Happy Friday!

It is that time of the month where I share all my reading and writing goals for August, and go over what I got done in July. To be honest, it was not a lot! Life got in the way as it always seems to do when I attempt to be productive, but c’est la vie.

August is going to be a crazy month no matter what. I have some traveling I am doing (which is completely following the rules of my province), I start my brand-new full-time job as a Communications Development Lead, and I am launching a secret business! There is a limit to what I can do alongside all of this, so this will be a very practical goals list.

TIP: Write down everything that you MUST get done that month and then plan your goals. This way, you know what your main focus(es) are but also how much time you have to dedicate to other projects.

Here is what I wrote and read during July.

Writing

The Obsidian Butterfly – This is my Camp NaNoWriMo project and my goal for the month was to reach 25k. However, I ended up only writing 6,704 words. I am not too bummed about it because I was dealing with a lot of things for the last half of July. Overall, this is a good start and I’ve decided to take a break from the novel version of this story anyways (more on this later).

Flanelle Magazine Interview – In July, I got a really exciting project for the magazine I write for (Flanelle Magazine) and it was an interview with Zonnique, a 24-year-old, Atlanta born singer. This was a cool project because I’ve never done an interview before. I will link it once it is live on the website!

Reading

Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid – Even in a reading slump, this book never fails me. While this was the third time I’ve read this book, I zipped through it in only 2 days. I adore this book, the characters, the story…everything about it is just so addicting. It follows the rise and fall of this band from the 70s, and it was inspired by Fleetwood Mac so what is not to love? 5/5 stars

Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barron – This took me a bit to get through, but overall, I really enjoyed the mythology, the characters, and the overall story. It didn’t blow my mind and I didn’t love any of the characters specifically, but it reminded me of my own book and it helped inspire me to work on it throughout July. Kingdom of Souls is inspired by West African mythology and follows a girl who year after year, has not been able to find her own magic. When the story takes a dark twist, she finds magic but it is not in the way she wanted or expected. 3.5/5 stars

Here is what I want to write and read in August…

Writing

The Obsidian Butterfly (Novella Version) – In March, I wrote a novella version of my novel idea, The Obsidian Butterfly, and submitted it to the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future contest which I received a Silver Honourable Mention for. I’ve decided to re-write this story because I feel it was missing some things that really held it back. My goal is to get 7,000 words done in August because the word limit is 17,000 (which being the overwriter I am, I will reach). Since the deadline is October 1st, it should give me enough time to finish it even with all the other things I’ve got going on.

Reading

Eliza and Her Monster by Fransesca Zappia – Yes, this is a re-read but apparently I am in the mood for re-reading my favourite contemporaries. Eliza and Her Monsters is an all-time favourite of mine, especially because the main character suffers from anxiety and how she feels and eventually copes with it is something I strongly relate to still. With everything going on, my anxiety has definitely spiked. I’ve been the most anxious these past few months that I have ever been in my entire life, but I’ve found re-reading my favourite books has helped.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell – I have an unofficial tradition of reading this book every summer, or in the fall, before school starts. I am going into my second year of university and Cath, the main character, is in her first and we follow her as she experiences it. This book is also another one that is so easy for me to read. I have no doubt I will fly through it in less than a week!

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Those are all the things I want to write and read during August, and also what I got done back in July. I swear, the months are flying by and I can BARELY keep up. But, I am doing my best and despite everything, this has been a productive quarantined summer.

Don’t forget to check out my last blog post as well as my social media accounts which are all linked down below! I will be announcing my secret business on there first, so follow my Twitter, Instagram, AND Pinterest.

Thanks for reading 🙂

Last Blog Post: Beginner’s Guide to: Aztec Mythology