Autumnal Thoughts (October Update)

October has been one of those months which has spun past me at a rate of knots. One moment we are mourning the ending of Summer, and the next I find myself flung fully into a non-daylight saving timezone, featuring dark mornings and even darker nights.

This month, I’ve allowed myself to restructure my novel (again) to make the pacing work better, and give myself some time off. After all, Rhythm of War comes out in November, and I have two chunky Stormlight books to re-read!

Writing Update

Work on Assassins 1 plugs on. Normally this time of year is ramping up preparing for Nanowrimo, but unfortunately the house DIY projects are taking precedence in November. Between my day job, my DIY weekends, writing a 50,000 words on my Assassins 1 was going to take it out of me.

So, instead of doing a “full” Nanowrimo, I’ve decided to give myself permission to focus on my Novel. That means Teacup Stories and 100 Word Stories are on hold until November, although you’ll still be hearing from my Opinion, How To and Monthly Blogs!

This way, I can dedicate some much needed time to my novel, without cutting corners for my blog work.

I’ve also posted a How To on writing Multiple POVs, and an opinion blog on why you don’t need to achieve everything overnight. Not read them, check them out!

What I’m reading

As mentioned already, I’m preparing for the next Stormlight Archive book to be delivered to my door in November. I brought a signed copy earlier in the year, and I am so excited to get my hands on this book. This particular series is one that is rather special to me, especially the first book Way of Kings. I love the magic system and the characters, but the overarching themes of the series really clinch it for me.

https://i0.wp.com/www.tor.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/RhythmWar-UK.jpg?type=vertical&quality=100&ssl=1

If, like me, you’re a big fan of the book, then you should definitely check out the Radiant Quiz that you can do to see what type of radiant you would align to. I am an absolute die-hard for any kind of personality quiz (all those hours doing Harry Potter house quizzes when I was younger), and a Stormlight one was even more exciting!

For those of you who are interested, I got Lightweaver, which I think is really accurate for who I am. Although a close second came Windrunners, whose motto of Protect those you cannot protect themselves really sits close for me.

What I’m watching

Husband and I are still marching our way through White Collar, the happy-go-lucky detective show that I found 6 years too late. Not only is it light hearted enough to watch over dinner, but the writing is really engaging (and fun!), and it’s given me some ideas for my own book.

However, Tuesday nights are always reserved for GBBO, which I still love dearly even if I miss Sue and Mel (yes, still!)

What I’m excited for

Aside from Stormlight Archive, I am also super excited for the new His Dark Materials series coming out in November:

And ontop of HDM, we’ve also go a new series of The Crown, which I am a complete sucker for. Olivia Coleman is a brilliant actress and that is enough of a selling point for the series alone:

What I’m planning for November/December

Apart from making more progress on my Assassins 1 story, I’m also going to spend some time preparing my new Winter Newsletter which will be coming out in December!

For those of you who haven’t signed up, I have a quarterly newsletter where I share some writing updates, articles and other writer-y news that doesn’t make it into my blog. Interested? Sign up below!

Writing On Caffeine - a Writing Advice Newsletter - Signup Now!

Check out my privacy policy for the legal bits about signing up to my Newsletter

Also, by signing up to my Newsletter, you get free access to my fantasy short story “The Gateway of Arieum”.

Fayan has escaped the claws of Queen Erisa’s imprisonment. Her last hope of suvivial is to train as a Mage at the great Arieum Keep. However, Erisa does not like leaving loose ends, and Fayan, along with the other Mages of Arieum, represent the last bastion of resistance for her Empire.

A new decree is set across the land – The Gateway of Arieum must fall.

Now Fayan must use her powers to stop Erisa and her armies from destroying the last Mages of Arieum.

If she fails, Erisa will eliminate them all.

That’s it for this month!

I hope you’ve all had a wonderful October! Don’t forget to catch up with me on IG or drop a comment below to say hi.

(I also have a Twitter, but I’m on a break from Twitter right now).


Featured Image by Hannah Wright on Unsplash


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