Hello lovely readers! I hope you’re having a lovely summer (or winter for my southern hemisphere friends) and that you had a wonderful Pride month! June may be over, but Pride is eternal; love will always triumph hate.
Well, SOMEHOW we are already halfway through 2024, and thus a perfect time to reflect upon my goals for this year and see how I’m fairing. So, I was rather optimistic at the beginning of the year and set myself five goals:
- Write a short story every week
- Read less to focus more on gaming
- Learn to play guitar
- Learn to crochet
- Find a new job
So, off the bat I’ll just say that the last three? Not happening. My guitar teacher decided he no longer likes the guitar, I’m struggling to find time to learn how to crochet, and I’m not emotionally or mentally sound enough to try finding a new job. Maybe next year, but I won’t hold my breath…
Now, let’s focus on the other two, where I do have a modicum of success.
My weekly short stories were going incredibly well at the beginning of the year. It was such a nice feeling to be writing with ease, and most importantly, actually finishing the stories! I’m a serial “starting projects but never finishing them”er, but I was able to prove myself wrong.
That being said, my motivation and productivity has tanked as of late. I haven’t written a story in a while, and right now, I have very little desire to try again. Hopefully this rut will pass, and I’ll get back on track. For now, I’m sitting pretty on 14 completed short stories!
As for my gaming..I mean, I HAVE played more games this year than usual. For those who are interested, I played Stardew Valley, Another Code: Recollection, Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley, and not long started Tomb Raider: Remastered. But I’ve still read more books than I have played games, so…success..ish..
So..yeah. Truthfully, I’m not doing as well as I wanted to. HOWEVER, the year is far from over, and and still turn the tide and work on my productivity.
And now for some exciting writing news..
*drum roll*
I am very pleased to announce that I’m being published once again! Earlier this year, the wonderful Quill & Crow Publishing House announced a submission call for a sixth volume of Crow Calls, called Renascentem. I wrote a poem for this anthology, and I was accepted!
A lot of the OG Crows came aboard for this volume, as well as some new ones too! I’m honoured to be among such a talented bunch. Renascentem releases on July 15th, and it’s currently up for pre-order! Head on over to The Crow Shoppe to dab yourself a copy!
That about wraps up today’s post. I’m not where I would have liked to be regarding my yearly goals, but I can’t snub what I have achieved. And there’s still plenty of time to get back to it.
Thank you for reading, and I hope you pick up Renascentem when it releases!
Soph, signing off!
Sophie Brookes 