New Year, New Projects, Same Me
Hi! Happy New Year! It’s another new newsletter started with all the enthusiasm that January 1 brings. I’m so happy you’re here.
So what’s the point of this? Who am I? Why am I sending these words out into the void of your very crowded inboxes?
For all of you who aren’t my friends or family roped into reading this out of guilt, welcome! I’m Erin, an LA-based queer writer and photographer. In 2023, I finished writing my first novel. I spent 2024 querying agents for that novel, and now, in 2025, per the advice of many other writers, I’m moving on to Book #2. I still have hope that Book #1 will find the right agent to bring it into the world, or maybe I’ll explore traditional publishing, but for my own sanity, it’s time to move on. That’s where this little letter comes in. It will be a space to keep me accountable, work through the roadblocks I come across, and hopefully build a little community.
So what can you expect?
Updates on what I’ve been up to - word counts, status updates, maybe some little snippets that I think are ready to be shared.
Bits and pieces of media I’ve consumed - what is a writing newsletter without a mention of what I’ve been reading and watching? I’m a member of an AMAZING reading club in Silverlake and an AMC A-Lister, so I will be tracking if it was worth it each month.
Miscellaneous thoughts and ideas - there are no rules, who knows what will happen.
Let’s get into it!
What’s New?
This newsletter! See above
Book #2!
Right now, the working title is the very creative Book Two, based solely on vibes. It’ll probably stick until I can’t think of anything else it could possibly be.
Logline: Two academic rivals summon a demon and her dog. Set in a wintery cobblestoned city, Book Two follows a pair of Ph.D. type scholars as they struggle to close the cracks they made in the world and a woman running to escape a living nightmare.
What I Got Done
Here is where I’ll track all my progress on the book or other writing projects. You would think we’d start from zero, but that’s not my style. I love to dive into a project head-first, and I know I need to bank progress when I can, for when the wheels fall off or the excitement wanes. I started plotting this book earlier in the fall, but I'm setting myself some goals and deadlines starting now.
The Goal: 90-100k word first draft
The Deadline: May 1, 2025
Why May 1? In the window between my birthday and Christmas, I found out that I was accepted into Futurescapes’ Summer Intensive Workshop in Florence, Italy. Futurescapes is an organization dedicated to aiding and cultivating new authors in speculative fiction. The workshop is at the end of May, and I would love to be able to work on this project there.***
By the numbers:
Words Written: 6,553
Words To Go: 97,443
Where I Wrote: Most words were written between eavesdropping on folks at Cafe Nido in Silver Lake. This place will come up a lot; it’s one of my favorite spots in LA.
What I’m Reading
Currently Reading: The Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson
I started The Stormlight Archive during lockdown when my friend said, “OMG this trilogy is so amazing, you’ll love it!” As I was about 100 pages from finishing book three, I realized there was no way Sanderson was about to wrap up this nearly 4,000-page saga in the next 100 or so, and I was right. It turns out Stormlight is a planned 10 (!!!) book series, with each novel pushing 1300 pages. So now I am committed, I guess. But, lord, this book is long. I’m on page 464 out of 1260, and I’m enjoying it, but I wouldn’t say I love it. I will see the series through, though, once the fifth book is available in mass-market paperback. Pray for me.
Was A-List Worth It? Yes
The math works out that if I go to 2 movies, then I’ve paid for my membership. Not too bad for December. Wicked was amazing, I would see it for a third, fourth, or fifth time, happily. Gladiator II … mid. Nosferatu is a perfectly crafted movie, the kind of film that will be studied at film schools for the rest of time. The cinematography was stunning—the framing, the camera movement, the color—I can’t get over it. Obsessed.
Miscellany
In theory, if I have anything else to say, this is where you’ll find it, but this letter already feels long-winded, so we’ll stop here.
Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Keep them to yourself.
Just kidding! Let me know what you think, what you’d like to see in the future, or what you want to hear more about! Pretty sure you can respond to this or leave a comment. I’m still learning the platform, so apologies if that is just completely wrong. We’ll figure it out!
The end, for now.
Thank you so much for being here. I am endlessly grateful that you spent some time with my words. I hope you stick around. Until next time.