December was actually a very lovely, chill month for me. Yes, the holidays are chaotic, but somehow I had a really good time writing, chilling with my partner, and wrapping up the semester. Let’s take a look at what my goals were for December:
- Finish writing the book
- Edit Act 2 part 2
- Read 8 books
- Send out newsletter
- Wrap presents
- Blog weekly
- Post grades/finish grading
- Set up Q1 and 2026 goals
Books
My goal was to read 8 books, and I read exactly 8 this month.
- The Dawnhounds (#1) by Sascha Stronach- 4 stars, a fantasy world with magic, mushrooms, and gods meddling in the human world. It’s very fast-paced and probably the first New Zealand/Maori author I’ve read.
- Cronus by P. Djeli Clark- 4 stars, a dystopian short story about misinformation and the destruction of Black history. Very timely.
- Monstress (#10) by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda- 4 stars, a brutal addition to the story where we learn more about the warring factions of eldritch beings behind the scenes.
- After Hours at Dooryard Books by Cat Sebastian- 5 stars, a gay romance set in Vietnam War Era NYC centered around a bookstore that takes in troubled people. The latest one has a past in the government and a “normal” life he’s left/buried, and now, he must figure out the kind of future he wants with his Whitman-loving bookseller.
- Fugitive Telemetry (#6) by Martha Wells- 4 stars, I don’t want to give away too much because it’s mid-series, but I really love Murderbot and how he relates to not only the other robots but the humans he loves.
- System Collapse (#7) by Martha Wells- 4 stars, see previous.
- The Moon on a Rainy Night (#8) by Kuzushiro- 4 stars, the one MC may be starting to realize she has romantic feelings for the other MC. I love a very low stress volume where the girls get to figure things out together.
- The Invisible Man and his Soon-to-be Wife (#6) by Iwatobineko- 4 stars, they have moved in together finally! I love watching the MCs figure things out as a blind human woman x invisible man couple with some help from their friends and family.
Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff
- Wrote a lot of The Reanimator’s Fate
- Started editing The Reanimator’s Fate
- Put together my goals for 2026
- Made my 2026 writing plans
- Finished all of my grading
- Maintained my mental health
- Played/finished Is This Seat Taken?
- Wrapped Christmas presents
- Enjoyed Christmas and New Year
Blog
- November 2025 Wrap-Up Post
- 10 Reasons to Read The Reanimator’s Fate
- On Loving My Partner
- 8 Books to Add to your TBR 2025 Edition Pt 3
- One Month Until The Reanimator’s Fate
- December newsletter
Writing
I wrote a lot in December, but I ultimately did not finish the book by the end of the month. I was under the foolish assumption that I could power through on Christmas, and that did not happen. One of my biggest faults is assuming I am super human and will not have autoimmune flares or days where I feel crappy or am just busy. I’m trying to be better about this, but yeah, I will definitely need a few days in January to wrap it fully up. While writing, I also edit the first half of my work, so luckily, I’m fairly far along into the process in regards to editing. My process feels very circular, like a snake chasing its tail, but it works for me.
Hopes for January
- Finish writing/editing TRF
- Format TRF
- Publish TRF (1/29)
- Start working on the #4.5 story
- Read 8 books
- Blog weekly
- Send out my newsletter
- Set up my stuff for the semester
Kara Jorgensen 