May
I think the snow is over.
It’s May, and it finally stopped snowing in Alberta.
(I can’t say the same for all of Canada. As of the time I was writing this, it was still snowing in some parts. By the time this is published, though, I would assume that the snow has stopped everywhere.) Every year it seems like the snow lasts later and later.
Hello again, creatures. Welcome back to another installment of Altar. My newsletter that allows me to scream into the void and see if anything whispers back. Anyone ever realize how much writing a newsletter is like keeping a diary?
Other then work and writing I haven’t really been up to anything. My total words written this year, 9,367. This is not including any word count from May.
I was supposed to be a participating editor in the RevPit annual contest. But I got sick right before and had to pull out. It had to have been the most inconvenient time for me to get sick this year. That’s always how it works, though, isn’t it? That was a solid 2-3 weeks where I could barely do anything. Fun…
But I am fine now and intend to work my butt off.
One thing I am really trying to focus on is learning how to market myself better. And people try to say a lot of different things regarding marketing.
“Market your product, not yourself.”
“You are the brand.”
“Market yourself.”
“Be authentic.”
“Curate a brand.”
If I had any kind of aesthetic, it would be some wild creature living out in the woods. I’m thinking probably a hobgoblin, with Luna moth wings, wearing a flower crown, but probably hasn’t brushed her hair in three years. Surviving entirely off of ice coffee, spite, and maybe sugar… That’s it. That’s the brand. I’m not the kind of fantasy creature that offers you a side quest. I’m the creature hexing you to get off my lawn. Only the stray cats are allowed to stay… But please buy my books. You can get them here as eBooks!
What I’m actually trying to do is be more consistent. And try to figure out how to do reels, and stories. Apparently, they get better views. But here’s the thing, I can’t actually record anything. I have to create graphics using Canva and turn those into reels and stories. Yes, without AI. AI can go f*ck itself. Creating stuff for social media takes so much time. Time that does unfortunately cut into the time that I could be writing. But as authors, we’re never just writing. We’re marketing, editing, emailing, designing, managing imposter syndrome while trying to convince others that we know what we’re doing.
What I have read recently…
I have crushed through a lot of books lately. But that’s also because I’m pretty heavy-handed with the DNFs. I’m not a mood reader. So, it’s not like if I read it now, and not like it, I could try again later. If I don’t like it, I’m probably not ever going to. And sometimes that means I DNF more books than I read to completion all my. It is what it is, and each to their own.
Because there’s so many books in this section, I’m only going to give you my full review on the ones that really stood out. The other ones, I’m just going to list through quickly. This list is in no particular order.
Who’s All Going (to Die)? by Lisa Springer. DNF.
The Library of Lost Girls by Kristen Pipps. DNF.
The House of Quiet by Kiersten White. DNF.
Lilith The First Witch: History, Myth, and the Forbidden Power of the Dark Divine by Nyx Corven. 4 stars.
Eat the Ones You Love by Sarah Maria Griffin. 4 stars. I listened to the audiobook version of this. I don’t tend to say this very often, but I think this is why I enjoyed this so much. The audiobook is fantastic. The voice narrators that they got for this are amazing. The only reason I did not rate this five stars is that the middle of the book felt a little slow. And generally, not a lot happened until the end. Definitely a slow build. But absolutely insidious in the end.
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray. 4 stars. Underrated! From beginning to end, this was fantastic. It is heartfelt, silly, and real. It’s not necessarily the plot that is real. But the expectations that are put on girls in society. There was never a dull moment. Which made it very easy to read, and it never felt slow.
These Familiar Walls by C.J. Dotson. DNF.
Shiny Happy People by Clay McLeod Chapman. DNF.
The Trespassers by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez. DNF.
What I am reading now…
Indigent by Briana N. Cox: so far, this is really good and creepy. I’m about halfway through. But it’s the kind of book that I need to give myself breaks on. There’s so much going on, and a lot of different point of views. I need to separate myself from it. It is an incredible book, don’t get me wrong. It’s creepy, eerie, and absolutely disgusting with the body horror. Which is kind of what makes it wonderful. But if I would fully immerse myself in it, without giving myself breaks, I think I would go into reading slump afterwards. It’s just that intense. Incredible writing. I don’t get genuinely grossed out very often, and I have gagged several times reading this book.
The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke: just started. Only a few chapters in. I would literally pick up Victoria Schwab’s grocery list.
Gold Dust Woman: The Biography of Stevie Nicks by Stephen Davis: also, only a few chapters in. The writing is not great. It’s stilted, and clunky. The writer beefs of the story by adding in a lot of information about places, or bands that have very little To do with what is going on. And I understand that the music of the time influenced Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks. But there’s just so much information included, that it felt like he was simply trying to hit a word count. I am absolutely going to power through it anyways. Because I desperately want to know her story.
What I’ll be reading next…
I honestly have no idea what the hell I’m going to read next. I have 20 ARCs that I have to get through. I think most of them publish before November 2026. Can I do it? Yes, probably. Does it look like a very, very big number right now? Yes, it does. Is it likely that close to 50% of those are going to be a DNF? Unfortunately, yes. But I’m hoping for the best. Maybe they’re all freaking terrific!
What I have watched recently…
False Prophet. My goodness, organized religion… and what people think they can get away with.
Thrash. This was a decent shark movie!
Pretty Lethal. Kind of corny, also, wonderful.
Wuthering Heights. Yes, the new one. Look, I like adaptations. I like new views on old books. I really loved a lot of this movie, but there is a specific scene… And if you watched the movie, you know what I’m talking about. He picks her up by her corset strings. And I didn’t know I needed to see that in my life. But I needed it. And now I need to re-watch it. And yes, is it absolutely a toxic love story? Oh, hell yeah. But for our taboo romance, dark romance, pitch black romance smut girlies? That shit was fantastic. The costumes were beautiful. (Were they historically accurate to the time period? No, I don’t think they were.) The set dressing was amazing. (Was this historically accurate? No, I’m pretty sure one building was entirely made out of black tile.) I am a vibes bitch, through and through. I loved it.
Dracula: A Love Story. Again, yes. The new one. I seen this get a lot of hype when it came out. But then it died out quickly. I don’t know why it died out! This was great. Is it pretty much just redo of the old one? Yep. It’s not exact. But it’s pretty damn close. But the dialogue! The passion!
Byzantium. This one can be kind of hard to find online. It is from 2012. It is another vampire movie. And, funny enough, the guy who plays Dracula, plays a young man in this one. This was a really interesting twist on the vampire. I loved the angst in it.
Okie dokie, goblins and ghouls, that’s all from me for now. Remember to scream into the void—scream, until the void screams back.