Justine Manzano Oh boy, what a year the last two months have been. I don’t think I need to tell anybody what I’m talking about here.
For me, it’s weird. On one side of my life, I’m quarantined. My husband is an essential worker, so he’s out of the house every day. We worry for him, but we’re so proud of him. Although…he’d cringe under that attention, but we keep giving it to him anyway. LOL I’m blessed to be able to work from home in much the same way I’ve done at my office, so I’ve been doing that while sharing computer usage time with my son, who is doing remote learning. We all have seasonal allergies, and whenever we start to feel off, we’ve been temperature-taking in a paranoid rush to check for Covid-19.
And then there’s the other side of my life. The side I speak about the most on here. My writing career. And that may be at its most successful. It’s a weird confluence of events. But if I’m going to be home all day, I’ve been keeping busy. So here’s what’s new over these last two months. I hope this blog gives you a break from the monotony of life stuck at home.
Here’s a quick catch-up on the latest things going on in my writing career. And then next week, I should have a book review for you. This way it isn’t ALL about me.
The Order of the Key is now on Goodreads: You guys, I have a book. A book on Goodreads! Like a real author! Because I am a REAL AUTHOR. A REAL REAL AUTHOR. Add my book on Goodreads! https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52554076-the-order-of-the-key
Remember I told you KJ Harrowick was doing a whole design package for me? Wanna see some of it?
First, here are my gorgeous social media banners.
Now, check out my beautiful business cards:
There is also a new website coming soon. We’re at the 75% point of the design process. I’ll be letting you know when we’re switching over, because the site will go offline for a short period of time. It’s so gorgeous. I can’t wait to share it with you guys.
Camp Nano WHAT O?:
So, I thought I could do it. I truly believed I had time to sign up for CampNanoWriMo this year. And I probably would have made it if it wasn’t for that damn Covid-19. But with everything going on, I was far too distracted to really commit to 50,000 words. So, I lowered my target word count to 20,000. Then, I got back my first and second chapter edits from my beta reader AKA Ismael. I thought, at least I was writing something, and that is absolutely true. You can’t edit a blank page. But MY GOODNESS, I needed to reevaluate my plan. My husband poked all kinds of holes in my thought process, in that wonderful way he does. But that’s okay. My brain was not ready to handle writing my sequel like a speed demon. I needed to take some time to get back into this and figure out exactly where I want this world to go. I already know. But how do I make that happen? I don’t want to rush that. So, I’m going to keep working on it. I’m going to keep pushing myself. And hopefully, with much more time and patience with myself, I’ll get what I want.
Swagorama:
You guys, I have so many goodies coming for you in the pre-order prize pack I’m working on and for the launch party. It’s going to be awesome. I’m keeping a copy of everything for myself, because that’s how hyped I am. I can’t wait for you to see. I have most of it here at home already. I’m waiting for a few custom objects to come in and it will be time to start assembling the packages.
Write Hive:
This past weekend, a brand new online convention premiered. Write Hive was an amazing experience, and not just because I was on two panels! Coordinated across Twitter, Discord, and YouTube, this conference contained text, audio, and video panels. You can see the entire Discord server here: https://discord.gg/2ZRXqf. The YouTube channel is here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo8rJLG2bcSAOs121BTGa6A. I was a panelist on the “Fanfic Forever” text panel (exclusively on Discord), and the “Tech Savvy Writer” panel. The video for that one is on is embedded below. It had a Q&A session on Discord as well. It was such a good panel, and I really hope you guys get some good info out of it.
Reviews: Book reviews have started coming in for The Order of the Key! And the best news? They are good reviews!
Check out this 5 star review from Nicky Flowers of Indies Today: https://indiestoday.com/the-order-of-the-key-by-justine-manzano/
And another great review from book blogger Rae of Rae’s Reading Lounge: https://energyrae.com/2020/04/18/the-order-of-the-key-justine-manzano/
It’s always so incredibly reassuring when someone you’ve never met loves something you’ve created. SO SO Happy.
Blog Tour: The fantastic Xpresso Book Tours is hosting my book tour! Want a chance to host my book? Want a review copy? Join the tour. Learn more here. http://xpressobooktours.com/2020/04/22/tour-sign-up-the-order-of-the-key-by-justine-manzano/
Ok, that’s all for this chunk of time. I’m working on a new book review for you guys next week to share with you.