Kickstarter + Cover Reveal!

Hello, everyone!

After months of silence on the writing update front, I finally come with a slew of good news and exciting updates.

Most of you probably know that last fall, I had to cancel the Kickstarter for the second book of The Stelnove Saga after the abrupt shutdown of my publisher. Since then, I have been working on independently publishing the series myself, revising the second book, and have also gotten caught up in a secret side project that I can share more about this summer.

I also shared the prologue and first five chapters of book 1 of The Stelnove Saga here on my Substack. You can check them out, along with short stories and bonus content on the landing page here.

The title of this post sort of gives it away, but I present the first of two special announcements…

I initially didn’t plan to do my own Kickstarter until I’d independently published one or two books regularly and gotten a feel for the process. But late this fall, I had the urge to do one anyway for The Stelnove Saga. I couldn’t push away the feeling that I’d let an opportunity slip between my fingers when I’d cancelled book 2’s back in September. I also believe in these books so much, and a Kickstarter seemed like an appropriate way to celebrate my rights reversion and a fresh new start to the series.

So in June, I’ll be running the Kickstarter for special edition hardcovers of the first two books! Along with helping me celebrate the new start to this journey, the funds for the Kickstarter will help me cover the costs of professional edits, cover designs, ISBN purchase and copyright registration, and the fun rewards you get alongside the books!

I’m so excited about this, and I have the best team supporting me behind the scenes. Please give the pre-launch page a follow so you don’t miss when it goes live!

Join the heist!

Ta-da!

Benita did the gorgeous cover for the first edition, and while I was sad to part with it, I thought it best to re-do the cover to, again, mark a new beginning for this series. I loved that we were able to include the fountain motif that appears in the book. Book two’s cover reveal will be coming in July!

This is the regular retail cover that will be available through the usual distribution networks after release early next year. The special edition covers will have their own reveal when they’re ready. ;)

If you follow me on Instagram or even on Notes here on Substack, you probably know I’ve also been working on a Northanger Abbey-inspired fantasy Gothic novella. It’s a cozy romance, so a bit lighter in terms of tone and stakes than The Stelnove Saga, but it does have some darkness and creepy elements to fit a “Gothic vibe”, and some more serious philosophical/academic undertones like The Stelnove Saga. I’m currently revising the third draft of it following feedback, and it’ll be going to my developmental editor in mid-April as soon as she’s finished with book two of The Stelnove Saga.

Otherwise, I’ve been enjoying life here in the Italian countryside. I’ve gotten into creative journaling again. Publishing has made me realize I need some protected writing that’s only for me, that no one else will see. That’s what my journals are for. I can be as weird, as genuine, as fun, as creative as I want without worrying what anyone will think or say about it.

I started off with a Hobonichi Techo Cousin this year, and while I loved the planning aspect it provided, the one-page-a-day began to feel too restrictive to me. I don’t want to have multiple notebooks for different things. It feels more streamlined and organized to be able to stick everything—planning, journal entries, notes on my writing projects, commonplace book things—all in one.

It’s hard, though, to find chunky journals, even harder to find beautiful, good quality ones. I discovered Allie Ryaz journals when the algorithm happily led me to her Instagram page. 1,000 pages?? Beautiful PU leather with a protective cover??? Koji paper???? YES.

I can fit everything I want in here without fear of filling it up in only a few months.

Project Fire and Shadow, my Edinburgh fantasy with Unicorn Tapestry vibes that I’ve been working on off and on since 2021 is still going steadily but slowly in its second draft. My plan is to finish draft two once Stelnove Saga 2 is finished later this year. I then hope to focus more on it in 2027, get feedback, and prepare its own release. While there are going to be four books in The Stelnove Saga, I’m going to take a lot more time on book 3 because this series involves quite a bit of intensive planning and research. After struggling in the early drafts of book 2 to get it done within a set timeframe, I’ve learned I need to give myself space on this particular series.

I know this goes against the currently popular rapid-release culture with books, but I’m quite against that phenomenon. So if you too are more interested in being intentional about the books you read and appreciate giving stories the time they need to grow and flower (without over-exaggerating; I will get book 3 out on a reasonable schedule), then you’re in the right place.

Let’s chat. Tell me below what you’ve been reading lately.