Adria Bailton
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Adria Bailton
@adriabailton.com
2.8K followers 710 following 3.5K posts
Author of SFF/H, published most recently at Pulp Lit Mag, Worlds of Possibility, The Colored Lens,
queer, ND, she/they
Member of SFWA, Codex
See more at www.adriabailton.com
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WORLDS DIVIDE is currently "read now" on NetGalley! That means if you have a NetGalley account, you can download it now! (You know how to find it!)

Traveling to parallel worlds is a drag. Except when you meet a hottie.
An ereader with WORLDS DIVIDE Adria Bailton and a galley cover with NetGalley scrawled in a column in green ink on a piece of paper.
November 17, 2025 at 7:38 PM
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Day 17 #MelsNoWriMo Favorite Way to Write!

It depends! I do love the flow of handwriting when I have a writing sprint or utter focus. But I also love the pour of words onto the page that writing on my laptop allows.

I like to write with some sort of background noise - just nothing too distracting.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet.
November 17, 2025 at 6:08 PM
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Last week I participated with the 2026 debut YA group on a "pick a Kpop song, get a 2026 ya debut book." So much fun!
For Worlds Divide, I have Day That I Died on the playlist. The lyric "Honey, I'll be 89 with flowers growing out my eyes, waiting here for you."
Worlds Divide is out April 17, 2026
A pink background pick a k-pop song... What you waiting for Day that I died Night Tiger Inside Noir ...Get a 2026 YA Debut Recommendation A pink background KPOP 2026 YA DEBUT RECOMMENDATIONS IF YOU PICKED DAY THAT I DIED Woosung "Honey, I'll be 89 with flowers growing out of my eyes, waiting here for you" YOU GET Worlds Divide by Adria Bailton A teen girl travels betwen parallel worlds. While her home life speeds towards a train wreck, she falls in love on a world where she can't stay. Every goodbye could be their last. Balance of Seven Press April 17, 2026 Adria's portrait is in bottom left.
November 17, 2025 at 1:52 PM
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#MelsNoWriMo Day 16 Snippet!

Worlds Divide has ND rep, which has shown up in my life and my friends' lives (both diagnosed and undiagnosed) as a lack of rule following. Corey's brother says this to Nina hints at Corey's neurodiversity.

"Corey’s never followed rules that weren’t of his own making."
A pink and puple-blue image with the quote Corey's never followed rules that weren't of his own making. In the lower right-hand corner is an image of a long blond-haired, blue-eyed white boy in a black t-shirt in a school portrait style. He looks at the camera, petulant.
November 16, 2025 at 1:28 PM
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Dev edits are turned in on my YA sci fi historical/contemporary issues novel, WORLDS DIVIDE!

Less than 4000 word increase is not too shabby! That's only one chapter.
A breakdown of the changes after doing my dev edit Before - After Pages 316 becomes 328 Words 87382 becomes 90958 Characters (no spaces) 377,976 becomes 393,879 Characters (with spaces) 462, 458 becomes 481, 967 Non-Asian words 87382 becomes 90958 Asian characters 0 Paragraphs 3,445 becomes 3,536 Lines 6,914 becomes 7,171 WORLDS DIVIDE is a YA science fiction historical/contemporary issues book comes from Balance of Seven Press April 2026. Readers wanted! eARCs available - see street team link in bio adriabailton.com on a beige background
November 15, 2025 at 7:38 PM
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Day 15 #MelsNoWriMo Inspiration!

This story originates from a dream when I was a young teen. I've written many versions of it over the years. The current iteration also incorporates some of my lived experiences which has grown more important to me over the years.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet.
November 15, 2025 at 5:15 PM
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This is a celebration post! I have finished my dev edits for WORLDS DIVIDE, a YA science fiction (issues) historical/contemporary novel coming April 17, 2026 from Balance of Seven Press. They are turned in!

I now have ~2 months to work on other projects.
How dev edits started: 123 Revisions Insertions 10 Moves 0 Formatting 0 Comments 107 How it's going 1230 Revisions Insertions 610 Deletions 472 Moves 10 Formatting 20 Comments 118 And...I'm finished on a purple background with confetti
November 15, 2025 at 1:52 PM
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Day 14 #MelsNoWriMo Weirdest Thing You Researched So Far

I had to ask how to spell "scootched" to my writers group. There were several correct answers. We'll see what my CE has to say.

Because I've written many iterations of this story and this one started in 2019, I don't quite recall the oddest.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet.
November 14, 2025 at 5:15 PM
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About a month ago, the 2026 debut group put out a "Meet the Main Characters" on Insta. This was my slide.
Meet Nina Chirre
-Moves between parallel worlds
-Loves music,reading, and her sisters
-Falls in love with a boy-who lives on a parallel world where she can't stay
An orange background with leaves, an open book. Meet the #2026Debuts, Main Characters, and Group 2 (a flock of geese) An image of a white person with shoulder-length gray-brown hair in a black halter in the upper left. Meet the #2026Debuts Adria Bailton, Worlds Divide YA science fiction 4/17/26, A girl with brown hair covering her face with her hands, Nina Chirre Meet the Main Character -Moves between parallel worlds -Loves music,reading, and her sisters -Falls in love with a boy-who lives on a parallel world where she can't stay
November 14, 2025 at 1:52 PM
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Day 13 #MelsNoWriMo Romance

Worlds Divide is a love story, but it is not a Romance. Spoilers for why not, but the themes of being loved, love is a salve but not a cure, and first love are all very strong as shown through Nina and Corey.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet. A brown-eyed, brown-haired, light brown-skinned girl with a pixie cut in a blue hoodie against a purple background, like a school portrait. Image by honeyy.fae on Insta A boy with long blond hair, blue eyes, and white skin wearing a black t-shirt against a light blue background. Image by honeyy.fae on Insta
November 13, 2025 at 5:15 PM
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Day 12 #MelsNoWriMo Most important friendship in your story

The friendship between Nina and her little sister, Cella, is the most important in Worlds Divide. Cella stands by Nina through everything.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet. A brown-eyed, brown-haired, light brown-skinned girl with a pixie cut in a blue hoodie against a purple background, like a school portrait. Image by honeyy.fae on Insta A brown-eyed, brown-haired, light brown-skinned girl with long brown hair and a big smile in a blue long-sleeve shirt against a red background, like a school portrait. Image by honeyy.fae on Insta
November 12, 2025 at 5:15 PM
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Day 11 #MelsNoWriMo Faceclaim time!

I was going to switch projects about now but I'll stick with Worlds Divide for faceclaims. I don't have specific people, actually. But here's an aesthetic that gives the idea of the characters.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet. An aesthetic.
November 11, 2025 at 5:22 PM
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Day 10 #MelsNoWriMo Plotter? Panter? Something in-between?

I consider myself a pantser. Characters & setting come first. I write out-of-order. I'm pure chaos. However, someone thought my style sounded like a quilter, which falls uncomfortably close to plotter for me.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet.
November 10, 2025 at 5:20 PM
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Harvey and Peaches share a cuddle.
A black-masked, brindle-striped, fawn and white boer lays on a black blanket where a red and white Boston terrier with a pink collar is also cuddled.
November 9, 2025 at 7:38 PM
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Day 9 #MelsNoWriMo Snippet time.

This snippet is from chapter 2, where Nina and Corey have their second interaction. My editor called out this passage as particularly well done for being awkward. Yes, friends, I have awkward down. Something I've never grown out of & recall well from being a teen.
He held his hand out. “Do you want to go for a walk?” Yes! Sedately, as not to bely my distinctly uncool enthusiasm, I rose and dusted the dirt from the ridiculous white shorts. I noted a lack of phone or anything that felt like an ID card. “Yes,” I said with even breath and reached to take his hand because that felt right, too. Only he had already dropped his hand back to his side. He stared at my ass and failed to notice that rather than take his offered hand to stand, I’d tried to hold it for no reason at all.
November 9, 2025 at 1:56 PM
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Harvey was not super keen about his trip to the vet.
Harvey the dog looks over a jeans leg, concerned and worried. Cabinets are in the background
November 7, 2025 at 7:38 PM
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Day 7 #MelsNoWriMo What genre do you write and why?

I write SFF/H for young adults and adults. Adult SF is my "home" genre, the one I love reading most since I was young. I dip in and out of horror because sometimes my lived experience on page reads that way to others. (Real feedback I received.)
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet.
November 7, 2025 at 6:03 PM
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Harvey was cuddling so close to me. What a handsome boy!
a black-masked brindle and fawn, with a white stripe, boxer head.
November 5, 2025 at 7:38 PM
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Day 5 #MelsNoWriMo Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel?

Corey is the boy who Nina meets on a parallel world. When he meets Nina, all he wants to do is get a car and run away. This absolutely magical girl changes all of that. He does his best to be better for her.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet. A boy with long blond hair, blue eyes, and white skin wearing a black t-shirt against a light blue background. Image by honeyy.fae on Insta
November 5, 2025 at 1:52 PM
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Day 4 #MelsNoWriMo Who is your protagonist?

Nina is a girl who moves between parallel worlds. She loves reading, her sisters, and her local cafe. Her life is complicated with this "super power" no one knows about. When she meets a boy on another world, she learns about love and responsibility.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet. A brown-eyed, brown-haired, light brown-skinned girl with a pixie cut in a blue hoodie against a purple background, like a school portrait. Image by honeyy.fae on Insta
November 4, 2025 at 1:52 PM
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This has nothing to do with my novels, but I like to share some things from my life. A few weekends ago, my partner and I were invited out to Cape Cod by friends. We got to see a beautiful sunset over the water.

#authorlife #debuta
The moon in the sky, blue no clouds except those at the horizon, a streak of water, beach, and gradients of light from a sunset
November 3, 2025 at 7:38 PM
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Day 3 #MelsNoWriMo What is your project?

This month, I have dev edits due for my novel coming out this spring. The first week or so will be all about Worlds Divide, a YA scifi.

Working on these edits has inspired me to revisit another novel and work on a rewrite. That will be the remainder of Nov.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet.
November 3, 2025 at 1:52 PM
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Day 2 #MelsNoWriMo

Today's snippet comes from my novel, Worlds Divide, coming out this spring. It is the first paragraph, which my editor said nice things about.
A calender for November in red and oranges. Each day has a question about the writing project in it. (1. Who Are you 2. What is your project? 3.Sinppet Time! 4. Who is your protagonist? 5. Who is the 2nd most important character in the novel? 6. Who is your antagonist? 7. What genre are you writing and why? 8. Fave piece of world-building so far. 9. Plotter? Pantser? Something in-between? Spill the beans. 10. Snippet Time! 11. Faceclaim time 12. Most important friendship in your story? 13. Romance in your story? (Or free space.) 14. Weirdest thing you researched so far? 15. What inspired your story? 16. Your favourite way to write? 17. Snippet Time! 18. Is your story still the same you started out with? 19. Best writing advice you ever got? 20. Worst writing advice you ever got? 21. How queer is your story? 22. Other diversity in your story? 23. Twist/something you didn't see coming? 24. Snippet Time! 25. If your story was a food/meal, what would it be? 26. How do you name your characters? 27. Is there a playlist to your story? Wanna share? 28. Turn your novel into a movie, where would you shoot? 29. Ideas for your dream cover? 30. You Did It! Talk about goals you achieved and hand over a final snippet. Chapter 1 - Monday September 9 // Tuesday June 11 The night I met Corey Dontaria was ordinary in every way except for him. And me. Dusk on a summer evening revealed an asphalt parking lot bare of cars and flooded with light from the floor to ceiling windows of a 7-11. As I gathered my bearings, a commotion broke out in the store. Sirens pealed in the distance. Amidst the noise and disorientation, I considered my options
November 2, 2025 at 3:47 PM
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It is across the continent! It was a very big move.

Melkor says hello!
A wild type axolotl, ie black with gold flecks, looks out of her aquarium.
November 2, 2025 at 12:45 PM
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I read exactly one book in October. I can't really read anything novel length when on deadline for edits due to time.

I don't exactly recall how this book made it onto my reading list. Possibly through the website tripfiction.com

What did you read in October?
A storygraph round up of 1 book, 396 pages, Nine While Nine.
October 31, 2025 at 6:38 PM