Cynthia Taylor

Check on your friends who tell you they're fine. #fine #mentalhealth #checkonyourstrongfriends

Ok, so this week was not great. Missed a bunch of days while I coped with moving my mom. So I need to pull double duty for a while to catch up! 3000 words today. Need a few more days like this!

Quantity over quality, alas.

#NaNoWriMo #IAmWriting

Ugh, Never Lie was such a disappointment but I have been told as well that The Housemaid is better. I shall await your opinion :)

Donut chart of daily writing progress. 1630 / 1500 daily goal, 3322 / 75000 book goal.

Note to self: the first chapter is FINE. Stop futzing with the individual word choices. Stop thinking about rewriting it. Just keep going.

#IAmWriting #NaNoWriMo

Storygraph October Wrapup!

It’s been a weird few months. I’ve been reading like it’s a mission to distract me from the grief and the caregiver burnout, but I’m not sure I’m actually enjoying it like I should.

Going to focus on writing for a while and slow down.

two men are doing push ups with the words " we 're not worthy " behind them ALT: two men are doing push ups with the words " we 're not worthy " behind them

20 BOOKS?!

Wow!

Writing Goal: 1517 of 1500 words

Accountability post!

Day 1 of #NaNoWriMo and I hit 1500 words!

Establishing the theme while I introduce my FMC who has carved out a relatively comfortable existence in an oppressive society.

Of course, we’re gonna rip that relative comfort away…

#IAmWriting

I have 63 books on my Goodreads “Want to Read” list, and probably 20 physical books

Is that an unreasonable amount of books?

And if I want to read them so much, why do I keep buying books not on my list and reading those?

I have a problem.

I can’t resist the Goodreads challenges.

Just finished “The Book of Accidents” to get the “Spine Tinglers”. But “Dark Academia” is next and it is not my favourite genre. I’ve already read any I found interesting.

But I just can’t leave a category untouched…

Ok, so I know #NaNoWriMo is officially not a thing, but I don’t care. I’ve wanted to do it for years and this year the moons are aligned. So… countdown is on. Engines are revving. This year I’m gonna do it.

Getting back to writing after a long break. The silver lining is that I gained some perspective. Have a rough outline in place to make sure that the pace is correct, cut a bunch of stuff that really didn’t add anything to the plot, refocused on character motivations and growth.

#IAmWriting again!

I’m going to take this post as a sign, showing up in my feed a day after seeing this book in my local bookstore and snapping a picture because the cover is so beautiful and I made a note to look it up.

Going back to buy it for my plane ride tomorrow.

Intellectually I know the zipper merge is the most efficient way to maintain traffic flow when reducing lanes.

It still doesn’t feel right. My Canadian inclination is to get into the other lane as soon as possible, and get pissed off at the people who wait until the last minute to merge.

Hubby and I have overlapping but not identical reading preferences, so finding audiobooks for our 14 hour drives can be challenging. Today, though, “Old Man’s War” by @scalzi.com was a success!

Enough character and plot for me, enough military for him, great writing for both of us.

I am currently reading “The Ministry of Time” by Kaliane Bradley. It has been on my TBR pile for ages, and, I have discovered, too long. I love her writing style. Mad props to anyone who can use “lugubriously” casually in a sentence and pull it off.

A view of the lake I spent all my summers, from the home may parents built and have lived in for 20 years.

I had this strange idea that the loss of a parent would somehow be less painful as an adult.

I was so wrong.

Just got up and running with The StoryGraph. I do like data - this could be my new favourite app.

Alas, not yet. I am planning to finish two books and hopefully publish them next year. Just finished my first draft and am taking the time to restructure certain things for the second draft.

And probably overthinking everything 😁

I have reached a level of introvert overload so profound the very idea of talking is abhorrent. And having all of my extroverted relatives continually ask “Are you OK?” is getting really tiresome. I know they mean well. But apparently introversion is still a vastly misunderstood condition.

A red Merle Australian Shepherd dog at the foot of a staircase next to a lake.

Quiet peaceful morning.

Cynthia's review of By Blood, by Salt (Land of Exile #1) 4/5: I’ve been leaning on reading as my main escape lately—part stress relief, part “how many books can I get through?” challenge. With everything else in life feeling out of control, hitting my Goodr...

I tend to read quickly, and lately I’ve latched onto reading and hitting my GoodReads challenge goal as something I can control.

But some books need to be savoured. And “By Blood, By Salt” by J.L. Odom is one of those.

My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

SPFBO Champions' League! After 10 years we have 10 champions. So, the only logical thing to do is to line them up on a board and have a champions' league! All 10 cha...

I am in need of good books, and I can’t think of a better option than the #SPFBO Champions league. I had already read a couple, so working my way through the rest. So far: good choice. Really enjoying the reads.

mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2025/05/afte...

Read Whatever the Hell You Want Enjoy yourself.

"Don't feel bad if you're not reading every great book. No one ever has, and no one ever will."

Cynthia's review of The Thief Who Pulled on Trouble's Braids (Amra Thetys, #1) 5/5: This book hooked me from the very first chapter. The pacing is quick, the chapters are short, and yet each one feels fully fleshed out, drawing you deeper into the story without ever slowing down...

I just finished “The Thief Who Pulled on Trouble’s Braids” and absolutely loved it. It was fast paced with a smart and snarky female lead who goes on a quest to avenge a friend and ends up involved in much bigger stakes.

My review on Goodreads here: www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

Thank you!

Matcha & Latte in a coffee shop with my daughter. ❤️

Read some advice today for new writers to write short stories before writing a novel. Sounds like solid advice - but I’m not sure where to find fantasy short stories to read to get a flavour for short stories in that genre. 😳

Any pointers / links to sources? #booksky #authorsky

📚💙

Good morning!

Hope everyone finds peace and comfort today.

I’m not a photographer, but this is the place I am blessed to wake up in today. Trying to start the day off with appreciation.

Read books that bring you joy. Read books about things you find interesting. Read books that help you be better. Read books that make you feel. Read books that challenge you.

Read what you want, in the format you want, at the pace you want.

I was thinking that myself! And not just Dragonriders of Pern. What about Crystal Singer and The Ship Who Sings? They were my intro to Science Fiction as a teenager.