I know I missed a month, but I have a very good reason for that: I haven’t read a single thing I genuinely enjoyed.

Yeah. It sucks.

I’ve also been struggling to find time to read, and the book that I am enjoying working my way through is over 600 pages long and only available to me in paperback, which means no reading on my phone when the baby falls asleep on me. I’m not sure when my reading will pick up again, or how long it will take me to finish my current read.

That being said, I do want to continue posting these wrap-ups and sharing what I’ve loved reading and writing recently. So, with that in mind, I might shift to posting these every two or three months unless I happen to have a busy month for reading or writing.

Now, let’s get into this rather short wrap-up, shall we?

What I’ve Enjoyed
Other
The Legend of Korra
Yeah, yeah, I’m about ten years late to that bandwagon. But I’m glad I finally decided to check it out! While there were certainly flaws in the series (let’s all just agree not to talk about season 2, am I right?), I really enjoyed it! The characters were fun, I loved the new ways bending was explored, and seeing how the world had grown and changed in the years after A:TLA was really fascinating. Plus, getting to see some old favourites pop in now and then was delightful. Definitely look forward to rewatching this sometime.

What I’ve Created
Articles
Acceptable Targets and Miscellaneous Misrepresentations in House of Night
Continuing on with the essays I was sharing in my last wrap-up, this is a collection of mini-essays on a variety of topics that I either couldn’t expand into full-length solo pieces, or didn’t have time to do so in a manner that would do the subject justice. The length of this piece might look daunting, but because it’s a collection of essays rather than a single standalone essay, you can actually dip in and out and read sections as you see fit.

Aging Poorly vs. Being Harmful: A Final Look at House of Night and the Works of PC Cast and Kristin Cast
Summing up my thoughts on all of this was hard, not least because the subject is so expansive. But I did my best to convey why the problematic and harmful content in these books is not just an example of something aging poorly or being outdated, while also showing that these issues exist throughout the authors’ body of work, not just within this one series.

How to Write a Book Series as a Pantser
I had a hard learning curve when it came to mapping out and effectively executing a multi-book plot as a pantser (well, plantser, really), and I decided to share some of the tips and lessons I had learned along the way. Hopefully it will make that journey a little easier for other writers out there.

Buzzword Feminism and a Legacy of White Saviours: An In-Depth Review of Spells Trouble
When I say my reading has been bad lately, this is a prime example. Normally I don’t do straight-up book reviews outside of Goodreads and Storygraph, but I’ve decided to experiment with lengthy ones like this for books that I have a lot to say about. In the future, I hope those reviews can be more positive, but that sadly is not the case for this first one. If you’re interested in seeing my thoughts on the world-building and writing of Spells Trouble, as well as my opinion on how the authors’ handled representation of queer characters and POC, then definitely check this one out.


And that’s all I have to share for now. If you like my content and want to see more regular updates from me, follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and/or Medium. I’m @rachaellawrites on all of them.