I want to start with the thing that lights me up the most:  I received more fan mail!  There’s nothing quite like finding out someone out there gets my art, gets me, someone I’ve never met before but have been able to commune with, in some small way, through words, images, and everything that goes unsaid but bubbles just under the surface.  Seriously, this is why I work so hard to get my writing out there. 

And what does it take to do so?  Looking at my 2023 submission data, I received 188 rejections this year.  And 19 acceptances.  Including reprints.  One of those rejections nearly broke my heart, I got so close to getting into a dream publication.  But there’s always next year, and other dream markets.  In fact, I’m waiting on a contract from one place before I can announce the sale, and it’s one I’m very, very excited about… 

This year also marked my third year in a row of receiving a Pushcart nomination, and my second for a Rhysling nomination.  And my first for an O. Henry nomination.  These were all, by the way, for works of horror, or at least on the dark side of things.  On the other hand, I also had a story selected for the inaugural Best of Utopian Speculative Fiction anthology and another story get a shout-out in Tor.com’s list of “Nine (Very) Short Fantasy Stories With Happy Endings.”  Lightness and darkness.  Have I mentioned that balance turned up as one of my core personal values when I did an exercise to identify them in grad school? 

I don’t always nail that balance.  I started off 2023 aiming to dial back my number of writing presentations and workshops, because I’d done a lot of them in 2022 and didn’t want to eat into too much of my writing time this year, even though I really enjoy doing these events.  Well, sure enough, I still ended up saying yes to a bunch of opportunities this year. 

Can you blame me?  I got to fulfill a longtime goal of being a panelist at OryCon, my local con and the place that really helped me level up over the years.  I got to read two short stories for Story Hour, which has a prestigious list of guests, and Hugo House reached out to ask Elizabeth Beechwood and me to teach our workshop for them again, which is always so much fun for us.  I got to share my passion for speculative poetry with the Oregon Poetry Association and serve as a judge for this year’s HWA Poetry Showcase.  And I got to perform some of my works to live accompaniment by Katie Bennett, in the gorgeous Sanctuary Hall.  What a dream come true!