And if you don't know ahead of time what you've written, some enterprising reader will probably be the one to say what it is.

Anyone can say "Here's what it would be like if tis happened." You don't need to get all hoity toity with it with metaphors and allegory, but applicability and resonance separate okay writers from great ones

For example I've used The Trading Post to examine any number of character flaws and mental health issues albeit through a lens of transformation. I do this on my stories, or sometimes I just write to comment on writing.

My dream scenario was to wrap it up by Nov 15. That's definitely not happening, so I hope the end of the month will suffice. *Certainly* end of year.

In this case, I like the hand-drawn, millennial romance vibe pairing the main title font with the big swooshy pink "GF." It's a bit busy, and while I like it at full-size, shrunk down it's a little... hm. You know?

The two main components of any cover I do are casting and lettering. I have to find a stock photo that matches my image of the character (or else reconceive the character closer to what's available, and maybe write in a particular scene/outfit) and find some lettering that matches.

And I did! 1200 words on the page in under a half hour. Good sprint.

It's also conceivable, though by no means guaranteed, I could have enough short stories to do another collection by end of 2026. My last one didn't get a lot of feedback but quietly sold well for me.

One thing that has been neglected is my epic fantasy, which currently sits at 25,000 words and does not yet feature a transformation. It's a total vanity project but I maintain it will be some of my best writing.

There are any number of possibilities -- professional, romantic, survival. Cultural adjustment. Just need to pick one.