This newsletter is all about goals and accountability.

I want to apologize for how long it’s taken for me to write the January newsletter. I made sure to truly rest and relax this holiday season, thanks to having saved up a lot of PTO. It was a privilege I’m glad I could take advantage of and I plan to do again, but with a bit more routine worked in.

The structure of this newsletter is going to be different. Instead of the usual run down of what’s coming, I want to share with you all my goals for this year. It will help me be accountable and continue to work on these goals throughout 2026. Something I’ll try to touch on in future newsletters, and maybe some releases exclusive to subscribers.

Written Works

Goal #1: Sell 5 Books a Month

The downside of being an indie author is how you have little to no help selling your books. And in this world we live in now, we have to sell books to have people read our stories.

This means I have to be better at advertising, and curb my modesty in public to tell people that yes, I’m an author and I think many people would like my books. It also means posting about my books on socials more consistently. If you see one of my posts on Threads/Bluesky/Instagram that you think is pretty or witty, please share it!

Goal #2: Attend 3 Book Fairs/Markets as a Seller

Chicagoland has a lot of opportunities for me to find a table and sell a book. The only problem? I’m not sure where to start. I have one farmer’s market I think I’ll get a table for, but I want to sell my books in person at three places. Now that I have two books published, and one of them is the beginning of a trilogy, I think it’s a good time to start being an author in public.

Goal #3: Release Book Two of The Injured Tapestry

The second book of The Injured Tapestry trilogy is in the hands of my beta readers until the end of the month. The few who have given me feedback so far are enjoying it, but I do see some places where I’d like to improve the story. I’m so appreciative for the experience.

After that is edits, possible rereads of scenes by the beta readers to confirm what I want fixed is fixed, and then edits. We also will get a cover from the amazing Sophia DeFelice and another map made by my talented and loving husband, Mystic. I’m pretty excited to see how this turns out, and then hearing what you all have to say!

Goal #4: Ask for More Reviews

I’ve had a number of people love my books, but a smaller percentage actually leave reviews. Reviews are some of the best “marketing” for any book you love—especially for an indie author! If you can, leave reviews for the books I’ve read. I’m going to get better at asking for them as well.

TTRPG Projects and News

Goal #5: Publish the Who We Were one-shot with the AGE Alliance

I’m coming up on year three of planning to run Who We Were for GenCon with Green Ronin. It’s a solid one-shot, but it’s time to share it to the world and work on the next one. I want to have this available to other Game Masters and have them make it their own. It’s something that’s a captivating one-off or even a potential beginning for a campaign. I would love to hear how others encounter and use it, and hoping to publish this around the summer or fall, depending on the schedule for Book Two of The Injured Tapestry.

Podcast Update

Goal #6 Write 1 Lore Together Episode Once a Season

My husband never intended to be going on years as the main researcher. For a long time he was the only one working on the podcast research while I worked on The Injured Tapestry. I wrote the latest episode on Mouthwashing, a horror video game. It’s a genre Mystic doesn’t like and it’s a genre I explore on an academic level, so taking on the lesser known games in the genre is a privilege. There are other games I want to cover again. I think a little bit more buy in on the research side will help Mystic not get burned out. Also, I forget how much fun it is to research and write an episode script!