Monthly Summary: February 2017

February provided a much needed break for me. I've been so stressed about finances of late that I feel like I've been going crazy. Having two weeks where I didn't have to worry about bills was a much-needed hiatus.

Writing Accents with Milo Thatch

Accents are essential for worldbuilding, can make a very defining trait for characters, and are just part of making your book more realistic. I have been fascinated with accents since I was a child and I've been imitating them for years to the amusement of even some of the native speakers. But accents are also tricky to write. You don't want to butcher an accent and disrespect the speaker or sound inauthentic, or sometimes you want to write an accent and you just have no idea how to start. Let's first define what exactly is an accent. It's such a broad term. I've brought in my friend Cassidy Clayton who is majoring in linguistics at University of Rochester to define that for us:

Canada 2017 Update

Monday I returned from my second trip to Alberta, Canada! I went last year, partially for book research so I can experience subzero temperatures, but it was hot. -_- Thus this year I've gone for round two and I got to experience subzero temperatures and more. So much great book research!

A Book Review of Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Buy on Amazon!

Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price--and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone...

A convict with a thirst for revenge.

A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager.

A runaway with a privileged past.

A spy known as the Wraith.

A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums.

A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes.


Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction―if they don't kill each other first.

So Your Character is From Finland ... Featuring Leona @ Leona's Blog of Shadows

It's time for this month's So Your Character is From Another Country! This is a monthly or bimonthly segment where I interview lovely volunteers from around the world to give you a firsthand account of being a citizen of their respective country. I'm hoping to encourage international diversity, break stereotypes, and give writers a crash course on how to write a character from these different places on our planet. If you haven't checked out last week's So Your Character is From the Netherlands ... be sure to hop on over there and give it a read!

I honestly didn't know too much about Finland before this post. I knew it was in Scandinavia, very cold, and there's reindeer. That's one of the many reasons why I was so happy that Leona agreed to be interviewed. Let's welcome Leona!

Disclaimer: The content below may be culturally shocking to some. Each of these posts are as uncensored as possible to preserve the authenticity of the cultures of each of the interviewees.

(None of the Images are Mine)

Let's Talk About the Punks: Four Ages of Technology

You may or may not have heard about the punk genres. These are subgenres of science-fiction that have developed over the years. What I've noticed that they have in common is the level of technology a storyworld has. Technology is essential to think about when you're developing your storyworld. How advanced or primitive effects method of travel, medicine, weaponry, and more. Now these aren't the only ages of your technology your storyworld can have, but here are four established technology genres out there to give you food for thought.