It Begins Again and Again and Again

 I am still writing things. I'm always writing things. Right now I'm actually editing things, which is mostly the same but also incredibly specifically different.

The main thing I wanted to update anybody/everybody on was that when I start publishing these things I'm sometimes writing and sometimes editing, when I'm not snacking and making music and existing in a state of panic over...everything...it's going to be under new pen names.

I recently published and then unpublished a new edition of Faces in Weeds.

That's because I actually had to redesign the cover, add a subtitle to the story, and write two new pieces of bonus fiction so it could be 'transformative' enough that when I publish it under Amazon under my new pen name, it won't get de-listed or get my account banned for rank manipulation. It has to be demonstrably different from previous versions enough to count as a different product, so that's what I'm doing.

Ultimately this is also what I have to do with all my previous works: new covers, titles/subtitles, editing/expanded content, and new bonus content and exclusive extra chapters, that sort of thing. It's the only way to ensure I can actually publish them.

This basically has to happen because Amazon won't let me reclaim my old KDP account, which I can no longer access, or merge it with my new KDP account.

Since most book business is done on Amazon and I need money to live that's where I have to publish, and to do that, I have to make sure not to violate their rules, and using the same pen name on two different accounts is also a bannable offense according to their terms. It would help if their customer service was at all helpful or even sufficiently trained to understand how KDP and its features/systems/rules even work, but they aren't, which seems insanely unprofessional, but it is what it is. They can't help, apparently. Beyond them.

So we come to me having to launch new pen names to republish all Apollo Blake and Cosmo Knox titles.

I was kind of ready to retire the Apollo Blake pen name anyway, so that's fine, but Cosmo Knox was a fantastic pen name I never wanted to let go of, and now I do, and that sucks. Anyway things are in the works, projects are coming along, just slowly as I try to balance and actually enjoy life and not burn out.

The new Tomb Raider games look incredible, the Stranger Things finale was okay, and the new Cassandra Clare collection Better in Black is a lot of fun so far, making me nostalgic as hell.

I also recently read Sunrise on The Reaping and was emotionally devastated. Now I'm rereading Catching Fire. I was actually already reading it, but put it down when they rewatched Haymitch's games so I could go read his book. Pretty cool way to do it, I think.

I also put out a new album called The Chaos Precise, I'm gonna post more about it soon but I haven't done YouTube and SoundCloud uploads yet so.

Drinking My Hot Chocolate & Minding My Own Damn Business

🌙🌙🌙

Shadowhunters doesn't premier until the twelfth, and that is killing me. I keep seeing these fantastic edits and screen shots and promo pics on Tumblr, and I have no idea how other fans are getting these/where they're finding them, but they're just making me more anxious to watch. And then when I do get to watch, I'll only get the one episode, and then I'll be waiting another week.

This show might kill me. Hell, waiting the last few days for it might kill me. Rereading the books would certainly kill me, so I won't even go near those. (God knows if I crack open City of Bones one more time, that paperback is gonna snap in half or something.)

So I'll keep drinking my hot chocolate and minding my own damn business. Kuma is going home later today, so until then we're sitting around on the internet. Once she leaves, I'll probably stay up and get work done. I haven't done much while she's been here, aside from finishing up the new edition of Midnight City. I also have school work to do - like, 13 assignments - in the next eight or nine days. I have a schedule worked out so it will only take me four days, as long as I don't fuck around and waste my time, so I'l going to start those tonight too.

It's nice to be getting back to work, even though it has been a fun few days. Last night I had an old friend who I haven't talked to since September come out for an hour or so and we all just sat around laughing our asses off and having a good time. Kuma's been here for about five days, and both she and Winter were here for three or four days before that.

Things have been hectic. But at least my seasonal at Bath and Body Works is over - not that I didn't like it, because it was cool for the most part. But it was a lot of anxiety-inducing situations and long days that were hard to cope with, though I knew that before I even went in for my interview.

The point is, there's less on my plate not. Which is good.

I always tend to bite off more than I can chew or give myself a really challenging work load, but I can't help myself. If something is too easy, it's excruciating. If it's too much of a challenge, it's still going to be hard, but at least it's more entertaining.

It's also really, really fucking satisfying to check something off of your list. Like yesterday, pressing publish on the new edition of Things We Saw at Midnight was such a relief - I've been wanting to sit down and tackle that for a month and a half now, and it's finally done.

Now it's just onto the next one.

A Darkness So Divine Trilogy Details + Cover Reveal!

So, a few days ago, I posted the covers for the A Darkness So divine trilogy on my Tumblr:

The trilogy is a spin-off of the Lilac Jones Adventures (which are currently free on Wattpad) but where TLJA are lighter young adult stories for younger readers, ADSD borders on new adult, and is much darker. It still has a grim, kind of snarky, sarcastic humour to it, but the characters are older, more mature, and dealing with much darker issues than Lilac did in the prequel.

Book #1, The Diamond Society, sees Lilac moving to the tiny town of Northbank, New Brunswick, with her recently divorced mother, for a fresh start. But Lilac soon realizes that the tiny town is anything but quiet: Northbank is home to a quietly seductive group of paranormals, each harbouring their own secrets and powers. . .

Lilac is quickly caught up in the lives of two local teenagers: Jesse Holmes - the town outcast who may or may not be an incubus; and Hadley Snow - resident popular girl and part-time Valkyrie (who might have murdered her summer fling . . . oops!) As Lilac and the teens go to desperate lengths to uncover the secrets of Northbank and ensure it's future, they're forced to contend with a dark power brimming beneath the surface of their quaint home that, if left undefeated, could destroy all them. . .

Book #2, The Winter War, sees each of the main trio discover more about their inherent powers and histories while their present relationships develop and grow, all while startling revelations change everything, and a desperate war looms in the horizon. . . Book #3 The Chain of Thorns, concludes the trilogy as new enemies converge on the town and the trio must band together to save everyone they love from certain death. . .

In my mind, the series is akin to The Vampire Diaries, The Mortal Instruments, and The Nine Lives of Chloe King. I really love urban fantasies, and for this trilogy I'm drawing inspiration from some of my favourites, like My Blood Approves, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and Dangerous Creatures - essentially, it's my take on one of the teen supernatural dramas I loved as a younger teen (and still occasionally binge-watch!) and putting it in a setting I can relate to.

I grew up in Saint John, which is the largest city in New Brunswick - but I also spent time living in rural areas of Hampton, and now live in a municipality outside the city limits. In Northbank, I wanted to incorporate the feeling of small-town life in New Brunswick, capturing some of the isolation and boredom, while also showing the dynamic relationships between the locals and some of the more lively sides of the community. I've drawn from a lot of real-life experience in outlining the town and the settings the characters interact in, and I'm excited to bring those to life and use my own reality as an inspiration for how they feel on the page.

I also really wanted to capture how interesting and vivid the lives of teenagers going on. How these young people have such dynamic inner-lives, and so much on their plates; and what happens if you throw in a dash of magic and personal tragedy? What happens when they're dealing with grief and growing up and fighting evil? They all fit into certain archetypes: Lilac, the loner; Hadley, the popular girl; Jesse, the rebel. And their relationships with each other and their parents, friends, and love interests shape their story. I also embraced the diversity of Canadians in writing them, and I'm excited to bring more representation into the genre.

All in all, ADSD has been a lot of fun for me, so far, and I'm really excited for it! But I'm done plugging myself, and I should get back to work, so I'll leave you with this new footage from Shadowhunters!