A Week Full of Words

Hi, how are you today? What did you get up to?

This week my husband and I went to get our annual blood tests. I also have to take an anti-inflammatory capsule for a week because I somehow hurt my right side/lat muscle. The weird thing is that I don't know how it happened. I mean, it could've been all the walking, or a particular exercise. Hell, maybe I hurt myself while sleeping. All I know is that I can't do the last bit of my daily walk for two weeks because the steep uphill incline triggers the pain plus pins and needles down my arm. Very, very strange. The doctor suspects it might be related to the nerves/muscle running across my lat and the back of my shoulder. 😫

Anyway. We'll see how it goes.

The other thing I did today was... I finally left Twitter. That's right. After 15 years, I deactivated my account. My husband deactivated his at the beginning of the week and to be honest, I was determined to stick around for a while. Even toyed with locking my account to private and only disconnecting temporarily. But the new AI bullshit was added, plus I'm over all the gross fascist crap that's going on over there.

Either way, I'm done. I deactivated and uninstalled the app from my phone. It's better this way because there's nothing left over there. Twitter died a long time ago and we were all holding onto a very thin memory of the place.

Besides, I'm still active on Bluesky (which I'm enjoy more and more), Threads and IG.

So, let's talk about writing.

Here's how I did:

• Monday: 21,550w (added 4,015) 
• Tuesday: 25,450w (added (3,900)
• Wednesday: no new words
• Thursday: 29,247w (added 3,797)
• Friday: 35,479w (added 6,232)

As you can see, even though I missed a day, this week's total word count was great. The numbers are good but what's even better is how the story keeps eating my brain so much that I'm constantly thinking about it. I keep dreaming about the characters, and can't stop images and snippets (about what's going to happen next) from popping into my head.

Yeah, I've been taking a lot of notes and looking for more inspirational pics. I also talk to my husband about it all the time. LOL.

This particular idea has been with me for MONTHS, so I'm not surprised that the words are flowing. Every time I sit down, the characters take over and I find myself getting lost in the story. I love when that happens!

Last week I mentioned that I wasn't sure if this was going to be a novella or a novel, but now that I've passed 35k and know what's to come, I'm pretty sure the total word count will surpass the novella length.

Well, asides from all this writing I also finished reading an excellent and very creepy book. You can read my review of DIAVOLA below. (Or hit the title for the direct link.)

That's it for this week, I think.

It's time to weekend. Have a good one!

DIAVOLA by Jennifer Marie Thorne

Diavola by Jennifer Marie Thorne
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is another book that I've had my eye on for a while and finally decided to get stuck into the other day.

This year, Anna is going to Italy for the annual Pace family vacation. She's not looking forward to spending time with her dysfunctional family (twin brother, his boyfriend, older sister, brother-in-law, two nieces and parents) but she instantly likes the villa in the remote Tuscan town. Yet, there's something about this place that bothers her. And it's not just the locked tower door...

Fucking creepy. In the best way possible.

I really love it when a character's voice is so compelling and strong that I'm instantly hooked. I'm also a sucker if she's obviously flawed and definitely keeps secrets that slowly slip out. Add family complications, a spooky haunted house, plenty of unreliable situations to the mix, and my curiosity will keep me there during the duration of the book.

Seriously, I wanted to devour this story in one sitting but forced myself to slow down. To savour every creepy moment for as long as I could.

Everyone in the Pace family is annoying af, which only adds extra flavour to everything else that's going on. And there's a LOT. But mostly, I had a great time following Anna until she reached that very satisfying and unexpected unending.

Loved it. Great book!


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November is here!

How are you today?

Well, a new month is here and as far as the world goes, it hasn't started well. I still can't believe the news that came out of the US the other day. I find it devastating that so many people voted in favour of lies, hate and inequality. Instead of choosing a highly qualified candidate who stood for the right to choose, growth, and equality.

I'm saddened by these results. We live in a very disappointing world. I will never understand people, and somehow always manage to underestimate their capacity for cruelty. But I really shouldn't be surprised because I've had my fair share of shitty stuff thrown my way this year.

Anyway, the reason why I decided to post an update is because I started writing a new story this month. That's right! After a year full of editing, revision, rewriting, and having to deal with some pretty shitty stuff, I finally got stuck into a brand new WIP.

I used to take part in NaNoWriMo, but after the distasteful stuff that happened last year, I deleted my account. Yep. After sixteen years of participation, I vowed to never take part again and actually finished last year's novel on my own.

That I decided to get stuck into a first draft this month could be pure coincidence because I'm finally ready. Or it could be that muscle memory has drawn me back in. 😁

Either way, I got stuck into it this week:

• Monday: 2,342w 
• Tuesday: 6,146w (added 3,804)
• Wednesday: 10,378w (added 4,232)
• Thursday: 14,371w (added 3,993)
• Friday: 17,535w (added 3,164)

I think this is a great start. Not just because of the word count, but also because I really like how the main character's story is unfolding.

This idea has been renting space in my brain for months now! I've put together a Playlist, collected a bunch of inspirational pics, and have a document full of snippets and scenes that are ready to be written. And I can't wait for some of these scenes to come up because this story is sexy and raunchy, and full of horror. Did I mention it's a vampire book set in the late 80s? 🦇

Can't wait to see where these characters take me. I mean, I know where they're going but some of the getting there is still a mystery. LOL.

I'm also not sure if it's going to be a novella or a novel and don't have a total word count goal.

A week ago my first self-published book, ONLY DARKNESS, came out. This happens to be a re-release and it's a project that means a lot to me because rewriting/editing this, and turning two novellas plus a short story into one book, helped me deal with the shitty publishing stuff I went through earlier this year, so when I read the first review today, I was SO excited.

Oh, you know what I did last weekend? I binged AGATHA ALL ALONG & LOVED IT! I loved the witchy vibes and the little twists in the last half of the series were all very cool. I have to admit that I wasn't a fan of WANDAVISION, so I wasn't sure what to expect... but this was awesome! Much better. Even the different decade eps fit better, story wise.

Well, that's about it for this week.

Take care, take it easy, and have a great weekend!

SALLY'S LAMENT by Mari Mancusi

Sally's Lament by Mari Mancusi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of my favourite movies. Sally is one of my favourite characters. Sally and Jack are one of my favourite couples. So of course I wanted to read this lovely book.

Remember when Jack discovered Christmas Town? Well, imagine it was Sally and Zero who actually discover the tree and find themselves in the snowy wonderland. Except, Sally discovers there's something really dark going on...

I loved this! I was captivated from the very beginning because the opening scene is directly from the movie, but seen through Sally's POV. After that, this becomes a whole different story, an amazing adventure that both Sally and Jack share together. And because of that, the way their connection grows is more organic, and romantic.

I found this reimagining of Christmas Town intriguing, and loved the new cast of characters that are introduced. Plus the scenery, because this adventure expands the winter wonderland to include some dangerous places. Not to mention that Sally having her own agency makes her mission to help those who need it most even more exciting.

Yeah, I LOVED this charming story. 😍


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CASTLE OF THE CURSED by Romina Garber

Castle of the Cursed by Romina Garber
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have to admit that the first thing I noticed about this book was the awesome cover. It certainly captures the creepy gothic vibes I enjoy so much.

After Estela loses her parents under mysterious circumstances, she feels like her life is over. She's totally alone and desperately wants answers. But when she finds out she has an aunt living in Spain, she suddenly finds herself inside a castle called la Sombra. A place full of secrets and shadows...

Wow. What a wonderful and strange story this turned out to be. It's about a teenager who is struggling with the grief of losing her parents and has trouble moving on. And if that's not enough, she has to move halfway across the world to discover her heritage, while uncovering a bunch of shocking secrets about her past. And learning Spanish from scratch. As well as realising that there are many things hiding in the darkness.

I really like how Estela changes as the new experiences she's forced to face shift as quickly as her surroundings. How she discovers that she didn't know anything about her parents, and that the world is full of unfathomable mystery. Her voice is strong and interesting, and I love the writing style because it really dragged me in.

There's an air of darkness that shadows the story from start to finish and the depth of weird that throws the story into unexpected territories was enough to keep me glued to the pages.

Oh, and did I mention that there's also a love story buried within all of the danger and uncertainty? Plus a twist that I quite enjoyed.

Great book!

 

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