Category Archives: Poetry

Ennui and existential dread: Friday Update

10 Friday May 2024

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News:

Not a damn thing. Wondering if I need to reassess strategies, goals, hopes, dreams, or maybe just expectations. Been doing this for twenty years. That’s a long time to spin my wheels. I might just be tired.

Works in Progress:

If I continue at my current pace, I should finish the first round of In the Dollhouse We All Wait edits tomorrow evening. Editing is less emotionally draining than writing, because I’m more immersed in the story when I’m writing, mentally living it more and for longer periods of time (because of course I write slower than I read). However, the more extreme parts of this story are still a bit rough to get through while editing, although it affects me in less obvious ways.

I’m really not sure how this book will be received or what place it can hold in my oeuvre, but the point now is just getting it in fighting shape.

During the second round, I’ll write the synopsis. Then I’ll put together the pitch after. I’m not positive I’ll finish before Texas Frightmare, but I should finish before PitDark.

Books I’m Reading:

Killing Time by Russell C. Connor
Pocket Apocalypse by Seanan McGuire

Things I’m Listening To:

YouTube playlists
Metal playlists

Things I’m Watching:

The Gray Man
The Judge
Mr. Bates vs the Post Office series
CSI: Miami series
CSI: NY series
NCIS series
NCIS: Hawai’i series
American Idol series
Spring Baking Championship series (finished)
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week:

give me gold gild
in a baroque style
a grand chandelier
crystallizing rainbows
and champagne flutes
stroked to make
the phantom weep

In the jet stream: Friday Update

26 Friday Apr 2024

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News:

Not a lot going on this week.

If you’re part of the Crystal Lake Patreon, voting for Workplace Horror flash fiction is open until tomorrow morning. You have fifteen interesting interpretations of the theme to read and choose from.

Someone on the Books of Horror Facebook page was kind enough to leave a review of Out of Curiosity and Hunger. I’m not going to link to it here, because she posted it on Amazon and Goodreads as well, but the way she described the whole vibe of OOCAH was just so perfect: “I love National Geographic, especially when the animals eat each other, and sometimes maybe humans too.”

I really do love creature features. You want creature features? I’ve got two! Out of Curiosity and Hunger (urban jungle) and Deep Down (cave monsters).

Works in Progress:

I’m still working on Tooth & Claw (Meridian 7). Barreling forward, in fact, 5K+ words a day. For reference, I started April 6, and by the end of the day, I’ll have written over 85K in twenty days. Based on where I am in the story, I think I’ll be able to finish by the end of the weekend, maybe Monday, although my period’s coming, and depending on severity, it may slow me down. I have a cushion of a few thousand words to keep up my 5K/day average lately, though.

Once I’m finished with that, I’m going to edit extreme horror novel In the Dollhouse We All Wait, because I want it to be ready in time for PitDark after Texas Frightmare in May. I ideally need to cut over 20K words, but I think that’s doable. That means I might have to push back Crooked House (Thorns 5) publication to June, but I might have to do that anyway if formatting is out of my financial reach. Depends on what I can sell between now and then and whether I’m employed.

I would categorize Question Not My Salt as on the milder side of extreme, but In the Dollhouse definitely fits into the subgenre, so much so that it might be hard to place instead of self-publish, but I’m going to try.

Books I’m Reading:

Killing Time by Russell C. Connor
Pocket Apocalypse by Seanan McGuire

Things I’m Listening To:

YouTube playlists
Metal playlists

Things I’m Watching:

Love of My Life (2013)
The Others
Army of the Dead (2021)
Alien vs. Predator: Requiem
Abigail (a fun, bloody flick)
NCIS series
NCIS: Hawai’i series
CSI series
CSI: Miami series
American Idol series
Spring Baking Championship series
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week: (throwback to April 2023)

haydust gold winds
round rustic spindle.
he does the work.
she reaps the spoils
of rotten wheat to
a marriage bed.
and does she ever
say thank you
or give freely
what she offered,
what she owes
for his labor?

Third-time charm: Friday Update

12 Friday Apr 2024

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News:

We were in the path of totality. Above is my eclipse kit. We ate mini Moon Pies while we stared up at the moon-covered sun. It was edge of twilight all around. I’m used to the light getting disquietingly thinner during a partial, but never bad-storm dark like that. And the sight of the corona around the moon is just like the pictures, but there’s a difference between looking at pictures—which look like a black circle Photoshopped over the sun–and seeing it in person. It still looks fake, but you know no one has manipulated the sky, which makes it so unreal and cool to see.

In industry news, Pleasure in Pain is getting mixed early reviews on Goodreads (through NetGalley), but “Graphite” is proving to be a standout in the collection, which feeds my ego just fine, thank you. Don’t worry, my ego is underfed and only gets healthy with the occasional meal.

Also, I never made it public because no contract was signed, but Bathroom Omens, my bathroom horror prose/poetry collection, received some publication interest. After a bit of upheaval, though, I decided to withdraw it from consideration for now and start submitting the individual pieces instead. In theory, this should allow the collection to do some work for me first, since collections are a harder sell to audiences. I’d like these stories to be read, because they’re some of my best, even if word counts mean that some of those best are hard to place in the short story markets.

Go forth, my filthy little pretties.

Works in Progress:

This seventh Meridian book has been a job of work, to borrow from Buffy. Two previous versions, false starts, finally resorting to an outline (not a bad thing, just atypical). After two more false starts, I finally managed to get a good opening to Tooth & Claw. I am much more confident in this version than the last two, and the outline proves I have a whole story. It also takes some of the long-term lifting off my shoulders, because I don’t have to remember everywhere I’m going, just the scene I’m in and the next. With my memory issues, that’s really been helpful.

In addition to putting my collection to work, these last two days has involved handfuls of submissions and handfuls of rejections, but I’m still getting holds and personalized rejections, so it’s not all negative.

In the coming week, I’d like to push my daily word counts, if possible, and hit 50K words, because I have a job interview on Wednesday, and should I have good luck there, I’d like to get as far into the book as possible before heading into a new job. But I also want to take a short break at 20K or 25K words to edit a short story for sub and finish out my poetry for the month.

Books I’m Reading:

Killing Time by Russell C. Connor
Half-Off Ragnarok by Seanan McGuire (finished)
Pocket Apocalypse by Seanan McGuire

Things I’m Listening To:

YouTube playlists
Singer-songwriter playlists

Things I’m Watching:

Train to Busan
The Autopsy of Jane Doe
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (finally first time watching; Netflix has all but one NOES movie streaming)
Angel series (watchalong, finished)
White Collar series
NCIS series
NCIS: Hawai’i series
CSI: Miami series
Will Trent series
American Idol series
Spring Baking Championship series
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week: (throwback to April 2022)

The placid white clouds
have all turned gray.
The streets of pearl
have shattered away.
What happened to
these Elysian fields
to fade to brown
from the final seals?
Feathers floating
down from above.
Send in the crows
instead of the dove.

Quiet whirlwind: Friday Update

15 Friday Mar 2024

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News:

For Women in Horror Month, Jordan Triplett interviewed me for Alpha’s Court. I share my love of worms, how I don’t limit myself with genre, and how I combat negative thoughts.

John R. Little, author of Miranda, wrote some effusive praise for Question Not My Salt: “This is an absolutely terrific book, and I highly recommend it. … If you’re one of those folks who likes extreme horror, you really need to take a look. Just an awesome story from cover to cover.”

Cemetery Dance also posted a review for Question Not My Salt, excerpted here: “Don’t let the cover fool you, this is HORROR, not a cookbook…though a cookbook from this novella just might be fun to read. Imagine you’re a Canadian who goes to college in the U.S., is roomed with someone you become friends with who invites you to their home for Thanksgiving… and things go… awry. Do NOT piss off Mother. Do not ask for salt and for goodness sake, spit in that wine glass and pass it already.”

A reminder that we’re doing a read-along of Question Not My Salt at Goodreads group Horror Aficionados this month. We’ve had some fun interactions so far, including dream casting and favorite Thanksgiving dishes.

On the leg front, the reinjury seems to have mostly healed, although the muscle is still weak and needs some strength-building. I’m taking longer walks in sneakers, mostly walking around and going up and down the stairs barefoot again, which is preferable to having to wear shoes to support against the pain. I might be able to get back on the elliptical at low resistance as early as next week.

In the meantime, I seem to be dealing with some health issues—probably a bad batch of medication and possibly side effects of another, plus pulling a muscle or pinching a nerve in my neck, but I have a tendency to panic, and it’s making concentrating or doing anything important very difficult. It’s also putting some pressure on my job search, because I thought I’d have health insurance by now.

Works in Progress:

Despite concerns, though, I’ve managed to restart Shadow & Song (Meridian 7), and I finished the last required poems for the Spring section of my seasonal horror poetry collection. I can still add new poems to the Spring and Autumn sections if an idea or two arise, because they’re mini-collections rather than singular narratives like Summer and Winter, but for now, I can cross A Nightmare for All Seasons off my list as finished. I’ll probably put it together and edit it June/July 2024.

Just for fun, these are the section titles:
Verdant with Splinter and Thorn
Lusty Murders of May
The Halloween Parade
Bleak Midwinter

Also wrote and continue to work on some standalone poetry inspired by this month’s Quill & Crow Crow Calls. I like to add to my long poetry list now and then to keep it fresh. The more poetry I write, the more themes emerge for chapbooks and longer collections.

Received a handful of disappointing rejections. And yet I keep pushing, because I don’t know what else to do.

Books I’m Reading:

Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire
Killing Time by Russell C. Connor
Nineteen Little Stab Wounds by Alexis DuBon (finished)

Things I’m Listening To:

Hannibal soundtracks
Abyss/Ascent soundtrack
Silent Hill soundtracks
Kamelot

Things I’m Watching:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer series (watchalong)
Angel series (watchalong)
American Idol series
CSI series
CSI: Vegas series
NCIS series
NCIS: Hawaii series
White Collar series
The Mentalist series
Ghosts series
Not Dead Yet series
Will Trent series
Spring Baking Championship series
Home Town series
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week: (throwback from March 2022)

Malignant narcissist
Whose currency is abject fear
Forgets that true power
Is not making them kneel
And basking in their submission
But having them lower themselves
To kiss your filthy feet
Of their own devoted volition

Beat the drum slowly: Friday Update

08 Friday Mar 2024

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News:

I’m back in Crystal Lake’s Shallow Waters flash fiction contest with “Full,” for the theme of A Murder of Crows. This is one of three stories that I set in the same post-apocalyptic world, because it intrigued me so much in the first story, “The Sisters of the Perpetual Wound,” that I wanted to explore it some more. I may return to it again someday. “Full” should arrive at the Crystal Lake Patreon around March 18. In the meantime, there are fifteen other short pieces that will be shared this month (for $5 tier and up).

Queer erotic horror anthology The Pleasure in Pain launched its Kickstarter, which is essentially a preordering service, with some other cool rewards. My story “Graphite” is included among a killer TOC.

Works in Progress:

It took me ridiculously long to edit one regular-sized short story, but then I started my March poetry project, which has been a lot of fun. I wrote my first two sestinas! I had a weird block on understanding the form, but someone explained it better to me, so I had to try it.

Even better, two weeks after abandoning Silver & Steel (Meridian 7), I figured out during a hot shower how to fix the problems I had with the first draft attempt, where I essentially wrote out the external conflict during character development, which left me with nowhere to go in urban fantasy. As soon as I get some more poetry and my taxes done (ugh), I’ll start again, which I’m really excited about. I wanted that under my belt now so that I’d be able to finish writing the series by the end of the year. The new title will be Shadow & Song (Meridian 7).

Books I’m Reading:

IT by Stephen King (finished, finally!)
Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire
Ending in Ashes by Rebecca Jones-Howe (finished)
Killing Time by Russell C. Connor

Things I’m Listening To:

Hannibal soundtracks
YouTube playlists
Drift playlist

Things I’m Watching:

The Invitation (2022)
Gothika (Unrated)
The Hoarder
Buffy the Vampire Slayer series (watchalong)
Angel series (watchalong)
American Idol series
CSI series
CSI:Vegas series
NCIS series
NCIS: Hawaii series
White Collar series
The Mentalist series
Ghosts series
Home Town series
All Creatures Great and Small series (finished)
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week: (throwback from March 2022)

Others hail beginnings
As the potential
For something wonderful,
But no one ever said
A new start would precede
An improvement.

Goblin fruit: Friday Update

23 Friday Feb 2024

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News:

My interview with Crystal Lake Entertainment host A.F. Stewart is up on YouTube, where I talk about my inspiration for Question Not My Salt.

Question Not My Salt is also a March 2024 group read at the Goodreads discussion board Horror Aficionados. The Group Read thread hasn’t been created yet, but if you want to read along next month, feel free to join us!

I’m not too attached to rankings, but it’s been interesting watching QNMS’s since its release. It’s consistently higher than I’m used to my books being (in the hundreds rather than the hundred thousands), which means I’m getting modest but steady purchases. Out of Curiosity and Hunger ain’t doing too badly either (for me), since I’m a contender for the Indie Book Brawl at Books of Horror at Facebook, and people are starting to find it.

Works in Progress:

I’ve started applying for jobs and have no idea what my future holds or when, but as far as I’m concerned, my writing sabbatical is over, and that means allowing myself a little mental rest. This also means a certain amount of disorganized chaos. I intend to start editing in March, but there’s still a week till then.

I wrote a short story for a themed contest, and I have one more short story I’d like to write for a themed call. On a whim, I created a poetry chapbook that I’m not sure whether I’m sending in or saving for later, and I’m stitching it together today. Contemplating whether I have enough available short stories for a themed short collection. Having an existential crisis. Sad that our False Spring seems to have been the start of Actual Spring (although we’ve been known to have odd cold snaps in March-May). You know, the usual.

Books I’m Reading:

IT by Stephen King
Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire
Ending in Ashes by Rebecca Jones-Howe

Things I’m Listening To:

Lily Kershaw
Delain
Abyss/Ascent playlist
YouTube playlists

Things I’m Watching:

Hostel: Part II
Hostel: Part III
Mandy
Frozen (horror)
Devil’s Pass
Bite
Buffy the Vampire Slayer series (watchalong)
Angel series (watchalong)
CSI series
The Mentalist series
The Irrational series (finished)
Helix series (finished)
Queer Eye series
Abbott Elementary series
All Creatures Great and Small series
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week:

for four hundred years
i abstain
chalice dry
length of long tongue
desiccated

so that when some
young thing
bleeds
for me

i am compelled to
devour

You can never leave: Friday Update

16 Friday Feb 2024

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News:

It’s my beautiful book birthday! Extreme family dinner horror novel Question Not My Salt is officially available as an ebook (paperback to come). It’s a short, rollicking, roiling read, and you can enjoy it any time of year or save it as a Thanksgiving treat. Thank you to Kenneth W. Cain and Crystal Lake Entertainment for everything they’ve done to help QNMS come to life!

Elaine Pascale gave a wonderful review at Hellnotes, saying, “Question Not My Salt left me questioning many things non-spice related. I questioned the place of torture porn in written horror. I questioned myself as I was devouring this piece of extreme horror as if it were a pleasant travel essay. I questioned why I was not reading more of Blake’s writing.”

Horror Reads, who provided my first review, included Question Not My Salt on his list of “Three Shorter Horror Books to Break Your Mind!” at his YouTube channel.

I also participated in a live podcast episode last night, the Panic Room Radio Show through Hellbound Books, to talk about horror and read an excerpt from QNMS and completely forgot to share that I was doing it so that people could, you know, listen live. However, I should have a link to the episode to share by next week’s update.

Works in Progress:

I’ve only ever had to scrap a novel once before, but I’m afraid I have to do that with Silver & Steel (Meridian 7), at least in its present incarnation. Character plans I had ended up changing when the characters decided to go in different directions, which then removed all the intended external conflict, and in urban fantasy, external conflict is essential. I stopped writing around 35K words in, which is better than the last time I quit a novel, which was at over 70K words.

I’ve summarized a few intended scenes, suggested a few changes, and asked myself some questions that can give me the framework for a new novel, which I’ll probably write later this year so I can put some distance between this version and the next. I would still like to finish the Meridian series this year, but I’m noodling on adding one or two novels to the list, so that may be out of the question anyway.

I’m frustrated, because I wanted that under my belt, or mostly so, before I started looking for employment and hopefully getting hired somewhere. But I didn’t want to waste any more of my time on a novel that was sputtering.

Right now I’m working on a novelette that I don’t really know what to do with, but it’ll be ready, whatever that is. Next week, I polish my resume and start submitting applications, and I’ll probably proceed to edit Book & Candle (Meridian 5) in the afternoons and evenings.

Books I’m Reading:

IT by Stephen King
Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire
Ending in Ashes by Rebecca Jones-Howe

Things I’m Listening To:

Billie Eilish
Fleurie
Ruelle
Lily Kershaw
Once More With Feeling soundtrack
Stigmata soundtrack

Things I’m Watching:

Contracted
Contracted: Phase II
Buffy the Vampire Slayer series (watchalong)
Angel series (watchalong)
CSI series
The Mentalist series
The Irrational series
Helix series
Queer Eye series
Ghosts (US) series
Not Dead Yet series
All Creatures Great and Small series
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week:

I cannot promise sunrise
over massacre scene,
nor unburnished gold
or sterling silver clean.
Stars will reflect red
where moon will demean,
your fairest flesh shine
unfairly unknown, unseen
except by the feral,
the cruel, and the mean.
When I have no more rubies
and hungry times are lean,
will you still bleed for me,
my beautiful, bloody Queen?

If the sun never rises: Friday Update

02 Friday Feb 2024

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News:

After the polar vortex dipped down here to blister my toes with chilblains, we slipped into a false spring. It’s been warm, but also cloudy and rainy. I like cloudy and rainy, but after a while, missing the sun disrupts the sense of day rising and night falling. The temperature is beautiful (even a little warmer than I prefer) and doesn’t look like we’ll get a big winter front for a while (if at all), but there are a lot of clouds in the forecast. Makes me drowsy.

There’s no immediate news really, although I can tease that I received another great blurb and did my first podcast interview for Question Not My Salt this week. First podcast interview ever, actually.

If you missed it, I put out the Puppeteer (Thorns 4) playlist. You can find all the book playlists under the Thorns series header above. The links are under each book listing.

Works in Progress:

I finished the second edit of erotic horror novella A Woman Alone and brought it down to under 40K words, which was the goal. Since January submission calls ended and February calls opened up, I submitted that, plus a novelette and a few more short stories. I also finished what might be my last poems for the Autumn section of my seasonal poetry collection. Now I just have to write for Spring.

On January 31st, I felt weird starting something new right at the end of the month, and I didn’t have any more small projects to fuss with, so I took the day off to binge-watch Buffy, Angel, and The Mentalist and feel sorry for myself because I’m still struggling with leg pain. Sometimes you just need to wallow. I don’t really take days off and often downplay my own work as actual work—even though I put in full effort seven days a week—because I don’t receive commensurate compensation. But rest will occasionally force itself upon you

Wallowing over, I started on Silver & Steel (Meridian 7) yesterday, and it started pretty strong. I broke from my usual style for the series and decided to do it in first-person present tense. Whether I finish it mid-February or not, that’s when I’ll clean up my resume and start putting out job applications. Hopefully, winter doesn’t decide to come back with an icy vengeance at that point. It did when I started my last job nine years ago.

Books I’m Reading:

IT by Stephen King
Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire
Ending in Ashes by Rebecca Jones-Howe

Things I’m Listening To:

Sara Bareilles
Eurielle
Timber Timbre
Agnes Obel
Tina Guo

Things I’m Watching:

Bullet Train
Saltburn
Taken 2
Buffy the Vampire Slayer series (watchalong)
Angel series (watchalong)
CSI series
The Mentalist series
Abbott Elementary series
Helix series
All Creatures Great and Small series
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week:

save your vitriol for someone
who wouldn’t eat your soul
instead of a sandwich
if it satisfied their hunger
more efficiently

You don’t meet Nazguls at coffee shops: Friday Update

26 Friday Jan 2024

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News:

Lor Gislason, goopy body horror author of Inside Out and editor of Bound by Flesh, blurbed Question Not My Salt, saying, “Blake invites us to a feast so tantalizing you won’t be able to look away, even as your stomach does flips. It’s as delicious as it is depraved. Bon appetit.” I worked with them through Bound by Flesh, in which my story was milder body horror, so I was pleased to offer something more intense.

This is the first time I’ve ever had marketing help for a novel release from a publishing company. I’m overwhelmed by the process of getting interviews and signing up for podcasts, especially since I’m not a podcast person (like audiobooks, I’ve yet to find a place to fit them in my life), so I’m anxious and excited to learn new things. I think it’ll be fun to talk about Question Not My Salt. I have a schedule.

Works in Progress:

I finished first round of edits on erotic horror novella A Woman Alone, cutting it down from about 47K to 41K words. I need to get it under 40K, but based on where I am in early second-round edits, that’s within reach.

I should finish A Woman Alone, its synopsis, and the pitch by next update. Then I need to start writing Silver & Steel (Meridian 7).

I wanted to do more writing in February, but given that I’ll be looking for a job after S&S and hopefully acclimating to a workplace again, I think I’m going to do a rash of edits instead. I have plenty to work on: Book & Candle (Meridian 5), In the Dollhouse We All Wait, Crooked House (Thorns 5).

Books I’m Reading:

IT by Stephen King
Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire
Ending in Ashes by Rebecca Jones-Howe

Things I’m Listening To:

Nightwish
Hadestown soundtracks
Agnes Obel
Tom Waits
Timber Timbre
Bishop Briggs
The Village soundtrack

Things I’m Watching:

Batman Begins
Run.
The Cave
Taken
Buffy the Vampire Slayer series (watchalong)
Angel series (watchalong)
Celebrity Jeopardy series (finished)
White Collar series
The Mentalist series
Transplant series
Helix series
All Creatures Great and Small series
Hometown series
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week:

they don’t want
your success

prey on life like
transfusion
replaced with
pulpy orange juice

run you ragged
on a treadmill
until heads will
crack like lacquer

they want your
failure

so live if you might
out of sheer spite

You look familiar: Friday Update

19 Friday Jan 2024

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News:

We started with gargoyles, went on to succubi, and now we have vampires! Strange & Familiar, the third standalone novel of the Meridian series, is officially out on Amazon and Totally Bound under my other name.

He has turned her into the humblest of slaves, eager to satisfy his every command and serve his bloodthirsty appetite—as well as a few unusual appetites of her own.

This isn’t the first or last time I play in familiar waters. Next Meridian novel comes out later this year.

In personal news, I reinjured the leg (again). Different part of the muscle, grade 1 strain instead of 2, so I can walk, but it takes me a few steps back in progress. Grade 1 strains can take two to three weeks to heal, and I’m following the original principle of not getting back on the elliptical until I can walk barefoot almost normally. So I’m a sedentary kitty again. With the polar vortex, I haven’t even been able to walk much, although yesterday was beautiful.

(content warning: food, diet, eating habits)

Which means I’ve had to accept the fact that I really can’t depend on aerobic exercise, perhaps for another few months, to counter my appetite. I didn’t realize the last time I took it, but the metformin I restarted is a mild appetite suppressant, so it’s been easier to start scaling back on intake.

This confirms to me what other people seem to have a hard time understanding: It’s a lot easier to do things that you want to do; and the corollary, it’s a lot easier to not do the things you don’t want to do. I haven’t accomplished this on willpower (which isn’t actually a thing, but people think it is). My desire to eat is being suppressed, so I don’t want as hard as I did before, and the feeling of being hungry isn’t as unpleasant. Controlling insulin helps with that, too, because I’m more effectively using the food I do eat. I’ve never eaten a lot, just a little more than I should. With the help of medicine, I’m managing to eat less without as much frustration. I’m not withholding too much, I want to reiterate. I’m just not adding a lot of caloric extras to my day, and the ones I like, I’m able to cut down by half or more and remain satisfied by them.

In just two weeks, it’s made an impact. We’ll see how sustainable it is.

Works in Progress:

I went ahead and edited all four short stories plus the Hear You Scream novelette for submission calls, and all of them have been submitted. I still have one cli-fi novelette to edit, but there’s no hard deadline for that one, and I’m not in the zone for it.

So, next up is editing erotic horror novella A Woman Alone, which ought to be a lot of fun. I’ll be trying to punch up the gothic horror elements and trying to cut it down to meet the submission call’s maximum word count, which means cutting about 8-10K words. We’ll see how it goes.

Books I’m Reading:

IT by Stephen King
Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire
Ending in Ashes by Rebecca Jones-Howe

Music I’m Listening To:

Halloween playlist

Things I’m Watching:

Insidious: The Red Door (disappointing)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer series (watchalong)
Angel series (watchalong)
White Collar series
The Mentalist series
Transplant series
Found series (finished)
Helix series
All Creatures Great and Small series
Hometown series
Murder, She Wrote series

Poem of the Week:

barren as a wicker basket
lingering from centuries past
useful for what won’t slip
through fingers of corn husk
and fern but watch ash
slither through like sand
to spill onto dust bowl
floors and through the cracks
to have and to hold you
and let you go