The next chapter: November 2025 update

December 7, 2025 / Melanie Marttila / Leave a comment

Rebooting …

Life in general

What follows may seem like a middle-aged white woman whinging about first world problems, but, you know, I’m learning to listen to my body and honour what it’s telling me. Even small disruptions can dysregulate me, and I hope that sharing my experience will help one of my neurokin validate theirs.

Life isn’t always one crisis after another, even if the world in general seems to be burning down around us.

Now that my travel and writerly events over the last couple of months were over, November started with the return to standard time, which messes me up for a couple of weeks (at least). This happens regardless of whether we “gain” or “lose” an hour.

Occasionally, some politician talks about eliminating the time change, but the various governments and powers that be can never agree on whether to stick with standard time or daylight saving time, and the agreement of one government depends upon the agreement of all the others. So, Ontario won’t repeal DST unless Quebec and the States with which it trades also agree. If one state or province refuses, the proposition is dead.

And now, with Canada’s provincial trade barriers potentially coming down, there may be more domestic players to take into consideration. Even though Saskatchewan has never been on DST. It is to sigh.

Though I’d been using a neti-pot twice a day throughout the year and started taking Ryaltris (also twice a day) since the beginning of September, it became clear in the early days of November that I would be sick for at least part of my month off. I increased the frequency of Cold FX and Emergen-C, planning for the worst but hoping for better.

On the 3^rd, I received an invitation to interview for the new Intake Team our directorate was creating on the 7^th. It was only a half hour, but I did my best, geeking out about learning and development and my passion to align with the new vision for our department. They said they wanted to make decisions fairly quickly, but as of the end of November, I still hadn’t heard.

Nor had I heard whether I would be one of the many employees to be cut, as per the recently passed budget.

Living on tenterhooks about both situations.

No sooner had I started to recover from the time change than I had my double vaccination of flu and COVID shots. Look, I don’t plan these things, and I think it would be difficult to try to predict my reaction to any given set of vaccinations. They change formulation for both every year. Vaccinations were a thing on my to-do list, and I made the earliest convenient appointment the pharmacy had. It just turned out it was on the 12^th.

Besides, other than a day or so of soreness, I’d never had a bad reaction in the past.

Folks, I’ve never had such a bad reaction. This year’s Moderna resulted in two days of Advil-surpassing pain and feeling like utter crap. And, of course, my sinuses ramped up toward infection with the tell-tale post-blow squeal, headaches, and — joy — cough.

I didn’t recover from the soreness and general feeling like crap until the following weekend, though the sinus symptoms persisted throughout the month.

For most of November, daytime temperatures were above zero degrees Celsius, so the various dustings of snow we received melted the next day or were washed away by rain. On the 29^th, however, the daytime temperature remained below zero and so the snow stayed. The dusting we received on the 29^th wasn’t impressive, but the snow that followed on the 30^th required Phil to use the snow blower. And the city ploughs emerged, though they didn’t touch the side streets.

Wonderful things: In the last days of November, I remembered my dreams for almost a week! Nothing story-generating, but weird and fun, nonetheless. And I got a non-dream, super-cool idea for The Fenwoman’s Tale that will make the story SO much better. When I get back to it.

The month in writing

The early days of November were a mess.

Even though I returned from the Writing on the Rocks retreat inspired and ready to devote some time to my writing … I didn’t … (?)

Instead, for some reason, my ND brain decided to start cleaning/reorganizing my office (!) I cleaned out all the candle glass (i.e. the containers candles come in) that had been sitting around my office for a year +, cleaned all the essential oil bottles that had been sitting around for at least as long, cleaned almost all of the glass (hurricane lamps, bowls, jars, etc.) in my office (I always find 1 or two containers I forgot afterward), and removed the prisms from their suction cups in my window and strung them up on a ribbon. I also cut back one of my 2 pothos plants because it was losing leaves at a rapid rate, a sure sign it was pot bound.

My assembly of suncatchers, crystals, and wind chimes.

And then, I realized I was prioritizing the wrong things and returned to writing tasks. This was, in part, why I was late posting about Can-Con, the retreat, and didn’t publish my last update/newsletter until mid-November.

After I took care of those writerly tasks, I finished an overdue review and got back to cutting Reality Bomb down to size.

All of this in the middle of major dysregulation due to the time change and double vaccination and sinusitis. Yay, brain!

By the 23^rd, I finished my second cutting pass. The total word counts currently stands at 115,661. I only managed to cut 2,345 words. But progress is progress.

Then, I returned my attention to my office clean up.

Which … I did not do.

My body and brain demanded REST and I had to obey. I did pull up a couple of older short stories and started to rework them. And I was mulling the next round of RB cuts, including a rewrite of the first chapter, in the back of my mind.

My review of Like Water for Weary Souls by Liisa Kovala came out in The Seaboard Review of Books on the 12^th.

The cover of Like Water for Weary Souls.

My review of Mona Awad’s We Love You, Bunny was released into the wild by The Seaboard Review of Books on the 19^th.

The final SF Canada board meeting of the year (before our AGM) was on the 24^th. We’re a friendly bunch and everything was decided fairly quickly. We’re a go for a December 14^th AGM.

Filling the well

The full freezing moon in Taurus was on the 5^th. It was a rainy day.

I think I’ve finally figured out how to take a good moon photo with my phone! At maximum zoom, this weird grid appears in the corner, and when you focus on the moon, the surrounding sky darkens. When you take the picture, the sky turns black, and the details of the moon come out. Some new feature on my phone. Yay!

After the full, the days alternated. One overcast and possibly raining, the next blue skies filled with sky floof that obscured the waning moon, wherever she was.

The new ivy moon in Scorpio was on the 20^th.

After the new, the sky was consistently cloudy. Also, we were entering the dark times, and my second dog walk of the day was inevitably after sunset.

I attended the virtual launch of The Pollination Field by Kim Fahner on the 5^th. It was a great event co-hosted by Alice Major. Great conversation, great questions, and great poetry. I’m looking forward to the in-person launch in the spring!

Unmasking through our writing with Murgatroyd Monaghan continued Thursday afternoons through November. It’s been a fabulous journey of self-discovery and affirmation. I would highly recommend it to any ND creative folk who want to create/define a process unique to them.

On the 8^th, I attended Books Today: Creativity, Monetization, and the Publishing World with Andrea J. Lee, Sam Hiyate, and Katie Curtin. Interesting, although it ended up being a sales pitch for a course they were offering.

I attended the in-person book launch of Liisa Kovala’s Like Water for Weary Souls on the 9^th. I had a little trouble getting where I needed to go because there was construction at the 2^nd Avenue entrance to Finlandia Koti, and I hadn’t been there since my great aunt was a resident … a long time ago. After being ranted at and threatened by the site foreman (I assumed) he finally told me where I needed to go, and it turns out I arrived just at the interview and reading were getting underway. I love Liisa’s book and wanted to support her. She and Emily De Angelis had a great conversation, and I got to chat with a few friends at the reception. Kahvi oli vahvaa, ja pulla oli hyvää!

The Clarion West workshop Revision: Turning Writing into Art Using Craft Analyses & the Reverse Outline with Naseem Jamnia took place on the 13^th and the 20^th. It was a great session, combining reading like an author with the reverse outline (outlining after first draft completion). Very in my wheelhouse as I tend to be a discovery writer (or pantser) no matter how I try to outline.

I enjoyed a lovely visit with friends from out of town on the 8^th. Our visits always tend to feel short, given we have so much to catch up on, but we had a great time.

I skipped my support group meeting on the 26^th to attend my mother-in-law’s birthday party at a local restaurant. Fabulous food and family festivity! Of course, I had to REST afterward.

My leave with income averaging continued through to the 28^th. I didn’t accomplish much aside from relaxing and resetting.

I had my semi-annual (soon to be tri-annual) dentist’s appointment on the 4^th. My insurance finally approved additional “units” of descaling for me after years of my dentist’s office applying for additional coverage. So now, I have a better chance of staying on top of the staining my teeth are prone to.

On the 10^th, I had my next session with my therapist. Mostly, it was decompressing about the month past, but we’re going to get back to values next time.

On the 12^th, I got my flu and COVID shots. I already told you how that went.

What I’m watching and reading

The first series I finished watching in November was a comfort rewatch of Gargoyles (Disney +). This series was a favourite, and the animation was done by Nelvana, a Canadian company. I watched the whole series when it originally aired (1994 -7). I appreciated the multiple mythologies used to develop the series, and I fell in love with Goliath (I’m definitely not ashamed to say). Keith David has the most amazing voice.

I’ll refer you to the Wikipedia entry, so you can think about whether you’d like to go down the Gargoyles rabbit hole.

I had no idea that Diane Duane and Peter Morwood were on the writing staff in season 2! Now I love the series even more.

Then, I watched the first season of Alien Earth (Disney +). Having finished another Noah Hawley series (Legion) not long ago, I was prepared for some weirdness. Overall, I enjoyed the series, but there are a lot of unanswered questions. FX hasn’t greenlit a second season yet, but Hawley has said that the series is intended to be 5 seasons. It’s supposedly the highest rated offering in the Alien franchise, so we’ll see.

Set after Alien: Romulus but before the events of the original Alien movie, Alien: Earth follows 6 terminally ill children as their consciousnesses are uploaded into synthetic bodies by Boy Kavalier, trillionaire CEO of the Prodigy Corporation. Shortly after their uploading, the “Lost Boys” as the hybrids are known, Wendy, Slightly, Curly, Smee, Nibs, and Toodles are sent to the crash site of the Maginot, a Weyland-Yutani ship. Because of their synthetic bodies, Boy figures they will not be targeted by the alien payload. While they do recover the aliens, including the title creature, Weyland-Yutani wants them back, and shenanigans ensue. As you may have surmised, Peter Pan is the framing metaphor for the series.

Next, I finished the first season of Chief of War (Apple TV +). Jason Momoa executive produced and starred in his latest passion project, relating the struggle to unify Hawai’i under Kamehameha I. Set at the end of the 18^th century when the four major kingdoms of the Hawaiian Islands were in a state of war: Hawaiʻi, Maui, Oʻahu, and Kauaʻi, the series follows Kaʻiana (Momoa), a warrior chief (aliʻi) of Kauaʻi. Picked up by a British ship when he falls off a cliff and is presumed dead, Ka’iana experiences the world outside of Hawai’i and returns with a shipload of guns. They had cultural advisors in every department to ensure authenticity and to present these historical events with as much accuracy as possible. Most of the dialogue is in Hawai’ian, so make sure you have captioning on. An amazing epic about a culture I’ve had the curious for.

Then, I watched Fantastic Four: First Steps (Disney +). I liked it. A friend had just watched it and said it felt like an incomplete story. It wasn’t an origin story (they took care of that in the opening montage), but I also felt it was merely the beginning of a bigger story, which conforms to the subtitle, first steps, and to the postscript advising that the Fantastic Four would return in Avengers: Doomsday. Add to that the post-credit scene in the Thunderbolts*, and it’s very much giving “to be continued …” vibes. For all that, I did enjoy the story and how Sue Storm and Shalla Bal end up being the best characters of the bunch. And the family dynamics were great. The F4 really demonstrate how a healthy family interacts. There are a lot of other reviews and analysis videos out there, so you can peruse those if you wish. For me, Thunderbolts* is still the standout Marvel movie of the last few years, though.

Next, I finished the second season of Hazbin Hotel (Prime). The first season culminated in the ascension of Serpentous/Sir Pentous. In this season, Charlie struggles to spread the good news that redemption is possible while Vox undermines her at every turn and foments war with heaven. Musicals aren’t my favourite, but the songs are bangers (!) And I love the animation style.

I finished watching season five of Only Murders in the Building (Disney +). Lester the doorman was found dead at the end of last season, and then Oliver gets tangled up with a second corpse in the dry cleaner’s next door. The main suspects are four of the richest people in the world, who sabotage the podcast to keep their secrets off air. And one of them buys the Arconia and kicks everyone out to build New York’s first casino (!) It felt for a moment like this would be the final season, but the gang sorted things out. Also, an old frenemy of Mabel’s shows up to complicate things, the board wants to have a robot doorman, and Charles is involved in a drug study. A slightly different tone to the season, but very fun. The murder setting up next season is killer.

Then, because Amazon snagged the rights, I watched both seasons of Helluva Boss (Prime). Blitzo (pronounced Blitz — the O is silent), an imp raised in the circus, goes independent as an adult, after having made a deal with goetia prince Stolas (to whom he was once “sold” as a playmate) to obtain a book that facilitates travel to the mortal realm in return for sexual favours. Yes, this is an adult animated series. Blitzo founds IMP (immediate murder professionals) offering his team’s services to kill mortals at the request of various of hell’s denizens. Blitzo’s team consists of Millie and Moxxie, passionate partners as well as assassins, and Loona, Blitzo’s adopted daughter and hellhound.

This is the background against which the real story — that of love between deeply damaged people — plays out. The main romance is between Blitzo and Stolas. Stolas, trapped in a loveless, arranged marriage, falls deeply for Blitzo. He loves his daughter, Octavia (Via) but, not having had loving parents himself, he cannot show Via affection in a healthy way. Blitzo loves Stolas, too, but feels unworthy of love because of his own upbringing. Other relationships — Millie and Moxxie, Ozzy and Fizzie — compare and contrast, while Blitzo’s relationship with Loona plays against Stolas’ relationship with Via. Amazingly complex for an animated series. Absolutely loved it.

My first listen of the month was Hex Around and Find Out by Molly Harper, the second in her Moonshadow Cove series. This cozy paranormal romance focuses on middle sister Coral (Cora) Seaworth. All three Seaworth sisters have lived in isolation after the deaths of their parents. They’ve had to figure everything out on their own, including that they are fae fin folk as well as witches charged with the tasks of managing the ghosts of Starfall Point and guarding the egg of a kelpie (AKA the Loch Ness Monster AKA a seahorse-dragon). Cora’s the quiet one who’d rather curl up with a book, but when she runs into charming but shiftless Igor (Iggy) Galinsky, it’s not long before irritation turns into infatuation. When Iggy is shot in the ass with a tranquilizer dart, Cora has no choice but to take him to Moonshadow Cove … and keep him there until they can be sure he’s not going to spill the magical beans. Another fun, lighthearted read.

Next, I finished reading Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune. Wallace is a lawyer and, if we’re being honest, a jerk. When he dies of a heart attack and Mei reaps him at his funeral, he’s desperate to return to the corporate hamster wheel. He has work to do! Instead, he’s taken to the Charron’s Crossing Tea Shop, where Hugo, the owner and ferryman, promises to help him cross over. The ghosts of Nelson, Hugo’s grandfather, and Apollo, Hugo’s dog provide no end of irritation to the newly deceased Wallace. Complicating Wallace’s journey of undead self-discovery are husks (remnants of ghosts who refuse to cross over and wander the world outside the tea shop), charlatan psychics, grieving mothers, and the most terrifying being of all, The Manager. Another lovely, and loving, Klune novel.

So, of course, having read a couple of cozy (or cozy-adjacent), paranormal romances, I headed for the epic grimdark romantasy of Danielle L. Jensen’s The Tempest Blade, the sixth in the Bridge Kingdom series. It’s not out yet in print but Audible released the audiobook early.

This is the second novel of Ahnna’s story. At the end of book five, though Ahnna and James have fallen in love, Ahnna learns that James is part of a plot to claim the Bridge for Harendell, and Ahnna is framed for the brutal murder of King Edward, James’ father. She flees and he pursues her, swearing bloody vengeance. The previous couples — Lara and Aren of Ithicana, and Zarrah and Keris of Valcotta — all have POV chapters in this book. Lara and Keris’ sister Zarhina has ceded to a democracy in Meridrina, but there’s still the rulership/governance of Amarid and Cardiff to settle. Though the ending felt pretty definitive, which may indicate that this 6^th book is the last in the series, I’d think the author would want to ensure all the countries of her world are established with passionate couples that have been through literal hell for one another. Cardiff and Amarid have yet to be explored in detail, and Cardiff has an interesting, witchy culture to delve into. I guess we’ll see when the print book comes out next March.

Then I read Tobias S. Buckell’s The Executioness. Tana’s father is an Executioner, given the task of beheading those who use magic, causing the irrepressible and poisonous bramble to grow. But he’s dying when the call comes from the Jolly Mayor that his services are needed, and because her husband is useless and she needs to feed her family, Tana takes up her father’s axe, dons his hood, and goes to do his duty, in a move reminiscent of Mulan. And like Mulan, Tana is caught up in war when raiders burn her village and abduct her sons. Immediately, she sets out to rescue them. Buckell writes Tana’s grief and rage well.

Next, I finished reading The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness. When Matthew and Diana return to the present, it’s to find that Emily has been murdered. The Congregation’s been up to their old tricks and though the witch responsible is removed, the de Clairmonts still have formidable obstacles to overcome if they want their happily ever after. Like rescinding the Covenant, which prohibits “inter-species” marriage, which Diana and Matthew are in violation of. Like Benjamin, the son Matthew abandoned, who now wants to possess Diana and her children. And like finally finding the Book of Life and restoring its pages so that the riddles of blood rage and weavers can finally be solved. A satisfying conclusion to the All Souls trilogy.

Then, I listened to The Quantum Labyrinth: How Richard Feynman and John Wheeler Revolutionized Time and Reality by Paul Halpern. This fascinating biography documents the development of Feynman and Wheeler’s academic and personal relationship. Over the years, nearly every great mind in physics becomes a part of the story from Einstein and Bohr, through Oppenheimer (both men participated in The Manhattan Project), to Thorne. It’s as much history as it is biography and science book. Fascinating.

I listened to J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, having been prompted by Alien: Earth (see above). I hadn’t actually read it before, and it was interesting to compare the ominous narration of Boy Kavalier with the original text. Mother’s “cleaning up” their children’s minds after they’ve fallen asleep. Peter “culling” the lost boys from time to time. More interesting was the narrator’s overt critique of Mrs. Darling as a bad mother because she was kind to her children. Mr. Darling’s outright incompetence is given a pass. There’s a lot in this children’s book that bears examination.

Next, I listened to American Fairy Tales by L. Frank Baum. Originally published in syndication (much like Dickens published much of his fiction) following the publication of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the twelve stories in this collection include knooks, ryls, and other fairies, how the king of the polar bears loses and then recovers his pelt, a beetle that grants the poor woman who saves him with a pump that produces gold, a storefront mannikin that comes to life, a young cowboy who lassoes Father Time, and other entertaining tales. Many of the stories offer somewhat clumsy morals at their conclusion, however.

Then, I listened to John Wiswell’s Someone You Can Build a Nest In. Sheshesen is a shapeshifting monster just trying to survive and avoid the human monster hunters who killed her mother. When one of those hunters, Catharsis Wolfire, disturbs her hibernation, Shesheshen has no choice but to defend herself. Though she kills Catharsis, the other two monster hunters with him escape. Again, Shesheshen must pursue them if she hopes to protect her home and privacy. They’ll come back and bring even more hunters with them. But Shesheshen is exposed during her investigation in the local town and, like many a monster before her, she is pursued by an angry mob and falls off a cliff, it is thought, to her death.

A kind woman named Homily nurses Shesheshen back to health and the two begin to bond. Distressingly, Shesheshen’s eggs have decided that Homily would make a most suitable nest and Shesheshen is conflicted. Explore the bond they share or implant her eggs and lose Homily forever? Things get even more complicated when Shesheshen learns that Homily is a Wolfire, and her family has dedicated themselves to killing the shapeshifting monster who cursed them years ago, who is apparently Shesheshen, and she has no memory of cursing anyone. A fabulous novel with a series of truly surprising twists. And Shesheshen is autistic-coded! Hear me out. I’ve often felt like and alien or, yes, a monster. I related to Shesheshen HARD.

And that was the month in this writer’s life.

Until next month, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

The next chapter: A month in the writerly life. https://melaniemarttila.ca

I acknowledge with respect that I am in Robinson-Huron Treaty territory, that the land from which I write is the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe and home of Atikameksheng Anishnawbek and Wahnapitae First Nation.

Can-Con, October 17 to 19, 2025

November 6, 2025November 6, 2025 / Melanie Marttila / 1 Comment

A post-con report

A stylized C that looks like a planet with a ring with the word Can-Con below.

This year, Can-Con moved to a new venue, the Brookstreet Hotel. It was a beautiful event space and the hotel had all the amenities and then some.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

I booked both Friday the 17^th and Monday the 20^th off work. In hindsight, I should have booked the Thursday as well and given myself some extra time to drive out, settle in, relax, and prepare. I’ll have to remember to do that, next year. And yes, I’ve already registered for next year’s convention.

Friday morning, my intention was to take off at 10 am, arrive around 4 pm, check in, and then attend the opening session at 5.

Unfortunately, my body decided to delay my departure until 11 am. I also had to top up the gas tank and grab a caramel toffee cold brew from Tim Horton’s before I could zoom.

One thing I finally figured out on my September trip to London was how to properly use Google Maps (!) Fun fact: I am weirdly selective about learning how to use technology.

The journey was uneventful. And beautiful!

There’s this point on Highway 17 between Mattawa and Deux Rivières where the road crests a hill and you get your first site of the Laurentians. It was particularly breathtaking on the 17th. Most of the surface was covered in pine and spruce, but there were vibrant patches of gold (birch and poplar) edged in orange and red (oak and maple). The cloud was low and scudded over the worn tops of the mountains.

I couldn’t stop to take a photo, but I wrote a poem about it afterward.

A picture of the Murderbot? Murderbot! panel.

Because of my delayed start, I didn’t arrive until after 5 pm. I checked into the Brookstreet, parked, resolved an issue with my key card, dropped everything off at my room, and headed down to catch one of the panels before mine.

The Art of Rest panel was a lot of fun. I discovered that one of the other panelists is also from Sudbury (!) Many thanks to moderator Kaitlin (KT) Caul for organizing a great panel experience and to Nina Nesseth for being a great co-panelist. It was among the last panels on Friday night.

After, the lot of us migrated to Options, the hotel’s jazz lounge, and I enjoyed a late supper and their signature cocktail, the paper plane. Lovely. Again, much fun was had.

The cover of Years Best Canadian Fantasy and Science Fiction, Volume 3.

After a morning swim and breakfast, I attended panels all day on Saturday, as well as an unsuccessful pitch session (the publisher and I were hopelessly mismatched), and the launch of Year’s Best Canadian Fantasy and Science Fiction, Volume 3, in which my poem “Vasilisa” was reprinted.

While I was moving between panels, I met several SF Canada members and other friends, including Andy Taylor, who shared some fabulous news. The anthology my next piece of short fiction will be published in, Super Canucks, had a cover! It won’t be published until March 2026, but it’s up on the Latitude 46 site! Pre-orders are open!

SuperCanucks: An anthology of Canadian small-town superheroes

Highlights from Saturday:

After a long day of panels, I treated myself to a solitary supper at the Perspectives restaurant. Compressed melon salad, summer vegetable and truffle risotto, and a limoncello tartufo. Heaven!

On Sunday, I treated myself to another morning swim before breakfast. I attended even more panels, and the launch of Cait Gordon’s Speculative Shorts: Stories That Fell Out of My Brain.

My second panel, “The Taste of Sadness: Writing Emotional Dysregulation” was in the last time slot of the convention and was another great experience. I may have babbled a bit, but everyone else on the panel stepped in and we all made each other look good. Gratitude to moderator Gregory A. Wilson and panelists Deanna Valdez and Sienna Tristen for making my second panel a memorable one.

Highlights from Sunday:

After, I walked the convention space as the panelists and exhibitors packed up and departed.

Then, in a different mood from the night before, I opted for a burger and fries with a caramel apple crisp for dessert at Perspectives. The apple crisp is to die for, folks.

I opted to stay over Sunday night and drive back in the morning after one final swim and a full breakfast.

I’ve attended several Can-Cons over the years, but this was my first as a panellist. It was a fabulous experience and, as I said off the top, I’ve already registered for next year. I hope to get on another panel (or two) and maybe organize an SF Canada meet and greet/networking event/membership drive.

We’ll see what happens.

As ever, I’ll let you know how it all works out.

Auroras eligibility post

March 21, 2025 / Melanie Marttila

It’s that time of year again. Again? Yeah. Feels weird. But good-weird.

The Aurora Awards eligibility lists are now up, and I have a story and two poems on those lists!

In the Best Short Fiction Category, you will find my short story “The Beekeeper,” which was published in Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia, edited by Nina Munteanu and Lynn Hutchinson Lee, by Exile Editions, December 31, 2024. ISBN: 9781990773341, pp 178-191.

This story is not available online, but if you get in touch with me, melanie dot marttila at gmail dot com, I can send you a pdf copy.

In the Best Poem/Song category, I have two poems:

“Time and Tide,” Polar Starlight 13, February 2024.

“Vasilisa,” Polar Borealis 30, June 2024.

If you select either linked title, you can download the pdfs of both issues (or any other issue you’d like to read) for free.

If you’re Canadian who loves science fiction and fantasy and can spare $10 for an annual membership in the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association (CSFFA), please consider joining so you can nominate. You don’t even need to nominate me. There are so many fabulous Canadian authors. This is not a zero-sum game.

But if you want to nominate me, I’d be grateful.

How do you join the CSFFA, you ask?

Simply visit the CSFFA site.

You will see, front and centre, two options: Not a member yet? and You are a member?

Select the option that applies to you and follow the directions.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

The next chapter: December 2024 update

January 5, 2025 / Melanie Marttila

Settling into recovery mode … (cue olde-timey modem squealing)

Picture of the quarter moon above a tree.

Life in general

The illen settled in, but I hadn’t yet gotten headaches, facial pain, or any of that ilk, so I continued on with the neti-pot, Emergen-C, and Advil Cold & Sinus. If things got worse, I figured I’d go to the clinic as I’d done in the past and see what came of it.

If I made it through to my January doctor’s appointment (not my preference—I really didn’t want to be sick over the holidays) I’d see what he’d say about it.

In the meantime, I’m trying to take care as best I know how. Staying hydrated, eating well, getting as much sleep as I can, though I rarely get the sleep I need during the work week. And that’s the blessing and curse of working from home. I can still work while I’m sick without exposing anyone else to what I’ve caught, but sinus infections aren’t contagious, per se.

There was work to be done, though, and so work I did.

I sought the advice of a pharmacist who recommended Cold FX. So, I tried that out. I thought the illen was too far advanced for it to help but combined with meds to reduce symptoms and the irrigation of the neti-pot, it seemed to help with sleeping through the night. I also added hot toddies in the evening (tea with honey and rum). I’m pulling out all the old home remedies and supports I can.

And…toward the end of the month, after some narsty nights plagued with coughing—more the result of stubborn snot clinging to my airways and turning my throat into some bizarre mucus air harp (wheeze, whistle, gurgle) than anything else—I finally managed to sleep through the night.

Things seemed to be turning the corner in a positive direction.

I’ve discovered that if I have anything other than work scheduled on a weekday evening, be it a critique group meeting, support group meeting, haircut, taking Torvi to get her nails ground—anything, I’m out of spoons for the day.

I’m trying to respect my energy levels, day to day, and I’m learning that my executive function and support needs also vary daily. What I was once able to do easily, I may now struggle with. It’s a difficult lesson to learn.

Thank…whatever, I have some time off over the holidays.

The month in writing

Getting back into writing mode is an iffy proposition. I worked on some edits for a short story early in the month and that seemed to go well.

I wrote a poem. Not sure of its quality, but it felt good in the writing.

But when it came to Reality Bomb, the going was tough. I got back to it on the 9^th but managed maybe half a page. Still, I touched it!

The next day, I had an appointment after work and my Dispatches meeting, so I wasn’t able to get to RB.

I did a little more work on it the next evening, but the following two days were challenging at work, and I had no energy to speak of in the evenings. I also had a sneezing fit (one every 10 to 15 seconds for about a half hour) the first night and that took all the fight out of me. The second night it was coughing fits over the course of an hour, which aggravated my GERD. I’m sure both helped to usher out infection (it’s what they do, after all) but both were exhausting and not conducive to trying to write (or do anything else).

But I finally finished rewriting the troublesome chapter I started working on last month and moved on with my re-read. I finished that in a couple of evenings, with minor touch-ups.

When I got back to the drafting of the final two chapters, though, I stalled again, but just for a couple of days while I was focusing on recovery, finishing up the Christmassing, and doing some associated running around.

The going was slow, but I got back to it.

Along with preparing my application to the Banff Centre for Arts & Creativity SFF Program, and some grant applications.

Something I neglected to mention last month was that an old friend of Siobhan Riddell reached out to me and offered to send me one of the sketches she’d done for him. I couldn’t justify accepting one of his remembrances, but I did accept a couple of pictures. They’re lovely.

This has happened periodically over the years, and it gives me all the feels to know that Siobhan’s wondrous work has touched other people as deeply (or deeper, frankly) as it’s touched me.

Then, I received some news about Through the Portal. Apparently, their website was down, but it’s back up and running again.

And they are planning two in-person events for the anthology, both in Toronto. One was on December 28^th and the other in February 2025. I can’t participate in either, so I’ve been kept out of the loop on the publicity.

I received an opportunity mid-month to submit my work to the poetry in Canada poetry bookshelf. I’ll let you know when The Art of Floating makes its appearance.

There was an SF Canada board meeting on the 3^rd to prepare for the upcoming AGM. It was an efficient meeting, and all the necessary decisions and arrangements were made.

The AGM itself was scheduled for the 28^th. There were a few technical issues and delays, but everything worked out in the end.

The year in review

This has been a momentous year for me in terms of writing. My debut poetry collection! All the promo and signings and reviews and events around that! More poetry publications! A cli-fi short story publication! Another acceptance of a poem and a short story for future publication!

Given that I’ve been in burnout since September, that’s not bad!

In terms of words written or revised in the year, I:

wrote only 1,553 words of short fiction and revised 187 (that I tracked),
wrote 3,232 words of creative non-fiction,
wrote 28 new poems, and
wrote 39,059 words in this blog/newsletter.

I stopped tracking my revision efforts on Reality Bomb partway through the year. It was getting complicated. But if things progress as they have been, I should finish with a 120k-word draft. I’d wanted to bring it down more than that, but I still have a listening pass to go, and hope to find a few more places to trim then.

In writing-related events, my ongoing, though stalled, work with Suzy Vadori, and the Stillwater Writing Retreat are highlights.

In retrospect, though I took my six-week, self-funded leave as a means to recover from the flurry of activity around the launch of The Art of Floating, I now recognize that I was probably anticipating burnout even then. I could not have anticipated the accidents and illnesses of either my mom or my mom-in-law, but I could probably feel the impending exhaustion.

I’m grateful I took the leave and that my employer offers the work arrangement, but it means that I won’t be able to take another until the latter part of 2025.

At work, I was able to accept an acting position as an instructional designer on a new team, and though the transition has been a bit fraught, things are finally coming together on the one major project.

In terms of reading, I set myself the goal of reading 50 books this year. In fact, I’ve read or listened to 93 books, 186% of my goal. Admittedly, reading several poetry collections, a fair amount of short non-fiction, and listening to audiobooks helped to increase the number of books I read this year, I still outpaced my goal by quite a bit. And I’ve read a bunch of books that I wouldn’t normally.

Filling the well

The new Reed moon in Sagittarius was on December 1^st.

The full moon in Gemini was on the 15^th.

Winter solstice fell on the 21^st. Did my altar thing.

And the new Elder moon in Capricorn was on the 30^th. I know the second full moon in a month is referred to as a “blue” moon, but I had no idea that the second new moon in a month is called a “black” moon. It’s not official astronomy terminology, but that’s what’s out there on the interwebz.

I had no writerly events this month, to my great relief. I needed the relax and to focus on getting my words back.

I did meet for a final time this year with my Dispatches critique group on the 10^th. It was a relaxed evening.

I had a massage on the 4^th. Bliss.

My support group met on the 18^th. This month’s topic was shame. And hoo-boy is this a big issue for me.

And I finished the month with some well-earned and desperately needed annual leave. I was off from the 21^st through to January 1^st, 12 days off for the price of 5.

My bestie and her partner came up for a visit on the 28^th. Phil made cookies and apple cake. They went home with the remainders.

What I’m watching and reading

I watched the fourth and final season of Superman & Lois (CTV SciFi). Yeah, they did the death of Superman. Last season, Lex Luthor turned Bizarro into Doomsday by injecting him with a serum that resurrects him and then killing him repeatedly (I know, I know). Doomsday kills Superman in front of his family, ripping out his heart. Jordan gets him to the Fortress and into suspended animation, but he can’t heal without a heart. So, General Lane sacrifices himself after injecting himself with the serum that resurrected Bizarro so that Lois and the boys can use it to heal Clark. But having a human heart is enough to make Clark age and slowly de-power.

Yadda, yadda, yadda. Final showdown with Doomsday (again) and Lex in John Henry’s suped-up suit. Superman saves the day. In the aftermath, Lex goes to jail for good, several couples are united, Jon (who developed powers) and Jordan get married and have a passel of kids. Lois’s cancer returns, she dies, and then Clark’s human heart gives out. Clark and Lois are reunited in the afterlife.

Having said that (and rather snarkily), S&L was one of the best series to emerge from the “Arrowverse” (even though it was supposed to be in a separate timeline). All the other series got old after a few seasons of retreading the same ground, although most were entertaining, initially.

Charlie Jane Anders has an interesting take on why the Arrowverse, as a whole, was the best set of superhero series on TV. I don’t know if I agree with her, but she says that superhero stories, having come from the comics, are inherently episodic and focused not on superheroic antics, but on the emotional entanglements and journeys of the characters. They’re soap operas. I see her point, but I was never fond of soap operas. Maybe that’s why the various Arrowverse series got old for me, real fast, and why S&L, at only four seasons, comes out ahead of the pack.

Then, I watched the first season of Time Bandits (Apple TV +). I watched the original Terry Gilliam movie so long ago that I don’t really remember it, but I enjoyed this new adaptation. History nerd Kevin is bullied, and his family doesn’t understand him. When the self-proclaimed Time Bandits enter his room through a portal in his closet, pursued by the Supreme Being (who wants his map back, thankyouverymuch), Kevin is swept away into time travelling adventure, while the bandits try to steal treasures from everywhen they visit. Fun.

Next, I finished Black Cake (Disney +) based on Charmaine Wilkerson’s novel of the same name. Byron and Benedetta (B&B) are estranged but come together when their mother dies of cancer. In a series of pre-recorded statements, the siblings learn that their mother, who they knew as Eleanor, was actually Coventina. As they slowly learn the truth, they begin to work through their own secrets and trauma. I enjoyed it (especially Nine Night and duppies), and I have the ebook, which I’ll now have to read 🙂

The series ended on a cliffhanger as B&B’s recently revealed half-sister begins to listen to her separately-recorded message from Eleanor/Coventina, but Hulu cancelled it, so the book may be the only place I can find out what happens next (!)

I also finished watching the latest season of Only Murders in the Building (Disney +). The gang is excited because an OMitB movie is being made, but it’s not long before they figure out that Sazz, whose murder was revealed in the last moments of last season, is missing. When they find one of her prosthetics in the apartment’s incinerator, they have their next season of the podcast. Charles’ serial killer ex escapes prison, Oliver and Loretta navigate their long-distance relationship, and poor Mabel ends up squatting in a dead guy’s apartment. And, of course, another murder was revealed in the last minutes of the season. Fun, as always.

Then, I watched The Lost City when it was shown on the CTV Scifi channel. It’s been on my list of fun movies to watch for a while, but I haven’t been able to find it on any of the streaming services. I guess it will be on Crave now, but I was happy to have a relaxing evening of enjoyable and undemanding viewing. Sandra Bullock stars as Loretta Sage, a former archeological researcher and reclusive romance author on a book tour with her cover model Alan played by Channing Tatum. When she’s abducted, Alan ropes in former Navy SEAL and CIA operative Jack Trainer (Brad Pitt) to help him rescue Loretta.

Phil and I watched the Doctor Who Christmas special, Joy to the World (Disney +). It was a lovely, sentimental story, and I loved the idea of the time hotel, but the story could have used more Joy in it 🙂 The character was a bit sidelined in the story, but I guess you only have so much runtime to fill, and you have to make cuts somewhere. Watch it and see what you think.

Finally, Phil and I finished watching the third season of Bleach: The 1,000-Year Blood War (Disney +). Yhwach tricks Ichigo into killing the Soul King, though one of the soul reapers sacrifices himself to become the Soul King’s right hand. Various factions of the soul reapers fight various members of the Stern Ritter. At the end, Uryu’s plan to infiltrate the Stern Ritters and stop Yhwach is revealed. He stays to fight Haschwalth, who is endowed with Yhwach’s Almighty while Yhwach sleeps, and sends Ichigo to kill the sleeping Yhwach. One more season to complete the story arc!

My first listen of the month was the Audible Original Goblin Hero, the second in Jim C. Hines’ Goblin Trilogy. The reputation of “Jig the Dragonslayer” draws a desperate ogre to the goblin caves. Pixies have taken over the ogres, literally, and they need Jig’s help. The goblin leader is all for it, wanting to rid herself of Jig and all the goblins who want him to be leader instead of her. And Jig’s not too sad to go, either. Vika, obsessed with the hero’s journey, has been bothering Jig to teach her magic, but he doesn’t know how.

Things get interesting when Vika decides to embark on her own hero’s journey and follows Jig into the heart of rainbow-coloured, mind-controlling, pixie madness. Fun!

Then, I read Legacy, the second in Lois McMaster Bujold’s The Sharing Knife series. Dag and Fawn return to his home, uneasy with their anticipated reception. Dag warned her that it would be more difficult than sorting things out with her family, but Fawn doesn’t realize how hostile the Lakewalkers are until Dag’s brother Dar refuses to recognize their marriage and insists that Dag turn around and deliver Fawn back into the uncaring arms of her family. Things get complicated when Dag has to lead a rescue mission to a northern town overrun by a Malice and it’s mudmen and mind slaves, leaving Fawn to face the hostility of the Lakewalkers alone. Very good.

Next, I read The Heart Forger, the second book in Rin Chupeco’s The Bone Witch series. It’s the continuing story of Tea, The Bone Witch. Each chapter continues Tea’s past adventures as she relates them to the bard she initially compelled to tell her tale and jumps into the present as the bard witnesses what she does as a result of all she learned. A complex plot and intertwined characters. I loved it.

Then, I finished my reread of C.S. Lewis’ The Magician’s Nephew. There was a time when I used to read the entire Chronicles of Narnia about once a year, sitting at my desk in the evenings, but it’s been decades since I thought to pick up some of my childhood favourites. As good as I remembered it.

I also read The Shadow Glass by Rin Chupeco, the third book in The Bone Witch series. There seemed to be some issues with bringing the story full circle with the dual timelines and some critical events/information were glossed over toward the end, relying on revelations from the beginning of book one and narrative summaries from earlier in the book to fill in the gaps. It was a bit disorienting, but the author ultimately stuck the landing with a bittersweet ending that was worth it.

I read Kelley Armstrong’s Tales of the Otherworld. This collection so shorter tales focuses more on the Cabal than on the werewolves, but vampires make a couple of appearances, and we get the backstory of how Elena and Clay met and fell in love.

Next, I finished That Hideous Strength, the third in C.S. Lewis’ Space Trilogy. Having read the full trilogy now, I’d say they’re more in the way of science fantasy than science fiction.

Unlike the first two books, which focus of the adventures of Ransom as he travels first to Mars and then to Venus to fight the evil spirits of the universe, this novel begins with the tale of Mark and Jane Studdock, as Mark, a sociologist and academic, is seduced into the ranks of the NICE. Jane, lonely and rudderless as she tries to orient herself to married life when her husband is so often absent, begins to have visions, which draw her into the community of St. Anne’s.

NICE aims, through eugenics and fascism, to control humanity. Weston, Ransom’s antagonist in the last two novels, is mentioned as a martyr to their cause and other of Weston’s co-conspirators from the first novel have been given new names as they seek to corrupt the social and intellectual foundations of Britain. At St. Anne’s, Jane meets the director, who is, in fact, Ransom, and who has an odd affinity for animals. In a final battle for free will and humanity, Ransom’s people find Merlinus Ambrosius, whom NICE operatives are also seeking. Merlin is sent into the NICE stronghold to disrupt their plans, free their prisoners and animals, on whom they experiment, and lead the internal revolt.

Perelandra, or Venus, comes to take Ransom to his heavenly reward, Mark is freed from the machinations of NICE, and Jane welcomes her wayward husband home. The characters are mostly passive, with the exception of Merlin, but even he is counselled not to murder anyone, but to let them be hoist by their own petards. Not for everyone, but enjoyable.

And that was the month in this writer’s life.

Until next month, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Cover reveal and pre-order link — New Short Fiction!

November 16, 2024 / Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

I’m soo excited to finally be able to announce this!

Last year, my short story “The Beekeeper” was accepted by co-editors Lynn Hutchinson Lee and Nina Munteanu for their Exile Editions anthology Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia!

It’s available now through the Exile Editions website (linked in the title above) for pre-order at a 15% discount until the official launch date on December 31st, 2024!

Just look at this lovely cover:

Cover of Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia.

Full cover (front and back) of Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia.

Hopeful dystopias are so much more than an apparent oxymoron: they are in some fundamental way the spearhead of the future – and ironically often a celebration of human spirit by shining a light through the darkness of disaster. In Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia, award-winning authors of speculative fiction Lynn Hutchinson Lee and Nina Munteanu present a collection that explores strange new terrains and startling social constructs, quiet morphing landscapes, dark and terrifying warnings, lush newly-told folk and fairy tales.

This is a fascinating collection of all-new, modern-day speculative storytelling, with insightful “Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia” featuring Agata Antonow, Sarah Christina Brown, Mary Burns, K.R. Byggdin, Petra Chambers, Katie Conrad, M.L.D. Curelas, Matthew Freeman, R. Haven, Liam Hogan, Cornelia Hoogland, Vanessa Hua, Jerri Jerreat, Zilla Jones, Katherine Koller, Erin MacNair, Melanie Marttila, Bruce Meyer, Isabella Mori, E. Martin Nolan, Avery Parkinson, Ursula Pflug, Marisca Pichette, Shana Ross, Lynne Sargent, Karen Schauber, Holly Schofield, Anneliese Schultz, Gin Sexsmith, Sara C. Walker, Jade Wallace, and Melissa Yuan-Innes.These authors show us that now, more than ever, our world urgently needs stories about hope.

So thrilled for this next publication and to be sharing the table of contents with so many fabulous author friends!

The next chapter: March 2024 update

March 31, 2024 / Melanie Marttila

As the meme says: I’ve just sucked one hour of your life away. Tell me, and remember, this is for posterity, how do you feel?

Life in general

Happy Easter/Holi/Nowruz/Purim/Ramadan/Ostara and Trans Day of Visibility! There’s a lot to celebrate.

I am currently 6 days from the launch of The Art of Floating and I’m so excited/nervous, I can barely stand it!

The deets for those interested:

Date: Saturday, April 6, 2024
Time: 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Location: Place des arts, Studio Desjardins

The evening will include Q&A with Kim Fahner, a reading by the author, and a book signing.

For those who would like to attend via livestream, select the link here: https://boxcast.tv/…/heather-book-launch…

Early in the month, the moon was arcing in the southern sky. In a landscape of outcrops, she was hard to see. Earth and the moon dance around each other and later in the month, she appeared in the northeastern sky.

The month was busy. At work, I was moving toward the completion of another phase of the big project.

At home, it was mostly launch-related activities. Though I had a deadline to meet with Suzy, I decided that after that, I would focus mostly on the launch and maybe fit in some less demanding writing work on short fiction and poetry.

I had a three-day cold early on in the month, and then, later on, caught a bit of a doozy. Going on three weeks now … May have to go to the walk-in clinic so I’m not all stuffed up for the launch (!)

The month in writing

As I mentioned above, I had one deadline to meet with Suzy. It was a bit rough going because I’ve hit the point in the novel where I’m basically rewriting 90% of it. After my meeting, I took a break from Reality Bomb to focus on the launch of The Art of Floating and try to devote some time to short fiction and poetry.

On the 3^rd, I was informed that The Art of Floating print run would arrive that week. That day, I also submitted a couple of pieces for future promotion of TAoF. When they come out, I’ll be sharing widely.

Kim was in touch to firm up a few details for our informal conversation on the 7^th.

I met with Suzy on March 20^th. Again, because I’m basically rewriting the last third of the novel, I wasn’t feeling confident. Fortunately, I was just being my own worst critic. The submission was not perfect, but it was in better shape than I feared.

I’m going to take a break to focus on my launch, book signing, readings, finishing up the short story that seems to have stalled, and get some more poetry written. I’m not going to abandon RB but will probably pick up revisions again after the launch.

I’ll resume work with Suzy for the final push on RB in May. At that point, I should be within spitting distance of the end and may be able to use one of my sessions to work on my query or synopsis.

I was notified on March 1^st that I did not make the Your Personal Odyssey earlybird cut. As in past years, I’m still in the running for the main deadline, but I don’t hold out much hope. So many writers apply to YPO, the competition is always fierce.

On the 8^th, I was notified that the short story I submitted back in January was not accepted for publication.

The League of Canadian Poets (LCP) declined my event funding application for the launch of TAoF on the 9^th. Fortunately, I was approved for some reading series funding last year. I’m grateful for every bit of support I get.

On Sunday, March 24^th, my unboxing video and a 90-second poetry reading for The Little Boathouse went live.

I attended an SF Canada board meeting on the 26^th.

And the Canada Council for the Arts held their annual public meeting on the 27^th.

I was also invited out to the Sudbury Writers’ Guild meeting to share my path to publication and some tips on marketing and promotion.

Filling the well

The new Ash moon in Pisces was on the 10^th. Observed with a guided meditation. Daylight saving also arrived on the 10^th. In honour of the occasion, I will share my favourite meme.

The spring equinox was on the 19^th. A little early this year, but it felt apropos given the exceptionally warm winter we’ve had. As usual, I sparked up ye olde altar, and Alina Alive produced a guided meditation specifically for the equinox.

The full moon (of the crusted snow) in Libra was on the 25^th. Overcast, as usual. No guided meditation this time.

I signed up for a Tiffany Yates Martin webinar on “Secrets, Twists, and Reveals” through Jane Friedman on March 6^th. I watched the replay. Always excellent.

On the same night was the Women in Motion poetry reading and open mic, organized by the League of Canadian Poets (LCP). Powerful and painful.

On the 8^th, Authors Publish offered one of their free webinars, “Fun and Effective Book Promotion,” with Nev March. Again, I watched the replay. A lot of good ideas.

I signed up for a Mary Robinette Kowal webinar, “Verbal and Non-verbal Dialogue,” on March 10^th. I always learn one or two tasty tidbits with every one of Mary Robinette’s webinars.

Premee Mohamed shared on Bluesky that she would be delivering an online class on “Polishing Your Query Package” through the Edmonton Public Library (where she is Writer in Residence) on the 11^th. Really good. I’m a fan.

The Free Expressions webinar “Rethinking Scene and Sequel” with Damon Suede was on the 21^st.

I started intermediate Finnish classes on March 18^th. It’s challenging, but I’m enjoying them.

Dori Zener held a webinar on “Autistic Girls and Women: Celebrating Strengths and Supporting Needs” on March 6^th. Good information.

My next therapy appointment was on the 26^th.

The Good Company support group met on the 27^th. The topic for this month was autistic inertia and transitions.

I saw my doctor for a physical on the 4^th. My bloodwork results were good and I’m doing well.

And I had a massage on the 13^th. Rest and digest, for the win!

I took the week of the 18^th to the 22^nd off. It turned out to be a working holiday. I got a lot of launch-related work done (!)

What I’m watching and reading

Phil and I watch the first season of the live action Avatar: The Last Airbender (Netflix). We enjoyed it, but I share some of the criticisms floating around das interwebz. If Aang had run away, it would have explained his resulting anguish about being the avatar better. Kitara has all of the feisty written out of her. Aang doesn’t train with her, doesn’t even try to learn another bending style once in the whole season. The forest spirit got two seconds of screen time! That story was so lovely. Zuko could not have “almost” struck his father in the agni kai. His utter defeat drives his character arc in the first season. And don’t get me started on Bumi.

Like I said, we enjoyed it for what it was. It could have been better without being an exact duplicate of the animated series.

I know I’m late to the party, but I finished watching Little Fires Everywhere (Amazon). An awesome gut punch of a limited series, superbly acted, and thought-provoking. Another book for the TBR pile 🙂

I watched Poor Things (Disney +) when it came out on streaming. I was blown away. Loved. A fantastic tale about a woman becoming her truest self. Yes, there is a lot of sex, but as Bella Baxter is the protagonist, everything is from her point of view, and her sexual awakening is innocent and joyful. Again, LOVED!

Then, I watched American Fiction (Amazon). A Black writer of literary fiction is struggling to find a home for his latest work and indignant that other black writers, whom he sees as pandering to the white stereotypes of the Black experience (read trauma porn) gets into a financial bind when he’s suspended from his university teaching job, his mother is discovered to have dementia, and his sister, the family caretaker, dies of a heart attack. In a fit of pique, he pens his own sensationalist Black narrative and, as a joke, asks his agent to shop it around. When the novel becomes a hot property and the movie rights sell, the author must play along, because he needs the money to give his mother the support she needs. A sharp-edged satire. Very good.

Next, I finished the first season of The Power (Amazon), based on Naomi Alderman’s novel. TL;DR: women begin to develop electrical power and use it to turn the tables on the patriarchy.

I finished the novel a few months ago and while I enjoyed it, I wasn’t satisfied with the denouement, which projected the events of the novel into a future in which women simply flipped inequality for a society of institutionalized misandry. The series takes the events of the novel almost to the climax. Mayor Cleary-Lopez has thrown her hat into the senatorial race and attacks her opponent on stage. Tatianna has murdered her abusive husband and eliminated his army by sending them to root out her sister, who has amassed an army of women. Tunde witnesses the devastation of the conflict and is undone. Roxy has found her way to Eve. Urbandox is trying to reassert the rights of men. I don’t know that there’s enough story left to fill an entire second season, but apparently, it’s been greenlit.

Finally, I finished watching the first season of Silo (Apple +). LOVED! Rebecca Ferguson is fabulous. The whole cast is amazing. Apple + is really producing some of the best SF adaptations around these days. I’ll say no more. Watch this show.

My first audiobook of March was Adrian Tchaikovsky’s The Expert System’s Brother. Except for the title, the novel doesn’t come across as science fiction. At first. It soon becomes apparent that the “ghosts” that inhabit specific villagers are, in fact, expert systems (what everyone wants to call AI these days). The story is set many generations after the initial settlers of a colony planet made specific modifications to their bodies to both accept cohabitating expert systems into their minds and to mitigate the harmful effects of the planet’s biome. That’s all just backstory and setting, though. Hendry is accidentally “severed” from his community (i.e., he is de-modified), and must make his way, alone, in a world that wants to kill him.

Then, I finished Chance Encounters with Wild Animals by Monica Kidd. This collection is a poetic travelogue. It subverts the reader’s expectations, interweaving wanderings and ponderings with concise and revelatory reflections. Kidd’s sketches are composed of lush words. As Kidd explores the world and its denizens, we are most reminded that the wild animals we often encounter by chance are human.

I read Travis Baldree’s lovely Legends & Lattes. Viv’s aches and pains after years of adventuring lead her to seek out a legendary item and a new life in a small town. While she gathers friends and allies, antagonistic forces loom. Fabulous. Loved.

Next, I read I know something you don’t know by Amy LeBlanc. In this collection of poetry, LeBlanc interprets folklore and myth through her body and experience.

I’m again dipping into classic SFF through Audible’s Plus Catalogue. Titles are periodically added and removed, and I try to get through them before they’re no longer accessible.

The first of these was C.S. Lewis’s Perelandra, the second in his Space Trilogy. Dr. Ransom is recruited to travel to Perelandra (Venus), where he encounters that world’s Eve, whom he calls The Lady. Before long, Ransom’s old antagonist, Weston, who abducted him to Malacandra (Mars) with the aim of sacrificing him to the inhabitants of that planet, arrives. But all is not what it seems.

It’s not a bad book, but because of the framing narrative, in which Lewis himself is asked to record Ransom’s story, it is almost entirely narration, and, toward the end, the main topic of the book is religion. Not my favourite topic. Perelandra is a product of its time and of its author, who was deeply interested in religious thought at the time.

I finished reading Lunar Tides by Shannon Webb-Campbell. This poetry collection is written from a mixed Mi’kmaq and settler perspective and framed by the eight phases of the lunar cycle. Originating in the poet’s grief after her mother’s death, this collection is not only a journey to find her mother “in the little space of sky that sleeps next to the moon,” but is also an exploration of colonial legacies, family, and Indigenous resurgence.

Next in poetry, was Beth Kope’s Atlas of Roots, in which the poet tries to decipher her life as an adoptee. She iterates pasts, presents, and futures, some real, some imagined, and determines how to live when so much is redacted or inaccessible.

Then, I finished reading Sotto Voce by Maureen Hynes. The poet explores injustices great and small, from impersonal genocide to a more intimate death. Inspired by the natural world, the poet is disquieted, finds her voice, and then learns to listen.

I read Nnedi Okorafor’s Like Thunder, the second in her Desert Magician Duology. This book focuses on Dikéogu, the storm bringer’s, story. In a world both saved and decimated by the Change, Dikéogu tries to learn how to control his powers, is separated from his mentor, and tries to find his way back to Ejii. Very dark, but very good.

Next, I listened to the Audible Original of John Wyndham’s The Midwich Cuckoos. During the “Day Out,” the entire village of Midwich is rendered unconscious. Following the strange occurrence, it soon becomes apparent that every fertile woman in Midwich is pregnant. The narrator of the story is a Midwich resident who was, fortunately, out of town on the “Day Out,” and reports on the events following for a friend in MI. The novel gets its name from the practice of cuckoos to lay their eggs in the nests of other birds, forcing them to incubate and feed the young cuckoos, even to the detriment of their chicks.

I read The Chrysalids last year and, though I read it in high school, I’m rereading The Day of the Triffids. I guess I’m on a Wyndham streak 🙂 All of Wyndham’s books are a little different. The Chrysalids was set in a post-apocalyptic world in which children who develop paranormal abilities are considered abominations by their religious extremist communities. The Midwich Cuckoos I’ve described above.

The Day of the Triffids is a bit different again. Triffids are a species of large, perambulatory plants that produce a “high grade oil” but are also carnivorous and have deadly stingers. When a comet blinds everyone who looks at it, the triffids suddenly have the advantage. The novel is about one of the fortunate survivors.

I don’t think that near-universal blindness would be as apocalyptic as Wyndham depicts it. I believe that humanity would be collectively more invested in making the world accessible and adapting to their new circumstances. But in the 1950s when the novel was written, disability was more catastrophic than it is today, if only because assistive technologies and accommodations didn’t exist as they do now.

My next audiobook was Samuel R. Delaney’s Nova. Though the Tarot and the Holy Grail feature prominently in the novel, Nova reminds me of … Moby Dick. Captain Lorq van Ray assembles a crew on a quest to extract illyrion, the most precious energy source in the universe, directly from a supernova. His nemesis is trying to figure out what his plan is and Even the structure is reminiscent of Melville. Introduce a character and their backstory, introduce another character and their backstory, introduce the main character with a huge backstory, and along the way exposit upon net fishers, history, music, writing—yup, there’s a budding author in there—the workings of the ship, Tarot, and the Holy Grail. He does some interesting things with language in there, too.

I finished Vanessa Shields’ Thimble. This poetry collection grew around the poet’s grandmother, her life and loves, and the poet’s visceral reactions as her beloved Nonna slowly disappeared and then died because of the ravages of dementia. It is a complex and gut-wrenching read. Having lost all my grandparents, I walked beside Shields as I read.

Finally, I listened to Falling in Love with Hominids, a collection of short fiction by Nalo Hopkinson. Entertaining and varied stories from the author’s career. Very good.

And that was the month in this writer’s life.

Until next month, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

The next chapter: A month in the writerly life.
melaniemarttila.ca

The next chapter: January 2024 update

February 4, 2024 / Melanie Marttila

Sweet Lord, but January’s a hard month to get through.

Image of a winter sky with sun and clouds, through tree branches.

Life in general

The month started out fine. Daylight hours are growing longer. I’m starting to feel better, come out of my winter shell, but then, I was presented with the prospect of ALL THE THINGS I have to do to prepare for and promote my poetry launch and …

Let’s just say I’m dysregulated now. Meltdowns abound.

I attended my union’s AGM virtually on the 24^th.

The month in writing

I was once again focused on Reality Bomb revisions.

I revised and submitted a piece of short fiction to one of my dream markets.

I started revising an old story for an anthology call in April. I know, it’s a ways off, but the story basically needs to be rewritten in its entirety.

I met with Suzy on the 11^th. I’m back to struggling with grounding the characters in scene, not giving my disembodied protagonist enough agency, and not providing enough detail. My strengths remain dialogue, clean writing (which makes all my other problems so much easier to find), and my premise, which is complex, but compelling (and therefore incredibly challenging to write).

Our next meeting is scheduled for February 1^st.

In other business-y news, I’m working on securing the venue for my poetry launch! While my publisher does have a budget for the launch, I’m hoping to receive some funding from the League of Canadian Poets (LCP) or The Writers’ Union of Canada (TWUC) to cover part of the rental cost and webcasting for the event(!)

Yes. The launch will be in person, but broadcast for those of my family and friends who are in other places in Ontario and unable to make the journey up.

Now, I’m playing with ideas for making the launch a little different/special. I met with my publisher on the 30^th to discuss and came away with a list of things to do. I contacted friend and networker extraordinaire Kim Fahner (also former poet laureate of Sudbury and current vice-president of TWUC) and I have several balls in the air with regard to reviews, readings, and one interview.

I’m tempering my expectations. Debut poets generally don’t get a lot of attention.

My publisher has also secured my first reading with The Conspiracy of 3 in North Bay on May 14^th at the North Bay Public Library at 7 pm.

Unfortunately, that conflicts with the launch of the Sudbury Writers’ Guild’s Superstack Stories anthology. Can’t be in two places at once (!)

I’m going to have to put up a new page on my web site for appearances and readings!

Eeeeee! Things are happening!

At the SF Canada AGM last month, I joined the board of directors. Our first meeting was on Jan 23^rd at 8 pm. We sorted ourselves and I have a better idea of the issues facing the organization and board at this time.

Filling the well

The new Birch moon in Capricorn fell on Jan 11^th. Unfortunately, I was working toward a deadline and totally dysregulated after work. Moon did not cross my mind 😦

The full Spirit moon in Leo was n the 26^th. I was able to work in a guided meditation.

I signed up for the DAW Fantasy Book Buzz on January 11^th. It was a great preview of the coming season and John Wiswell was one of the featured writers.

I took part in the Free Expressions Success Series … on the 18^th. I decided to purchase a few webinars from the series.

Back in December, I registered for a workshop called Poetry and Prose: crossing genre boundaries to strengthen your writing with Kate Heartfield and Amanda Earl on the 20^th. It was a great session. And I drafted a new poem.

Finally, I attended a three-day virtual writers’ retreat with Suzy from the 25^th to the 27^th.

In personal events, I finally got into a meeting of my autism support group. It’s been months since I haven’t been put on a waiting list. It was a good session.

I had a massage on the 17^th. Much needed.

A friend celebrated her retirement on the 21^st. It was a nice afternoon and I got to catch up with some colleagues from my old team.

On the 22^nd, I attended a guided meditation with Pat Tallman. It was relaxing.

I booked a virtual appointment with my doctor on the 24^th to get some annual insurance referrals, including one for therapy. I’m starting up again. I have more work to do. Then, I booked a follow up, an appointment for bloodwork, my first therapy appointment, and tried to figure out how to get my emailed referrals to my insurance.

Torvi went for her first Furminator of the year on the 27^th. The house is still full of fur bunnies, but Torvi’s all a-floof.

I won a year’s free subscription to the Beeja meditation app. I’m hoping it will help me regulate.

Finally, I met with my therapist on the 31^st. We decided to stop meeting back in 2022, by mutual agreement. At the time, I was in a good place and didn’t need a lot of support. But winters are hard and I’m realizing in retrospect that I could have used her support when Phil broke his shoulder last year and again when I went on strike. I reverted to my default mode of bulling through the difficulties. Now, I’m paying for that decision.

And I had some well-earned annual leave from the 29^th of January to the 2^nd of February.

What I’m watching and reading

Phil and I finished watching the first season of Blue Eye Samurai (Netflix). Amazing story of a complex character and absolutely gorgeous animation. The voice cast is great. Hyper-realistic, violent, and mature content, though.

Then, I finished watching The Last Thing He Told Me (Apple +). A good thriller with a bittersweet ending.

Phil and I also watched the second season of What if … ? (Disney +). There were hits and misses among the episodes, but we enjoyed it. It remains one of the better Marvel series.

Next, I watched Bottoms (Amazon). It’s been on my list since Amanda the Jedi reviewed it. Hilarious. Absurd in the same way as Polite Society. Loved.

Then Phil and I watched Echo (Disney +). Echo’s story was great, but we wanted more of it (and less of Fisk). Five episodes wasn’t enough.

I roped Phil into watching The Brother Sun (Netflix) with me. He was reluctant at first, but by the end of the season, he was invested despite himself. A story about a triad family reunited in LA after a lifetime of living apart is going to be dark and bloody, but it also has a lot of heart. I enjoyed it.

My first audiobook of 2024 was Goblin Quest by Jim C. Hines. An entertaining tale of a goblin named Jig and his pet fire spider and how they are captured by and pressed into service by a party of adventurers.

Next, I listened to Word Puppets by Mary Robinette Kowal. A delightful collection of short fiction including the three stories that gave birth to the Lady Astronaut series. Fidel and Mira’s tragic love story touched me, even as Fidel worked to redirect the asteroid that would crash into the easter seaboard. This was followed by a light story about a fireworks display on Mars that almost goes wrong. And then, the original Lady Astronaut of Mars novelette. Also touching. Kowal is so good at writing strong but complex relationships.

Then, I read Dreams Bigger than Heartbreak, the second book in the Unstoppable series by Charlie Jane Anders. I followed that up with Promises Stronger than Darkness. The whole series is a fun YA, neurodivergent romp. And the worldbuilding is wacky. Terrible things happen, but everything works out in the end because people choose to care about one another. And I’m stealing the phrase, “I’m a slow cooker.”

And that was the month in this writer’s life.

Until next month, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

The next chapter: December 2023 update

January 14, 2024 / Melanie Marttila

First, I have to apologize for the tardy. I just didn’t have the spoons to get this posted until now (!)

Welcome to 2024?! Holy crap!

This is the year The Art of Floating (plus launch and as many readings as my publisher can arrange for me) and Superstack Stories come out (!) This is the year I finish final (for now) revisions on Reality Bomb and get back into the querying/submission trenches. This is the year I revise Alice in Thunderland, my alternate history/solarpunk novella. This is the year I move onto The Fenwoman’s Tale in a more serious way and git ‘er done! This is the year I hope to place a couple more pieces of short fiction in good homes.

Wow! That’s a lot (!)

Life in general

We’re in the dark months of the year up here in northeastern Ontario, and I have, characteristically, entered hibernation mode. Gremlin mode (which is my version of goblin mode). A friend of mine calls it turtling, withdrawing into her shell.

It’s all about boundaries and taking care of myself in a meaningful way. Taking the time to ensure I can regulate, which I call defragging 🙂 I’m considering trying to nap in the afternoons, after work and walking Torvi. Just for 20 minutes. So far, except for the period that I was on strike last spring, I haven’t been successful at napping. I lie down and close my eyes and my brain just keeps going like the Energizer bunny.

We’ll see how it goes.

My first attempt was a bust. And there wasn’t a second. I’m too bound into my rituals. I need to have a purpose and block the time out. And I need to be able to reorganize my creative time around it. I’ll keep trying.

The month in writing

The month was again focused on Reality Bomb revisions. Once I submitted my assignment for Suzy, though, I took a few days to write other things. Some poetry, some revisions on short fiction. Thinking about The Fenwoman’s Tale and how I’d like to shape it into a more compelling and more emotional story.

I met with Suzy once this month, on the 14^th. It was a great meeting and validation after a challenging day (week … month) at work. Our next meeting won’t be until the new year. We both deserve some holiday relaxation.

Preparation for the launch of The Art of Floating continues. The pre-order links are up!

Pre-orders can change the trajectory of any publication. Please consider TAoF for your 2024 to-be-read (TBR) pile 🙂

The year in review

As usual, I set what turned out to be some pretty unrealistic goals. Well, they may have been realistic if I didn’t have an enforced three-month break from writing. From the end of January to April, I was supporting Phil as he recovered from his broken shoulder and then I went on strike for the last week and a half of April.

I was also unable to work with Suzy from January through May because of financial issues. I’ll be honest. My employer was unable to keep me on as an instructional designer because of budget issues (that are still not resolved, by the way), and I had to take a step down in pay. Not great in a year that also saw the cost of everything increase because of runaway inflation.

I intended to revise Alice in Thunderland, my alt-history/solarpunk novella, I thought I’d do some work on my Ascension series, make far more progress on The Fenwoman’s Tale than I did, get through the whole of Reality Bomb and reduce 25k words from the draft, and write more in general.

Very few of these things came to pass. Even the projects I did work on (RB, TFT, short fiction, poetry) I didn’t get as much done as I’d hoped.

A lot can get done (or not) in three months. That could have been six more sessions with Suzy (and the revisions should have been done by the end of the year). I could have done a developmental pass on AiT. And having both of those projects farther ahead would have positioned me to get more work done on TFT later in the year. I could have at least looked at my Ascension master doc and thought about the restructuring that needs to happen to make the series arc more cohesive.

Still. It’s been a good year.

I became a member of The Writers Union of Canada (TWUC), an associate member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA), and a full member of the League of Canadian Poets (LCP).
“Psychopomps Are Us” was published in Pulp Literature.
I received the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association’s (CSFFA) professional development grant, which I used to resume work with Suzy in June.
I judged a poetry contest for the Leacock Museum.
I developed and presented my first webinar for the Canadian Authors Association (CAA) and SF Canada.
I edited my poetry collection, got professional author photos taken, chose its cover, and approved the manuscript proofs.
Two poems were accepted for 2024 publication in Polar Borealis and Polar Starlight, respectively.
My first creative non-fiction piece was accepted into the Sudbury Writers’ Guild’s (SWG) Superstack Stories: A Changing Skyline, which will launch in the spring of 2024.
I delivered my first Writers in the Schools (WITS) presentation, funded by TWUC.
I received a microgrant for mentoring from TWUC which will be paid directly to Suzy when our current sessions are completed in 2024.

I’m still waiting to hear about another piece of short fiction that made the shortlist for an anthology. I hope to hear something in the new year.

I also went to my first conference (non-virtual, out of Canada) post-pandemic. It was a really good experience, but it also reminded me how difficult travel is for me. At least now I know why (good ole autistic brain).

Lots of good things are happening. It’s hard to remember that publishing takes time, and the returns are often overshadowed by the next project in the queue.

I have a lot to celebrate.

Take some time to review your own creative progress. I guarantee that you’ve accomplished more than you think you have. And then celebrate your accomplishments before diving into the next thing on your list.

And take care of yourself. You can’t continue to be productive if you’re not in good health.

Filling the well

The reed new moon in Sagittarius was on December 12^th. I observed, as usual, with a guided meditation. BTW, my goto for these is Alina Alive’s YouTube channel. She generally does a guided meditation for each new and full moon and has a bunch of meditations for specific purposes in her archive.

The winter solstice, shortest day of the year, was on Dec 21^st this year. I lit my altar and switched over my seasonal sensory supports.

The full cold, or little spirits moon in Cancer was on the 26^th, Boxing Day. No guided meditation this time, and it was overcast, so no observation of any kind. I was still technically recovering from Christmas dinner, anyway, so it was a good thing (!)

I kept it light with the writerly events this month.

On the 6^th, I attended a virtual reading by the League of Canadian Poets new Poet Ambassador in Residence Tara Borin. I participated in the open mic that followed. So many lovely words! Such a wonderful evening!

I registered for Cece Lyra’s “Hacking Writing on the Line Level” on the 7^th, but because it was during the work week and Cece is legendary for her epic webinars, I decided to watch the replay. If you’re not listening to The Shit No One Tells You About Writing podcast yet, you’re missing out!

And on the 8^th, I attended “How to Write Opening Pages that Win Over Readers and Agents” with agent and author Eric Smith. Eric’s another agent with PS Literary, like Carly Watters and Cece Lyra, but this webinar was offered through Authors Publish.

And that was it (!)

Christmas was at my sister-in-law, Steph’s this year. Last year, the holidays were hijacked by covid, and my SIL has now joined the ranks of those with persistent long-covid symptoms. Steph went all out, and the spread was fabulous. Tastiest turkey I ever had. Stuffing, potatoes, gravy, turnip puff, Phil made buns, and Mom made jellied salad and cranberry sauce. There was also cookies, pumpkin pie, and traditional Christmas pudding and sauce.

Needless to say, most of us were rolling out of there and caught the post-turkey sleepies. BEST. CHRISTMAS. DINNER. EVAR!

What I’m watching and reading

I watched Candy Cane Lane (Amazon) while I started the Christmassing of the house. It was okay. A disgruntled elf curses humans to become animated ornaments. Chris (wife Carol, son Nick, and daughters Holly and Joy—see the Christmas theme here?) Carver has literally hand carved his Christmas decorations every year, perpetually being outdone by a neighbour with a fondness for inflatables. When he loses his job and the local TV station announces a $100,000 prize for this year’s decorating competition, Chris falls prey to the malevolent elf, only later discovering what he failed to read in the fine print: he’ll be turned into an ornament, too, unless he can find all the gold rings from the “12 Days of Christmas” before midnight on Christmas Eve.

Then, Phil and I watched Scott Pilgrim Takes Off (Netflix). The series is animated in the style of the comics, and they got all the actors from the movie to voice their characters. The first episode seems like it’s going to duplicate the events of the movie, but Scott loses his first battle with Matthew Patel (!) I won’t spoil it except to say that it was a fabulous subversion of expectations. And we loved it.

I finished watching Superpowered (Crave). Interesting comic industry history. DC was a little too self-laudatory. They admitted some faults and difficulties but glossed over a lot.

Next, I watched DC’s League of Superpets (Crave). Fun and sweet. Just what I needed after a rough week at work. And the voice cast is superb (Dwayne Johnson, Natasha Lyonne).

I finished watching the first (and sadly only) season of Kindred (Disney +). I enjoyed it and would rather have seen the full story. The season left off with Dana and her mother Olivia returned to the present, leaving poor Kevin in the past. No resolution. Guess I’ll have to read Octavia Butler’s book. Finally.

I finally watched Frozen 2 (Disney +). When I consider the two films, they’re more properly about Anna. Elsa’s journey is secondary and it’s Anna’s actions that save the day in both. I appreciated the Northuldra as an analogue for the Sami and the effort Disney made to avoid appropriation. Enjoyed.

Next, I watched the first season of Reginald the Vampire (Network). Based on the Fat Vampire series of novels by Johnny B. Truant, RtV follows the adventures of Reginald Andres, who is attacked by vampires and must be turned by Maurice to save his life. Unfortunately, Reginald is frozen in his generously-sized body for the rest of his undead life. Jacob Batalon is charming as Reginald. Fingers crossed for a second season.

I finished watching the first season of American Born Chinese (Disney +). The series is based on the comics of the same name and draws on the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West. Jin is just trying to keep his head down and fit in at school when he is saddled with exchange student Wei-Chen. But Wei-Chen is not who he appears to be. I’m really hoping for a second season.

Then, I watched Noelle (Disney +). I was in the mood for a Christmas movie and John Scalzi recommended this one in his Christmas comfort watch posts on Whatever. A charming movie about the daughter of Santa, who has some big boots (and red, fur-trimmed clothes) to fill when her brother decides he doesn’t want to go into the family business.

I watched Barbie (Crave). Loved. I can see the criticisms leveled at it, but I thought it was fun. Very self-aware. Maybe a little too much going on, but very enjoyable.

Phil and I watched Spiderman: Across the Spiderverse (Crave). It was awesome. The animation is amazing! And the story was great. Miles’ story is being told in a very conscious trilogy. While this movie was the middle of the trilogy, it was anything but muddy/soggy. The Spot is the principle antagonist and he’s tied to the events of the first movie. That story will arc through the third movie, Beyond the Spiderverse. In this movie, though, the immediate antagonist is Miguel, who’s taken it upon himself to keep the web of life and destiny intact by preserving “canon” events. The problem with Miles is that he wasn’t supposed to be bitten by a spider in his world at all. He is the ultimate anomaly.

I look forward to the third instalment.

Phil and I also caught the three 60^th anniversary Doctor Who specials with David Tennant and Catherine Tate, and the Christmas special with Ncuti Gatwa as the 15^th (!) Doctor. DW is another series I’m totally uncritical of. I just love it.

My first read of the month was Jordan Ifueko’s Redemptor. In this sequel to Raybearer, Tarisai, Empress Redemptor, has promised to go to the underworld to free the souls of all previous redemptor children. But of course, the deal she’s struck isn’t so simple to fulfill.

Then, I finished reading Women Who Run with the Wolves, by Clarissa Pinkola Estés. It’s been on my list for years and I finally got to it (!) I loved the reframing of a woman’s life and development through fairy tales. I aspire to be a wild woman but have no idea if I’ve made it there yet. It’s now on my reference shelf with all the other archetypal journey/writing books.

Next, I read Michèle Laframboise’ graphic novel Mistress of the Wind. A gentle fable set in the author’s Gardener’s Universe about a lower-class girl who has a dream to become a wind master.

Then, I finished book three of Ashley Shuttleworth’s Hollow Star saga, A Grim and Sunken Vow. I don’t know what it is about this series, but I love it. I’m looking forward to the next instalment, but I’ll have to wait until next year.

Then, I listened to Mistletoe Murders 2, an Audible Original by Ken Cuperus. I listened to the first one last year and enjoyed the short, cozy mysteries. Cobie Smulders is a great narrator, and these are, despite the murder, fun, light mysteries with a romantic subplot that just came to fruition. And then, of course, someone from Emily Lane’s past comes knocking. Guess we’ll find out what happens next year!

I also listened to Blood Like Fate by Liselle Sambury. I was a little irritated that the narrator didn’t check her pronunciation of the various Canadian settings (cities, towns, policies, supports, public transportation, etc.) because her lapses took me out of the story, every time. But the novel itself is good. A science-fantasy with a strong romance subplot. Fairly typical for YA.

Next was Jes Battis’s The Winter Knight, a queer and neurodivergent retelling of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Imagine if the figures of myth and Arthurian legend were transported to modern-day Vancouver where they were reincarnated in people who may or may not remember who they are. Knights and Runesmiths and Fates and Valkyries populate Battis’s masquerade Vancouver and strive to solve the mystery when the reincarnation of Mordred is found decapitated at a party.

Finally, I listened to Robert J. Sawyer’s The Downloaded. It’s an Audible Original for now but will be out in print from Edward Willett’s Shadowpaw Press in 2024. Good cast. Good story. With the usual optimistic ending. A little more on the bittersweet end this time, but optimistic, nonetheless. Enjoyed!

And that was the month in this writer’s life.

Until next month, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

The next chapter: November 2023 update

December 3, 2023 / Melanie Marttila

Welcome to December?! Where has the fricken year gone? Did you survive the month of NaNoWriMo, American Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday, and ALL THE THINGS?

Me? I’m not sure yet. Give me a minute. Delayed processing is a thing.

Life in General

Back in April, I took the dive and registered for the Writer Unboxed UnConference (more on that, below). While I was away in Salem, Phil reported a) our first snowfall, b) followed by another 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 inches) the next day, and c) the death of our snowblower.

Poor guy had to clear our very large driveway of some very wet, heavy snow by hand (and arm and back, etc.). He was in quite a bit of pain the next day because of his shoulder, which you may or may not remember was broken this past February.

He got a new snowblower and we didn’t have any more snow … until the 26^th! We got 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 inches) and it was cold enough to stick around. Phil gave the snowblower its first workout the next day. It works great, especially the heated hand grips! He just has to get used to the new controls. The drive gear and auger controls are opposite to the old machine and there are triggers underneath the handles to engage the steering. The wheels can be steered with one or the other trigger. They can also be locked with both triggers. It’s going to take time. But he’s happy with the purchase.

Getting back to my flight to Salem, I was prepared for the trip—my first since the pandemic—with the exception of arranging for a temporary roaming plan for my cell phone. I would have had to arrange for that at least a month in advance, because our plan is billed monthly. But I didn’t, so I did without. I am not looking forward to our next bill.

It was nice not feeling the pressure to do all the social media all the time, though. I could focus on the writerly learnings.

Unfortunately, that meant a greater burden of social media catch-up on my return. It was a couple of weeks before that was accomplished.

In the process of packing, I found a couple old things in my courier bag (one of my staple travel gear items). I discovered an old Burt’s Bees wild cherry lip balm that was still completely usable. And a little Tolkien Moleskine notebook that I had taken to work. I’d written in it periodically from 2014 to 2019 and it wasn’t quite half used. So, I packed it for the trip and took my session notes in it. I’m also filling it up before moving onto another newer journal. I’ve finally filled the refill for my lovely leather journal.

After my return from Salem, I marked off the important stuff in my journal with sticky tabs, so I could refer to past notes on various writing projects at will.

I took my new Manta weighted sleep mask and Flare Sleeep ear plugs and slept well considering I was in a strange city and bed. I had my Flare Calmer Soft ear buds, one of which I lost 😦 Fortunately, I had a set of Flare Calmer Secure as a backup. Yes, they were more obvious, but I didn’t have to worry about losing them, ‘cause lanyard. I also brought an aromatherapy diffuser necklace for more sensory support.

Update: I appear to have lost the Calmer Secure as well, somewhere on the journey from the airport. I’ve checked my courier bag, suitcase, the sweater and jacket I wore to Salem, and the car. I may find the pouch in the driveway in the spring, or it may have been garburated by the snow blower. So, I ordered another pair of Calmer Soft. We’ll see if I can hang onto these 😦

One other thing I should have done was to call ahead and find out when the Porter check in desk was open. My flight to Toronto left at 7:10 am on November 6^th, and CATSA says to be on site three hours ahead of time. The airport’s web site states it’s open from 4 am, so Phil drove me out there only to discover that the Porter desk wouldn’t be personed until 5:30 am. I really could have used the extra hour and a half sleep.

Despite the super early start, the flight to Boston via Toronto went well. I was stuck in customs for about an hour and spent another 45 minutes trying to connect with the person I was ride sharing with, but everything else went smoothly.

Travel is always tough. Lessons learned. I’ll know better next time.

The return trip was a bit fraught, starting out with a delay which meant a hasty turnaround at Billy Bishop (customs, check in, security, and board), but I arrived in Sudbury at the appointed hour and Phil was waiting for me to debark.

Torvi gave me the atomic wig when I got home.

The month in writing

Silly Mellie was silly. I decided to do NaNoWriMo this year (again), despite Wordstock and the UnConference and working the rest of the month and Finnish classes … but I set a lower goal (30,000 words) and did my NaNo Rebel Combo thing.

Revisions on Reality Bomb, ‘cause ongoing. Whatever words possible on The Fenwoman’s Tale, ‘cause I wanted to work on something new. Revisions on a short story (done on the 8^th!). This blog post/newsletter. And whatever else I wrote in the month.

I met my reduced goal just a little over half-way through the month because RB revisions. And, by the 30^th, I actually had over 50k words. I should have just gone with the standard WriMo. Again, lessons learned.

I met with Suzy twice in November. The first session was on November 2^nd. After my month-long illness, I was feeling fragile. Still, progress was made.

Our next meeting was on the 23^rd. I’d hit the stage where everything I wrote seemed like crap to me but by the time we met, I was starting to come out of it, and I ended up feeling good after our meeting.

As I mentioned parenthetically above, I completed my edits for my short story on the 8^th. I had some questions and let the editors know, but I received word on the 20^th that my revisions were acceptable. Once all the edits for all the selected stories are in, the editors will bundle everything up for the publisher, who has final say, and I should learn the ultimate fate of my story by the end of the year.

I supplied bios for that story and the creative non-fiction piece that was accepted into the Sudbury Writers’ Guild’s Sudbury’s Superstack: A Changing Skyline anthology.

Filling the well

The new Ivy moon in Scorpio was on the 13^th. I observed with a guided meditation.

The full beaver (or freezing) moon in Gemini was on the 27^th. Once again, observed with a meditation. It was overcast, so no actual observation.

Image of a fingernail moon in a moody blue cloudy sky.

The month started with the Wordstock Sudbury Literary Festival, from November 2^nd to 4^th. I caught the Thursday and Friday evening sessions virtually, because work and still recovering from the illen. I attended Saturday’s sessions in person. It was a very poetic festival this year and I did a little networking.

Then, after a scant day off, I got up at ridiculous o’clock to fly down to Boston and make my way to Salem for the Writer Unboxed UnConference from the 6^th to the 10^th. It was a fun first in person conference adventure, post-pandemic. I got to meet some of the people with whom I’d only interacted online. I made a few new friends. I enjoyed some great local food, walked around Salem, and took in a lot of writing craft instruction.

It’s one of the better conferences I’ve been to, up there with the Surrey International Writers’ Conference (SiWC) and the Writing Excuses Retreat (WXR).

After that, I took a break. Travel is hard, and though the UnConference was great, I was masking on steroids. It’s just what happens, and I haven’t figured out a better way to handle conferences yet.

I did sign up for an Authors Publish webinar that I watched on replay. Agent Michael Mungiello and Daisuke Shen discussed their working relationship and fielded questions about finding and working with an agent.

Finnish classes continued through the month, as did my supplementary learning on Duolingo.

I signed up for an RBC Patient and Family Learning Space webinar on November 28 on the connection between sleep disorders and mental health. It was interesting, but more of a confirmation of what I already knew.

I got shot twice on the 13^th with my covid and flu vaccinations. I am now up to date (again). Just sore shoulders for a couple of days afterward and a brief resurgence of congestion. By the weekend of the 18^th, I was feeling myself again.

I also had a massage appointment on the 15^th, which helped me to recover from the post-vaccination bleargh. Reached the rest and digest stage again, but not for long.

Something wonky has happened on my smoking cessation journey. Now that I’ve recovered from that sinus infection, I no longer have that awful taste in my mouth. I can taste and smell again. And it’s lowered my urgency to quit.

I had once again gotten down to 6 to 8 cigarettes a day but bounced back up to 10 to 12. I’m not quitting … quitting, but I may have to hang out at half my former consumption for a while again.

What I’m watching and reading

I watched The Fablemans (Crave). It was a lovely look at a filmmaker’s development and coming of age.

Then, Phil and I finished watching the second season of Loki (Disney +). While I thought the finale was bittersweet and appropriate, Phil was saddened that we wouldn’t be getting a season three. There may be something featuring the TVA (I mean, we have to know what happened to Renslayer and Eliath, at least, don’t we? And what of OB?) and I’m fairly certain that Loki’s new role of the god of story will have further implications for future Marvel movies and series. Phil just really likes Hiddleston’s portrayal of the god of mischief and didn’t want to see it end.

Phil and I also finished watching the first season of Gen V (Amazon). As bloody as The Boys and featuring cameos of a few of the regulars (Ashley, Mallory, Soldier Boy, Victoria Neuman, Homelander, and Butcher). We really liked it, and the characters, in particular, were fabulous. It was interesting to see more characters like Starlight, before they get screwed up by the capital-industrial complex that is Vaught.

Next, I watched Blue Beetle (Crave). I loved it. It wasn’t a perfect movie, even a perfect superhero movie, but it was definitely one of the better DCEU movies to come out to date, and it’s a little disappointing that the new DC may not pursue Jaime’s future adventures. My favourite line: “Bug Fart activated.”

Phil and I watched what they’re calling the “midseason” finale of Invincible (Amazon). This part of the season focused on the aftermath of the revelation of Nolan’s deception and his departure from Earth. Mark feels he has to make up for his dad’s actions and Debbie’s turned to alcohol. It looks like the second part of the season will deal with how Mark handles his assignment from the Viltrumites to finish his dad’s work and prepare Earth for its new Viltrumite overlords.

Then, I watched a cheesy Matel movie from 2016. Max Steel (Amazon) wasn’t horrible. A kid starts manifesting powers and has to team up with an amnesiac symbiotic lifeform to defend Earth from aliens.

Finally, Phil and I said farewell to the Doom Patrol (Crave). While the series offered up the main characters, villains, and even storylines of various DP comics series, it got mired in the fucked-upness of the team to the point that, after four years, none of the characters had sorted their shit. The Chief, Rita, and Cliff are dead, Cyborg decides to teach gifted kids, Jane and Casey get together (in space), Larry and 104 become a sun with Keeg (I think), Rouge takes out the Ant Farm, and Dorothy’s just doing her own thing … ?

I think part of the problem was that Jane (DID with each alter having their own superpower), and later Dorothy (with very powerful imaginary friends at her beck and call), ended up being grossly overpowered and the writers didn’t know how to deal with them.

When we enter the dark months of the year, I tend to slow down in my reading.

The first book I finished in November was Naomi Alderman’s The Power. Girls begin developing electrical powers, entirely upending society. Margaret Atwood’s influence is clear, particularly in the faux-documentary postscript, which is a written correspondence between the male author of a novel and his publisher (Alderman), which implies that women will be no better than men in responsibly wielding their power.

Next, I finished Nnedi Okorafor’s Shadow Speaker. Ejii Ugabe witnessed her father’s decapitation and now that she’s manifesting the abilities of a shadow speaker, she’s going to join her father’s killer on a mission to try to prevent a war. I enjoy Okorafor’s stories of young people changed by external circumstance trying to find their ways in the world.

Then, I read Hannu Rajaneimi’s The Quantum Thief. It was a recommendation from Desmond Hall because the main character, Jean le Flambeur, encounters several different incarnations of himself. It’s not the same as my protagonist and her Others in Reality Bomb, though. Jean and his others are never in the same physical body. They’re in a Dilemma Prison (which I think is a quantum realm) or they exist in different times accessible only by memory.

The Quantum Thief is a bizarre heist novel pitting Jean against a brilliant young detective in the Oubliette, the moving city of Mars, where time is currency and memory is treasure, and post-human tribes and police vie for control.

Finally, I finished my reread of Guy Gavriel Kay’s The Summer Tree. The characters and story hold up just fine, but the first chapters are a bit rough. I was surprised and disappointed, but Kay remains one of my favourite authors. I’m going to give the rereads a break until the New Year. I have a whole pile of TBRs that I need to put a dent in (!)

And that was the month in this writer’s life.

Until next month, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

A hand hold a book with mist rising from it.
The Next Chapter.
A month in the writerly life.
melaniemarttila.ca

The next chapter: October 2023 update

November 5, 2023 / Melanie Marttila

Welcome to November, the month of NaNoWriMo and American Thanksgiving! As a Canadian, I’m legally obligated to specify American Thanksgiving, as Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving the second Monday in October (former American Columbus Day and now Indigenous Peoples’ Day).

The lovely weather continued through the first two weeks of October—I got out onto the deck again!—but over the Thanksgiving weekend, we had tonnes (again, Canadian, therefore metric) of rain and below seasonal temperatures. But no snow, thanks the powers that be. Well, there was snow, but it melted as soon as it hit the ground.

This was followed by another stretch of above-seasonal temperatures, though with persistent cloud cover and often rain. Phil put away the patio furniture by this time and put the garden to bed for the year.

Life in general

I’ve continued to struggle with dysregulation. I think I’ve been walking on the thin edge of burnout since summer. Also, what I thought were brand new seasonal allergies was, in fact, a persistent sinus infection. It went subclinical over the summer but came back with a vengeance at the end of September.

I was quite sick over the weekend of the 14^th and tried to make an appointment with my doctor on Monday, but he was booking in-person into November, so I went to the walk-in clinic and came home with antibiotics and a corticosteroid nasal spray. I may also have brought home another virus from the crowded waiting room.

What followed was a miserable stretch of days while the meds took hold and started to do their thing. I worked (day job and writing), though slowly. The nights were the worst. Gravity works, and infection drains everywhere (ears, bronchus, etc.). I tested for covid twice this time. Both negative, but damn. This was the sickest I’ve been in years.

And then I gave it to Phil 😦 Fortunately, he recovered in a day and a half.

The month in writing

For most of the month, I was once again focused on my new inside outline for Reality Bomb. Having finished writing it out by hand, I then transcribed it. And adjusted the cause-and-effect flow still further, ‘cause I can’t seem to get it nailed down the first (or even fifth) time. Once that was done, I moved onto my next submission.

I’ll have to circle around to do revisions next month (for my NaNo Rebel Combo).

Before the illen truly took hold, I also managed to write 8 poems and 1,392 words on a short story. I’ll take the win!

An Excel spreadsheet showing writing progress for October 2023.

I applied for a mentorship microgrant from The Writers’ Union of Canada (TWUC) and the funds were approved in time for them to be applied to my next six-session package with Suzy. While I’ve paid my next session, I won’t meet with Suzy again until November. This is a good thing. I’ll need the rest of October to get RB reorganized and in shape to resume coaching.

I delivered my fiction writers in the schools visit early in the month. I think it went well. A few students shared their ideas and some of what they’d written. And they asked questions. Mrs. Belanger was helpful and accommodating. I dared to be imperfect, and it paid off.

I submitted some poetry to Polar Starlight and Polar Borealis and two of my new poems were accepted for publication in 2024. Grateful to Graeme and Rhea for their continued dedication to Canadian speculative poetry.

I received edit notes for the short story that was shortlisted. The publisher still has final say, even after I’ve done the requested revisions, so there’s no guarantee, but I’m hopeful.

Filling the well

The vine new moon in Libra was on October 14^th and I observed it with a guided meditation. The day was cloudy, so I didn’t get to see the partial eclipse (all of the annular eclipse we’d see up here in northeastern Ontario), but I watched the NASA broadcast.

The full Hunter’s Moon in Taurus fell on October 28^th this year. There was also a partial lunar eclipse. Of course, it was overcast again. And I watched the partial lunar eclipse on the Time and Date YouTube channel.

And Samhain (my birthday) was three days after that. It was, as usual, a quiet day. I took it off, Phil made me a full breakfast (pancakes, eggs, and bacon), and we had a Greek feast (souvlaki, lemon potatoes, rice, tzatziki, pita, and salad) in the evening. Phil made me a banoffee pie. We invited my mom.

As usual, we had no trick or treaters. The are I live in is on the commercial side and kids don’t see it as a viable source of candy. More importantly, their parents don’t see our area as a convenient on to take their kids to. There is a subdivision not far away, and they tend to pack up their kids and go there.

Still, Phil bought a box of chocolate bars “just in case,” and now I’m trying to consume them before he eats too many of them.

Because we received our retro pay, I got myself a new computer. My old one was giving me a CMOS error message every morning on startup. So that’s what I spent the three days leading up to my birthday doing—setting up my computer and making sure all of my documents and pictures and music were transferred over.

Well, the pictures weren’t an issue, because they were backed up on the cloud, but the rest had to be zipped and backed up and copied over. But, in the process, Phil set up a back up server for us. Now, everything’s sorted, and I have a lovely new computer that should last me for a few years.

I started Finnish classes through the Sudbury Finnish School in anticipation of drafting The Fenwoman’s Tale. Eight weeks through October and November. I also returned to the free version of Duolingo to supplement the classes.

I attended the DAW Library Fantasy Book Buzz with Julie Czerneda and Bradley Beaulieu on the 5^th. It was a lovely discussion.

The next and final Free Expressions Donald Maass webinar, “Narrative Drive for Sagging Middles and No-plot Novels” also took place on the 5^th. Due to timing, I watched the replay. It was a helpful webinar, because my protagonist in my current work-in-progress is trapped in one way or another for a good portion of the book. It’s challenging to maintain agency, but it’s a challenge I set myself.

I registered for a TWUC webinar, “Three Things Agents and Publishers Must See in Your First 30 pages” on October 11^th. Barbara Kyle is a great presenter and has a lot of knowledge to impart.

I attended the virtual version of Can-Con from the 13^th to the 15^th. I didn’t catch all the virtual sessions, but I watched everything I could. An excellent con, as always.

The FOLD Academy offered another webinar on “Writing from Desire and Body” by Linh S. Nguyen on the 14^th. Because it was on the same day as Can-Con, I watched the replay once it was posted. It was more of a workshop than a webinar, with practical exercises to encourage you to be present in your body and write what you feel.

I attended Waubgesig Rice’s Sudbury book launch for Moon of the Turning Leaves on the 16^th. In person, even! I got a signed copy of the book!

I had registered for the Anne Szumagalski Lecture with Joshua Whitehead back in September, but it was rescheduled to October 20^th. A compelling presentation about paranoia as an effect of colonialization and marginalization.

I signed up for “Writing Characters Who Practice Non-Standard Religions” by Nisi Shawl from Writing the Other. The course ran from Oct 28^th to Nov 5^th. It was a good refresher of being respectful of everyone’s spiritual beliefs.

Thanksgiving was a relaxed affair at my mom’s and the immediate family gathered for ham, scalloped potatoes, turnip puff, jellied salad, and Greek salad. There was apple and blueberry pie for dessert.

I signed up for another Pat Tallman event on mastering motivation. It was mostly practical information and familiar, but it’s always good to refresh and rededicate.

Later in the month, she offered a bonus workshop on forgiveness. Forgiveness is hard, especially forgiving yourself.

What I’m watching and reading

I’ve had a realization. The less I write about something (book, movie, or series) the more I want y’all to experience it for yourselves.

I watched The Whale (Amazon). A lovely, but desperately sad movie that gave me similar feels to Leaving Las Vegas. Charlie is a morbidly obese virtual college instructor who is dying of congestive heart failure (what my father died of, so extra feels there) and refuses to go to the hospital. As the days pass, more and more clues about Charlie’s trauma are revealed. I won’t spoil it. Brendan Fraser earned his awards.

Phil and I finished watching the first season of One Piece (Netflix). Phil says it’s pretty faithful to the manga and anime. It was fun and kind-hearted, which we can all use more of.

We also finished watching the second season of The Wheel of Time (Amazon). They took us on a journey. It was excellent, in my opinion.

The first book I listened to was Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, narrated by Michael York (BBC). The last time I’d read the book was in high school and, to be honest, I didn’t remember much of it. It’s a scathing commentary on a society that is technically utopian but as is usual with utopias, if you scratch the surface, there are flaws. While I appreciated the ending focusing on the tragedy of John Savage, I was left wondering what the ultimate fates of the other two main male characters were. And I was somewhat disappointed that Huxley focused on the dissatisfaction or difference in his male characters only. It seems that there are no alpha females dissatisfied with the utopian world they have been given.

Then, I read A Crown So Cursed, by L. L. McKinney. It’s the third in the Nightmare-Verse series and an urban fantasy retelling of Alice in Wonderland. I really enjoy these books, even if they are young adult. McKinney has made the protagonist’s mother a feature rather than a bug, and in this novel, her grandmother gets in on the action, too.

Next was Tread of Angels by Rebecca Roanhorse. A tragic tale of two sisters in a world shaped by angels and demons. When fallen Mariel is accused of murdering one of the virtues, her sister Celeste becomes her advocatus diaboli to defend her. Celeste sacrifices everything to prove Mariel innocent, even when it becomes apparent that Mariel did everything she is accused of and more.

I read Alaya Dawn Johnson’s Library of Broken Worlds. It was a challenging read (in the best way). A lot of dense ideas and rich world building in this tale of a secondary artificial intelligence created to kill a god.

Finally, I listened to the Audible production of Jim C. Hines’ Terminal Alliance. This one was a lot of fun. In a post-apocalyptic world in which humans have gone feral and have been given a second chance by an alien “cure,” Lieutenant Marion “Mops” Adamopoulos leads a rag-tag team of human janitors to clean up after a nefarious conspiracy leaves them the only crew capable of sorting out the mess.

And that was the month in this writer’s life.

Until next month, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Life in general

The month in writing

Filling the well

What I’m watching and reading

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The year in review

Filling the well

What I’m watching and reading

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Filling the well

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