June 2024 Wrap-Up Post

June 30, 2024June 30, 2024 Kara JorgensenLeave a comment

This month has somehow flown but also been the longest month ever. At least it was a rather productive month for me, so I’m content with that. I will say that I am lowkey flirting with burnout, but I think I’ll be okay if I am able to convince myself to play more games and chill a bit more. Here are my goals from last month:

Write at least 20k words
Outline next chunk of book 3
Start the cover stuff for The Reanimator’s Remains
Maintain some semblance of brain balance to avoid burnout
Keep up with the stitch-a-long
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send out June newsletter

Books

The Magus of the Library (#7) by Mitsu Izumi- 4 stars, in this volume we have discussions about censorship, political upheaval, and how we navigate it without setting the wrong precedent.
The Truth of the Aleke (#2) by Moses Ose Utomi- 4 stars, in book one, we got the story of a martyred boy and now we get the history of what comes after and how history gets twisted by time and politics.
You Should Be So Lucky (#2) by Cat Sebastian- 5 stars, a baseball player falls for a reporter fall in love during early 1960s NYC. I loved this book so much, especially since it also deals with grief and finding your place/value.
Asian American Histories of the United States by Catherine Ceniza Choy- 4 stars, I struggled a bit with the backwards chronology, but it was interesting to see how history has led to the present.
The House of the Red Balconies by A. J. Demas- 5 stars, an mm romance set in a fictional Ancient Greece where an engineer who comes to the island to build an aqueduct falls for a chronically ill courtesan.
The Captain’s Holiday Homecoming by Meg Mardell- 4 stars, a widower stumbles across an old friend presumed to be dead in his stable and finds they may have a future together (definitely a HFN rather than a HEA)
A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvie Cathrall- 4 stars, an epistolary novel between the siblings of two missing people in an underwater city, loved the agoraphobia/OCD rep.
The Moon on a Rainy Night (#1) by Kuzushiro- 4 stars, a sapphic YA featuring a teenage girl starts falling for her hard-of-hearing classmate. Once again, great HoH rep that is obvious well researched.
The Moon on a Rainy Night (#2) by Kuzushiro- 4 stars, see above.

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

I appeared on the Incoherent Fangirl Podcast’s Pride event, which you can watch here
Finished the Femurs and Fungi Stitch-a-long (and I plan to join Fine Frog Stitching’s next SAL in August)
Sent in all my info to my cover designer/Crowglass Design
Celebrated my 19th anniversary with my partner
Outlined the next chunk of my book draft
Edited the whole first act (again)
Blogged weekly
Sent out my newsletter in a semi-timely fashion for once
Attempted to relax more and refill the well by not taking on a shit ton of responsibilities
Wrote quite a bit (see writing section)

Blogs

Writing

This month has mainly been devoted to writing. I could feel myself flirting with burnout at the end of May due to the semester ending, so I took June to decompress and mostly write. On one hand, yay for doing quite a bit of writing. On the other hand, I’m still struggling to maintain any semblance of balance because I’m still mostly writing or staying at a Word Doc pretending I’m writing. The difficult part has been tearing myself away to do other things like reading and playing games, which ultimately keep me from frying my brain. My tendency is to give 100% repeatedly, even when I can’t actually give that much, until I’m beating myself up about how that current 100% is far less than it was a month earlier. I hope that makes sense. It’s really that I go too hard and take from a well that is rapidly running dry.

The Reanimator’s Remains is shaping up nicely though. I really love this book. I think it’s a little quieter than books 1 or 2, but it still has murder, mysteries, and some very tender moments between Oliver and Felipe. I eventually need to tweak the blurb for this book because it isn’t obvious, but Gwen is involved in this case and goes to the murder town with Oliver and Felipe. I know Gwen is a fan fav as Oliver’s bestie, so I hope you enjoy her getting some extra screen time.

Hopes for July

Write 25,000 words
Outline next chunk of book
Do a cover reveal and make graphics for them
Maintain my mental health better (oops)
Blog weekly
Read 8 books
Send out my July newsletter

Monthly Review

May 2024 Wrap-Up Post

June 2, 2024June 2, 2024 Kara Jorgensen1 Comment

May has been one of those months that felt twice as long as it should. I feel like I’m finally hitting my stride with The Reanimator’s Remains, and I don’t want to jinx anything, but things are finally going smoothly. Before getting into things, let’s take a look at the goals I made for May.

Writing goals are as follows:
- minimum 15k words
- standard 20k words
- stretch 25k words
Finish outlining the next chunk
Finish grading finals
Do more creative stuff to avoid burnout
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send out my May newsletter
Keep up with my stitch-a-long

Books

My goal was to read 8 books in May, and I read exactly 8.

Night for Day by Roselle Lim- 4 stars, a second chance romance where a couple reunites only to be sent to an escape room-like challenge in order to end a war between the gods. The catch is that they must work together but in separate pocket dimensions, and the gods can be friend or foe.
The Brides of High Hill (#5) by Nghi Vo- 5 stars, a Gothic East Asian fantasy with nods to Bluebeard stories and Asian folklore with plenty of twists and surprises. Loved it!
Lore Olympus (#6) by Rachel Smythe- 4 stars, I’m deeply enjoying this series, especially seeing Hades finally standing up to Zeus and the loom of consequences for certain people.
Spear by Nicola Griffith- 5 stars, a Medieval fantasy featuring a crossdressing/living character, a queer romance, and plenty of Arthurian goodness in a small package.
The Binding of Bloom Mountain by Siggy Chambers- 4 stars, a lightly horror fantasy that takes place in a slightly unsettling down and its deeply unsettling mountain, which is full of creatures, nature gods, and potential ways to die.
Therapy Game Restart (#4) by Meguru Hinohara- 4 stars, in this volume we get to see some of the issues queer couples in Japan face as well as some sweet and steamy moments between my fav couple.
The Lies of the Ajungo (#1) by Moses Ose Utomi- 4 stars, a story of a young boy who goes looking for water to save his mother and discovers things are not how they appear. I am very curious as to how Utomi will handle the sequel.
She Loves to Cook & She Loves to Eat (#4) by Sakaomi Yuzaki- 4 stars, a super cute sapphic story about neighbors who are slowly becoming more. I love how we get to see more of the main couple’s relationship along with their new friends.

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

Edited the entirety of what I’ve written so far for TRR
Wrote fairly consistently in the second half of the month
Finished grading finals/last minute papers in a timely manner
Turned in grades and collapsed into a heap
I commissioned art from OblivionsDream of Oliver and Felipe (it’s GORGEOUS- please follow and support her, she’s awesome and a fan of the series)
Had a small emotional/mental breakdown after everything that happened in April, but I feel better, so it’s all good.
Blogged weekly
Sent out my monthly newsletter
Listened to my body and actually rested
Kept up with the Femurs and Fungi stitch-a-long

Blogs

Writing

This month has been a bit of a weird one for writing. I feel like I’m finally hitting my stride with The Reanimator’s Remains. I ended up having to revamp part of it because Gwen is going on this investigation with them (yay!). While this makes the book so much better, it also means rewriting and reconfiguring things a bit (boo). On one hand, I’m very happy that things seem to be flowing better, but on the other, I feel behind because I had to fix stuff and I’m going to end up sending less of my book to my cover artist than I intended. I don’t think he’ll mind, and I can always send him more as I go, but yeah, I am struggling to keep the “you’re not doing enough!” thoughts out of my head. Listening to those too closely is a one-way trip to burnout ville, and I don’t need that right now at all. I’m really liking this story, especially knowing what the big emotional beats for Felipe will be. I apologize in advance to Felipe fans because you will be put through the wringer with this one. Something that has been low-key shaking my confidence a little bit is that this is a quieter, more internal focused book than books 1 and 2. It’s still very dark and has a spooky forest and the undead, but it’s less overtly action packed. I think you all will enjoy it, but knowing this book won’t be an action movie worries me a bit. This will not be the last book in the series, so I have to remind myself that we don’t need to go out on a bang with this one. We just need to put the boys through it.

Hopes for June

Write at least 20k words
Outline next chunk of book 3
Start the cover stuff for The Reanimator’s Remains
Maintain some semblance of brain balance to avoid burnout
Keep up with the stitch-a-long
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send out June newsletter

Monthly Review

April 2024 Wrap-Up Post

May 5, 2024May 5, 2024 Kara Jorgensen1 Comment

This month has been wild. I knew I would be busy grading a bunch of papers since April is the busiest month of the spring semester, but this month threw me some curve balls I wasn’t expecting. Let’s look back at what I had intended to get done before we get into it.

Write 20k words of The Reanimator’s Remains (TRM #3)
Proof audiobook chapters of The Reanimator’s Soul (TRM #2)
Keep up with the Fungi and Frogs stitch-a-long I’ve joined
Maintain my mental health better (aka refill the well and use your elliptical)
Send out monthly newsletter
Read 8 books
Blog weekly

Books

Wake Me Most Wickedly (#2) by Felicia Grossman- 4 stars, a Snow White retelling set in 1800s British-Jewish society featuring a disgraced pawnshop owner and a young man trying desperately to make his brother proud. I loved the gender swap in this story as well as how the villain was represented.
Sunflowers by Keezy Young- 4 stars, a short autobiographical comic about bipolar I disorder. Beautiful art and an interesting look into a stigmatized mental illness.
Refusing Compulsory Sexuality: A Black Asexual Lens on Our Sex-Obsessed Culture by Sherronda J. Brown- 5 stars, an absolutely fantastic nonfiction work on how asexuality is tied up into white supremacy, the patriarchy, anti-Blackness, and more.
Bells are Ringing (#1.5) by Cat Sebastian- 5 stars, an epilogue that follows Nick and Andy several months after the events of We Could Be So Good. I absolutely loved seeing them grow as a couple.
The Vermilion Emporium by Jamie Pacton- 4 stars, a magical girl and a boy who hears starlight are brought together by a magical store and find they are far more special than they ever thought.
Threads of Life by Clare Hunter- 4 stars, a nonfiction book about the social, historical, political, and cultural significance of embroidery and sewing. This book was fascinating and gave me plot bunnies galore.
The Shabti by Megaera C. Lorenz- 5 stars, a reformed fake medium and an awkward academic/Egyptologist team up to solve the very real haunting of the university’s Egyptology exhibit/artifacts. I loved these two together as well as all the side characters.
The Potion Gardener (#8) by Arden Powell- 4 stars, a potion maker wakes up to find a young person sleeping off a rough party in their shed only to find that they are more than they appear. This story has transitioning magic, which I thought was really awesome and not often seen in historical-fantasy.

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

Proofed all the files for the audiobook of The Reanimator’s Soul (TRM #2)
Paid for and approved the files for the audiobook on ACX (coming to Audible and Amazon soon)
Uploaded them to Findaway Voices and kicked them through for distribution
Ran a sale on The Reanimator’s Heart
Paid Q1 2024 taxes
Picked up the literary magazine copies for my class (they came out great!)
Kept up with the Femurs and Fungi Stitch-a-long thus far (pics are on IG if you’re interested)
Sent a bajillion emails to my students, random admins/faculty members
Finished the majority of my grading
Finally was able to speak out about being harassed online for the past however many months (see Freydis blog post and that assorted chaos), so I have processed/dealt with more emotions than I would care to admit since April 20th. It sort of sucked the life out of me, but I’ll talk about that more in the writing section.

Blogs

Writing

Looking back, when I made the word count for April, I was being unrealistic. I somehow forgot that April is the busiest month in the spring semester when it comes to grading. I did not come close to meeting that goal. This was initially due to grading and being a bit fried, but ultimately, what did me in was everything about Freydis Moon/Taylor Barton coming to light. You can read more in my blog post about my experience being harassed by Freydis/Taylor, and if you want more on how this came to light, just google Freydis Moon drama as there are plenty of videos that sum it up. Being able to finally tell people what was going on and being believed was an immense relief, but it was also a punch to the psyche and body. I ended up having a post-strong-emotions autoimmune flare a week after, and that made doing anything difficult. I greatly appreciate Em/Elle Porter bringing everything to light and for my friends/readers who have been very supportive.

On a brighter note, I was stuck on The Reanimator’s Remains, but I finally figured out what needs to be changed to make everything fall into place. I also got a rather unhinged idea for something toward the end. I’m not 100% sure I’ll use it, but it has inspired me. As the semester wraps up, I feel my creativity returning finally. May will be for fanning the flames of that creativity back to a roar.

Hopes for May

Writing goals are as follows:
- minimum 15k words
- standard 20k words
- stretch 25k words
Finish outlining the next chunk
Finish grading finals
Do more creative stuff to avoid burnout
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send out my May newsletter
Keep up with my stitch-a-long

Monthly Review

March 2024 Wrap-Up Post

March 31, 2024March 30, 2024 Kara JorgensenLeave a comment

Despite battling tree pollen, I have made it through March! The weather is warming up, the flowers are blooming, and a new writing project is underway. Let’s take a look at what I’ve been up to this month and the goals I set out last month.

Writing at least 20k words of book 3
Proof any audiobook chapters that come in
Grade papers but enjoy spring break
Set up the preorder for book 3
Do a title reveal for book 3
Do taxes ;–;
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send monthly newsletter

Books

My goal was to read 8 books, and I read 9 books in March.

The Reluctant Heartthrob (#2) by Jackie Lau- 5 stars, an actor and an autistic programmer get involved, but she doesn’t realize he’s an actor and panics. Super cute, great rep.
Meet Me in Millfield (#1.5) by Jackie Lau- 4 stars, a side story featuring two fans of a TV show who meet online. A sweet, You’ve Got Mail style story with an older female love interest.
Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex by Angela Chen- 4 stars, a nonfiction book about asexuality that I would highly recommend to aces and allosexual people alike.
The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi, 4 stars, for fans of Piranesi. This story is one of those where the further you go, the more you realize the cleverness of it.
Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie by Jackie Lau- 4 stars, fake dating to appease their parents turns into actual romance between a starchy man who is more than meets the eye and a writer who fears she’s disappointing her family. Bonus points for realistic writer rep.
We Could Be So Good (#1) by Cat Sebastian- 5 stars, set in the late 1950s, a reporter falls in love with his best friend who happens to be the bosses son. It’s a story about belatedly realizing you’re queer, love, wanting/having more than you expected, and it is just so friggin cozy and lovely.
Therapy Game Restart (#2) by Meguru Hinohara- 4 stars, I love seeing these two characters get closer and navigate the real world issues that come with being in a long-term queer relationship.
Therapy Game Restart (#3) by Meguru Hinohara- 4 stars, see above.
Ennead (#2) by Mojito- 3 stars, I’m going to keep reading the series for now, but I sometimes feel like I’m missing context while reading these books. I wish there was more dot-connecting or a character chart of gods/characters at the beginning.

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

Wrote the blurb for The Reanimator’s Remains
Did the blurb/title reveal for The Reanimator’s Remains
Set up the preorder for The Reanimator’s Remains
Did my taxes (woo)
Applied for a creative writing grant
Signed up for a book promo/sale next month
Finished the formatting and such for the uni literary magazine (for one of my classes, but it’s a lot of work)
Enjoyed spring break with my partner
Stayed on top of grading
Tried some new recipes
Set up the elliptical, though I haven’t used it much yet
Finished a cross-stitch project and got most of the way through another

Blogs

Writing

My next blog will talk more about this, but I hate writing the beginnings of new books. This is the part of the process that is the slowest and most painful part for me, so my word counts have been quite small and sporadic. Starting a new book means extra processing and thinking time, which on one hand is necessary and on the other is maddening as someone who wants to just get into the damn book already. The good thing is that I have the overall plot fairly nailed down as well as the emotional arcs. The Reanimator’s Remains is a story about family, in its various forms, and dealing with trauma. In Felipe’s case, those two concepts are linked in a way that is painful. This story is coming on the heels of my short story, “An Unexpected Question” (TRM #2.5), so if you read The Reanimator’s Soul, I highly recommend reading that short story as some of the details will be important in book 3. Plus, I just think it’s cute. The good thing is that I have all of my admin stuff for this book set up already, like the blurb, title reveal, preorder page, etc., so it should be smooth sailing for a while.

Hopes for April

Write 20k words of The Reanimator’s Remains (TRM #3)
Proof audiobook chapters of The Reanimator’s Soul (TRM #2)
Keep up with the Fungi and Frogs stitch-a-long I’ve joined
Maintain my mental health better (aka refill the well and use your elliptical)
Send out monthly newsletter
Read 8 books
Blog weekly

Monthly Review

January 2024 Wrap-Up Post

February 4, 2024February 4, 2024 Kara Jorgensen1 Comment

Ah, January, the new start to the year and the time when “new year, new me” expectations weigh heavily upon us. As much as I try to temper that feeling in January, this year it felt more like December 2.0 as I tried to wrap up the projects I had left from 2023 before diving into my main goals for 2024. Let’s get into it. Here were the goals I made for January:

Finish/edit “An Unexpected Question”
Format/upload/send out “An Unexpected Question”
Start brainstorming The Reanimator Mysteries #3 and doing research
Research selling books on my website/Etsy (and if I want to do it)
Start checking/proofing the audiobook of The Reanimator’s Soul as the chapters come in
Do Sarra Cannon’s 2-3 day class on long-term goal setting
Write more days than not (aka get into a better habit)
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send out my January newsletter with “An Unexpected Question”

Books

In January, my goal was to read 8 books, and I read 10.

Astrid Parker Doesn’t Fail (#2) by Ashley Herring Blake- 4 stars, a stuffy interior designer who is also stuck in her life falls for a carpenter still mourning her last relationship but trying to start anew by fixing up her family’s B&B.
J. C. Leyendecker: American Imagist by Judy and Lawrence Cutler- 4 stars, a great coffee table book of artwork that has a lot of good info on Leyendecker as a person/queer artist.
Never Whistle at Night collected by Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr.- 4 stars, a fabulous collection of horror and dark tales by indigenous authors. I added so many new authors to my tbr pile.
This Lord’s Father (#3.5) by KJ Charles- 4 stars, a short epilogue to the Will Darling series.
Mislaid in Parts Half-Known (#9) by Seanen McGuire- 5 stars, I really love this series, but this one in particular hints at other books to come and takes care of some older threads.
Therapy Game (#1) by Meguru Hinohara- 4 stars, a serious veternary students belatedly realizes he’s queer after a bad break-up with his ex girlfriend and falls for a prickly photographer who works at the local drag club.
Therapy Game (#2) by Meguru Hinohara- 4 stars, see above.
Fence: Redemption (#6) by C. S. Pacat and Joanna the Mad, a fun volume where we get to see the MCs have a little date and the tension grows between two of their teammates.
Ivy, Angelica, Bay (#2) by C. L. Polk- 5 stars, I adored this historical-fantasy. It’s short but has so much crammed into it about family, community, and there’s also bees.
Medium Raw by Anthony Bourdain- 4 stars, an interesting look at the culinary world, and with Anthony Bourdain narrating the audiobook, his voice as a writer truly shines.

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

Attended Sarra Cannon’s “Your Path Forward” class, did all the lessons and such for that
Approved the first chapter of the audiobook for The Reanimator’s Soul (coming in late spring as long as all goes well)
Researched selling books on my website and such (not doing anything with this yet)
Finished writing “An Unexpected Question” (TRM #2.5), #1.5 is here
Edited and proofed “An Unexpected Question” (TRM #2.5)
Formatted, uploaded, and sent out “An Unexpected Question” to my newsletter subscribers
Was interviewed by Chaos Gays and Teatrays
Started teaching my spring classes
Paid Q4 2023 taxes (barf)

Blogs

Writing

Writing went pretty well this month. I didn’t finish “An Unexpected Question” as quickly as I would have liked, but that’s all right. Truthfully, I was dealing with a lot of anxiety in the latter half of the month due to work starting again and some random Twitter bullshit (hence why I’m on Twitter less now), but I got my shit together and edited the story. Of course, the day after I sent it out, I found a typo and a word that magically unitalicized itself. It’s not the worst hiccups I’ve had with a release, so I’ll take it. I am super excited that some of you are already reading the #2.5 story. It means a lot to me to know that you all are enjoying it. It was a blast to write. I don’t often get to write a story that’s basically just my characters having fun, so it was a refreshing change of pace. In February, I’m going to turn my focus fully to book 3, and within the next few months, preorders should go up.

Hopes for February

Put together the elliptical and use it
Do the bulk of the historical research for The Reanimator Mysteries #3
Start actually writing The Reanimator Mysteries #3
Proof any audiobook chapters that come in
Stay on top of grading
Blog weekly
Send out monthly newsletter
Read 8 books

Monthly Review

November 2023 Wrap-Up Post

December 3, 2023December 2, 2023 Kara Jorgensen1 Comment

This month I decided to be kind to myself and take it easy. November tends to be a month I struggle mentally due to the time change and the amount of grading I get in throughout the month. I also don’t do so well seeing everyone’s astronomical NaNoWriMo numbers. For once, I focused on grading and said f-it to writing. It helped as I have entered December feeling more refreshed than I have felt in a while. Before we get into what I did this month, let’s get a little refresher on November’s goals.

Less chaos overall (not quite within my control, but one can hope)
Write most, if not all, of The Reanimator Mysteries #2.5 short story
Start brainstorming more of The Reanimator Mysteries #3
Maintain my mental health during November to avoid No-Words-November
Grade all the papers I receive in a timely manner (I have been bad about this lately)
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send out my November newsletter

Books

My goal was to read 8 books, and I read 9.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year by Joanna Chambers- 4 stars, a slightly oblivious computer programmer has a bad day but realizes perhaps he overlooked his officemate
How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram H. Kendi- 5 stars, an introduction to how racism colors numerous aspects of life and how to challenge our biases to continually work on being antiracist
A Nobleman’s Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel (#2) by KJ Charles- 4 stars, a newly inherited nobleman deals with his horrid extended family and teams up with a local secretary who has plenty of secrets of his own
Medicinal Cannibalism by Louise Noble- 4 stars, an academic book on medicinal cannibalism in culture and literature from the Early Modern period on
Over My Dead Body by Greg Melville- 5 stars, a fascinating read about how cemeteries reflect societal values (and problems/prejudices) and how they have influenced amusement parks and suburban planning
Under the Smokestrewn Sky (#4) by A. Deborah Baker- 4 stars, the conclusion of a Wizard of Oz-like series featuring two children who enter an elemental world, meet some friends and enemies on their way home
“A Heart Between Teeth” (#2.5) by Kerstin Hall- 4 stars, a side story for a series set in a world where people go after death filled with gods, demons, monsters, and humans struggling to survive their second deaths
Sky Breaker (#2) by Addie Thorley- 3 stars, a YA fantasy that didn’t work too well for me due to the world-building and the way the characters were aged down to make it YA
Monstress (#8) by Majorie Liu and Sana Takeda- 4 stars, a fantastic volume where we find our characters transported to a strange new world they have to fight their way back from

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

Finished plotting The Reanimator Mysteries #2.5 short story, “An Unexpected Question” (coming in January, probably, December if I’m very lucky)
Did more brainstorming on TRM #3
Was interviewed by Geeks Out
Finished buying and wrapping Christmas presents for my family
Hit my yearly reading goal of finishing 100 books/stories/graphic novels
Got my car back from the mechanic (finally) and got it inspected
Got my car inspected AGAIN because, apparently, you can’t go directly from the mechanic to the inspection station if they pulled the battery
Graded so many papers… so many ;—;
Contacted my reps repeatedly to demand a ceasefire and to end US funding of Israel’s genocide against Palestine

Blogs Posted

Writing

As I mentioned in the opening of this blog, I decided that I would write what I could, when I could and that I would try not to sweat it. I don’t know whether it’s the early darkness or people constantly posting their large daily word counts during NaNoWriMo, but I never write much during November. This month was no different. I wrote about 3k of “An Unexpected Question,” the Reanimator Mysteries #2.5 story that will go out to newsletter subscribers as a freebie. I am hoping to write the rest of it in December and get it out by January (or December, though I’m not counting on that happening). Instead of writing, I managed to plan out the major beats of the story and am guestimating that it will end up about 20,000 words, which is pretty beefy for a freebie story. I’m really enjoying writing this story and hope my readers will as well. You can sign up for my newsletter ahead of the release or check out the Pinterest board for the story.

Hopes for December

Finish the semester/my grading
Finish writing “An Unexpected Question”
Start editing “An Unexpected Question”
Finish all remaining Christmas stuff/prep
Prep for Q1 and get my new goals together
RELAX with my partner
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send out my December Newsletter

Monthly Review

July 2023 Wrap-Up Post

August 6, 2023August 1, 2023 Kara Jorgensen1 Comment

July has gone oddly well until the end when I started to get a little fried. I had a really good writing and reading month, and I didn’t get picked for jury duty, which is the most important thing of all. Let’s take a look at what my goals were for July:

Write 25,000 words
Read 8 books
Blog Weekly
Monthly Newsletter
Jury duty (UGH) and my birthday (meh)
Post the cover reveal for The Reanimator’s Soul
Prepare for the summer class I’m [probably] teaching

Books

My goal for July was to read 8 books, and I read 12.

Sailor’s Delight by Rose Lerner- 4 stars, a lovely, low heat novella about a Jewish merchant and a gentile naval officer in the 1800s.
Falling Bodies by Rebecca Roanhorse- 4 stars, a short story/novella set in space that speaks to the issues surrounding trans-racial adoptions
The Ancient Magus’s Bride (#18) by Kore Yamazaki- 4 stars, an action-packed volume with some good reveals.
Yellowface by R. F. Kuang- 5 stars, a fantastic look at how white authors behave horribly. If you’ve been on book Twitter for a long time, so much of this makes sense. If you love a delusional narrator, this one is perfect.
On or Off (#1) by A1- 4 stars, a graphic novel series about a high-powered CEO and the new employee/CEO of a much smaller company as they navigate the power struggles and their own issues. There is a misunderstanding at the beginning, so check the trigger warnings for volume 1
On or Off (#2) by A1- 4 stars, see above
On or Off (#3) by A1- 4 stars, see above
On or Off (#4) by A1- 4 stars, see above
Payback’s a Witch (#1) by Lana Harper- 4 stars, a witchy romcom about a woman returning to her hometown to officiate a magical celebration/games and uses it to get back at her awful ex and finds herself falling for one of his jilted girlfriends.
A Thief & a Gentleman (#6) by Arden Powell- 5 stars, a saucy thief reunites with his childhood friend who is now an uptight man of leisure, but can they meet each other where they are and thrive?
Sappho: A New Translation by Diane J. Rayor-4 stars, an interesting glimpse into how little we have of Sappho’s works
The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamina- 4 stars, a shorter book packed with medical magic, a queer-normative world, and the complications of being conquered and conqueror

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

Survived jury duty and didn’t get picked- did you know jury duty selection can trigger checking OCD? Me neither, but it can.
Prepared for my summer class- fixed the syllabus and set up the Blackboard module
The Reanimator’s Heart made it through to round 2 of the Book Blogger’s Novel of the Year Awards (I will update you all on the next round when I know!)
Did the cover reveal for The Reanimator’s Soul
Made a page on my website for The Reanimator’s Soul
Made more index cards/planned the rest of this book
Celebrated my birthday and enjoyed myself
Continued to post daily Tiktoks
Announced the audiobook release for The Reanimator’s Heart
The Reanimator’s Heart is now available everywhere in audiobook, including libraries
Fried myself a bit, but I have managed to avoid burnout by listening to my body
Made a to-be-read jar (aka a mug with slips of paper with book titles)

Blogs Posted

Writing

Writing actually went pretty well this month. I wrote 20,000 words, which makes me very happy. I’ve had some mental health lows this month, so at some point, I got worried about how productive I would actually be. Luckily, I’m heading toward the end of the book, and that second half is often easier for me to write than the first half. The good thing is that the words I have put down are solid, so I don’t think I’m going to need to do any major rewrites, just tinkering with foreshadowing and hitting home the major themes and threads. I’ve been doing sprints with my partner, which seems to be helping me stay on task. They do coding stuff while I write, so we both benefit from the body doubling and accountability. Something I’d like to do as time goes on is increase my daily word count, and I think by doing sprints, I can accomplish that.

Hopes for August

I’m keeping August’s goals light since I’ll be doing a lot of stuff for my classes.

FINISH THIS BOOK
Get through my summer class
Prep for my fall classes
Read 8 books
Blog weekly + monthly newsletter
Not lose my marbles along the way
Get ahead on blog posts again

Monthly Review

June 2023 Wrap-Up Post

July 2, 2023July 2, 2023 Kara Jorgensen1 Comment

Looking back on my goals for June, I’m pretty sure I was delusional. Seriously, I don’t know why I put together this mishmash of goals, but I do think I got a lot done in June, just not those things. In May, I was feeling fried, but in June, I have actually been doing pretty decently, apart from a bump of anxiety. Here are the goals I made last month:

Blog weekly and send out my monthly newsletter
Write 25,000 words
Edit act 1 as a tidy up
Watch and take notes on more of Publish and Thrive 2.0
Enjoy my anniversary with my partner
Keep posting regularly on Tiktok
Maintain mental health by not overdoing it

Books

My goal was to read 8 books this month, and I read 9 books.

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care (#1) by Ashley Herring Blake- 4 stars, a sapphic romance between a bookstore owner with a kid and a photographer who doesn’t do love. I don’t read a lot of contemporary romance, but I really enjoyed this one, especially with the complicated family dynamics running in the background.
My Alcoholic Escape from Reality (#4) by Nagata Kabi- 4 stars, I always love Kabi’s candor about her struggles with alcoholism, mental illness, and her sexuality.
My Wandering Warrior Existence (#5) by Nagata Kabi- 3 stars, I loved this one a little less as it felt like it had less substance than her other works. Not bad, just a bit flimsy for its own book.
The Case Study of Vanitas (#9) by Jun Mochizuki- 4 stars, a good addition to the story where we get to learn a bit about Vanitas’s past while still leaving a lot unanswered.
Lore Olympus (#4) by Rachel Smythe- 4 stars, I would love to know why I’m hooked on this series, despite it being so hetero, but I am. I think it’s Hades and his love of dogs mixed with Persephone being a mess.
Last Gender (#3) by Rei Taki- 4 stars, the final installment of Last Gender gives a surprising twist about the club’s owner and more.
The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw- 5 stars, a monstrous aftermath for The Little Mermaid where a mermaid and a plague doctor team up to figure out what’s going on with immortal kids in the woods and their sinister gods. Very queer and goes into the beauty and brutality of nature and man. Adored it.
The Madman’s Library by Edward Brooke-Hitching- 4 stars, an interesting overview of weird books found all over the world. A good jumping point for deeper research.
Monster and the Beast (#4) by Renji- 4 stars, the final installment in the series where we get to see what is in store for our heroes as well as finding out Liam’s backstory.

Admin/Behind the Scenes Stuff

Celebrated our 18th anniversary with my partner (brought home a smörgåsbord of takeout, and it was glorious)
Kept up with my tiktok-making
Got the cover for The Reanimator’s Soul sorted with Crowglass Design
Rewrote the blurb for The Reanimator’s Soul
Did a major editing pass of The Reanimator’s Soul
Listened to the audiobook proof of The Reanimator’s Heart, narrated by Jack R. R. Evans
Paid for, approved, and distributed the audiobook of The Reanimator’s Heart to all major retailers (see next week’s blog for more details)
Managed to recover (mostly) from burnout while only having a few major stress/anxiety days
Made and setup my goals/kanban board for Q3
Ran a sale on K&K
Took my dog for his vet recheck (he’s doing well, btw)
Had The Reanimator’s Heart appear as one of Meet Cute Bookshop’s “guess the queer romance by the unhinged description,” which made my day

Blogs Posted

May 2023 Wrap-Up Post
Planning for Pantsers
What’s in the Works Right Now
10 Queer Books to Read After Pride Month
June Newsletter

Writing

While the month started out a little slow, I picked up speed partway through the month as I truly hit my stride on the draft. I began by editing the first act and doing some tidying in the second, but once that was over, I was able to write more per day more fluidly, which feels amazing. The first half of a book is always the slowest part for me because I’m constantly double-checking plants and foreshadowing, setting things up for later, etc., so I probably end up spending double the time on the first half as I do the second. The second half is sort of the consequences of the first half, so whatever happens there should make sense with what I started with. The only thing I’m semi stuck on at the moment is the order of events for the later part of the book, but I’ll figure that out soon. Over the entire month, I netted 15,000 words, but do keep in mind that I was editing for the first week, so there is a lot of rewriting and tinkering mixed in.

Hopes for July

Write 25,000 words
Read 8 books
Blog Weekly
Monthly Newsletter
Jury duty (UGH) and my birthday (meh)
Post the cover reveal for The Reanimator’s Soul
Prepare for the summer class I’m [probably] teaching

Monthly Review

May 2023 Wrap-Up Post

June 4, 2023June 3, 2023 Kara Jorgensen1 Comment

A PSA before I start the post, KINSHIP AND KINDNESS is on sale for 99c at most retailers and in most countries until 6/11. Grab your $0.99 ebook copy or you can also pick up the audiobook or paperback here.

This has been a pretty good month for writing, but because it has been the end of the semester as well, my brain felt like mush for quite a bit of it. Fighting off burnout has been a large part of my life this month, so I have been trying to treat myself with a bit more compassion than I normally would and not beat myself up for not doing everything all the time. As a refresh, here were my goals for May:

Watch Sarra Cannon’s updated Publish and Thrive classes- at least 2-3 weeks
Read 8 books
Newsletter monthly/blog weekly
Keep messing around with Tiktok
Write 20,000-25,000 words for the month
Finish grading for the semester
Relax or do something fun, something to avoid an end of semester burnout/shutdown

Books

My goal was to read 8 books in May, and I read exactly 8 books.

Dracula by Bram Stoker- 3 stars, a chonker of a book, and while the women are insufferably helpless at time, Jonathan’s forays into paprika usage and dealing with weird strangers are so funny.
The Vampire: A New History by Nick Groom- 4 stars, an interesting nonfiction book on the social implications of vampires in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson- 3 stars, a lot less interesting and dark than I thought. Adaptations are far better.
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Cordova- 4 stars, I listened to the audiobook of this. While I enjoyed it, there were some things that bugged me, but if you’re into adult magical realism with a hint of the flavor of Encanto, definitely check it out.
This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone- 5 stars, I got suckered in by Twitter and it did not disappoint. Epistolary, sapphic, and just so damn good.
The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz- 4 stars, a super cute graphic novella with a sapphic story filled with cheese references and cute fashion.
Marry Me by Midnight by Felicia Grossman- 4 stars, loved that this book is Jewish historical romance set in the 1830s in London, which isn’t usually where you see Jewish hist fic. This has a bit of a Cinderella-esque aspect with a lowly but lovely man and an heiress trying to secure her position.
Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain- 4 stars, the audiobook is narrated by Bourdain, which just adds to his already strong voice. A gritty, fascinating look behind the curtain of the restaurant industry and Bourdain’s life.

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes

Finished grading all my classes’ stuff *cue the flaming Elmo gif*
Finished posting all the final grades for those students
Visited covid-conscious friends for dinner, which was lovely
Took Edgar back for his Lyme’s disease bloodwork recheck
Sent my cover designer (Crowglass Design) all my cover info for The Reanimator’s Soul
Started going through Sarra Cannon’s Publish and Thrive course again since she expanded it (I didn’t do as much as I wanted, but I started)
Entered The Reanimator’s Heart into the BBNYA competition (generally not a big competition person but why not)
Figured out a plot issue I was having with The Reanimator’s Soul
Continued to use my Tiktok for advertising, though I’m still feeling that out
Sent out my newsletter and
Managed to washi tape my mental health together enough to be functional

Blogs Posted

Writing

Overall, I wrote 16,000 words, most which I wrote after the semester ended and my students’ grades were turned in. Now, that may not sound like a huge number, but I was STRUGGLING before this. Like every word felt painful, and toward the end of the month, I managed to hit my stride with this story and hit the ground running. I think part of it was less stress and grading, but it was also because I unsnagged a plot point and things magically fell into place. I tend to struggle going forward when I don’t know where I’m supposed to be headed. Figuring that plot point out helped immensely in that regard. My hope is that now that it’s fixed and I have a general idea of where I’m headed for the rest of the book, this won’t be an issue. Also, because I don’t have to teach again until August, I should be (hypothetically) less stressed and have more brain power to devote to writing. If you want more specific writing updates, I’ve been posting writing updates every week or two on Tiktok where I sort of brain dump what I’ve been doing/working on.

Hopes for June

Blog weekly and send out my monthly newsletter
Write 25,000 words
Edit act 1 as a tidy up
Watch and take notes on more of Publish and Thrive 2.0
Enjoy my anniversary with my partner
Keep posting regularly on Tiktok
Maintain mental health by not overdoing it

Monthly Review

April 2023 Wrap-Up Post

May 7, 2023May 6, 2023 Kara Jorgensen3 Comments

Looking back at my goals for April, I feel like I was a tad unrealistic considering this is one of my busiest grading months. While I hit quite a few of these goals, others I totally fell short, but I will not feel bad about readjusting or rerouting my energy once chaos hit. Let’s take a look at what I thought would happen when I made my goals back in March before checking out what actually happened in April.

Writing (we’re feeling ambitious this month)
- 23,000 words is the goal (770 words a day)
- Because of this goal, everything else is sort of scant, which I’m fine with since this is also a heavy grading month
Read 8 books
Refill the well each week (aka do art, crafting, or game)
Blog weekly
Send a newsletter each month
Doctor’s appointment/taxes BOO
Start watching Sarra Cannon’s Publish and Thrive updated lessons

Books

My goal was to read 8 books, and I ended up reading 10.

Ironiside (#3) by Holly Black- 4 stars, I thought this was a good wrap-up to the series. While this isn’t my favorite of her series, I enjoyed Roiben a lot and Cornelius as well.
Rattling Bone (#2) by Jordan L. Hawk- 4 stars, my only hang-up with this book is that I felt like we got so little of the main characters together interacting. It felt plot first, characters second, which I don’t really enjoy as much compared to Hawk’s other books.
The Return of the King (#3) by J. R. R. Tolkien- 4 stars, not going to lie, I got choked up in my car over Sam and Frodo. Sam’s love for Frodo is what kept me reading this series. We need more Samwise Gamgees in the world.
A Thief in the Night (#2) by KJ Charles- 4 stars, this is sort of a concurrent story to another set in the same world, and I always love a semi-reformed thief who falls in with someone who doesn’t take their shit.
The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen (#1) by KJ Charles- 4 stars, if you liked Poldark but wished he was less gross and gay, this one is for you as we have smugglers, family drama, and a seemingly mismatched pair.
A Rose by Any Name (#2.5) by KJ Charles- 4 stars, this is a short story that comes after Thief in the Night where the siblings reunite. I loved how unapologetically sweet it is.
I Hear the Sunspot: Four Seasons by Yuki Fumino- 4 stars, I have lost count of what book this is in the series overall, but I love seeing these two get closer and figure out their relationship and lives. Plus the hard-of-hearing rep is well done.
The Black Pages (#2) by Nnedi Okorafor- 3 stars, this story was pretty damn brutal. It felt like it cut off as soon as we figure out what might be going on, which is the point, but it is also unsatisfying as there won’t be a follow-up.
The Invisible Man & His Soon-to-Be-Wife (#1) by Iwatobineko- 4 stars, this manga has visually impaired rep that is well researched, and I always love seeing disability mixed into fantasy worlds and with monsters and such. The Invisible Man love interest is sweet and dapper as well.
Persephone (#2) by Lev Grossman- 4 stars, this also felt like the start of something larger, but it cuts off in a more satisfying place. I read this mostly to see if I’d like his other books and it was enjoyable, though a bit brutal for my tastes.

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

Set up all my Q2 goals, kanban board, etc.
Did my 2022 taxes and set up quarterly taxes for this year, just in case, because I don’t want to pay the US government any more in penalty fees and interest than I have to
Went to the doctor to do my 6 month please refill my meds check (a giant time/money waster)
I found out there are copies of The Reanimator’s Heart for sale physically at the Meet Cute Bookshop and The Portal Bookshop, an LGBT bookstore in York, England, which is VERY cool (also at some B&Ns as well)
Two of my books were part of an Indie April sale
Graded so many papers… so, so many papers
Finished setting up the proof copy of the university literary magazine my class was working on, and we approved it
Did promo for the university’s literary magazine
Started using my Tiktok again and have been posting daily
Figured out how to use Capcut for said Tiktoks
Made a reverse outline for The Reanimator’s Soul so far
Ended up running my dog to the vet in a panic, but he’s okay. He has Lyme’s Disease, so he’s getting antibiotics and supplements and such, which took up a lot of mental real estate this month
Worked on my craft projects consistently in order to unwind and stay mentally balanced.

Blogs Posted

Writing

You may have noticed that I have forgone the weekly breakdown lately. I tend to do this when my writing has been feast or famine because seeing those tiny word counts certain weeks is disheartening and doesn’t really show all the other stuff I was doing, like giving a metric shit ton of feedback to my students. If only I could count my feedback as part of my monthly word count. By the end of the month, I wrote 11,500 words, which is way below my initial goal, but that goal was very unrealistic. I don’t know how I forgot that April is a horrible month for grading. April and November are when all the longer papers come in, and next year when making my goals, I really need to be mindful that, if I’m teaching freshman, I need to ease up on my word count goals. Either way though, I’m happy with those words, and I know where I’m going from this point on, which means that (hopefully) the next chunk I work on will come a lot smoother. Act I is always the hardest for me to write as it requires so much set up and micromanaging of future threads.

Hopes for May

Watch Sarra Cannon’s updated Publish and Thrive classes- at least 2-3 weeks
Read 8 books
Newsletter monthly/blog weekly
Keep messing around with Tiktok
Write 20,000-25,000 words for the month
Finish grading for the semester
Relax or do something fun, something to avoid an end of semester burnout/shutdown