Raven Oak's Blog, page 24
February 6, 2019
Feline Fireteam
Feline Fireteam? What in the hell am I talking about? Only one of the best presents ever!
For my birthday this past December, my husband commissioned some custom art from a game concept artist named Jake Myler, who planned to use the proceeds to help the animals rescued in the California wildfires. (Way too many animals were injured and displaced over the months of rampant wildfires that ravaged California in 2018. Various animal organizations stepped in to help.) The art would be people’s p...
January 30, 2019
Dear Newbie Writers
Oh, the things I could write about here, but today I’m going to focus on something I wish I’d known when I first began my career–contracts.
Newbie writers don’t like to think about the nitty-gritty of contracts, and I get that. If someone comes to you and offers to publish your story, the desire to see your word in print often overrides common sense. Authors find themselves in all sorts of trouble by signing away their rights without thinking about the future of their writing career.
I was s...
January 23, 2019
SFWA Fantasy Story Bundle!
If you’ve ever heard of Humble Bundle, you’re probably already familiar with the idea of paying what you want and getting 5+ excellent games while donating to charity. Story Bundle is similar in that regard, only for books!
From January 23rd thru February 14th, you can snag up to 19 fantasy novels by 12 SFWA authors for whatever you’d like to pay. You can even set how much of your payment goes to the authors. It’s a prett...
January 22, 2019
Dear Folks Decluttering Their Home
Dear Folks Decluttering Their Home,
I want to talk for a minute about decluttering responsibly because I feel like that’s not happening right now. Everyone from your parents to your neighborhood mail-person is decluttering their homes after watching the new hit Netflix show, Tidying Up with Marie Kondo.
Marie Kondo speaks of decluttering. (Image credit: Netflix) I will admit that I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with purging clutter from my home. Part of that comes from moving A LOT....
December 31, 2018
2018 in Review
As 2018 draws to a close, it’s time for me to look back at what I’ve accomplished this year. It’s not as much as I’d planned, but all things considered, it’ll do.
Words Written: 276,340. Almost half of this was a complete rewrite of a novel.
Books Published: 2—Amaskan’s War and From the Worlds of Raven Oak: A Coloring Book, both of which are eligible for 2019 awards. I’d been aiming for 3, but delays happen.
Short Stories Submitted: 4. The stories racked up a total...
December 25, 2018
Happy Holidays!
Today in many areas of the world, it’s Christmas, which is one of my favorite holidays. Growing up, Christmas was complicated in much the same way that Thanksgiving was. We were poor and for a good chunk of my childhood, Christmas presents were sparse. Our fake-plastic tree was gaudy, but ours.
Christmas, age five?
In many ways, Christmas was a disappointment to child-me because it didn’t resemble the Christmases of the movies. There was no beautifully decorated, real evergree...
December 21, 2018
It’s My Birthday!
Happy Solstice! Happy Shortest Day of the Year! And yes, it’s my birthday!
Growing up in poverty, I can count on one hand the number of actual birthday parties I had, some of which were shared with other December babies to cut down on the cost.
Me, age 9. Our upstairs neighbor made me a birthday cupcake.
As a child, it bothered me as I didn’t understand poverty or why my birthdays were sometimes the way they were, but a lot of that changed as I got older and made friends who were willing to m...
November 19, 2018
This is not your typical Thanksgiving post!
This is not your typical Thanksgiving post!
Nope, it’s not.
Why?
Because everybody I know with a website or a blog does one, and honestly, there are only so many folks you can read going on about what they’re thankful for or lying about what they wish they had before you’re ready to blow up the Internet. Or at least it can feel that way.
So here’s the deal: I am privileged. I have much more than many, especially in light of the California wildfires and all the horrific bills/laws being passed...
October 31, 2018
GeekGirlCon Wrap-Up!
This past weekend was GeekGirlCon, one of my favorite conventions in the area. Besides supporting diversity and equality, it’s a great convention with attendees from all walks of life–all ages, all genders, all ethnicities, all sexualities.
I began this year’s con with a serious ankle sprain, so my left foot was in a huge boot. It’s never fun trying to set up a booth, hobble around to your panels, and tear down with an injury. I’m incredibly lucky to have two amazing friends to have a booth w...
October 23, 2018
Steamposium 2018!
For those of you heading to Steamposium 2018 this weekend in Seattle, I won’t be there (I’ll be at GeekGirlCon a few miles away).
However, one of my art pieces entitled “To Make a Dragon” will be in Steamposium’s Art Show! Go check it out and if you’re so inclined, you can buy it. 
