good example of how to play into the familiar before flipping it to something that will give unpredictability to a story and leave an impression on any audience.

Give Everyone What They Deserve (The Good And The Bad)

One predictable thing that readers love to see in a story is the hero scrapping through the battle triumphantly, and the villain getting their comeuppance. But what if the hero deserves some punishment too?

Sometimes our MC, even if they are the star of the story, does gray area stuff. No human is perfect, and well-rounded characters have flaws. If your MC has done something that deserves repercussions, don’t ignore it.

Don’t get them out of it and act as if everything is sunshine and rainbows because the hero always wins. Your reader will expect that, just as they expect the antagonist to lose. But if everyone has been bad, they all deserve what’s coming for them.

On the flip side, an antagonist who can’t foil the MC as predicted could find themselves with an unpredictable win. Their scheming ways may have seen them miss out on being valedictorian, but coming off second-best may lead to something even better for them. Readers won’t see a win for the antagonist coming, so don’t just play into the predictability of everyone getting whatever good or bad ending they deserve and leave it at that.

Take things a step further. See how both a fail and a victory can play out for every character and work that into your story. It won’t be something a reader is expecting and may just give a much more satisfying end to your story thanks to the unpredictability.

When you combine giving everyone what they deserve, flipping the familiar, and doubling down on your doubt, a compelling read should be yours.

— K.M. Allan

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

October 2022 Roundup

Welcome to the October 2022 roundup!

If you read last month’s roundup, you’ll know I was heading off for the surgery I’d been waiting over a year to have. Unfortunately, for the fourth time since 2020, it was canceled while I sat in hospital admissions and I really began to question if the universe was conspiring against me.

It turns out that the hysterectomy I’d been told was the only option for my endometriosis was actually the final option that should have been offered, and long story short, the hospital wanted me to try less invasive options instead. With the endo and adhesions from previous surgeries making further surgery complicated and dangerous, I was happy to give these other choices a try, so that’s what I’ll be doing for the next few months.

Given the stress of more surgery upheaval, it was a crappy start to October for me and I did spend some of it wallowing, trying to emotionally work through the issues this ongoing drama has caused to my mental health, and the physical adjustments of recovering from a day procedure that I had instead of the major surgery. It was a lot, but I’ve come through the other side of it now and I’m moving on until I know more after my next specialist appointment in December.

As for the rest of October, this is what I got up to…

What I’ve Been…Writing

Blackbirch 4 – Although I managed to add 7,000 words to Blackbirch 4 last month, October wasn’t as productive. I did outline the current 47 chapters, realized how much re-writing I’m going to need to do to the ending (it needs a new one), and broke scenes up into character POVs to check that I had a fair balance. It was one of those organizing and thinking months (i.e: Procrasta-Writing), which I’m sure is a part of everyone’s writing process (right?). Now that I’ve done all of that, I’m hoping for a more productive November and some decent re-writing/editing progress.

Watching…

Hocus Pocus 2 – I love the original Hocus Pocus, so the sequel was an anticipated watch. While the cast of the young Sanderson Sisters was spot on, learning more about their backstory and how they came to have their spell book and powers was interesting, and the new crop of teens who set them free all did a great job, there was just something missing from this movie. It didn’t have the charm of the original, even in the parts that it tried to copy beat for beat. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t great either, and I think I’ll stick to the first movie from now on.

Luckiest Girl Alive – Based on a book that was part of the Gone Girl/Girl On The Train wave of storytelling, Luckiest Girl Alive centers on Ani, a writer working for a magazine and planning her wedding. When a filmmaker contacts her about taking part in a documentary about a school shooting she’d survived years earlier, Ani’s carefully created new life starts to fall apart. Through flashbacks, we find out the horrible circumstances leading to the school shooting, which includes gang rape and what Ani had to do to survive the killings. It’s graphic, and not part of any of the trailers, so if you didn’t know it going in (like me) it’s shocking. But it does start a dialogue on the importance of listening to victims and believing them, and I think Mila Kunis did a good job as the grown-up Ani.

Rosaline – This move was a fun take on a Shakespeare side character. Rosaline is Juliet’s cousin and the reason Romeo goes to the Capulet ball. When he can’t find her, he meets and falls in love with Juliet, leading to their tragic love story. Rosaline the movie, imagines what would happen if Rosaline tries to win Romeo back. It’s an interesting story to explore, and even though the costumes and set pieces are Shakespearean, the dialogue is modern, which actually works. Anchored by the awesome Kaitlyn Dever, it’s a playful rom-com that continues the humor right into the credits.

The Midnight Club – Having read the book this series was based on last month, the story and characters were fresh in my mind and it was nice to see them come to life on the small screen and the nods and easter eggs to Christopher Pike’s body of work. Thankfully, only one story from The Midnight Club book was kept as part of this series (The Two Danas), and the others were scrapped in favor of better tales by the author. Although some of the stories had the characters gender-swapped, and interesting story elements cut in order to cram everything in, the only misstep I thought was taking Gimme A Kiss, one of Pike’s classic detective/murder mystery novels, and making it a black and white gumshoe homage, which made the dialogue and acting come off as laughable.

The Midnight Club TV series centers on a group of dying teens in a hospice with a creepy history who get together at midnight to swap spooky stories. There are some genuine jump-scare moments and real heart to the characters who are all desperate to do anything that will stop them from dying, even an ancient ritual in the secret basement. While the TV adaption is better than the source material, the focus on some of the individual stories is not, so if you watch it and any tales spark your interest, check out the books they’re based on (the episode names will let you know what they are). The plot doesn’t wrap up completely, leaving things open for season 2, and there is one nice little twist at the end that will have you hoping Netflix gives it the green light.

Reading…

Holding Up The Sky by Rebecca Alasdair – I loved this debut novel. Carter is in his senior year, the school captain, and working toward his goal of becoming a doctor. On the outside, he looks like he has it all. On the inside, he’s hiding the ongoing pain of losing his older brother and father in a car accident, a mother who abandons him for the bottle every night, and the pressures of trying to live up to the person he thinks his dead brother would want him to be. Carter also has another secret, one that becomes harder to hide when a new boy, Remy, joins the school and Carter realizes he is gay. This story deals with trauma and heavy issues, but is done so delicately and with care by the author. By the end pages, you’ll feel what Carter is going through, and the growth of his character and the others around him is a joy to read. The meaning behind the book’s title is a perfect summary of the story and the reveal of it within the final sentences just brings it all home. Highly recommended for YA readers who enjoy coming of age and coming out stories full of heart and life lessons.

Ghost Of A Life by Ruth Miranda – Beautifully written, this is a love story crossed with past life mysteries and possessive hauntings. When Andrej overdoses at a party, he’s clinically dead for 8 minutes, during a time when a car in another country leaves the road, killing Oliver’s stepfather at the exact same time. Oliver is also severely injured in the crash and needs to learn to walk again. 5 years later, his path crosses with Andrej and through an instant connection and their mutual attraction to each other, they begin to realize a traumatic event on the same night is not the only thing tying them together. Flashbacks to journals of Oliver’s distant relatives reveal a sordid family history of affairs and a murder that took place where Andrej overdosed, leading Oliver to suspect a vengeful ghost has possessed his new boyfriend and may be the very reason they met in the first place. The threads of the interconnecting stories and past lives are a real highlight of this book, as are the action-packed final chapters. The best part, however, is the twist at the end, expertly revealed in the final sentence by a talented writer.

What The Knocker-Upper Woke Up by Sarah J. Maxwell – Set in London, this fantasy mystery from Sarah J. Maxell is told in descriptive detail with an imaginative world that is both interesting and terrifying. When Tess’s little brother disappears one morning while they’re visiting their clock-maker grandfather, she ventures to an area behind his clock shop that has always felt strange and off-putting to Tess. What she had been sensing is Sideways, an unseen, gray world that pulls victims into it to feed the Sideways Lady. An entity born from a fire that ravaged a mental asylum many years ago, the Sideways Lady is attracted to shiny things and children, one of whom woke her up. Alice, a knocker-upper in Victorian London times, has been trapped in Sideways for centuries and helps Tess navigate it to find and save her brother. Changed by her visit to the horrifying place, Tess vows to defeat the Sideways Lady in a plan that is both brave and heartbreaking. A must-read for anyone who enjoys spooky stories, interesting characters, and well-written works.

Tricked In October (Pineridge, #2) by Starla DeKruyf – After losing her partner and the father of her kids, Kelsey has been having a rough time. The bar her partner ran is in financial trouble and she can’t get any help from the bank. Her best friend Davis could help. Now a semi-celebrity thanks to a renovating reality show with his twin brother, Davis is looking for an escape from his TV contract, and becoming a partner in Kelsey’s bar could help him do that. He and Kelsey have been friends for so long, however, that he knows she’d never take his help without some trickery. The trouble is, Davis’ feelings for Kelsey have changed lately too. He’s been seeing her in a different light, and can’t stop thinking about her in a way that’s deeper than their friendship, and he’s starting to think Kelsey might feel the same way. There are lots of will-they-won’t-they? tension in this book and both Kelsey and Davis are fun characters with flaws dealing with expectations, family pressures, and new feelings neither of them expected. They’re the kind of characters you want to follow to the last page to see how things work out for them, which makes Tricked In October an all-around fun read, especially for fans of best-friends-to-lovers tropes.

If you’ve got any good book recommendations, let me know in the comments, or be my friend on Goodreads and share your books/recommendations with me! You can also find and follow my reviews and book recommendations on Amazon and BookBub.

If you’d like to add the Blackbirch books to your Goodreads “Want to Read” shelf and/or check out the reviews, click the following links:

Blackbirch: The BeginningBlackbirch: The Dark HalfBlackbirch: The Ritual Taking Photos Of

Halloween. It gets bigger here in Australia every year and it’s hard to not be swept up in the spooky season when you see all the houses around you decorated, as I did when on my October daily walks.

On The Blog…

In case you missed any of my posts, or want to read them again, here are the latest blogs.

September 2022 Roundup3 Simple Ways To Make Readers Care About Your CharactersWriting Delays: What You Can’t Control And The One Thing You CanWriting Tip Of The Month…

#WritingTipWednesday posts are added to my social media feeds every week and here is the most popular tip for this month. It’s taken from my blog post, Blogging Tips.

For more tips, visit my Writing Tips Pinterest Board.

Blackbirch Review Of The Month…

This review is from Blackbirch: The Dark Half, and was the most popular review posted this month on my social media feeds.

If you’d like to read the books released so far or find out more about each novel, here are the links:

Blackbirch: The Beginning (Book 1)Blackbirch: The Dark Half (Book 2)Blackbirch: The Ritual (Book 3)

If you’ve read any of my books—and haven’t done so already—please consider leaving a review or even just a star rating. It really helps indie authors get their books noticed, and also helps fellow readers find books they’ll like.

Quote Of The Month…

I hope you’ve enjoyed my October Roundup. What did you get up to this month?

— K.M. Allan

You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

Writing Delays: What You Can’t Control And The One Thing You Can

Even the most organized writer who puts words on the page and completes their writing to-do list every day runs into delays that drag out the process of penning a book.

Such obstacles can test the biggest optimist, and as much as we’d like to think we’re in control of them, the hard truth is that we aren’t, as the following will show.

Writing Delays: What You Can’t Control And The One Thing You CanWhat You Can’t Control…Working On Your Book During Times Of Stress

You won’t know when it’ll happen, ironically adding to the stress, but things will pop up that can make writing near impossible.

This could be on the one day you don’t have time for it, months on end, or even stretch out years (hello, worldwide pandemic!).

The mental toll of uncertainty is just one way to wipe out all of your creativity, and it will bring your WIP to a halt, even if all you want to do is work on it. You can’t control this, so lean into it. Take the time you need to work through the stress and don’t add to it with the guilt of not working on your words.

Everyone needs a break, and trying to write during immense stress is an occasion when you have the right to opt out.

Do yourself and your work that kind turn and come back when things are dealt with and you’re in the right mental and physical place to give the words your best.

Outside Help

While the idea might be yours alone and the chapters crafted from draft one to draft too many in solitude, at some point, you’ll need outside help. What you can’t control is how much of an advantage or disadvantage that will be.

Beta readers, editors, book formatters, cover designers, proofreaders, ARC readers, agents, or publisher-organized help is not in your control—no matter how much you wish it was.

Writers generally can’t produce a finished manuscript alone, and the other people that you need to rely on have lives and deadlines of their own. Even if they’ve promised to help and have agreed to your timeline, things change.

Some beta readers might not know they can’t finish a read or aren’t a good fit until they get to your MS. If you’re lucky, they’ll let you know straight away so you can try to organize someone else. We’re all human, though, and sometimes betas don’t say that they’ve made no progress until deadlines have been and gone. You can’t control that or what it does to your best-laid plans.

The same goes for the editor/formatter/cover designer/proofreader you wanted not being able to work on your project until 6 months after you’d hoped to book them. Relying on others means meeting their deadlines, not yours, so try to keep that in mind when making your plans, and be prepared to roll with the punches of outside help.

An Uncooperative Muse

Sometimes, that thing you can’t control in writing is you.

When inspiration strikes during writing it is a thing of beauty. When inspiration dries up, there’s nothing more frustrating for someone creative.

No matter what you’ve tried in the past, there will be times when you just can’t get things moving. The urge to write isn’t happening. What you’re writing is crap with a capital C, or the ideas just aren’t coming together. You’re stuck. The delays are on you and you desperately want to control them.

When this happens, all you can do is surrender. Take a time out, give your writer-brain a break, and get inspired again. Read books, watch new shows and movies, journal your thoughts, anything to get those creative juices flowing and your muse (aka you) back on board.

Publishing Factors

Even if you’ve made it to the end stages relatively unscathed, the final version of the book looks great, you’ve set and announced a release date, and the countdown is on, there’s always the chance something will go wrong.

Delays to book materials happen. Technology works against you. If you’re self-publishing and it’s been a while since you’ve put together a book, all the little details you need to take care of come screaming back.

Book categories, book costs, paper options, and cover alignments all have to be thought about and worked out. Then it’s waiting for book info to pop up on the sellers so you can give readers an actual link to buy from.

There are so many things out of your control when relying on third parties that it’s enough to induce a panic attack. But, you work through what you can and (im)patiently wait for everything to fall into place.

When it comes to publishing factors, please don’t waste your time trying to control what you can’t. Set up what you need to, bury the memories until it’s time to do it again next time, and accept that everything will eventually come together, even if you want it to happen right now.

What You Can Control…

Okay, so now you may be feeling like nothing is in your control in regard to writing, but that’s not true. There is one thing, and that is…

Your love of writing.

That’s right! You started writing because you love it.

It’s not for fame, money, or glory, which realistically won’t happen for most of us, but because we love it.

Something about words, stories, and books has always connected with us, and the drive to be the person creating those things is something we can’t ignore.

That is in your control and the one thing you need to remember as you navigate everything else. When things go wrong in the process (which they will!) push through the writing delays and forget what you can’t control and revel in the delight of the one thing you can.

— K.M. Allan

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

3 Simple Ways To Make Readers Care About Your Characters

If I asked you why your favorite book is your favorite book, chances are high the reason will be because of the characters.

Yes, a great plot and lyrical prose make for a compelling read, but it’s the characters we like to follow from page to page and revisit if they leave the right impression.

So, how do we ensure we get this right impression? It’s actually a case of making readers care, and it can be easier than you think.

3 Simple Ways To Make Readers Care About Your CharactersRound Them Out With Relatability

Readers like to see themselves in characters. If they can relate to them, they will connect to them, and as a writer, you want that connection.

Make your characters relatable with traits that are universal. It’s a good idea to throw in some quirks, too. You never know how many other people out there might like the same niche pastime that you do.

You could also go the nostalgic route, adding that your character likes all the things you did growing up, like 90s rom-coms, cheese (who doesn’t love cheese?), puppies (who doesn’t love puppies?), or clowns (who doesn’t love… just kidding, no one loves clowns).

Select a key relatable trait, a quirk, and something nostalgic to add to your characters and create fictional people that feel as real to readers as themselves.

Steep Them In Sympathy

There’s a reason Save The Cat! is a much-touted piece of writing advice. If you see a character, good or bad, demonstrating a moment where they’re worth rooting for, it ups the care factor.

If you want such an endearing quality for your characters, it’s a good idea to find a way to do this.

Dig deep for incidents that have made you feel sorry for someone, or tap into having others feel that way about you, and thread it into your characters and the situations you put them in.

Show Their Multiple Sides

Showing readers multiple sides to your characters not only helps play into relatability and sympathy but it’s also a great trick on its own!

If your character is one-note, always being the goody-two-shoes, the sarcastic side-kick, or the over-the-top-destroy-everything villain, they get pretty boring, pretty quick.

However, if you play in the gray, and show that your villain is over-the-top because they suffered a tremendous, life-altering loss, or that your hero’s goody-two-shoe act is in response to a promise they made to someone special, you’ve got multiple sides.

Layers like that add to the character rather than just that one be-all and end-all side, and this makes them well-rounded enough for readers to follow them from chapter to chapter, even book to book.

So, add all the sides you can and play up the sympathy and relatability as the base of your characters and sprinkle them throughout your story. Not only will you make that caring connection with readers, but some damn good characters too.

— K.M. Allan

You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

September 2022 Roundup

Welcome to the September 2022 roundup!

Don’t worry, I didn’t accidentally publish this post before the 30th, which is when it would usually hit your inboxes/feed. Although it’s a recurring fear that I will hit publish instead of save draft anytime I’m working on blogs, I’m purposely publishing this roundup blog early because I’m taking time off.

This break is to finally have the major surgery I’ve been waiting over a year to be rescheduled, but even longer to have.

If you’ve been following my blog since 2017, you’ll know I had some health issues which led to an incorrect diagnosis of cancer, a correct diagnosis of endometriosis, a year on a specialists’ appointment list, and then a year on a surgery waiting list. I then had my surgery scheduled and canceled four times in the last two years because of covid lockdowns, and one surgery that couldn’t be completed as intended after the years of delays meant my endo had gotten worse. This has all led to the open hysterectomy that I’m having tomorrow, as long as there are no more delays, of course.

Due to the expected recovery, I’m taking a break for two weeks, and will then assess where I’m at health-wise, and how easy it’ll be to sit back at my desk to do all of my word-smithing.

So, while I’ll spend the last week of September in hospital and then at home recovering, this is what I did for the first three weeks of the month…

What I’ve Been…Writing

Blackbirch 4 – I returned to my Blackbirch 4 manuscript to make as much progress as I could before my break. My aim was to spend the two weeks prior to surgery adding 500 new words every day to either existing scenes or new scenes, and I’m happy to say that I hit that goal.

I know 500 words might not seem like much, but it’s a sweet spot for me that keeps things from being overwhelming. Adding what ended up being 7,000 new words to my WIP also made me really motivated to work on the manuscript, which I’m hoping will hold true when I’m healthy enough to return to my desk.

Watching And Reading…

The Bear (Season 1) – You might have seen everyone raving about this new series and the praise is justified. It’s a masterclass in dialogue, character ARCs, and dealing with trauma. When Carmy, an award-winning chef, inherits the family deli after his brother’s suicide, not only does he have to deal with workers who aren’t happy with the changes he wants to make, but the bad business decisions his brother made.

Coming to terms with his relationship and estrangement with his brother, who was an alcoholic, is also a storyline explored throughout, as well as the lives of a new sous chef hired by Carmy, and a chef who wants to use his job at the deli to take his cake baking to the next level. It’s an interesting and quick watch and has already been renewed for season 2.

Do Revenge – If the fact this movie stars Camila Mendes (Veronica from Riverdale), Maya Hawke (Robin from Stranger Things), and a supporting role from Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy The Vampire Slayer herself) aren’t enough to pique your interest, the homages to 90s movies will. Do Revenge follows Drea (Camila), a scholarship student at a rich school who is dating the right boy, hanging with the right friends, and on the path to Yale. When a sex tape scandal sees her boyfriend and friends abandon her, Drea befriends a new transfer to her school.

Eleanor (Maya) has her own tale of woe against a student who outed her before she was ready and she and Drea decide to do each other’s revenge. Cue makeover montages, Eleanor going from outsider to popular, Drea falling for a boy below her status, and every other cliché, which is what makes it so fun. There’s a late-minute plot twist, which was foreshadowed and well played, and an ending that redeems some of the so-so parts. Are these characters the best? No. Do they actually deserve some of the horrible things that happen to them? Yes. But the lessons, great visuals, and awesome soundtrack make up for it.

The Midnight Club by Christopher Pike – While Christopher Pike is my favorite author (The Ritual is dedicated to him), I don’t love all of his books and The Midnight Club is a so-so one for me. The blurb promises a creepy story about a group of dying teens who meet at midnight in a respite hospital to swap scary stories after making a pact that the first to die will send the others a sign from the afterlife. While that does kinda happen, it’s not scary. The stories swapped aren’t that great either, but as always, Pike is a master of dialogue and characters, and he does make you care about the teens, although it doesn’t really come together until the last 15 pages. There’s also an epilogue that feels like it should have been part of a different book entirely.

What The Midnight Club does right is delicately tackle cancer, dying young, and AIDS, which at the time of its original release in 1994, brought up topics not often seen in YA books (at least not the ones I was reading). Overall, storywise, this isn’t a fav of mine, but I am interested to see what they’ll do with the Netflix adaption next month, which was the reason for my re-read of it this month.

The Heart Rehab Experiment by Starla DeKruyf – When 40-something Pete loses his wife to cancer, he moves into his eldest daughter’s house, lives in her pink robe, and shows no sign of moving out or moving on. Tess wants to start her own family, but can’t do that with her dad always around and is given the details of Jules, a former therapist turned interventionist who runs a program to get men back into the dating game. At Jules’s request, she agrees to not share with Pete that it’s a dating program, which becomes an issue when she starts falling for this adorkable dad.

This is one of those books full of references (Pete is based on actor Paul Rudd and even casual fans will spot references to his movies). It’s something the author does well in her books, and one of the reasons why I like reading her work. The story hit’s all the right beats; families moving on from loss, adult children finding their own place in the world, love after loss, and everything you’d expect from a humous rom-com, which makes it worth a read if smile-inducing romances are your thing.

If you’ve got any good book recommendations, let me know in the comments, or be my friend on Goodreads and share your books/recommendations with me! You can also find and follow my reviews and book recommendations on Amazon and BookBub.

If you’d like to add the Blackbirch books to your Goodreads “Want to Read” shelf and/or check out the reviews, click the following links:

Blackbirch: The BeginningBlackbirch: The Dark HalfBlackbirch: The Ritual Taking Photos Of

Botanical Gardens. With some nice weather and Spring finally hitting us here in Australia, it was the best time to visit the Dandenong Botanical Gardens and see all the new flowers in bloom.

On The Blog…

In case you missed any of my posts, or want to read them again, here are the latest blogs.

August 2022 RoundupHow To Give Your Characters ConflictBlogging Tricks For Keeping On Top Of Your Content

Author Interviews!

This month, I was lucky enough to feature in a podcast chat with Veronica and Darren from Australian Book Lovers. They started a new Writer’s Lounge segment, and I was invited to be the first guest and talk about writing, books, and milkshake flavors.

I also had an interview with the awesome Hayley Walsh where we talked about childhood book favorites, influences, and writing. You can check out each interview at the following links.

Writer’s Lounge – ABL PodcastHayley Walsh: Author Interview with K.M. AllanWriting Tip Of The Month…

#WritingTipWednesday posts are added to my social media feeds every week and here is the most popular tip for this month. It’s taken from my blog post, Blogging Tips.

For more tips, visit my Writing Tips Pinterest Board.

Blackbirch Teaser Of The Month…

This teaser is from my latest release: Blackbirch: The Ritual, and was the most popular teaser posted this month on my social media feeds. In this particular scene, Sheriff Stevens has discovered the truth about the magick in Blackbirch, and that it’s very different from the power he was raised to believe led to nothing but trouble.

If you’d like to read the books released so far or find out more about each novel, here are the links:

Blackbirch: The Beginning (Book 1)Blackbirch: The Dark Half (Book 2)Blackbirch: The Ritual (Book 3)

If you’ve read any of my books—and haven’t done so already—please consider leaving a review or even just a star rating. It really helps indie authors get their books noticed, and also helps fellow readers find books they’ll like.

Quote Of The Month…

I hope you’ve enjoyed my September Roundup. I’ll be back soon with new blogs, and with any luck, no more chronic pain!

— K.M. Allan

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

Blogging Tricks For Keeping On Top Of Your Content

The key to a successful blog is well-written content that’s posted regularly.

For some bloggers, that means a post every day. For others, it’s once a week or every other week. That’s a decent amount of content to create and oversee from an idea, to the first draft, and to a published post, year after year.

With a workload like that, amongst other creative endeavors and responsibilities, you’ll want to keep on top of your content with as much ease as possible. And that is where the following tricks will come in handy!

Blogging Tricks For Keeping On Top Of Your ContentWork Ahead Regularly

If you’re able to make the time to draft one blog post, why not try two? They both don’t need to be completed in one session, but if you get one completely written and another half-written or outlined then you’re already at an advantage the next time you sit at your keyboard.

If you do this regularly enough, you’ll always have an idea of what you’re working on for blog posts. Having something semi or fully completed also stops the horror of staring at a blank page and gives you a buffer of content if you aren’t able to create something fresh during your usual blogging routine.

Draft When/Where You Can

If you’ve ever noted down sentences first thing in the morning when half awake, standing in line, as soon as you’ve gotten out of the shower (the place where all the best ideas pop into your head), or while waiting in your car for a meeting to start or a school pickup, you’ve discovered the fun of drafting when and where you can!

Just as we never know when the muse will strike when writing, the idea for a blog may hit you at unexpected times. You could also build a habit of putting down ideas when you’ve got a few minutes to spare, so resist checking social media for the tenth time that day and be productive instead.

Keep an ideas folder in the notes section of your phone (or a notebook and pen in your bag/car if you like the idea of going old-school) and jot down ideas, paragraphs, and even whole posts. It’s a better use of your time, it’s relaxing, and it will get you ahead with your content.

Set Up A Schedule That Works For You

If you’re the type of writer who loves schedules, this trick is for you!

Making the time to blog is the first step to getting any content written. Having a consistent and workable schedule is the second step. There is, of course, the actual act of writing the content itself (yeah, unfortunately, you’ve still got to do that), but that works much better when you have a schedule that works for you.

If you can consistently blog for ten minutes a day, do that. If you can only spend 2 hours on a Thursday, that’s your goal. If you can knock out 5 blog posts in one day, and then nothing again until the next month, say hello to your schedule.

Work out when you can write regularly and lock it into your to-do list. Stick to that schedule for as long as it works, and then readjust as needed.

Plan The Content

When you’re first starting as a blogger, you may not know what you want to write about or have enough ideas for more than a handful of posts. That’s fine. Write what you can until you find your voice, style, and content direction. Once you do, get into the habit of planning that content.

This will help you create regular content, build up a reliable body of work, and provide inspiration and direction for those times when getting on top of your content is hard.

Personally, I like to work out how many times I need to post in a month. Once I have that number, I know how many posts need to be written, and from there, I can pick the topics, research, and/or start outlining.

Sometimes it’s a struggle to get the topic/content for one month, other times, I get so inspired I can come up with 2 months’ worth of blog content ideas. With everything planned, including a regular blog roundup post, it makes keeping on top of the content a fun and straightforward job.

Take Advantage Of Inspiration Flashes

As already mentioned, sometimes writing blogs feels like the hardest thing in the world. The idea-well dries up, getting five minutes to pen something is impossible, or every sentence just comes out wrong.

Other times, the blogging muse smiles upon you and you’re flush with ideas, time, and the creativity to get everything down in a way that makes sense. When that happens, take advantage of it and craft as many posts as you can while the inspirational going is good.

Open Up For Guest Content

If you’re really finding yourself stuck when creating your own content, or at least getting it to a publishable standard, but you do have the time to work on blogs, consider opening up for guest posts.

Sharing your blog space can bring fresh voices and ideas to your readers, connect you with other creatives, and provide content that doesn’t take as much time to put together as when you’re writing solo.

That’s not to say that guest content isn’t hard work. You still need to find the guests/posts, organize deadlines for getting said content, put it together, and market it as you would your own posts. But dedicating a selection of posts to guest content isn’t as involved as penning your own, so it’s certainly a good option to get ahead if that’s something you’d like to explore.

Write Now, Post Later

Just because you’ve written the post doesn’t mean it has to be posted right away. You may also want to write content, such as blogs about your current WIP, but not publish them until the book is released as a form of book promo.

As you’re going through the writing process and inspiration strikes, consider writing a blog post about WIP fun or an issue you’re having crafting your book, and then set it aside. You’ll then have relevant content to post, a book that’s related to that content that can be bought then and there by intrigued readers, and one less thing to worry about in the rush of a book release.

Keep that tip in mind as you work ahead, draft in those spare moments, stick to your schedule, plan content for yourself and from guests, and take advantage whenever the inspiration strikes and you should always have blog content to keep on top of.

— K.M. Allan

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

How To Give Your Characters Conflict

When it comes to penning a story, there are a few essential ingredients to add to the mix, and one of them is conflict.

Why? Because humans love drama. That’s the reason reality TV shows are still around and why readers enjoy stories that use conflict to hold their interest.

Does that mean your book needs to be filled with back-stabbing scenarios and crazy plot twists? No (although if that’s the book you want to write, go for it!). Conflict does not have to be over-the-top or even in the reader’s face. Quiet conflict, the kind a character internally wrestles with, can be just as entertaining and thought-provoking when done right, so try sprinkling it and other types of conflict in with these tips.

How To Give Your Characters ConflictTake Away What Your Character Wants/Needs

A classic case of conflict is taking something important from your character.

If they need a certain grade to get into school, have them fail. If they live for their child, what would happen if they were separated?

Think about how you would feel if something essential for your life was ripped away and channel it into your words. When your MC has to fight for what they want/need, the conflict is guaranteed, so do as much taking as you can.

Pile On The Consequences

A character who wins all the time gets stale quickly, but a character who has consequences for their wins is one that maintains interest.

If you want that kind of factor in your story, take a look at the events and make sure you’ve included consequences—good and bad—for your characters and their actions.

The more consequences you have, the more it could lead to other issues, which will only compound that conflict, automatically upping the interest.

Create Flawed Characters

A well-rounded character is a flawed character and you can use those flaws to inject conflict into your story.

To try this, give your character something to achieve, and then throw everything at them to mess it up. A huge promotion after a year of hard work could see your MC realize they aren’t cut out for their new role. Whether they sink with their shortcomings or rise above them and become better is a story readers love to follow—all thanks to conflict.

Make Things Personal

How many books have you read and movies have you seen that really kicked off once something personal happened to the MC? I’m going to say a fair few because that’s good storytelling.

When something is personal for a character, they will go to the ends of the earth, betray their nearest and dearest, rob a bank, and/or sacrifice themselves. After all, John Wick didn’t massacre his way through 3 movies for no reason. They killed his dog.

Give your MC something personal to win or lose and it forces them to act or do something, usually outlandish, leaving the conflict to create itself.

Cram Them Between A Rock And A Hard Place

Conflict works because it’s usually nothing good. If you want to amp that up, put your character between the proverbial rock and a hard place.

Give them lose-lose situations, such as deciding if their spouse dies at the cost of their child.

Yes, it’s cruel and a grim decision, but it’s also conflict gold. Readers will be on the edge wondering how things will pan out, and if they’d do the same in a similar situation. They’ll also keep reading to find out.

Disrupt The Status Quo

Is your character living their best life? Are they happy in their dream job, or in their relationship? Did they just get the house they wanted, or marry their first love? If so, change it!

Add conflict by disrupting every normal thing in their life and upending the status quo.

Family secrets, deception, underhanded work by a colleague—almost anything can be changed from the usual to something left of field, fueling everything that happens to your character with, you guessed it, conflict.

Isolate The Main Character

While we could all do with a little me-time now and then, isolation that is extreme and ongoing isn’t ideal.

Nobody does well in such situations, and neither would your MC. Try taking away their support system, either via circumstance, the actions of an antagonist, or from the character’s own choices, and not only will you create conflict, but it could be what turns your book into a must-read.

That’s the power of compelling conflict and why making it an essential part of your story will benefit your book.

— K.M. Allan

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

August 2022 Roundup

Welcome to the August 2022 roundup!

Finally, I can write a monthly roundup and use the words: I released a book! It’s been 2 years between novels, which was not something I intended. Like everyone in the world, the pandemic threw things for a loop and my creativity was not where it needed to be to get book 3 out 6 months after book 2, but I’m hoping to not have the same issues when it comes to the fourth and final book, and I promise it will be out ASAP.

In case you missed all of my other blog posts this month, book 3 in the Blackbirch series, The Ritual is available now in paperback and ebook from various retailers. The links are here and all the books in the series are still at a lower price for a few more days if you’d like to read them.

The launch went well and I just want to thank everyone who shared posts on social media and their well-wishes. It was so lovely to see all of the support. The Ritual even hit #1 and #2 on some of the Hot New Release charts for Amazon.com.au, so thank you to everyone who bought a copy and contributed to that awesome event.

As for the 8th month of 2022, this is what else I was up to…

What I’ve Been…Writing

Blog posts – With Blackbirch: The Ritual ready and then released, I spent August getting ahead with blog content so I can start working on draft 7 of Blackbirch 4 for the majority of September.

Watching And Reading…

Paper Girls (Season 1) – When four newspaper delivery girls from the ’80s get caught in the crossfire of a time travel war, they are thrown to the current day where they have to team up with adult versions of themselves to try and get home. This was such a fun concept and I loved the time travel issues and the friendships between the girls, who are strangers when things go haywire. They form a good bond by the last episode, and there’s a nice little cliffhanger at the end to keep you on the hook for season 2.

Locke And Key (Final Season) – Concluded after 3 seasons, Locke And Key became a real fave of mine and I think they did the story and characters justice. It was also a planned wrap-up of the series, so everything finished in a neat bow, which (in my opinion), is always a win when a TV series ends. The final season focuses on the youngest Locke sibling, Bode, as he uses a newly found time key to undo some of the events of the previous season, but not in a good way. Teaming up with his sister Kinsey, brother Tyler, and their mom Nina, who now knows about the magic of the keys, they try to put things right and finally come to terms with the event that started it all–the death of their dad. Giving closure to threads from all seasons, this was definitely one of the better show finales I’ve seen.

Project Pandora (Fortune’s Well Book 2) by Chantelle Atkins and Sim Alec Sansford – Once again Chantelle Atkins and Sim Alex Sansford have expertly blended their writing voices together to continue the story from Fortune’s Well of JJ and the strange mist he can control. After being taken from his Uncle’s farm and having his contact with Darcie cut, JJ is made a prisoner. In the search for him, both teens discover more about the town’s past and its secrets. JJ isn’t the only one with powers and the reveal of who else has them and how the powers came to be is just one of the great things about this book. Also noteworthy is the twist return of a character introduced in book one, and the cliffhanger ending to lead to book 3, which I can’t wait to read! Highly recommended for fans of small-town secrets, powerful teens, and paranormal storylines.

The Throwaway Queen (Ushallav’s Queen Series Book 1) by Whitney McGruder – When Queen Anjali and her entourage are ambushed on the way to visit her home country, everyone thinks she and the baby she was weeks away from delivering are dead. Instead, she’s spent two years re-gaining her strength so she can go back to her first child and husband, King Damir. But upon her miraculous return, she finds her husband remarried with a new family, and that the person who tried to assassinate her is prepared to finish the job. Not only does Anjali need to work out who it is, but also who she can trust. While it’s a little slow pace-wise (for me), The Throwaway Queen does a good job of exploring big subjects like gender and racial discrimination, and motherhood. It also brings things home in the end with an action-packed finale, villain reveal, and sets everything up for the next book in the series.

If you’ve got any good book recommendations, let me know in the comments, or be my friend on Goodreads and share your books/recommendations with me! You can also find and follow my reviews and book recommendations on Amazon and BookBub.

Also, if you’d like to add the Blackbirch books to your Goodreads “Want to Read” shelf and/or check out the reviews, click the following links:

Blackbirch: The Beginning (Goodreads)Blackbirch: The Dark Half (Goodreads)Blackbirch: The Ritual (Goodreads)

Taking Photos Of

The changing seasons! While some mornings are still cold and foggy, we’re quickly morphing into spring, which has been adding plenty of color to my daily walks.

On The Blog…

In case you missed any of my posts, or want to read them again, here are the latest blogs.

July 2022 RoundupThings To Accept When You Put A Book Into The WorldBlackbirch: The Ritual Cover RevealBlackbirch: The Ritual Is Out Now!Thoughts That Run Through Your Head When You Release A Book That Was Hard To WriteWriting Tip Of The Month…

#WritingTipWednesday posts are added to my social media feeds every week and here is the most popular tip for this month. It’s taken from my blog post, Character Motivation: Tips and Tricks.

For more tips, visit my Writing Tips Pinterest Board.

Blackbirch Review Of The Month…

This review is one of the latest for the new book, Blackbirch: The Ritual, and was the most popular review posted this month on my social media feeds.

If you’d like to read the books released so far or find out more about each novel, here are the links:

Blackbirch: The Beginning (Book 1)Blackbirch: The Dark Half (Book 2)Blackbirch: The Ritual (Book 3)

If you’ve read any of my books—and haven’t done so already—please consider leaving a review or even just a star rating. It really helps indie authors get their books noticed, and also helps fellow readers find books they’ll like.

Quote Of The Month…

I’ve hoped you’ve enjoyed my August Roundup. Let me know what you’ve been up to in the comments!

— K.M. Allan

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.