Today on "Things I Did Instead Of Writing," I made a uquiz so each of you can discover which character you are from Maristella Arrington: The Admiral's Daughter. Are you...

Would you like me to mail you a FREE mini zine with three poems from Spilled Stardust Volume I? All you have to do is fill out this Free Sample Google Form!

“What are you reading?”

You shudder.

The question itself isn’t so bad. You’re reading a book, and at that, it’s a book you enjoy, with positive themes that spark your interest. Still, you hesitate, because if you keep talking, you know you’ll say that word, the one that leads to a look of false understanding and an unspoken judgment:

Romance.

But here’s why you don’t need to be ashamed about that romance novel you’re reading.

In literary discussion, we’re always taught that there are...

Maybe ideas come easily for you. Maybe you excel at figuring out what to do next. Maybe you don't stop in front of the blank canvas and the empty document and cower in fear over a failure that doesn't even exist yet.

Or maybe you're like me.

Maybe sometimes you wonder where your story's supposed to go. Maybe you can't figure out what comes next. Maybe an idea is bursting within you, and you have no idea how to break it out.

And if you're like me, here's seven methods for brainstorming, and...

For the past month, I've been on this insane sidequest to get my book on shelves in stores. As an indie author, that's no small feat. There's no one-size-fits-all specific guidebook for this, no publishing house or agent fighting for you. It's just you, your computer, and an unwavering belief in your words against the world.

What has that process looked like? Lots of emails, a few phone calls, several DMs and a ton of Google Forms. There's been quite a bit of looking up "bookstores near me"...