Happy Anniversary!

It’s August.

Aside from me not fully understanding where this year has gone, August 2025 signifies a few things.

One: This is the time of year when many begin enjoying their first tastes of autumn. The weather offers a reprieve from the oppressive, unrelenting heat of the summer months. Nighttime temperatures dip into comfortable territory. Football season starts, chili makes its way back onto the weekly menu rotation, baked goods permeate kitchens with their mouthwatering aromas, and weekends are spent cozied up with fuzzy socks, blankets, and good books.

Unless you live in the Phoenix valley. In that case, August means you get to watch the rest of the world gear up for fall, dust off their sweaters, don their fuzzy socks, and sip their hot coffees while the Arizona sun continues to blast you with 110° of infernal heat. Don’t worry. We’ll get to enjoy those crisp temps come mid-November. 🥲

Two: August means the kids are back to school. Technically, for us, July 31st meant back to school, but who’s counting?

Follow me here: Back to school ➡️ Kids are occupied during the week ➡️ My days off (during the week) allow for free time ➡️ I get extra, uninterrupted time to work on book two! ➡️ All this extra writing means I have a TENTATIVE timeline (key word, tentative) for my first draft.

I’m excited. The plot is doing interesting things. The characters are showing some unexpected colors. Stuff’s happening, and words are flowing. So I’m going with it. I think you’ll like it.

And, of course, as soon as I have any concrete details, they’ll be delivered to you directly.

Three: It has officially been one whole year since I started this newsletter!

Sooo, in honor of one year newslettering, I’m doing a giveaway! Because, why not?

What are we giving away, you ask? How about a physical hardcover copy of my novelette, High Tide? 🌊

This is an unpublished work. It’s been primarily distributed in ebook format, and only to my subscribers, but I did have a limited number of copies printed. And who doesn’t love a bookshelf trophy?

Side note: If you are one of the very few in possession of a High Tide copy, feel free to enter anyway! These cute little hardcovers make great gifts for anyone who enjoys a quick, adventurous tale.

If you made it this far, I want to say thank you. Thank you for caring enough about me and my stories to follow along on this journey. It’s an odd thing to simultaneously experience nostalgia for where you’ve been and eager expectation for what’s to come. One year went by in a blink. A year ago this month, I hadn’t even finished Cloaking Fate. She didn’t have her cover. I had no idea how to publish a book. And now, twelve months later, this book is no longer mine. It’s yours. 🥹

Think about where we’ll be this time in 2026!?

Just…woah.

So, yeah, thanks for sticking around! 🙂 Here’s the link for the giveaway!

Best of luck, enjoy, and talk soon! 🩶

N.