February '25 Newsletter
Hello readers,
January has been the longest month ever (although I suppose it feels like this every year) and it’s good to finally see the end of it. One of the good things has been getting a new bookcase, one I was a bit overdue for. I had so many books squirrelled away in any spaces I could find, and although I haven’t finished making everything pretty, it’s been good to have things out nicely. I also bought two new plants which I have really been enjoying (and one of them has been growing mad! I repotted it and within a week it needed repotting again?!)
It’s this plant below, asparagus setaceus, aka a lace fern. I love misting it and watching the drops collect like this. It really reminds me of my short story The Cry of the Raijuu where Hirotoshi is running through the forest away from the raijuu running along lightning in the sky.
At this rate it’s really going to grow huge, but I’m looking forward to it. I think it’s so pretty.
I also managed to get some general admin done in January, including updating Substack. So much has happened since I last sorted it, it was embarrassing how out of date some of the information was. Oops! I have also made a page which will list stories that aren’t to do with Tales of Yamato, especially now Unbound by the Sea is really becoming something.
On Ream
For January, I have made the decision to not post a chapter to my subscribers, simply because I have been overwhelmed by all the tasks I need to do for publishing Tales of Yamato. I tried to get a chapter posted, and I did manage some writing, but I also could feel burn out happening. So instead, I’ll be posting two chapters of Unbound by the Sea next month instead.
Note: I have had a big jump in new subscribers to my newsletter, so I will explain what Unbound by the Sea is.
It’s a romantasy I am writing which started off as a novella, and it’s gotten out of hand and will be a full novel instead. It’s set in an Asian inspired place, with the main country being name Mokurastu-ji. We follow Yuna, a matchmaker who has been assigned to the Emperor’s daughter, Haruna, to find her a husband. However, she’s fallen for Haruna and it’s making life very complicated. And the once isolationist country of Mokuratsu-ji finds itself now open to a country they’d been at war at in the past, now asking for an alliance.
I post a chapter to my Ream subscribers every month while Tales of Yamato is being sorted. In the past I had been posting a Tales of Yamato story each month.
Tales of Yamato
Now in January, Tales of Yamato has come on leaps and bounds! I completed the final draft and formatting, then have been sending out a copy to ARC readers ( In case you missed the ARC email I sent out, the link to join is here: https://forms.gle/vhxJ6egWfvjHrpww5.
Behind the scenes I have also been working on putting it up on Amazon ready to buy and all that stuff. As this is my first time, I am learning so much about the process. I will have preorder links available real soon, and will send out a message much like my ARC one about it.
Future Projects
Recently on my social media I shared this teaser;
Some time in December I found some old notes of mine and played around with the ideas a little, slowly forming something new. I’m hoping soon I can start working on it, and then introduce it to you all properly. Right now, it has no name, just some little thoughts. I am excited for it though, it’ll be set in a new land inspired by Europe, though won’t be falling into a stereotypical western fantasy. I want to explore new things and settings which don’t get featured as often.
One More Thing
This is a bit of an odd one, but although I tend to keep certain things in my life private, I am also quite open about things. Just a few days ago there was a family emergency, and from it, my home life has changed quite a bit. The future is uncertain right now, and I have no idea how it will change anything author related. It might not, but in case it does, this is why. I need to adapt to a new normal, all while chronically ill, and juggling everything life throws at me. With Tales of Yamato so close to published, thankfully nothing will change with that. I just need to do a few last things and it’ll be complete. No matter what, I will keep writing, and who knows, maybe I’ll be able to focus more and write faster than before.
I don’t want to end on a sad note, so here is a picture of Phoebe all snuggled in her favourite jumper I wear, as I can swaddle her like a baby. She is a very spoilt cat, one who argues with me over sitting in my own chair and is very vocal about it. One thing I love about Bengals!
Want to find new authors and/or books to try?
February is all about Fantasy and Sci-Fi, so come and have a browse at nearly 200 different books, all free, by indie authors: https://books.bookfunnel.com/scififantasy202502/2x5qkt6ye2
Thank you for reading this far. Want to chat? Comment on the substack post or even send me an email. I’d love to hear from you.
See you again in the next newsletter.
