there's no turning back now

you all signed up for this, so...

About a year ago, when I decided I was going to try this “be a real writer” thing, I made a website and planned to set up a monthly newsletter. Did I do that? ABSOLUTELY NOT.

To be fair, there was a serious dose of imposter syndrome hitting at that time. I was trying to break into writer Twitter while also panicking over “what am I supposed to talk about?” and “no one is going to care about your silly little kissing books if you aren’t published”. So what was I going to talk about in a newsletter? Great question. Hell, I still don’t know. But here’s a button to click to subscribe anyway.

Those fears were also without real merit because the writing community, especially the romance writing community, is one of the best I’ve ever been part of. I’ve made amazing friends and joined so many different groups that have made me a far stronger writer. It’s made this entire process, which can be grueling and sad, far better because I don’t have to do it in an echo chamber of my own weird little ideas.

Over the past year, I’ve worked on several manuscripts. One I submitted to PitchWars (RIP) and AMM, then retired for now. Another fantasy romance that’s going to sit in my back pocket until the time is right. Then, there’s the cryptid book…

I pulled the shambling manuscript formerly known as Hayden & Hallie’s False Flag Operation out of my chest of abandoned ideas I could never make work and gave it another spin in January 2022. I spent three months drafting and revising it so it’d be ready to submit to the inaugural Kiss Pitch Mentorship program and I was selected to work with Kat Turner for the program.

We had an awesome couple of months turning what was a decent draft into an exciting draft and it hit the query trenches in mid-July. Then everything just happened really fast. I pitched in #DVPit, got some likes, and it kicked off probably the most daunting but exciting few weeks of my life, and at the end of it, I had an agent!

With another round of revisions, a title change, and a new pen name, Love & Other Conspiracies went on sub about a week ago. I’ve gotten some updates, and have all my fingers crossed that the strange luck this book seems to have has not run out. I really, really hope that this book ends up on shelves one day.

In the mean time, I’ve started work on another WIP that I am having a BLAST with. Both El and Carter are weirdos and perhaps this WIP is totally self-indulgent, but hey, I think it’s original at the very least.

Some vibes:

Perhaps I will share little snippets in future newsletters, but as of right now, I’m just having a good time drafting and writing out the wait on sub.

Hopefully there will be cool news to share soon, but until then…

Obligatory Cryptid Meme

Mallory