good morning, 2022 – my plans and plots for the new year!

good morning, cyberspace!

Happy New Year, my friends! I can’t believe it’s already 2022–or January, for that matter–but here we are on the cusp of another shiny new year, hoping (I think) that perhaps this one will be just a little less terrifying than the past couple have been…

To be honest, I don’t think ANYONE expected the 20’s to be… whatever it is the 20’s have been lately. But hey! We’re making the most of it! And what better way to focus on the good than by thinking about plans and plots for the oncoming year? and simultaneously kicking all terrible things that have happened underneath the rug, ne’er to be seen again. this is fine. Specifically, of course, ones in regards to writing, reading, and any otherwise creative pursuits!

Goal creation is one of my favorite things, especially at the start of a new year. Not only is it new and exciting–the very fuel this chaotic creative thrives on–but it also helps hold me accountable to the very many things I want to accomplish within a calendar year. At least, it should hold me accountable. As we discovered last week, sometimes I’m not very good about staying true to the goals I’ve set for myself. XD But! That’s all part of the learning experience, amiright?

So this morning, for our very first post of 2022, I’m going to pull back the curtains of my mind and show you all a sneakety peakety of what I’m planning for this year!

What will I be writing within the coming months? Are there any new stories in the works? Do I have a publishing plan(lol wut)? What about secret projects? Are there any of those? (trick question. there are ALWAYS secret projects in the pipeline.) There’s so much to be excited about in the coming months–some of which I’m not even covering in today’s post–so let’s dive right in and take a look!

2021 Reviews & Reflections

good morning, cyberspace!

Today, as 2021 draws to a close, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the multitudes of goals I created for myself at the start of the year. January held all the potential a new year can present, and it’s pretty obvious by my intentions for the year that I had… high hopes for how 2021 would progress. XD

Unfortunately, I also have a tendency to forget about these new goals about halfway through the year, but ya know. It’ll be fun to review them and see how many I actually managed to accomplish!

For anyone wanting to read the original post to get a sense of how horribly oblivious Past Kenzie was to the challenges this year would present, here’s a handy dandy hyper link for you to follow through the wormholes of the internet. However, if you’d rather just snatch the highlights and enjoy my PRESENT reactions to such goals as these, keep reading, sailor!

My Favorite Reads of 2021

good morning, cyberspace!

It’s that time of year again, folks! December is the perfect time to reflect and review the year behind us, and all across the blogosphere, posts are popping up of everyone’s favorite (and least favorite?) reads of 2021.

So naturally I’m going to jump on the bandwagon and join them! I read some INCREDIBLE books this year–one of which isn’t even published yet, and I am MAD because it would SO have made it onto my top 5…–and I just really want to squeal about them for five billion years, okay. XD Don’t judge me, please. But DEFINITELY read these books if you haven’t already, because y’all. They were GOOD.

*while numbered, these are not listed in chronological order of favorite to least favorite. I unfortunately have a painfully hard time choosing among my children, and therefore they are numbered simply for ease of reading

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MY FAVORITE READS OF 2021

THE LIGHTNING THIEF – Rick Riordan

Y’all. I am so excited to finally be reading this series! I’ve heard SUCH good things about it for years and years, but I never thought it was one that I should pick up and dive into.

But I’ve never been more happy to say that I. WAS. WRONG.

A very good friend of mine somehow convinced me to give this series a try earlier this year since he was–at the time–re-reading it, and I’ve honestly been hooked ever since. I breezed through The Lightning Thief within a single day, snagged Sea Of Monsters from my friend and devoured that one, too, and now I’m on Titan’s Curse! It took me a little longer to get into the third book with the same enthusiasm that I had with the first two, but I’m happy to say that after reading some other books begging for my attention, I’m fully invested in Titan’s Curse and am well on my way to finishing it before the week’s out!

UPDATE: Titan’s Curse has been completed. I am now resorting to bribery to get the fourth novel from said aforementioned friend.

AN ECHO OF THE FAE – Jenelle Schmidt

I think I’ve mentioned this book on the blog sometime this year, but since I can’t remember which post it was in, we’re mentioning it again! An Echo Of The Fae was quite honestly one of the sweetest, gentlest stories I’ve read in a really, really long time. It has all the soft magic you could possibly ask for from a Middle Grade, while also diving into deep truths such as faith, family, and never letting go of those we love.

This book is beautiful in so many ways, both inside and out, and I HIGHLY recommend this one to anyone looking for a soft, whimsical read.

HOWL’S MOVING CASTLE – Diana Wynn Jones

I HAVE FINALLY READ HOWL’S MOVING CASTLE, GUYS!!! I’ve been screaming at myself for YEARS to read this book–and quite honestly I’ve had people (gently) screaming at me to read this, as well–but it wasn’t until this year that I actually picked it up and read it from front to back. And, once again, I realized just how much I’d been missing out on.

Howl is one of the funniest, quirkiest, cleverest books I’ve ever read. There’s a fantasticalness about the story and its characters that sucks you in and refuses to let go, and even now, months after finishing it, I’m constantly reflecting on bits and pieces of this story. How soon is TOO soon to reread a story which has stolen your heart, by the way? Two months? Three? I’m suffering from Howl withdrawal over here, folks. XD (I mean I know I could read the sequels but it’s not the sammmmmmmeeeeee)

GEMINA – Jay Kristoff and Amy Kaufman

…I honestly don’t know if I have any words for this book. It was everything that Illuminae was–creepy, horrifying, edge-of-your-seat-and-nail-bitingly soul-snatching–and yet… somehow it was so much more…?

If you’ve never read this series, I literally cannot recommend it enough. It takes a second to get into the swing of the storytelling–especially if you’re not used to an epistolary format–but trust me when I tell you that once the story grabs hold of you, there is quite literally no letting you go. Ever. You’re on the Illuminae ship for life, and there is no better place to be.

Also there’s t-shirts.

THE GRAVEYARD BOOK – Neil Gaiman

This book has been on my TBR for FOREVER, but I finally managed to get to it this year! And by golly, what a wonderful book it was.

Not gonna lie, the prose was a LITTLE slow at times, making it a little bit of a mellow-paced read compared to, say, Gemina (a.k.a. one that I binged in two days), but the gentleness of this story almost makes it that much more spooky once you start to read it. I absolutely LOVE Gaiman’s writing style. In fact, it’s kind of what I want to do with my own stories. It has a sort of Tim Burton flair to it that I wasn’t necessarily expecting, and the fact that this book was essentially The Jungle Book but in a graveyard just made the whole thing so much better. XD

IT WILL JUST BE US – Jo Kaplan

This book was… interesting? I never thought I would be a lover–let alone READER–of Gothic Horror. In fact, had you told me five years ago that I would willingly pick up a book that looked like it was going to give me nightmares for days, I probably would have laughed and stabbed you in the toe with a spork. BUT. Here we are.

It Will Just Be Us was–again–a bit of a slower read. apparently 2021 was a year for slow-paced books?The prose was a little too purple for my taste at times, but more often than not, the writing pulled me in and made this eerie hollow tale even more chilling.

Of course, with this book technically being considered “adult”, there was some swearing sprinkled throughout (*insert intense eye roll here*), but for the most part, this book was captivating, haunting, and–more often than not–had me hanging on the edge of my seat. Nothing prepared me for that ending, either. I don’t know what I was expecting to happen, but it… decidedly was not that. Aha.

CONTENT WARNING: If you have a queasy stomach, I would highly recommend letting this one slide. This book is not for the faint of heart, and it definitely made me squirm uneasily more than once. There was also some cussing throughout, which was annoying. But other than that, this book was definitely among my favorite reads of the year, and a huge recommend to anyone who loves creepy mansions, ghosts, and mysteries behind locked doors….

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HONORABLE MENTIONS

Despite not making it in my list of Top Favorites, these three Honorable Mentions made my reader heart so happy this year!

ENTWINED – Heather Dixon

A reread, but still one of my favorite books of all time! I’m obsessed with the Twelve Dancing Princesses, as well as Bramble and Lord Teddy and just ALL of the members of this adorable cast… It’s also equal parts adorable and horrifying, and I love the complexity of that.

ROMANOV – Nadine Brandes

This was my first Brandes, and, might I just say, I am hooked. Nadine’s writing style picks you up and transports you seamlessly to another world, and learning the true story behind the Romanovs (followed shortly by Nadine’s excellent interpretation of what may have happened later) was both sweet and sad all at the same time. I loved this book dearly, and I’m VERY excited to read more of her work in 2022!

A GOOD GIRL’S GUIDE TO MURDER – Holly Jackson

This book was definitely a surprise for me! I bought it on a whim (yay Barnes and Noble!) and maybe sorta kinda binged it within three days… (oops?) I honestly don’t know where my enthusiasm for murder mysteries and gothic horror came from this year, but I am LOVING the eeriness of it all…

This book, while definitely staying true to its fast-paced, page-turner YA brethren, was a wild roller coaster ride from start to finish, which was just what I needed to get out of my reading slump in October! I also wasn’t able to predict the ending, which was a bonus, AND, despite there being a small romance that blossomed in the middle of the book, IT DIDN’T TAKE OVER THE PLOT!!!

GUYS! FINALLY A YA BOOK WITH A GOOD PLOT THAT DOESN’T GET RUINED BY ROMANCE!! Do you realize how happy this makes my heart? DO YOU REALIZE????

It was incredible. I’m amazed. 10/10. 5 stars.

(actually only like 4 stars, but who’s counting. not me, clearly.)

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talk to me, peasants!

what sorts of stories did YOU consume this year? any genres you weren’t expecting to fall madly in love with? what’s a book you would highly recommend to literally everyone? (*cough* percy jackson *cough*) and most importantly of all…

have you read any of the books on this list?

Specifically Illuminae/Gemina and Percy Jackson. I need people to squeal with, apparently…

As always, let’s talk about ALL OF THE BOOKISH THINGS! down in the comments below! And until next time…

* flings cookies in the air and disappears *

January, 2021

good morning, cyberspace!

It has come to my attention that I failed to write an update for the first month of 2021. And since one of my goals for the year is to become more involved on the blogosphere–and also lowkey keep better track of the months as they slowly slip through my fingers–I thought giving a recap on how January went for me was better late than never!

Honestly, not a whole lot happened during January. It was a rather unremarkable month. But being the first month of this brand new year, I still feel it’s worth acknowledging! This will most likely be a shorter blog post than we’re used to around here, but like … I’m not gonna say that’s a bad thing. XD

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january, 2021

writing

First up, let’s talk writing statistics! As far as writing goes, January wasn’t all that great for me. I definitely did not write near as much as I wanted to, and I’m still relatively behind on my first drafting for PROJECT GOBLIN. However, winter is a pretty strange season for me in general, so productivity typically falls out the window during these colder months.

All that said, though, I definitely did write some words! And though it wasn’t as much as I might have wanted, I’m still proud of the progress I did achieve!

word goal — 15,000 words

total words written — 12,786 words

projects tracked — project goblin

best daily writing streak — 12 days in a row

My main goal for January was to work on PROJECT GOBLIN and get a solid headway into the story. This … did not happen, exactly? But I definitely did work on it, and 12.5k story words is nothing to sneeze at, if I do say so, myself. Of course, I would have LIKED to write that extra 2,300 words and hit my goal of 15k, but I’m not going to beat myself up about it. Life happens, and I’m learning to embrace the chaos, accept the end result, and give myself grace in the midst of disappointment.

However, all that being said, I’m definitely planning on having a comeback in February. Which is saying something, since we’re already 7 days in at the time of me writing this, and I most DEFINITELY have not had any sort of comeback at all yet. But there’s still time! I have 21 days, peasants! I CAN DO THIS.

*distant sobbing*

Ahem. Anyway.

I also blogged a little bit last month, but since I didn’t track those words, I can’t exactly tell you how much was put towards blogging and how much was put towards actual story work. However, I can tell you that February has seen much more intent towards blogging than it has actual writing, and that … probably is not a very good thing. But since it’s been a while since I’ve actually been serious about blogging, I’m trying to ride this wave for as long as it will carry me.

Hopefully I’ll start writing more story words soon, though. I kinda need that if I’m going to meet my self-inflicted deadline.

reading

As described in my 2021 Goals & Aspirations post, I’ve kept up with my goal of reading books which are actually on my shelf, rather than obtaining more and … not reading them.

This, of course, comes with a wee bit of a caveat, because while I definitely read books on my shelf, they both also happened to be rereads… Which means I’m literally not any closer to narrowing down the list of books I own which I have yet to read.

But this is okay, because at least I haven’t been going out and obtaining new books, right? Haha.

Hahahahahaha…

…heh.

OKAY, FINE. I went out and bought three new books, okay? But it’s not my fault. I take one step into a Barnes and Noble and suddenly I’m having an out-of-body experience in which I’m incapable of stopping myself from adopting at least one new child. It’s … it’s not good. But also I have NO SHAME, PEASANTS. NONE WHATSOEVER.

Okay, I honestly have a problem. But it’s fine. I’m excited about the books I bought, and even more excited about my two rereads, so let’s just celebrate the bookishness that happened last month, yes?

Yes. Let’s do that.

books read

HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE by JK Rowling

Technically I’m buddy-reading this one with Christine, and GUYS. First of all, this story is absolute whimsy on a page, and secondly–CHRISTINE IS LITERALLY ONE OF MY FAVORITE HUMANS EVER. After reading this book, we had a Zoom call and squealed about all things Harry Potter and life-ishness and writerly, and guys. It was magical. I adore this girl with my whole entire heart, I swear.

ENTWINED by Heather Dixon

This book, guys. It’s magic and romance and enchantment and whimsy and sisterhood and just…!!! This book has my heart, and it’s had it ever since I read it for the first time a few years ago. I think there’s a more detailed review of my first reading lurking somewhere on this blog, but I’m too lazy to find it, and I’m also a little too terrified to try. (my early reviewing days were … um … *distant screaming whilst my blog backlog goes up in flames*.)

Anyway.

books obtained

THE GRAVEYARD BOOK by Neil Gaimon

This is my first Gaimon, and GUYS! I am so so excited to read this one! I’ve been wanting to read The Graveyard Book ever since Phoebe told me my goblins (from PROJECT GOBLIN) sounded similar to some characters (ghouls, I think?) from this story. And I FINALLY found it at Barnes and Noble and it was like 10 bucks and I’m just!!!!! Over the moon thrilled is what I am, my friends.

READY PLAYER ONE by Ernest Clime

This one was–not gonna lie–a severely impulsive buy. But I went to a Barnes and Noble with a new friend, and she told me she absolutely adored this book and thought I’d really like it, so … obviously I had to buy it. XD I’ve heard mixed reviews about this book, with the majority of it being positive, so I’m really eager to read it and form my own opinion!

Also I’ve just discovered that me, aforementioned friend, and yet another new friend might be starting our own little book club, with this being our first read, and I just???? This sounds adorable? I’m very excited about this, not gonna lie.

And finally, the book I’m probably MOST excited about right now…

AN ECHO OF THE FAE by Jenelle Leanne Schmidt

I was part of the cover reveal for this story, as well as an arc reader (though I didn’t finish the book in time, and I wasn’t able to write a review like I’d wanted to for the blog tour), BUT. I hadn’t gotten my own copy of this book yet. However, it’s one that I knew I wanted to add to my collection this year (despite my self-inflicted book-buying ban), and just recently I saw that the hardcover had gone on sale for a limited time!

…you guys can probably piece the story together from here.

Technically, my copy of ECHO hasn’t arrived in the mail yet, but I’M STILL REALLY REALLY EXCITED FOR IT TO GET HERE…!!! I’m so excited, guys… Jenelle is one of my favorite humans ever, and her stories always have this element of whimsy and adventure within them that just speaks to my very soul. I know for a fact that once ECHO gets here, I’m probably going to bump it to the top of my TBR almost immediately.

(smol update: my copy of ECHO came!!! and as predicted, this is going to the top of my TBR. #oops)

community

So! In keeping with my goal of staying connected with the blogging community more this year, I’ve decided that I’m going to add a “community” section to each of my monthly recaps! (very smart. much wow.) This, of course, is a wee bit of an experiment at the moment, but I’m eager to see how it will change and grow over the course of the next few months!

Unfortunately, January was a bit of a “dead month” for me, so I once again wasn’t super active here on the blogosphere as I would have liked to be. BUT. I’m still going to highlight some of my favorite bloggers, because even though I haven’t been reading and interacting as much as I want to, I’ve definitely rediscovered some of my favorite blogs this past month, and I want to share them with you all today! (even though y’all are probably already following each other, but IT’S FINE. I KNOW WHAT I’M DOING. MWAHAHAHAHA. #help)

i. Jenelle Leanne Schmidt

If you’re not following Jenelle yet, you are SERIOUSLY missing out. This girl is an absolute FAIRY. Her stories are magic and fairy dust, her blog posts are clever and incredibly insightful towards all things writing and indie publishing. She’s a wonderfully talented writer and an even greater friend, and I am so incredibly honored to have this beautiful human in my life.

Jenelle is also currently hosting something called Fantasy Month, so you should definitely hop on over to her blog and check it out before February ends!

ii. Sarah Seele

Sarah is one of the wittiest, cleverest (yes, it’s a word) bloggers I know. I don’t even remember how we stumbled across each other’s blogs, but I swear hers is one of my favorites to just binge on a rainy day when I’m hit with the sudden, inexplicable desire to just read some blog posts. She also has this really beautiful, almost magical way of writing, and I just *clutches heart*. She’s precious and I adore her and you NEED to go give her a follow if you haven’t already, okay? Okay.

iii. Christine Smith

For almost as long as I’ve been a part of the blogging community, Christine has been one of the sweetest, most encouraging voices. She is sunlight and kindness and I truly do not deserve to have her in my life. But oh my word, am I thankful for her. I literally cannot envision being a part of the blogging world without Christine. She makes every day brighter, and having her as a friend is legitimately one of the greatest things to have come from my time as a blogger.

Oh. And not to mention the fact that her blog posts are actually the most wonderful posts you will ever read in your whole entire life. (not even joking) Christine is one of those bloggers who I feel like everyone already knows, but GUYS. If you’re not following her already … please go follow her. She is actual sunshine in a bottle, and you need to read her posts.

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talk to me, peasants!

and that’s that for my January, 2021 recap! I … don’t exactly know how we’re already nearly halfway into February, but here we are. (are you scared? I’m scared.)

Anyway! Some questions for you all to ponder whilst I go have an existential crisis!

how did your january go? did you get any writing done? read any good books? have you read any of the books I’ve mentioned here, and–if so–what were your thoughts/opinions on them? and for all my fellow bloggers/readers of blogs out there (which is obviously you since you’re reading this), what are some of YOUR top favorite blogs to read?

Let’s talk about ALL OF THE THINGS down in the comments below! And until next time…

*flings cookies in the air and disappears*

JANUARY WRAP UP — smol writing updates, Harry Potter, and other random life-ishness

good morning, cyberspace!

The first month of 2020 is over, and if I’m being completely honest, part of me feels like I was slightly jipped in the “New Year” department. On January 1st, I woke up with a cold. Then, just when I began to recover from that, I caught the flu.

Queue me sitting on the couch doing nothing for the next three days whilst feeling like death was about to come knocking on my door with his spindly, bony-white knuckles.

However, despite these minor setbacks in my health–which decidedly proved fatal to my productivity–the month of January was still, in it’s own strange, sick little way, a good month! So let’s talk about January!

100 DAYS OF SUNLIGHT: A Smol and Soft and Summery Read

good morning, cyberspace!

Today I’m gonna tell you all about a book.

It’s a good book. A soft book. A book of sadness and happiness and a million other emotions all jumbled and stuffed between two adorable yellow covers. It’s a book that tugged at my heartstrings, a book that made me laugh, and–coincidentally–a book that was written by none other than the marvelous Abbie Emmons. (who, if you don’t know [though I’m gonna take a wild stab in the dark here and say that you PROOOOOBABLY know who she is by now] is a blogger and YouTuber–AND can apparently write absolutely fantastic novels, as well. Kind of unfair how much talent this girl has, but I digress.)

I think I should probably mention this now–since I don’t want to go to jail for forgetting to mention it or something–but I was able to receive an e-arc of Abbie’s book, 100 Days Of Sunlight, through Netgalley. (a service which I have coincidentally never before used, and therefore will probably never use again because #terrifying) This means that while I might have been able to read the ARC* of this book for free, my thoughts and opinions and feelings towards this book are COMPLETELY my own, and are in no way, shape, or form altered by the fact that A) I love Abbie’s blog and YouTube channel, and B) I got to read the book for free. Yes, there will probably be a lot of gushing and squealing and references to “MY HEART!!!!” but I mean??? How is that different from any other of my posts, am I right?

Right. So now that we’ve got all that weird legally binding stuff out of the way, let’s jump right into the actual review!

GOODNIGHT, APRIL!: Feat. The Great Camp NaNoWriMo Recap!

good morning, cyberspace!

You might have noticed there was no post last week.

Aha. Yeah. This was due to many things, but the majority of it was that Easter weekend was a whole lot busier than I had bothered to anticipate for, which left little to no time for writing my Camp NaNoWriMo novel, let alone blogging. So I just . . . didn’t blog.

. . . oops?

But honestly, taking a little break was probably the best thing to have happened to me all month, you guys. The first two weeks of Camp NaNoWriMo were a complete disaster (more on that to come, of course), and I just seriously needed to take some time off and breathe a little bit. And due to my unexpected absence last week, I feel a whole lot more refreshed and ready to take on both the writing and blogging worlds once again.

So let’s talk about what’s been happening this month, shall we? I think there’s quite a bit we need to go over.

also yes, there will be Sherlock GIF’s. why else do you read this blog?

Goodnight, February! Good Morning, March! (feat. all things February Freeze Out, where I ran off to, and a bunch of other random stuff)

EDIT NOTE: I was so excited to actually be posting something for once that I completely forgot to add in some asterisk notes I’d planned on including. SO I’VE FIXED IT. MWAHAHAHAHA.

 

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good morning, cyberspace!

It’s March, peasants! WOOT WOOT! I . . . honestly don’t know where February went. It seems like just a week ago that I was squealing and squawking about February Freeze Out, and now . . . it’s over.

And I hardly posted anything at all about it. AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

. . .

Actually, scratch that. I literally posted nothing about it. My plan for the month was to do two posts a week–one normal post, one February Freeze Out update post–and, as I’m sure you can all clearly see, that did not happen. Like at all. I didn’t even manage to give daily updates on my Twitter feed like I had planned, which means that on the updating front of this challenge, I failed most miserably.

On the actual doing of the February Freeze Out challenge, however. . .

Yeah, I also failed that, too. But now that it’s March, I have NEWS! and UPDATES! and MORE NEWS! about anything and everything February-ish, so let’s just get this over with, shall we?

The Most Noteworthy Books of 2018!

good morning, cyberspace!

2018 truly was a lovely year. Not only did I get a ton of writing done (or rather, tried to get a lot of writing done??) but I also rejuvenated my love of reading! I mean, it happened more towards the end of the year, rather than the beginning, but I mean AT LEAST IT HAPPENED, AMIRIGHT?