Ana C. Reis's Blog

I find it fascinating to learn about the tools other writers use to make their lives easier. Not just to increase their productivity, but also to make writing more enjoyable. For the past couple of years, I’ve been obsessively searching for the perfect tools that would catapult my writing to the next level. It was […]

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Toni Morrison. Octavia Butler. Angie Thomas. Susanna Clarke. The influence these women had in my life and journey as a writer is hard to define. Their legacy cannot be contained in pages and stories. In fact, I believe their real gifts are the myriad of feelings and ideas they have sown in my life. Choosing […]

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In May 2021, I set out on a mission to edit one of my oldest short stories so I could release it on Amazon later that year. The idea was to give it minor edits and make sure it found a home beyond the tiny confinements of my blog. Little did I know that the […]

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What makes these journals so special? They were designed to empower diversity in the literary community. Racism and discrimination have become systemic and so ingrained in the industry that authors from marginalized groups still have less access to opportunities. Changing this unhealthy inequality starts with personal choices. If you are ready to make more conscious […]

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It may shock you to know that self-publishing can be challenging and difficult in unexpected ways. With only one book out in the world (a short story in Portuguese), I’ve learned some tough lessons along the way. Lessons that made me rethink everything I knew about self-publication, everything I absorbed from the internet and conversations […]

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What a strange year this was! If I could summarize my year in a short blurb, I would say this was the year to discover what matters. Because of the insanity that followed us around for the past 12 months, it was easy to spot those things that were “out of place” in my life. […]

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Did you know biologists often store samples in -80°C freezers? These frozen giants are a massive source of stress. Sometimes they stop working during the weekend and happily destroy years-long experiments. Or they just decide to crash your Friday night plans by sounding the alarm the minute you’re about to leave the lab. A trip […]

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We all know serious gamers are high-achievers who love to keep track of their scores and conquests. If you’ve been looking for a journal to record your gaming achievements, you’ve come to the right place!

You may have noticed a few changes on my blog recently. Namely, the appearance of a new section called “Shop” as well as a stream of journals and planners symbolizing the biggest transition this page has seen in a very long time. What motivated this shop, why now, and what have I learned in the […]

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