What I'm Working On

I have a few different projects I'm working on right now. Sadly, I have not continued writing the third book in my series From the Ashes. Maybe one day I will finish it, or even rewrite the first two books and publish second editions to them. But right now, I'm at a point in my life where I have just completely outgrown that story.

I decided a couple years ago that I wasn't going to actively work on continuing it, and it was a difficult decision, but trying to work out the plot was not brining me joy. Keep in mind, I was 16 when I published From the Ashes and I was maybe 21 when I published The Inferiors. Again, I'm 28 now, and even though I'm kind of the same, I'm also very different.

So, what am I working on?

Project #1: The Convergence Saga Untitled Novel (1)

Current Word Count: 40k

This is the title of the giant project I have been off and on working on for the past eight years. It's not just one story, it's an entire world. I have become someone who is obsessed with world building, and I 100% fall down the rabbit hole doing it. I have spent days and days making maps for this world, coming up with backstory for societies and species I'm not even sure I'll mention in the "main plots" but man, it's been fun to do regardless.

Convergence has helped me bring fun back into my writing. Because it's an entire universe, I can work on stories that take places long ago in the past, or far far in the future and still be working on the same universe if I get bored working on one story or another.

I have 40k words in my first draft, though I believe I'll have to completely redo what I've got written. I think a few characters need to be switched around. But I have over 200k words in world building, so I have a lot to work with.

Honestly, maybe a bit too much.

It is slightly overwhelming at times, but I'm enjoying it.

Project #2: Star Wars Fan Fiction

Current Word Count: 80k

Yes, as I mentioned, I have also been writing a Star Wars fan fiction. I read fan fiction off and on when I was growing up, but I never really imagined myself writing fan fiction until my good friend urged me to try it. I've had a fan fic idea for the past ten years, but I never wrote it out. I would just sometimes think about it when I was bored and expand upon it until it became this giant thing in my head.

So anyway, I have been writing that for a while and posting it on AO3 which has been a blast. It's done wonders for my writing self esteem.

Project #3: Freelancing

I'm really trying to get into freelance editing. I really enjoy editing for people, 

Anyway, these are the things I've been working on lately!

What projects are you guys working on?

–Jess

Life Updates

Alright, time for some life updates!

Married Life

Sooooo um … I'm married!

Isn't that crazy? It has to be super weird for those of you who followed my Old Blog! I got married on June 9, 2024 and it was a perfect day, which is kind of crazy for Ohio. If you live near any of the Great Lakes, you’ll know how terrifying it is to have to plan an outdoor event months in advance. So, we got super lucky.

Though, I think it would have been perfect no matter what. There were things that didn’t quite go right that day–I got blue cake on my wedding dress, the sleeve thingies on the dress literally wouldn’t stay on, and the chuppah we got married under kept blowing over because it was super windy. But we made everything work! The stuff about my dress definitely wasn’t a big deal, and luckily I didn’t get cake on it until after the ceremony, and our family members–my uncles, and my husband’s cousins–helped hold up the chuppah.

I also threw the whole wedding together very last minute, there were a few details I wasn’t sure about until days before. You know me, I’m so good at procrastinating!

Jasper

I have a dog! This isn’t really news, but it probably would be to you guys. His name is Jasper, he’s 11 years old as of February, and he’s pretty much falling apart. He has Cushing's disease, has Happy Tail Syndrome–which is far more sinister than it sounds!–and has chronic anxiety. Like me.

Mr. Perfect

Jasper is a Cavalier King Charles, but he’s either a big one or is mixed with a springer spaniel. He’s kind of a rescue. My husband and I took Jasper in five years ago because he has some behavioral issues and his previous owner didn't want him anymore.

At first, I took him in with the hopes of finding him a new home. Over the next two weeks, while I searched for someone to take him in, Jasper slept in my bed and cuddled with me every night. When someone reached out to me and said they wanted him … I couldn't give him up. I had fallen in love.

This dog has such bad anxiety.

I have such bad anxiety.

This dog is kind of insane.

I’m kind of insane.

This dog is adorable.

I’m adorable!

Honestly, it was a match made in heaven. He’s got lots of health problems and still has some behavioral issues, my husband and I lovingly call Jasper “the worst dog ever” and “Mr. Perfect.” He’s simultaneously both, I don’t know how.

My Degree

I still haven't finished by Bachelor's degree, which is slightly disappointing but I'm honestly not too upset about it. I'm going to finish it eventually, I have my Associate of Arts and I'm a voracious reader, so … while I don't get a cool paper that says "I Know Stuff" I read enough that I do actually know some stuff.

Anyway, what have you guys been up to?

–Jess

New Blog, New Me (sort of)

Well, after eight years, I am finally returning to the world of blogging. Or at least, I'm trying to. I'm hoping this gets me to stop procrastinating my original works–I've been very caught up in writing Star Wars fan fiction lately, which does wonders for my need for instant gratification but absolutely nothing for my actual career as a writer. And no, I won't tell you what my AO3 username is, but let's be honest, you can probably guess it if you know me well enough.

So here I am, once again.

Why I'm Starting a New Blog

Well, if you must know, I have a few reasons.

1.) I started my Old Blog (henceforth, that's what I shall call that one!) on August 2, 2011. And if you used to follow that blog, this might be a bit weird for you because, well … back then, I was 14 years old. Now, I'm 28–life updates incoming–so a lot has changed.

2.) Back in 2011, when I started my Old Blog, I wasn't a published author and wasn't imagining I'd need a website or a blog for like … marketing. I started it just for fun to post about my writing and my life. Now that I'm published, I kind of need a blog that has my actual name in the URL. Would it have been easier to just change it? I'm not sure, I didn't really check, because …

3.) I really just wanted a fresh start! And I didn't want to accidentally stumble across old blog posts that I thought were awesome at the time but now I'd find them super cringy. Am I going to write super cringy stuff here, too? Probably, but I won't realize it until eight to ten years down the line! So I'm safe for now!

4.) I did consider completely deleting my old blog, but for the sake of history I have decided to save it. It's still exactly where it was before, but after I make a post announcing this blog as my new blog, I will not be posting there anymore. So if you follow me there and have been waiting for content for the past eight years, you can go right ahead and follow me here! I'm going to try to be posting once a week, but … we'll see how this goes.

Anyway, I'm glad to be back!

–Jess