Status Update: Mar 2024

It���s probably time for another status update, as so much has happened since the last one. I���ve been (reasonably) well-behaved lately as far as getting things done and not burning out have gone. Here are some noteworthy bits and bobs.

The book event at Durty Nelly���s

The book event for Yet We Sleep, We Dream went sooooooo well!

Thank you HEAPS to everyone who came, who listened to my ramblings, who endured the reading of a spicy Oberon �� Titania scene, and who even lined up for a chinwag and a signing. I didn���t realise until after taht the line actually wrapped around the room ���� SORRY TO MAKE YOU GUYS WAIT!

And thank you so much to Stefen and the team at Stefen���s Books for making this little indie author���s night/week/year/life ����

Until We Met Again

Formerly codenamed ���Lacewing���, Until We Met Again is the time travel romance novelette that���s been eating my brain since last October (and maybe a bit before). It���s currently under review by the anthology group and a couple of my critique partners, but early feedback has been encouraging, and early suggested edits have shown me I���m terrible at proofreading my own work ����

I did not end up outsourcing the title to a human or an AI. I just avoided thinking about it for a couple of weeks, and something suitable came to mind when I was halfway through the final chapter. I understand now this is just how the creative process works for a ���High Input���, according to the�����

Clifton Strengths

After listening to a friend go on about Clifton Strengths for years, I caved and bought an assessment. The results have been both astonishing and unsurprising. I learned my top 5 strengths are: Learner, Individualization, Relator, Input and Arranger.

There���s a whole thing around the strengths to the point where it can seem a bit culty lol ���� But even just brief and shallow investigation has changed the way I look at my work and how I operate. For example, I used to avoid being avoidant about stumbling blocks, but the combination of my top 5 strengths means I can use tactical avoidance to engage my creative intuition. ���Shower thoughts��� pretty much sums up my brain.

The full Clifton Strengths assessment is about AUD$100, but it���s less than half the price if you just get your top 5 done.

Project Orellia

Due to a non-trivial number of family members descending upon Perth, I���ll wait until April to start this manuscript. Not just for self-care reasons, but I���d like more time for contemplation.

This is an entirely new project and universe, weaving in elements I���ve not written about before. I���m keen to hit some very specific notes with this body of work, and realise that no matter how tempted I am to start right away, the extra time to think has been what���s made me fall in love with this project already. I wouldn���t feel so strongly about it, had I started when the idea first came up.

Proper announcements to come later this year, with Dot Club readers getting first dibs on details.

Other notesHeadspace digestives: A Half-Built Garden by Ruthanna Emrys Loved by the Playboy by Millie Wolf Feel Good Productivity by Ali Abdaal The Artificial Kid by Bruce Sterling Dune: Part Two ����WIP board:Until We Met Again, a post-collapse time-travel SF romance. Awaiting feedback.���Orellia���, a little project I can���t talk about yet. Scheduled.���Satine���. To draft.The Basilica Conspiracy. To (finsh the) outline.Sunset on a Distant World, SF romance. Under revision.