For April I did a special magic trick called: falling off the face of the planet.
I’m super good at this one π€ I like to remember my YOUTH when I used to write 30,000-words in a day and read a whole book and answer 500+ blog comments weekly and post 2 x a day on instagram and basically…be a content machine. Right now? I just had a very warm hot chocolate and I would like a nap (it’s 8:30pm but you know what? Whatever). I got old. π Possibly I wore myself out. But I’m trying not to berate myself for what I can’t do now, and just be softly proud of what I have achieved.
And this month I did edits! I mentioned in March that I signed with a new agent (!!!) and I dug in hard and deep to edits this month and I am so so fiercely happy with how my book is shaping up. But I sort of abandoned ship on everything else. What is MULTITASKING and BALANCE and can I buy some prepackaged and ready to bake.
Other Things That Went Down In April
- I celebrated The Boy Who Steals House 1st birthday π₯ΊSo proud of this kid. I answered some Q&A questions from everyone!
- I baked a cheesecake for my sister’s birthday…or was it for me. Who can properly say.
- Atticus (my dog!) had another vet appointment, and while he’s doing so so well after nearly dying from organ failure and pancreatitis earlier this year…he’s still not better. I worry about him a lot. But he’s still back to being mischievous and full of attitude! He also gets jealous if I talk to my sister?! He’ll go rip up his toys?? π€¨ Let’s talk about your controlling relationship tendencies, Atticus.
- COVID-19 restrictions are slowly lessening in Australia. (Not that social isolation changed my life at all. That’s just…um, my every day.) But it’s freaking scary what’s happening to the world and how everyone is suffering. I hope you’re all doing okay, but truly…it’s a hard year. I hope no one is beating themselves up for not being super productive or for struggling.
- I’m barely buying books at the moment because prices have just soared. We’re talking $30 for a paperback on Book Depository?! I cannot.
- But in good news, it’s getting COLDER. I THRIVE in winter. As a massive insomniac, being able to burrow under a thousand blankets is such bliss. I may have two pieces of sleep soon.π€
Like I said, I DID EDITS. I’m so exhausted. π Writing is not extraordinarily fast for me anymore. I have to search for every word and polish it off before slipping it onto the page and hoping it fits next to the others. It’s hard. But it’s also so so rewarding and I’m remembering why I love writing. I so so love it and I feel like I’m getting back in the game. I wrote nearly every day (sometimes all day) and was just so proud of this story of messy kids and dark whimsical fairy tales. It has!!! my heart!!!
- I’m going to take May SLOW for writing. Maybe start working on another side-project. A little fantasy perhaps…π
- Also I need to read?! I barely read in April!
- I want to read Save the Cat this month and start honing my craft.
- A pro of not writing so fast and hard anymore is I don’t break 3 keyboards a year!!!
I read exactly 9 books this month and this is…hilariously bad for me. But I was WRITING okay. And I struggle to switch gears. When my brain zones into Writer Modeβ’ I just want to keep working or melt into an amorphous shadow.
The hilarious part is me moaning about having no library access anymore last month and…since then I’ve read exactly one (1) library book. π No need to drag me. I can do that myself.
(all covers link to goodreads)
BOOKS BOUGHTβ¦
FOR REVIEW…
Vote and help meeeee!

Here are my reading highlights of April!
The Starless Sea // right, so let me introduce one of my NEW HEART FAVOURITES. I honestly struggle to fully capture how deeply I adored this book. It was slow and ponderous at times, but so whimsical and gorgeous, dark and often bizarre. Zachary was THE clueless loveable dumbass queer bookworm who was not quite sure what was happening at any given time. I relate. I love. This is such a love letter to storytelling. ItΒ stole my affections.
Burn // another Ness masterpiece of complete oddness. I really liked it, though it didn’t engulf me quite like some of his other books (my heart for A Monster Calls). It has dragons, is set in the 1950s, there’s a teen cultist assassin, and alternate realities and it’s just WEIRD. But good.
Red White & Royal Blue // a reread! It had been too long and I desperately wanted something super funny. I still love it so so much, and felt I actually kept up with the politics better. But I also felt the darkness of the story more? Especially at the end, with Alex’s anxiety. π₯Ί I laugh and it broke me. Perfect book.
The Dark Tide // oh this was such a whimsical witchy tale, totally reminded me of the Ice Queen story where the girl goes off to rescue the stolen boy…but what if instead she falls in love with the queen? It’sΒ gorgeously written. I did want a bit more depth to the world, but this is definitely a darkly pretty read.
Magic by Midnight // fractured fairy tales galore! This was just FUN and had so much humour too! About librarians controlling fairy tales. And it leaves you in an utter mess by the end so I really want the sequel!
Ninth House // Another reread! I tried it via audio this time and I felt like I kept upΒ so much better. The language is really incredible at times, definitely academic and clever (maaaybe a little pretentious but I also love that about it). Gah I am in awe of Bardugo’s ability to weave such complex plots. Also the world is incredible, I adore it. I also forget like, um, everything…so it was practically like reading a whole new book. (A NESTING DOLL of villains omg.)
Other Books I read
did you spend April writing? tell me how you went! and what was your FAVE read of the month? do you balance reading vs writing well, or do you struggle to switch focuses too?