#18 - Whoever Put The Word 'Dead' In 'Deadline' Was A Genius
AKA "happy halloween in summer"
PROLOGUE
Happy August! It will be a particularly happy one for me because, after pushing back my deadline twice, this will hopefully be the month I finally turn in the messy first draft of SO LET THEM BURN 2. I know that first drafts are supposed to be a bit shit, and my editor expects to do deep developmental edits, but the humiliation is REAL you guys, even as I’m so exhausted I can’t wait for this draft to be someone else’s problem.
July was a haze for me, aside from a trip to Seattle, WA, the furthest west I have ever gone, finally getting to watch Across the Spider-Verse, and realizing that it’s only six months until SO LET THEM BURN is on shelves. Actually, now that it’s August, it will soon be FIVE MONTHS until my book is on shelves. That last thing doesn’t even feel real; I hope you guys are excited because I am in a state of TERROR.
I finished reading Such Pretty Flowers by K.L. Cerra, which is part of my new favorite subgenre of thriller: toxic sapphic homoerotic. Before this, I read The Cloisters by Katy Hays, and soon I’ll read Maddalena and the Dark by Julia Fine. I saw Talk to Me in theaters, and that movie absolutely blew my mind. And I can’t stop listening to Barbie: The Album, especially “Speed Drive”, “What Was I Made For?”, and especially “I’m Just Ken.”
Despite that, I still haven’t seen the Barbie movie. :( A tragedy! Anyway, moving on…
CHAPTER 1: POP CULTURE MOMENT OF THE MONTH
I finally got to see Across the Spider-Verse with some friends, but the real story is HOBIE BROWN aka SPIDER-PUNK aka THE LOVE OF MY LIFE. He said “anarchy!!!” and he did it right. He adopted Miles. He and Pavitr are so cute. I’m obsessed with him, and I will be writing a character based off him at my earliest convenience.
CHAPTER 2: SO LET THEM BURN IS GOING INTERNATIONAL
If you follow me on social media, then you’ve already heard, but for anyone who missed it: SO LET THEM BURN will be published in the UK (as well as Australia and New Zealand)! Atom Books has been a dream to work with so far, and we’ll be keeping the same, striking cover, which I’m really excited about. The members of my family who don’t live in America live in either Canada or the UK, so I’m really excited to get to tell them that they’ll be able to walk into a store and see my debut novel ready for purchase.
There are loads of UK bookstores from which you can preorder my book right now, but I’m trying to trick Waterstones into giving me a special edition, so here is the link to preorder SO LET THEM BURN from Waterstones! (Yes, I know this is not how it works, but whatever.)
This is just one of many things I’ve been waiting to announce to everyone, and, to be honest, I’d almost forgotten. The best way I know how to keep a secret is to just completely forget it until something reminds me, you see. But I’m so, so excited for everything that has happened for SO LET THEM BURN so far, and the potential of more to come, and I’m trying to let myself lean into that joy lately.
A lot of times, as writers, we think we don’t deserve our success. As anyone will tell you, getting published involves a lot of hard work, but it also involves a fair bit of luck and a drop or two of privilege. Many of the best books I’ve ever read are unpublished or even written by friends who are unagented—so when it comes to my own work, it can be so easy to dismiss anything that happens as more than I deserve.
But I have friends (hi Terry, hi Chelsea) who refuses to let me fall into that trap, of dismissing my wins, of trying to please people who will criticize me no matter what, of feeling so lucky to be in the room that I don’t ask for things I want. I hope the joy I’m feeling spreads to all of you reading this, that you get that news you’ve been waiting for, and that you celebrate every win as something you deserve. The world will always need your words and your art and, heck, your presence.
CHAPTER 3: HAVE A LITTLE PODCAST, AS A TREAT
This one goes out to all my Halloween in Summer peeps! On this podcast, hosts Christian Baxter Mott and Kalyn Andrews examine the dark side of ‘80s and ‘90s pop culture that molded the millennial generation.
CHAPTER 4: THE REC ROOM
Welcome to the Rec Room, the section of my newsletter that I use to highlight books coming out each month I’m really excited about. For August, we have…
TOGETHER WE ROT by Skyla Arndt
Wil Greene's mom has been missing for over a year, and the police are ready to call the case closed. But she knows her mom wouldn't just leave... and she knows the family of her former best friend, Elwood Clarke, has something to do with it. Elwood has been counting down the days until his 18th birthday—in dread. It marks leaving school and joining his pastor father in dedicating his life to their congregation, the Garden of Adam. But he discovers he's not his father's successor, but his sacrifice. For the woods he's grown up with are thirsty, and must be paid in blood. Now on the run from a family that wants him dead, he turns to the only one who will believe him: Wil.
I FEED HER TO THE BEAST AND THE BEAST IS ME by Jamison Shea
Laure Mesny is a perfectionist with an axe to grind. Despite being constantly overlooked in the elite and cutthroat world of the Parisian ballet, she will do anything to prove that a Black girl can take center stage. To level the playing field, Laure ventures deep into the depths of the Catacombs and strikes a deal with a pulsating river of blood. The primordial power Laure gains promises influence and adoration, everything she's dreamed of and worked toward. With retribution on her mind, she surpasses her bitter and privileged peers, leaving broken bodies behind her on her climb to stardom.
CHAPTER 5: LOOK AT MY CAT!!!
As you may know, I adopted a shelter cat in December 2021, who I named Sora Mittens. Since she loves scratching, and she loves cardboard boxes, I got her a cardboard scratch box, and she’s in love with it. She sleeps in it sometimes. I’ll have to get her another, because she’s almost destroyed this one.
EPILOGUE
Thank you for subscribing and/or for sticking around! I hope you like rambles, shenanigans, and nonsense, because that’s truly all this is. I’ll see you next month, when I will be off deadline and living my best hot girl life!
The Barbie soundtrack is hot