Category: blogging

Posted in blogging

Hiatus

Posted on by AJ

The Written Vixen has been my project for three and a half years. There are so many things I want to do with my little corner of the internet.  When I started this year, I had a lot I wanted to do for the blog. I’d planned on starting an author spotlight, updating my icon and some of the older blog posts. I’d planned on doing another serial post, much like I did with Seventh last year.

Unfortunately, while having plans and dreams is good and well, I haven’t made much progress on actually reaching those goals. Part of that is a direct result of trying to do everything all at once and inevitably, having to let some things fall behind. That’s the nature of responsibilities and obligations. At times balancing the things that have to get done and the things I want to get done doesn’t end up going so well.

Which is why I’m temporarily taking a posting hiatus. Note that this is only a hiatus for new posts. The time I normally spend creating new posts is instead going to be used to finally go through and update all the little things that have bothered me—I love my fox logo, but she’s tired and needs a little TLC, as do a few other minor things.

So for the next couple of months, there won’t be a new post up on the Written Vixen. Don’t worry, I’ll be back. Consider this a long coffee break.

Looking forward to seeing you all on the other side!

A.J. Helms

Posted in blogging, recaps

March ’21 Recap

Posted on by AJ

Despite that I started March off with a Book in a Week Challenge, the month largely sped by without much to note about it. I’m actually a little surprised to realize we’re in the tail end of the month.

Nevertheless, there are some good things to note, both in writing and in real life. Covid Vaccines have been released to the general public in my state.

As a PSA and reminder: Even if you already have your vaccination, please continue wearing a mask. It’s not known how or if you can still transmit Covid once vaccinated and others around you may not be protected.  Please be the reason someone else is able to get a vaccine, instead of getting Covid.

It’s nice to know that the world is potentially starting to recover from the disaster that was 2020, but it’s also only March. Stay cautious and safe. You have so many more stories to live through and tell.

 On the writing side of things, I did attempt a Book in a Week Challenge. While I didn’t succeed at it this time, I’m excited to try it again when I get the chance. Looking back on it, I realize I rushed into it, so I’ll be planning a little more carefully for the next attempt.

I am however, closing the month out with sixty-thousand written words as of writing this post. There’s still a few days left in the month, but so far my yearly total of words is one hundred and forty-thousand words.

Even better: Next month is Camp NaNoWriMo. Because I’ve been trying to focus on getting at least a few projects cleared off the mountain of unfinished things, I’m giving myself a break for April and working on a few new ideas.

How as your March? What are you looking forward to in April?  

Posted in blogging, recaps

February ’21 Recap

Posted on by AJ

This month has been rough. I didn’t get much accomplished this month, even in the small things. Although I started out with a plan for the month and a chosen project, my focus has largely been derailed due to personal events.

I didn’t end up reading a whole lot this month. I’d wanted to finish my book from January before starting on a new one. That’s still sitting fairly unread on my nightstand. Nor did I get a lot of writing done. Over the three different projects I tried to work through I ended up falling short of twenty-five thousand by a but two hundred words.

I’m hoping March turns out a little better, but for right now I’m not putting anything super solid down in the plans.

How was your February?

Posted in blogging, General

Upcoming in February

Posted on by AJ

Admittedly, January did not see a huge amount of things actually getting ‘done’ owing to the fact I took on a lot more than I really had time for. However, I’ve taken a little bit of time and hopefully gotten myself reorganized.

February’s main writing project is the second draft of a paranomal novel I’ve had sitting on the list for ages. I last opened the silly thing all the way back in 2019. It’s still incredibly rough, and at this point the plan is to polish it up and begin querying it for traditional publication. That’s still a long ways off however.

On the blog side of things, I’d like to get my short stories page reorganized. Ideally I want to turn it from a list of links into a gallery, showcasing the header images for each story. Because not all of these stories have header images, the first part of getting this accomplished is to update all the ones currently missing images.

If you’re supporting me over on Patreon you’ll get early access to this month’s short story, plus an exclusive behind-the-scenes video for an upcoming project. Patrons will also get a couple of other treats this month, so if you’re interested in finding out more about that, check out my page here.

Although last month wasn’t fantastic for reading, I’m all set for February’s challenges. February’s challenge plot is Obstacles to Romance. Location is Seoul, South Korea (I’ve chosen Wicked Fox by Kat Cho for this one!). The title word is breath and the cover image is a heart.

What’s on your calendar for February?

Posted in blogging, General

Oops

Posted on by AJ

While getting organized and setting things up for this week, I realized I’d somehow manage to completely skip last Friday’s post. I didn’t realize it at all on Friday, which I’ll account for as being busier than I’d thought I would be. I think there’s something to be said in there for biting off more than I can chew.

What exactly am I chewing on at the moment?

On the blog end of things, I’m working on some behind the scenes updates, starting with a minor revamp of my short stories page. That revamp will hopefully make it easier to navigate than one long list of stories. It also includes going back through and relinking all the parts of Seventh.

The other part of the updates for the blog is reworking my logo. Although I love my little fox, she’s starting to show her age a bit. This is also leading me into playing a little bit with my wordpress theme to see if there’s one I like better.

Getting off the blog and onto other platforms, I’m expanding! Sort of. I’m re-releasing Seventh onto Wattpad. You can find parts one and two there already and I’m looking to continue updating on Fridays.

I’m also still working out the best pattern for my Patreon. At the moment most of what I have for it includes short stories and notes, but I’m getting ready to release a special sneak-peak for my patreon supporters of what’s coming up later in the year.

On writing, I’m starting the second draft/partial rewrite of what’s rapidly turning into a novella series. I thought working on this would trim at least one or two things off my insane project list, but that’s not looking like the case.

To sum it all up: Sorry for missing Friday! I’m taking a couple of days to get myself reorganized and sorted out, so normal posting should resume as of today.