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Hi everyone,

Well, this week was a whirlwind of emotions. I lost one of my writing gigs but then got offered two new writing gigs and then my car alarm started malfunctioning so we had to have that unplugged for the time being. Oh, and I started using this new app that's really helping me deal with my ADHD, so that's been great. It's called Fabulous.

On the writing front, I passed the halfway mark for the next Gemstone Massacre book. Dusk befriended Azzy, a member of the plant mage clan, and made it to the original Gemstone forest and is gathering them to storm the castle/ Council.

My behind-the-scenes look at my writing for this week is about planning. I consider myself somewhat in between an outliner and discovery writer. So, during Preptober, I don't do a whole detailed outline, but I do go through a questionnaire. I put some of my answers to the questions below. The ideas I come up with don't always make it into the story, but they're a good place to turn to when I'm not sure what to write next, so I don't get stuck.

Note: I didn't include the image since it wasn't working in the email, but here are some of my responses for this 30-day challenge.

1.      What does your MC desire?

Dusk’s desire is to be accepted and loved and to protect those that can’t protect themselves like the familiars and Raven

Amy’s desire is to take down Opal, find out what she is and how to control her powers, and reconcile with Dusk. But more than anything she wants to live a normal life where she’s left alone.

2.      What does your MC fear?

Amy fears losing the people she cares about and people dying because of her, but she doesn’t particularly care if she dies because she’s rather depressed.

Dusk fears ending up alone. He worries that no one really cares about him and that everyone has an ulterior motive. He finds it hard to trust others.

3.      What is getting in their way? 

Opal and the Council are getting in Amy’s way of living a normal life. These new powers don’t help either.

In Dusk’s case, his fear of being vulnerable and his difficulty in understanding people’s true motives make it difficult for him to form lasting relationships. He gets taken advantage of often.

That's all I've got for you this week. I just have one more question for you.

What are you doing for Thanksgiving (if you're celebrating)?

I'm probably going to do something at home with my mother and brother for safety reasons. Especially since my brother recently visited my aunt who's out of state.

Have a great day and stay safe.

Sincerely,

Julia

Featured Indie read

Okay, I may have impulse-bought a copy of this for myself even though my TBR is a mile long. It's a post-apocalyptic fantasy world where magic causes diseases and other calamities that made all the humans have to go underground. And it was 99 cents for the 1st book in this series which is a steal.

Book Fairs and Free Books