Hello friend, it’s time for my December update!

Thanks for subscribing, opening this newsletter and reading along on my fictional endeavours, I appreciate you being here.

Today’s topic: fantasy and sci-fi creators inspiring me right now

Being a writer, musician, podcaster and content-y person in my day job I am always on the hunt for fantasy and sci-fi content that helps me disappear from reality. Books are fantastic for it, but a great soundtrack, a stunning illustration or an impactful video also does the trick! Whilst I’m deep in writing my novel I need the inspiration of other creators. So I’m super excited to share some content creators who are inspiring me at the moment:

ASMR ATMOSPHERE
ASMRtist

I am a huge fan of ASMR, and the creator ATMOSPHERE is nothing short of cinematic. It honestly feels criminal watching her videos for free. She’s created a huge array of videos with some seriously well-written storylines—storylines that span multiple videos. She’ll write a scene in a Victorian dressmaking shop, then rework it into a piece of science fiction. It’s genuinely gobsmacking. Plus she plays around with filming in 3D. Imagine a 3D spaceship?! It’s so immersive. This one is my favourite.

Mirela Pilko 
Ink artist

Have you ever tried to draw something? It is insanely difficult to do, especially well. Mirela Pilko is *dominating* with her dark fantasy illustrations, done in ink. My favourite part, however, is when Mirela shares a few slides on Instagram showing the development of the drawing from pencil sketch to final piece. The process is fascinating and all I see are the endless hours Mirela has spent honing her craft. She’s also a fantasy reader and writer! Take a look at this illustration.

Lena Raine 
Gaming soundtrack composer

Gaming music is some of the most engulfing music you’ll ever listen to. I have grown up playing classical, pop, funk, groove, covers and originals and nothing I’ve put my hands to comes close to the genius of gaming soundtrack composers. Lena Raine is my current favourite. She’s written for all kinds of games, including Minecraft. Her tunes are equal parts heavy and brooding, to light and airy. If you want to feel things, you must listen to her. This is my current favourite.

Out and about

Book Fair Australia

I had the immense joy of attending Book Fair Australia! If you are a book lover you MUST put the next fair date in your calendar. This will be an event I go to every year without question! Imagine Comicon but only for books. I had so much fun chatting with authors and ended up buying a science fiction novel, a science fiction novella and a children’s book.

Novel update (63k words)

I am deep into draft 3 at the moment and a big part of what I’ve managed to knuckle down on is getting part 1 in line with the rest of the story. I’m a pantser (meaning I figure out the story as I write, it isn’t planned, so to speak) so as I continued writing previous drafts much of the story was revealing itself as I typed. This meant continual changes, adjustments and new ideas—ideas that didn’t necessarily exist as I wrote part 1 🫠 but I’m much more settled in where the story is at now and part 1 has finally come in line with that! I’m sensing I am quite close to a professional edit 👀

What I’ve Written

Read my short stories submitted online below:
Furious Fiction submission – November 2024 (fantasy)
Good Cop, Bad Cop, Hungry Giant (Reedsy Short story competition submission)

What I’m reading/finishing reading 

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6) by Diana Gabaldon 🎧 (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)
The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson 🎧 (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)
The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien
Nightfall in the Forest of Betrayal by Loren Tuxford (Australian indie author)
Journey To The Centre of The Earth by Jules Verne
The Gunslinger by Stephen King

Unwinding the Spiral by Peta Hawker (Australian indie author)

❄️ Merry Christmas! 🎅🏻