In 2016, I started writing Of Rust and Gold, the first book in a series I later came to call "The Saints Song". Immediately, I began posting the book to Wattpad, where it would become part of the paid program in 2019. Last year, I removed it from the site permanently. A very brief summary …
One Year Later
Give or take. It has now been a little over a year since my debacle with Wattpad removing my stories due to an issue in their algorithm. I learned after a series of back and forth emails that The Night Court was never meant to be removed. It had been an accident and one I …
Good News?
So while The Night Court has briefly been restored to the website I've received no real answer as to how this happened in the first place. It was a mistake. It shouldn't have happened. They're in the process of reviewing. Still, it's very jarring to wake up to years of your work being taken down …
A Timeline of My Terrible Day-Off
At 10:33 am on May 6th 2024 I received this email to correspond with a private message I got from the Wattpad Team to my account. Basically telling me that the entirety of The Night Court, including two drafted parts (one of which was unfinished, I forgot about, and has never been seen by readers) …
Moving the Goalpost: Things I Hope to Accomplish in 2024
Finish my draft for Of Blood and Stone Start and complete an outline for Of Empires and Ash Finish draft for A Woman of No Importance and open it up for feedback Start plotting a new story idea Somewhere on the back burner, there is my begotten goal of "publishing something" in 2023 but this …
Continue reading Moving the Goalpost: Things I Hope to Accomplish in 2024
Trying to Relive the High of Nano2023
This year, like every year before, I made a vague claim about wanting to participate in nano. Alright, that already is a lie. Most years I talk about doing it half-assed because I get so busy/distracted/tired and I stop keeping track of my progress and continue at my own pace. Something no writer should be …
So. 2022 Happened.
I’m trying not to use the word “failure” when I look back on 2022. I hit a lot of rough patches, got very busy, had a lot of trouble finding time to write and then I would get stuck when I did. I spent a lot of time where I could have been writing dealing with …
Sixth Month of the Year Check-In
I'm not at liberty to discuss June. Was it an easy month? No. Was it necessarily harder than the others? I cannot tell. I definitely feel like I wrote less but I also had more to do. Which, I understand has been my excuse since the spring. A lot of on and off writing in …
The Shelving Debate
A few weeks ago, I excitedly plotted and started a sort of sequel to a story I wrote throughout 2020 and 2021. I took it down five days later and I haven't recovered since. I think as a writer I am deeply insecure. I also think this is a busy time of year and in …
Fifth Month Check-In
May came to a quiet close. Another month where I didn't write as much as I hoped or wanted but I still feel accomplished. I outlined some things, came up with new ideas, and I'm forging ahead with a firm head on my shoulders. Usually, a part of me wants to finish whatever draft I'm …
Aliston. J Drake 