Category: Author
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It’s Not a Shed in the Back Yard, It’s a Studiolo
I have a shed in my back yard where I work; it has my desk, a book case, and a sofa where my dog hangs out most of the day. It shall henceforth be known as a studiolo, thanks to Andrew Hui.
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Yet Another Way Running Is Like Writing
No one likes talking about writing and running like writers who run.
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Silly + Serious = Superpowers
It takes some serious delulu to think you can build a reading app to rival Goodreads, one with more than 2 million users (that’s what Odunayo did). It also takes delulu to write books, to publish them, to send out newsletters, to contact bookstores. To paint. To write songs. To build furniture. To do any…
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This Was Supposed to Be a Book Review
I have notes, quotes, and a half-assed draft of a book review waiting in the Wingback wings. This was the weekend I was going to pull it all together and publish it on Monday. However. Memoirs of a French Courtesan Volume 2: Spectacle has been to the proofreader and the layout has been completed. I…
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Today Was a Good Day
As I opened my book to read for a while before going to bed, I realized I had had a very good day. I made a list in my bullet journal to remind myself what made it good; I thought it might be worth sharing and spelling out—briefly!—why these were good things. The Morning Run…
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A Newsy Newsletter
I have reached a trifecta of tiredness this week. I have a huge deadline looming for my thesis proposal at school, I have my first in-person book event since the pandemic coming up (see below!), and I have a family concern that’s weighing on me. So I don’t really have the brainpower to write something…
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Rebellion: Behind the Scenes
Tomorrow, January 16, 2024, my translation of Memoirs of a French Courtesan Volume 1: Rebellion will be published. I’m really proud of this project, and it’s gotten great reviews from advance readers. So far it’s earned four out of five stars on NetGalley, which makes me happy. Paperback and ebook copies will be available just…
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Making a Mistake, Then Making It Better
On May 19, publication day for Life Among the Paiutes, I sent out about a half-dozen copies to friends and family, including the artist who did the cover. I printed out the labels and left them for the mail carrier to pick up in a responsible, socially distant way. I was so proud. A couple…
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Kickstarter in the Time of COVID-19
It’s official: the Kickstarter campaign for Life Among the Paiutes did not fund. Despite my best efforts, and the efforts of friends, family, and complete strangers who believed in the book, we weren’t able to reach our funding goal. Boo. April 2020 was admittedly a weird time to launch a campaign for a book. Lots…
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How to Make a Book Step 7: Book Marketing
In this eight-part series, I’ll walk you through the creation of a book using the next release from Practical Fox as an example. As I do the steps to make Life Among the Paiutes, I’ll write about it! You can start with Step 1. Ah, book marketing. There are so many ways to do it, and so many…