Tag: fiction

Why Scion Works

Is this post actually going to be on time? Oh my heavens, I don’t know who I am anymore!

Launching on September first, Scion is the latest novel by James Islington. He’s probably best known for his Hierarchy series, and this is his first science fiction book. I received an ARC from Saga Press. And it was a fantastic read.

Our main character is an assassin named Azure. He lives in a dystopian future where people have discovered how to live forever. Of course, that comes at a premium cost. So, rather than outlawing the practice, the people vote to make it legal to assassinate ‘Lifers’.

The allure of crowdfunding the legal assassination of a wealthy asshole is almost enough to make this book not so dystopian after all.

Azure is one such legal assassin. He’s one of the best at what he does, thanks in part to his extensive body modifications. So he’s surprised when he’s assigned instead to protect someone from assassination. He soon learns the reason he was selected for this task. And it’s life-altering.

So let’s break down Scion today, and see why it works.

The first scene is a masterclass

A scene should accomplish something. Maybe it’s to move the story along, give important information, or show us something about a character. The best scenes do multiple things at once. And the first scene in Scion is a perfect example.

We start right in with Azure penetrating the defenses of a target’s magnificent home. He’s face to face with a bioengineered monster and fighting for his life.

This is a great way to get the reader’s attention. It also introduces the reader to some of the advanced tech in this world. On top of that, it introduces us to Azure, his remarkable abilities, and his delightfully sarcastic personality.

Well done, all around.

The world is vast

We only see so much of Azure’s world. In fact, it feels like we’re just looking through a keyhole into a limitless universe. You just can’t see everything there is to see.

There is so much wild technology. So much culture, music, food, drugs, and people! And we just don’t get a lot of details about any of it.

The detail we do get is astounding. It alludes to a deeper, more complex world.

I love when authors do this. It’s something I’m trying to learn. You don’t have to give all the details when you’re worldbuilding. I mean, you can if you want to. Some writers really love that sort of thing. But if you give just enough detail, the reader’s imagination will usually fill in the rest.

The main character was likable.

I liked Azure. He was bitingly sarcastic, professional, and weirdly respectful.

All of this was strange for an assassin. But then, assassinations are legal. So maybe that helps.

I love that he’s kind and respectful, even when murdering someone. I love how well he stands up for his boundaries. He clearly cares about the people in his life, even if distantly. And he always wants to do the right thing.

Even if he’s murdering people.

I think it’s important for a character to have a set of moral standards they adhere to. Even if they aren’t exactly ones we agree to. And Azure has those moral standards. They make sense for the world he lives in and his place in it.

Well done.

The ending!

Finally, I want to talk about the ending, without giving it away. Because it’s interesting.

At the end of the story, Azure is faced with a choice. I think that readers might disagree as to which choice he should make.

I know which choice I would make. But, well, it isn’t as simple as that, is it?

It’s an ending that leaves the reader with questions. But good ones. It also leaves this world open. If Islington chose to write more in this world, I think he easily could. I also think he should. I’d certainly read it.

Overall, Scion was a fast-paced story that invites readers to play along and fill in the blanks themselves. It’s witty and fun. I’d certainly recommend checking it out when it releases on September first.

As though we need another reason to count down the days to September.

Paper Beats World is a labor of love. You can support us by liking this post, sharing it and commenting. You can also support us on Ko-fi.

Station 86 Volume 1 is coming! You can get your very own copy on October Second.

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The weight of a woman’s pen

“I’m a writer. I don’t cook and I don’t clean.” Dorothy West.

When I was a kid, my grandmother had a hysterectomy. I don’t mean when I was a teenager. I mean when I was a kid, like ten. And my mother sent me to stay with her for a week during my Summer vacation to take care of her. When my mother had a hysterectomy a few years later, I took care of her, too.

My writing has always come after caring for someone or something. I’ve written while potatoes boiled, at laundromats, while in doctors’ waiting rooms and on the public bus. I’ve gotten up early to sneak in writing before anyone would need me.

I have always had weight on my pen. Weight that many women probably find quite familiar.

This won’t be news to most of you, but women’s aspirations are often put on the back burner. We work our passions while babies nap, while water boils and meatloaves bake. We are often the default caregivers of children, parents, and in-laws. So if we are to write, we’ll do so once everything else is done.

This happens to me all the time. As you might know, my Darling Husband had a stroke about a year and a half ago. He is physically and mentally disabled. He needs care, some days more than others. So writing often comes in stolen moments. I barely wrote the first year after his stroke; I just didn’t have the time or energy.

Men don’t seem to have this problem. Or, I should say, men are less likely to have this problem. Lots of modern men are good at this. If you’re a man and you do an equal share of the housework, make your own doctor’s appointments, take equal care of your kids and elderly relatives, and pick up after your damned self without needing a list, that’s awesome. You’re a competent adult, and we love to see it. I’m kind of assuming that if you’re a man and you’re reading this, you are in fact one of these competent adults because I generally assume my readers are wonderful people and I love you all.

Let me tell you, though, that is not always the case.

One of the most galling things about the division of homecare is hearing some (not all) creative men talk about their partners. And, I hate to say it, but the first one that comes to mind is my man, my hero, Stephen King.

In his book, On Writing, he talks about his wife, Tabitha. And he obviously adores her. He makes it clear that he was only able to write while they had three little kids and they were both working because she was picking up the slack around the house. However, he points out that she had writing aspirations as well.

Well, fuck that! Tabitha King is an author. She’s been a published author since goddamned 1981 when her novel Small World came out. And I only found that out literally five minutes before writing this sentence because I looked it up! She’s published eight novels! On Writing came out in 2000, at which point Tabitha had already published seven of her books. And he sure didn’t mention that!

Stephen wrote novel after novel while working full time and doing a shit ton of coke. She wrote novel after novel while working, raising children, caring for a house, and dealing with her coke-addicted husband. Not to mention being incredibly supportive of his career. Put some respect on her damned name!

Over and over I hear men in the writing field talk about how much they depend on their spouses so they can write. I don’t often hear women say the same thing. Yes, some husbands fit that supporting role. But more often you hear men talk affectionately about how much their wives support them, without sparing a thought for how they can support their wives back.

Even so, the weight on the modern woman’s pen isn’t as heavy as it used to be. Consider Shirley Jackson, one of the greatest horror writers of all time. We all know the sort of marriage she had. Imagine what she might have done if her pen were a little lighter. If she’d had someone to cook dinner and look after the children. What might we have seen from other famous women writers? How many more amazing works would we have if women didn’t have this extra pressure on their time?

This needs to stop. This pressure needs to be removed. We need our pens to be lighter. But if that’s to happen, we women need to start having some real conversations with our partners, and with each other. In that spirit, I want to speak directly to my fellow women right now.

If your partner isn’t sharing in domestic labor, it might be time to have a real conversation with them. That’s going to look different for every couple. But it’s better than doing all the work and growing resentful that your own dreams are being buried under laundry and vacuuming.

We also need to stop posting these dumb, weaponized incompetent videos of men. It just encourages other women to put up with bad behavior because ‘all men are like that’. The fuck they are. My husband is half paralyzed, and he still helps out around the house to the best of his ability. My roommate is twenty-four, and he does equal parts of the housework.

Now, let’s also talk about how we talk to and about ourselves and each other. We do not have to have perfectly clean houses. We don’t have to make meals from scratch every night. We don’t have to have everyone over for holidays, cook, clean, and be perfect hostesses. We can ask for help from our families. We don’t have to take care of everyone. We shouldn’t expect perfection from ourselves. And if you have friends or family members who expect that perfection from you, maybe that’s not your problem. Maybe it’s time to respectfully tell your mom, sister-in-law, or judgy friend to go to hell.

This is something I’ve really struggled with. Especially since my husband’s stroke.

This is about to get real real here, so please be kind.

For the first few months after my husband’s stroke, I barely slept, let alone wrote. He needed almost constant care. He couldn’t sit up, couldn’t feed or clean himself. I didn’t leave the house for more than fifteen minutes for months. I was scared to take a shower with the door closed. I was terrified to leave him alone.

People offered to help. To sit with him. To run errands for me. And I would just say that I was fine. I had it covered. Because I did have the necessary things covered. He was clean, fed, and cared for. The house was put together.

But I wasn’t writing. Hell, I wasn’t reading. I could barely let him out of my sight.

Then, I did something drastic. A friend needed a roommate. I needed help. So we moved in together. I let other people stay with my husband. I let other people cook and clean. We’re talking about hiring a housekeeper. I stopped doing every single thing for my husband, and only stepped in when he actually needed help.

More than all of that, I’ve come to accept that the house might just be a mess. And that’s okay. It’s not a moral failing. Right now as I write this, there’s a massive pile of clothes that need to be folded and put away. There are dishes in my sink. The lawn needs mowed. I’ll get to it, or someone will. My writing comes first.

It’s time to take some weight off our pens and see what we can really do.

Paper Beats World is a labor of love. You can support us by liking this post, sharing it and commenting. You can also support us on Ko-fi.

Station 86 Volume 1 is coming! You can get your very own copy on October Second.

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Station 86, the physical book!

Earlier this year, Grady Hendrix announced that he wasn’t coming out with a new book until 2027. As he usually graces us with a book a year, this bothered him. So, he published a novella under a pen name across the pond. That novella is called The Rednexorcist, published under the name Frank Sloane.

Yes, I ordered a copy. Yes, I’ll be reviewing it on Weird Wyrlds. (And by the way, I just reviewed Dead But Dreaming of Electric Sheep by Paul Tremblay. It’s a fun review, and a very fun book.)

I don’t have a novella to publish. I don’t have a novella written right now. And while I could write one, this would only delay the launch of the book I’m writing right now. And since I’m still working on the rough draft, I don’t really care to delay it any more.

Instead, I’m doing this. I’m launching Station 86 in physical form for the first time.

Now, I love a good physical book. My overly burdened bookshelves will tell you that. But Station 86 has always been, except for book five, a collection of novellas. So, of course I didn’t want to ask you all to buy a novella for physical book money. So, I’m putting them together. Seeming and You Can’t Trust The AI are coming out in Volume 1 on October second. Volume 2, which will include Virus and Station Central, will come out in February of 2027.

(Unrelated spoiler: that might not be the only release in 2027. Stay tuned.)

Eventually I hope to release an audiobook version as well. But I might need to get Kickstarter involved with that one, since I will not be using AI and will hire a voice actor.

I want to thank all of you for sticking around while I write new books. And while my posts have been super late. This year has been busy as hell, launching a new site and helping the Darling Husband recover from his stroke. But so far, it’s been a decent ride.

Stay tuned.

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Books are books

Books are my favorite thing. I guess that isn’t a huge reveal. I love books. I love reading them, writing them.

Smelling them.

I love having a physical book to read, then display on a shelf like a trophy. Honestly, right now my favorite thing is swinging in my hammock and reading my way through my Summer reading list.

Recently, someone on Instagram said that they love cat people. Because cat people don’t just love their cat to death. They love your cat to death. They love street cats to death. They love all cats to death. That’s how I feel about books, and avid readers. (And cats.) I love everyone who reads. I love all books. But, apparently, this isn’t a universal opinion. I’ve seen far too much infighting among my book peers about things that, honestly, shouldn’t be argued about. So today I want to let you know where I stand in the literary world. I don’t think anything I’m about to say is a hot take. But it’s the internet, after all. Let’s see what happens.

Ebooks are books

My preferred method for reading is a physical book. That being said, I have read e-books and will continue to do so. Sometimes it’s easier. Sometimes the book isn’t available in print yet. Sometimes I don’t want to take several books on vacation. Sometimes the book came out, I forgot to preorder it, and I have to read it right now. Either way is valid. It’s still a book, on screen or on paper. It’s just like preferring mint toothpaste to cinnamon. Your teeth still get clean.

Audiobooks are books

This is another thing I am shocked I have to argue. Listening to an audiobook is still reading a book. I don’t know about you, but I want to read a lot of books. And I have shit to do that requires my hands. So if I can listen to a Grady Hendrix book while doing the dishes, weeding, or formatting a damned paperback, then I’d like to do so.

I’ve seen people putting down audiobook readers online. And it’s got to stop. We don’t all have the time to read as much as we want. Some of us (hi) are reading for work as well as recreation, and we need to get through some pages. And there are people with disabilities for whom physical reading is a challenge. There should be no barriers to enjoying a good story.

Comic books are books

I have always had a rather advanced vocabulary. This started when I read Calvin and Hobbs as a child. This led me to fall in love with comic strips. And I still love them. Snoopy, Cathy, Garfield, Girls With SlingShots, Squid Row. Comics were one of my first passions.

I do not understand why people will look down on comics as being cheap kids’ entertainment. They’re a great introduction to the fact that, hey, reading is supposed to be fun. There are heavy graphic novels, like Maus. There are fantastic adventures, like Bone or Wonderland. These are good stories. They promote literacy and a passion for reading. Also, they’re just fun.

Nonfiction and fiction are books

I read fiction and nonfiction. I do not understand people who read only one or the other. What, you don’t want to learn something? You don’t want to experience a good story? And even if you have a particular preference, why would you enforce that on everyone else?

Honestly, if you find that you read a lot of one or the other, I would encourage you to branch out a bit. My reading list has been really fiction-heavy this year. I need to fit some nonfiction in.

Genre books are books, and so are literary books

This one’s similar to the last two, if we’re being honest.

If you’ve read On Writing, then you know that Stephen King was once asked by a teacher why he wanted to write trash. By trash, she meant a ‘novelized’ version of a movie he’d seen. The answer didn’t come to him then, and he says there’s still a little part of him ashamed of it.

Genre fiction tends to be frowned upon by literary snobs. At the same time, literary fiction tends to be frowned upon by people like me, who believe in telling an entertaining story that damned well goes somewhere.

I kid. Actually, I enjoy writing some literary short pieces, just playing around with words. Evoking emotion, creating art. It’s fun.

But if you don’t think that genre writing can feel like literary writing, you’re not reading the right kind of books.

Books I don’t like are still books

There are lots of people in this world who enjoy some truly terrible books. Just awful. And there’s just no accounting for taste. I have DNF’d books that got glowing five-star reviews. I’ve devoured books that others couldn’t stomach. Honestly, there are whole genres I can’t stand. For instance, I’ll never be a romance girlie. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to talk shit about the romance girlies. Those are still books, and they still give people joy.

So here’s the main point. Books are books. It doesn’t matter how someone is reading. Reading is always worth it. It’s always a good choice.

Live and let read, everyone.

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The best books of 2026 so far

It’s July, and the year is half over. The days already grow shorter, the nights (slightly) colder. So it’s a good time to stop, take a beat, and see where we are for 2026.

Because it’s been a hell of a year already, hasn’t it?

2026 has brought with it some surprises. Most of which have been bad, but a few have been good. One thing I didn’t plan for was the influx of new (to me) writers that I would discover. People who were not on my radar or my insta buy list before this year, but are working their way there now.

A lot of my reading this year has been horror. You can read my reviews of many of these books over on Weird Wyrlds. But, for the first time, a book of poetry snuck its way into the top ten.

So let’s get into it. Here are the top ten books I’ve read so far in 2026, rated from 10 to one. As always, I’m not going to go into a ton of detail, because I’ve already reviewed all of these books.

The Fox and The Devil by Kiersten White

This was the sapphic vampire murder mystery love story I didn’t know I needed. But my goodness, reading this book while sipping red wine was one of the highlights of my year.

Rainshadow Orphans by Naomi Ishiguro

This was such a cute book. Okay, it was a cute book about political uprising, dark magic, gruesome murders, and class warfare. But it also had bubble tea, cats, and sun spirits. So, overall a super cute read. Even better, it’s the start of a trilogy. So please join me in waiting for the next one.

The End of the World As We Know It by misc authors

Have you ever read The Stand by Stephen King and thought, man, this book could easily have been 800 pages longer? No, just me? Well, for the first time, King opened up one of his worlds for other authors to play in. This book is a collection of stories in the world of The Stand by some fantastic writers. Go check it out. And avoid the Walking Dude.

Can You Sign My Tentacle by Brandon O’Brien

I heard one of O’Brien’s poems read by the man himself at a Nebula conference. And it was fantastic. I’d never read a whole book of speculative poetry before. But now, I’m hooked.

Year of The Mur by L.D. Lewis

For someone like me who loved The Little Mermaid as a child and now realizes how dumb Ariel was as an adult, this book was fantastic. And, again, it’s the first of two.

The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer

Imagine being broke. Well, chances are you don’t really have to imagine that. But imagine being offered a house-sitting gig for the weekend for an exorbitant amount of money. But it comes with weird rules.

This book is a textbook example of actual obsessive-compulsive disorder. To say it was unsettling is an understatement.

The October Film Haunt by Michael Wehunt

The past always catches up with us. Part slasher thriller, part paranormal mind fuck, this book had me looking over my damned shoulder.

The Republic of Memory by Mahmud El Sayed

This is a fantastic political story, told from various points of view as a generational ship has to ask whether their living citizens are more important than those in cryostasis. The question is complicated, and so is the book.

I know a place by Nat Cassidy

This was a collection of short stories. And every one was better than the last. One, Laughlines, has stuck with me the most. Ugh, the visuals in that one. It will haunt you in the best way possible.

The Reformatory by Tananarive Due

This is the best book I’ve read all year by far. It’s the kind of book that you read and then have to sit with. I mean, I was bawling.

This is a historical fiction about a twelve-year-old Black boy who’s sent to a reform school after kicking the son of a wealthy landowner. He soon finds out that the school is haunted by boys who never left. The ghosts are fiction. The abuse described in the book is accurate.

Read this one in the Summer heat. It’s a whole experience.

Alright, now it’s your turn. What are the best books you’ve read so far this year? Let us know in the comments.

Paper Beats World is a labor of love. You can support us by liking this post, sharing it and commenting. You can also support us on Ko-fi.

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My 2026 Summer reading list

I am really trying so hard to get into Summer this year. I got a pool and a hammock. I made a Summer playlist. I’m making ribs and pasta salad for Litha. I’m really, honestly, super excited to experience the next 73 days.

Yes, I’m counting.

But alright, we’re here. It’s Summer. And since I can’t speed it up, I’m going to do what I do best.

Read. In as many places as possible.

So, of course, I’m starting the season out by sharing my reading list. Some of these are coming out this summer. Some are nostalgic re-reads. Some I just found out about during Nebula Con. All of them should help me enjoy the sunny season.

Dead But Dreaming of Electric Sheep By Paul Tremblay

I know, this one was on my Spring reading list. But that’s because I somehow didn’t realize it launched on June 30, not May 30th. And it still looks awesome! Digging into the morality of bodily autonomy in a dark science fiction novel? Of course, I want to read that.

The Intrigue By Sylvia Moreno-Garcia

I’ll be honest, I didn’t even read the description of this one before I pre-ordered it. That’s because Moreno-Garcia is on my Insta Buy list. And this one is about a Casanova thief who’s apparently going to run into some supernatural trouble. I can’t wait.

Also, I love that her books come out so regularly that they’re basically a Summer staple for me.

Deadly Little Lessons By Danielle Valentine

Another author you’ve probably heard me sing the praises of. I’ve yet to read a book of hers that isn’t fantastic.

This one is about a girl who ends up in a school where most of the students won’t survive the classes. So, fun!

The Reformatory By Tananarive Due

I found out about this book, and the next one on the list, during a Nebula Con panel about horror writing as resistance. I ordered these two books before the panel was even over.

The Reformatory is about a young boy named Robbie who’s put in a correctional facility for doing something that sounds like it needed to be done. Of course, the facility turns out to be terribly haunted.

The Curse of Hester Gardens By Tamika Thompson

The second book purchase, inspired by the panel, The Curse of Hester Gardens, is about a neighborhood haunted by gang violence, drugs, and the unquiet dead. It’s about a mother trying to protect her children, who may have made a terrible decision.

Fright Time Books by various authors

Alright, this one might sound strange. But Fright Time books were a big favorite of mine as a child. I recently did a whole nostalgic review of Shivers over at Weird Wyrlds, and thought it might be fun to do the same for Fright Time.

It’s also just a great reason to revisit some of my horror roots.

Not With A Bang By Temi Oh

This is an arc I’m expecting from Saga Press. It’s a fascinating-sounding book about the end of the world and how people respond to it. I am super excited to get my hands on it and tell you all about it.

SCION By James Islington

Another Saga Press arc, this one is about an assassin who’s never had any qualms about their job, until this most recent one. And, of course, he lives in a world where the rich can literally live forever.

Small detail.

The Children By Melissa Albert

Funny story. This is a late addition to this list, because I literally learned about it while checking Goodreads for book information.

Thanks, Goodreads.

This book is about a woman and her brother who had their childhoods kind of ruined by their mom’s invasive storytelling. Now, there’s something dark and terrible haunting them. The cover doesn’t seem to reflect the horrors that the reviews promise.

I need like five more sets of eyes to read all the books I want to right now. But I also want to hear from you! What are you reading this Summer? Are you loving the Summer weather or counting the days to fall like me? Let me know in the comments.

Paper Beats World is a labor of love. You can support us by liking this post, sharing it and commenting. You can also support us on Ko-fi.

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Why We Hexed the Moon works

Do you remember a few years ago, when some young witches on TikTok decided they were going to hex the moon? I remember mostly shaking my head at silly kids doing silly things because they were cooped up during Covid. Being a practicing witch myself and quite fond of the moon, I was mildly irritated. But in the end, I didn’t think the moon really cared that much.

Someone else remembered the moon hexing. That someone was Mollyhall Seeley. And rather than just shaking her head, she asked the question I think more of us should have asked.

What if the hex had actually worked?

We Hexed The Moon launched just a few days ago, on June 9th. I received an arc early from Saga Press. Unfortunately, Spring and Summer being what they are, I didn’t get to it when I meant to. But when I did get there, it was well worth the wait.

We Hexed the Moon is the story of four girls who have just graduated from high school. They’re looking down the barrel of the rest of their lives, and getting ready to go their separate ways come September. During a bored, hazy sleepover, they decide to hex the moon. Not for any reason except for something to do. And the Moon, well, she takes that personally. So she comes down to confront the girls.

Because that’s a normal thing to happen.

So today, let’s break down We Hexed The Moon, and see why it works.

Do you remember when your friends were the only family that mattered? When there were people in your life who were simply yours? Not related by blood, but related in every way that mattered?

Adults move away from that. We get married. We move away from our hometowns. We have kids. Life gets in the way. And suddenly we realize it’s been months or even years since we talked to the people who we used to see every day.

We Hexed The Moon is, before anything else, the story of four girls who are facing that down. Who love each other enough to not want to let go, but are realistic enough to realize they probably won’t have a choice. Hexing the moon is, to these girls, just another memory they’re trying to make together before life tears them apart. And if that isn’t relatable as Hell, I don’t know what is.

Of course, the real inciting incident of the story is when the Moon decides to come down to Earth and not go back. She appears, personified, in Jen’s bedroom.

And she’s funny as hell.

The Moon character is so bitingly sarcastic. She knows everything about everyone, because of course, everyone tells their secrets to the moon.

She also has a touching maternal streak for, honestly, everyone. We see this the most when she’s confronted with the dead body of a young woman who had a drug addiction. She reacts with such tenderness for this person; it’s heartbreaking.

One thing I was a bit unsure of about We Hexed The Moon was the utter lack of punctuation. No one’s dialogue is in parentheses. And sometimes this run-on story structure made it a bit hard to tell who the hell was talking.

However, it also felt more like a story someone was telling you, rather than a book you’re reading. Like you’re sitting in a booth at the diner with Jen, Maycie, Goldie, and Harding, just one of them for just as long as it takes you to finish the story. So while I don’t entirely love the lack of proper sentence structure, it makes sense. Much like Incidents Around The House, it’s hard to see the story being told any other way.

In the end, I feel like this is the sort of book that captures a specific moment. A place in time we all had our own version of. It’s the friends we all had, that we all knew we were going to lose, no matter how much we assured each other that we’d be friends forever, going on one last amazing adventure.

Paper Beats World is a labor of love. You can support us by liking this post, sharing it and commenting. You can also support us on Ko-fi.

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Why The Rainshadow Orphans Works

Written by Naomi Ishiguro and coming out on May 26th, Rainshadow Orphans was sent to me as an arc by the publisher. And honestly, I just speed read two really dark and disturbing horror novels. While they were fantastic, they were heavy! I for sure needed something light and fun. Thankfully, Rainshadow Orphans was there.

(If you want to read my reviews of these very dark books, check out Weird Wyrlds)

The story starts with Toshiko. She and her adopted siblings, Mei and Jun, live in Rainshadow City. Their goal is to seek revenge against the Lucky Crows, the gang that killed their Aunt Reiko. In the meantime, they want to steal enough from the elite of Rainshadow City to live a comfortable life that would otherwise be denied to them. But when Toshiko steals a dragon pearl from the Lucky Crows, she sets the whole city on its head.

This was an incredibly fun book to read that left me feeling lighter and craving bubble tea. So let’s break it down today and talk about why it works.

Excessively fun on purpose

Remember when you read young adult and children’s books, and they were fun? When the writer included characters or elements that were just for the fun of it? Why don’t adult writers do that more?

There are so many elements in Rainshadow Orphans that are just there for fun. Mochi, the family cat coming along on heists. Sun spirits who turn into squirrels to interact with the young prince Haru. And a machine that can make literally any kind of bubble tea you can imagine.

These are all fun elements. They bring levity to what could otherwise be a pretty dark story. I mean, this is a story about a corrupt city so bent on progress that the leaders don’t care about the lives of the people living there. That could be pretty messed up. It could also be the same shit we hear in the news every day. But adding joyful elements helps with the heaviness.

For such a chunky book, it’s a fast read

I mean, not that fast. This post is late, after all. But the pacing of the story goes fast. There’s always something happening. There’s not a lot of downtime. The characters are always off doing something dangerous, even if it’s just getting cake at a cafe.

Early in the book, it’s established that Toshiko and her family don’t really have a right to live in the city. They’re not citizens. So literally anytime they’re out in public, there’s an element of danger. Then, their faces are plastered all over the Lucky Crow’s most wanted list. This made the tension of the book sky high and thrilling. It makes you want to keep right on flipping pages.

All the characters are so endearing

I loved Toshiko from the start. I loved how much she, Mei, and Jun love each other. I especially loved Mei, with her cat, snacks, and full face of makeup, even when she’s not leaving the house.

I also loved Haru. He could have come off as a spoiled kid, but it’s made pretty clear pretty fast that his life is so lonely.

Every character in this book is endearing in their own way. You want to see everyone succeed, everyone be happy. Ishiguro manages this by showing not just each characters quirks, but how they interact with other people. How much they love other people, or seek to be loved by them.

This is something that shows each character’s real, well, character. How much they care about each other. How far they’ll go not just to protect each other, but to bring joy to each other.

Just when you think you know what’s going on

There were several moments early in the book where I was sure I knew the ending. Oh, I know what the robots are. Oh, these characters are going to fall in love. Oh, I know the plan for the city. And most of those times, I was right.

I found that out about two pages afterwards, because those weren’t the big reveals. They were small reveals that led us along a path to an ever more twisting tale. So if you start thinking you’re smarter than the author while reading this, hold up. I can promise you that Ishiguro knew exactly what she was doing. And she did it very well.

Rainshadow Orphans reminds us that even in the darkest times, we can thrive, not just survive. We can have our bubble tea and wintermelon cake, and stand up against all powerful regimes. We can see the magic in the world while fighting the darkness. It reminds us that yes, there are terrible and powerful people. There are fights to fight. But there are also grumpy cats, neighbors who help each other, and snacks. This is a lesson that we all need right now.

And thankfully, there’s more to come. Because Rainshadow Orphans was just book one in a trilogy. Personally, I can’t wait for the next one to come out, so I can travel again to Rainshadow City.

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Should writers be self-indulgent?

I was watching Micky Adkins a few weeks ago. I spend maybe too much time watching YouTube, but there we are. Micky’s great, you should check her out.

Of course, when I saw the title of this post, I had to watch it right away. (And by right away, I mean over the course of several days, because it was a three-hour-long video.) The title was, This BookTuber’s Vendetta Against Fanfiction Is Actually Pretty Sinister.

This video pissed me off so much that it actually inspired two different posts from me. Part two is coming soon. At some point, not sure when.

Look, I had Covid this week. Bear with me, everyone.

Now, Micky’s clear in this video that she is not a writer. So her opinions about this video are from a therapist’s perspective. But that’s okay, Micky. I am a writer. And I got you.

If three hours is too long a video for you, let me summarize it. It’s about another YouTube video from a channel I will not name, by a woman I will only call Hillary. Hillary doesn’t like fanfiction for many reasons. But the main reason for her hate seems to be that she finds fanfic to be self-indulgent. And Hillary thinks that self-indulgence is bad.

But is it? Let’s talk about it.

The dreaded Self-Insert

One of the biggest bugs up Hillary’s ass seems to be writers putting self-insert characters in their stories. You know, the sort of character that’s just clearly based on the author.

And that’s super cringy, right? Like, imagine if an author with a history of substance abuse issues and an absent father, who probably worried about being a good father, and lived in Maine, and was a teacher, wrote a lot of books about men with substance abuse issues who had terrible fathers, and lived in Maine, and taught. (Steven King)

Or like if a writer was a closeted lesbian who wanted to be a man her whole life, so she wrote about a closeted lesbian who wanted to be a man her whole life. (Louisa May Alcott)

Or if a writer got really into witchcraft and wrote a character who was really into witchcraft. (Me)

The point is that there’s actually nothing wrong with writing self-insert characters. I would argue that every character we write will have a little of ourselves in it. Even if we don’t mean to. We do it on purpose if we’re writing honestly. Our characters will reach for our favorite drinks. They’ll use our verbal idioms. We might even write them to look like us. That’s fine. So long as your characters are still as well-rounded as we can make these bags of bones, then go for it.

Oh no! I wrote about this super niche thing I like!

This is going to sound bitchy, but stick with me. We are not the precious little manic pixi individuals we think we are. Yes, every person is unique. Yes, every person is valuable as an individual and contains a whole universe of experiences that no one else can fully understand.

But we’re not that different. This is something that the internet has made clear to most of us. Any experience you’ve had, any joy or revolution, someone else has felt that too.

This means that if you write something that you really like, but you think it’s too niche for the rest of the world, you’re probably wrong. There’s probably someone out there, a lot of someones, who would really love to read your weird niche thing. So write about it, even if it seems self-indulgent.

I made art! Wait, I did it wrong?

Writing is art. We are artists, creating art. We are not producing a product.

There are no rules about art. There are techniques. There are widely accepted beliefs. And, I mean, of course, we have grammar rules. And spelling does count. But other than that, there are no rules.

You can write whatever you want. Your work doesn’t have to be super disciplined. It doesn’t have to follow traditional story structure. It doesn’t have to follow any agreed-upon structure. It can.

Art changes and evolves. What was considered standard a decade ago is passe now. And we as artists are allowed to shape how those changes come about by experimenting. Some might consider this part of our responsibility.

I’m a fan of what I wrote!

I know I’ve mentioned this before, but this seems like a good time to bring it up again. Writing a book takes so much time and work and passion and time and dedication and time. You have to love not just writing, but the writing that you specifically are doing. You have to be your story’s first and biggest fan. Because that love and devotion will get you through the days when it feels like you just can’t face the page. You just can’t take another round of editing.

This fandom will carry you through more than just the creation process if you let it. And that’s good, because you are going to have to champion your work to the world. You are going to have to be its biggest advocate. That’s easier if you, you know, like your book.

Wait, I’m actually a good writer?

So, what if you wrote something that’s super self-indulgent, but it turns out that it is, in fact, not good?

Maybe you wrote a really great sex scene, but it doesn’t really fit in your story.

Maybe you set a politician on fire in effigy, but that doesn’t make sense for your character to have done that.

Maybe you wrote this amazing description of the lush, gorgeous forest your character finds themselves in. Maybe you wrote three pages about it. In a row.

As you’re revising and editing your work, you’re going to work some of this stuff out for yourself. The longer you write, the more you edit your own work, the more you’ll see these things. Beta readers will also help you catch these moments.

Sometimes we have to kill our darlings. Sometimes we have to take out the things that don’t work for our story. Or kill off characters we’d rather live long lives.

Part of learning the craft of writing is learning what works and what doesn’t work. You know when it doesn’t work. You read it out loud, and it hurts your ears like an off-key melody. Or no matter how hard you try to make the storyline function, it won’t. Or you hate the character you’re supposed to love. Even if it hurts, you’ll know what needs to go.

These are all considerations for later drafts, though. When you’re rough-drafting, don’t worry about it. Throw everything in. Figure out what works later. Because, like you can’t see the whole painting in a brush stroke, you can’t tell if your self-indulgent scene works until the whole story is finished.

So, to sum it up, yes, your writing should be self-indulgent. You should write your story exactly how you want to write it. Give it the happiest ending. Write in that person you hate and evicerate them. Write smut. Craft a sappy love story that heals your specific wound. Skin a character.

Now look. I usually shy away from insulting other authors. And I’m not directly insulting Hillary. Even though sis went out of her way to insult a whole bunch of writers.

Writers who, as far as I can tell, are more prolific than she is. Whose work people like to read.

I’m not saying this to shame her or dunk on her. I am saying this because, for some reason I do not understand, she seems to be popular on YouTube. And I worry that some young writer might stumble upon her bullshit and feel bad about their writing. And if that’s you, let me say this with my whole chest.

Every single thing I have ever written has been very self-indulgent. I wrote Woven because I loved Tamora Pierce and wanted to write about thread crafts in magic. I wrote Quiet Apocalypse because I love haunted house stories and wanted to write about a modern witch. I’ve written and published nine books. I will, God willing, keep right on writing and publishing.

Hillary has published one. Do with that information what you will. And maybe, going forward, she should keep her eyes on her own work.

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Want a free book? Check out Seeming, book one of Station 86.

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Some thoughts on the moment

I painted my nails today. Blue, my favorite color. It’s a small thing. Nobody cares, or should care, but me. I painted my nails because it made me feel a little better for a few minutes.

Sometimes that’s all we can give ourselves.

I had a whole post almost ready to go about the Stranger Things finale. That post will probably come out over the weekend. But today, I want to talk about how life is going for us in America. It’s not great.

On January second, under the cover of darkness, Trump oversaw the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. Our military attacked a nation we were not at war with and kidnapped their president and first lady from their bed. Trump is now claiming that he is in charge of Venezuela.

In case you missed out on some civics classes, Trump isn’t allowed to do that without congressional approval, no matter what that Neo-Nazi weasel Stephen Miller says.

To quote Stephen Colbert, those Epstein Files must be crazy.

Then, on January 7th, a woman named Renee Good was murdered by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. She was killed by a small man who was looking for an excuse.

Maybe that’s the worst part of Trump’s presidency. It’s given small men an outlet for their hatred. It gives cowards and bullies opportunities to hurt people.

If you haven’t seen the video, I’m sorry, but I am going to ask you to watch it. It’s painful, but we need to see with our own eyes what we’re talking about. The president and his ghouls are trying to tell us that this woman is a domestic terrorist. That she deserved what she got. What she got, by the way, was shot in the face in front of her wife and dog.

Maybe it’s easier for some people to believe that. Believing that Good was a terrorist feels safer. Because if she were attacking ICE agents, then we’re safe. We’re certainly not going to try to run someone over with our car.

But we need to believe what we are seeing with our own eyes. Renee Nicole Good was not attacking anyone. She was not trying to hurt anyone. She was trying to protect herself and her family. She did not run over the ICE agent. And we have to face the truth, no matter how scary it is. It could have been me. It could have been you.

This won’t stop me from spitting on any ICE agent I see, by the way.

So today, I’m going to give you the same advice I give you every time the world gets too heavy. Contact your representatives. Make a plan to vote in your elections. Show up to protests if you can. Take care of each other.

History has its eyes on us. Let it see that we are not co-signers to this madness. That we do not agree with the dark and hellish deeds. Now is the time, more than ever, to fight for the soul of our very nation. Are we a nation of the fascist regime changers? Or are we Americans who believe these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal? Are we the land of the free and the home of the brave?

I also want you to do something else, though. Paint your nails. Read something that brings you joy. Watch a funny cartoon. Do something to put a bright moment in your day. Because while we’ve got to fight, we’ve also got to live. So I want you to put two things in the comments. First, tell me what you’re doing to fight for an America we can be proud of. Then, tell me something you’re doing to bring yourself joy today.

In conclusion, Fuck Trump and Fuck ICE.

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