monthly wrap-up – Kara Jorgensen

I had high hopes that March would be calmer than February, but spoiler alert, it was not. It also somehow felt like the longest month where I did not get nearly enough done because my brain was in chaos 24/7. But, anywho, let’s see what I foolishly thought I would accomplish:

Write the entirety of “An Unexpected Christmas”
Edit “An Unexpected Christmas”
Send “An Unexpected Christmas” out to newsletter subscribers
Manage my mental health as best I can
Juggle a bunch of doctors’ appointments
Keep on top of work stuff
Send out newsletter
Blog weekly
Read 8 books

Books

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

Ladies in Hating (#3) by Alexandra Vasti- 4 stars, this can be read out of order despite being the third book in the series. Two Gothic novelists get into a spat over potential plagiarism only to realize they know each other. A visit to a spooky old house cements their second chance romance as they work together to find a missing teenager.
The Titan’s Bride (#2) by ITKZ- 4 stars, I was dubious about this series at first because it’s definitely a little… size fetish-y (not really my thing), but the two MCs are super sweet together and the storyline is interesting. It’s nice to see them figure out how to help the kingdom and become a better couple.
The Titan’s Bride (#3) by ITKZ- 4 stars, see above
The Titan’s Bride (#4) by ITKZ- 4 stars, see above
The Titan’s Bride (#5) by ITKZ- 4 stars, see above
Me and My Beast Boss (#4) by Shiroinu- 4 stars, a workplace procedural featuring a full-beast man (very scary in world) and his human secretary (very weak in world) as they navigate taking on the systems that work against humans. This is a slowburn romance, and I am loving it.
I Know What I Like by Vincent Price- 4 stars, a memoir told by Price about his journey into the world of art. In our current climate of anti-arts/humanities, it’s really nice to read a work told by someone who is so obviously passionate about art. Dated in places but still good.
Nobody’s Baby (#2) by Olivia Waite- 4 stars, definitely need to read book 1 for context, but in this story, the problem isn’t a death but a life. New humans aren’t supposed to be born, yet one appears on the ship parentless. Our ship detective must find the parents and figure out how and why a new human has appeared all while her nephew falls more in love with the baby.
Star Shipped by Cat Sebastian- 5 stars, two stars on a long-running TV show who seemingly dislike each other take a road trip to find the one star’s missing step-father only to realize they have far more in common and far more chemistry off-screen than either anticipated. I love a prickly, anxious MC falling for a more affable yet complicated MC, and this hit the spot.

Admin/Behind-the-Scenes Stuff

Cw: pet illness/medical stuff

Waited for Edgar’s biopsy results- not cancer, yay!
Took Katie to the vet to get a lump on her face looked at
- It was cancer- boo, but it’s one less likely to spread
Arranged Katie’s surgery to have the lump removed
Arranged for her to get a CT scan/radiation in April
Set up a GFM because the treatments are draining my savings
Spend most of the month vibrating with anxiety
Finished putting together the university’s literary magazine with my class
Sent it off to the printer
Joined the Narratess Indie April sale
Kept up with my grading
Did my taxes and actually got some money back, yay
Took my partner to her one year HRT appointment
Took myself to my specialist (yes, it really has been a month of doctoring)

Blogs

Writing

I’m not going to lie, I did not get much writing done this month. As you can see from the admin section, I spent the vast majority of my time running around to different doctor or vet appointments or stressing about dog biopsy results. It has been a rough two months, and I know April will be semi rough too due to the schedule of Katie’s radiation treatments. I’m not sure when they’re going to start, but they will run Monday to Friday for three and a half weeks. That means, I will be running around most of the month. The good thing is that I can use the time I’m waiting for her treatments to be done to get work done since I’ll be waiting in the parking lot to pick her up (they only take an hour or so). I’m hoping that April will be when I can get back into a routine and knock out “An Unexpected Christmas.” I think this story will be really cute, and while stressful for poor Oliver, it ends well.

Hopes for April

Write the rest of “An Unexpected Christmas”
Edit “An Unexpected Christmas”
Rewrite some of Flowers and Flourishing
Take Katie for her CT scan
Take Katie for her radiation treatments
Maintain my mental health as best as I can
Finish grading for my classes
Read 8 books
Blog weekly
Send out monthly newsletter (with AUC)

Tag: monthly wrap-up

March 2026 Wrap-Up Post