@stevendbrewer@wandering.shop

#WritersCoffeeClub What's your favourite easter egg in your own work and/or another work of fiction?

I don't use Easter eggs very often in my writing which is, by and large, entirely my own. But I can think of one example: I adapted some unit dialog from StarCraft for things the Better Angels say while using their soldier or nursing modules, e.g. "Give Bebe something to shoot!" or "Bebe will take care of it!"

Seven years too late… https://www.reuters.com/technology/microsoft-separate-teams-office-globally-amid-antitrust-scrutiny-2024-04-01/

I have finished and put up a new shimenawa for our beloved sakura tree. It's a tree grown from cuttings of trees gifted to the Town of Amherst by the nation of Japan in honor of William Clark. I'm looking forward to the blossoms in the coming weeks…

"Have we arrived, Milord?" Cecelia asked. She could see neither lights nor evidence of buildings as there had been at the previous waystations.
"It's a place I must stop," he said. "You may come with me."
He got out of the carriage, then handed Cecelia down.
There was a stone post beside a narrow path that led into the forest. Lord Kenderback offered his arm. She took it & walked beside him. Shortly, the path opened up into a broad clearing where there was a mound & a #simple marker.

#wss366

For Transgender Day of Visibility, I invite you to read *Revin's Heart*, my steampunky fantasy adventure with pirates & airships & a #trans protagonist. It's really just an adventure story about a young man who happens to be trans. It's my debut work & I'm very proud of it. It was serialized as novelettes, but the collected edition is available now as well which includes several "side quests" one being the story of Revin's transition. https://waterdragonpublishing.com/product-category/book-series/revins-heart/ #tdov #tdov2024 #TransDayOfVisibility

I saw a cool purple flower I don't recall having seen before. An AI tells me it's some kind of hellebore… #bloomscrolling

#WritersCoffeeClub How do you keep track of your work? Do you have a system?

The question is a bit ambiguous because there are so many things to keep track of. I do a lot of drafts as text documents & maintain text files with notes about world building (character & place names, time lines, etc). I'm using using Google Docs for manuscripts (tho somewhat concerned about recent issues). And, tho I tried using The Grinder to track manuscript submissions, I'm still just using a shitty spreadsheet.

If anyone is curious about my recent story fragments, I'm writing the 2nd book in a new series set in the *Revin's Heart* universe about Lady Cecelia. Revin first meets her as the curator of the Botanical Garden in Ravensbelth, the Belthingstone Palace in Belleriand. I'm currently working on the second book in the series. The first, *Lady Cecelia's Flowers*, begins when she is still in school, and the other books will follow her journey to the Capital. My current WIP is *Lady Cecelia's Choice*.

The narrow road the carriage traveled followed the river into the mountains, climbing ever upwards for the whole day. They stopped twice to change horses at waystations seemingly maintained for this purpose.
In the late afternoon, the sun dropped below the mountains and, although it was yet some time until sunset, it grew dark and chilly. An #eerie mist rose from the mountain stream and spilled over the roadway.
The carriage came to a stop. Cecelia shivered in spite of her fur coat.

#wss366

Lady Cecelia looked out while the carriage wound through a landscape of small farms that conformed with the uneven, hilly terrain. Most fields were surrounded by low walls of field stone, pulled from the rocky soil & piled up. Spring was less advanced here than it had been in lower elevations & planting was still underway. Birds sang and, while they passed a farm pond, she could hear frogs calling. Some chattered noisily, while others emitted only a mournful periodic #twang. She sighed.

#wss366

On May 11, 2024, I will be bringing a Small Publishing in a Big Universe (SPBU) vendor table to the Watch City Steampunk Festival in Waltham, Massachusetts. I've never attended Watch City before, but it looks like it will be a lot of fun. https://stevendbrewer.com/watch-city-steampunk-festival/ #books #steampunk

Today, I had ten student consultations with honors students and research proposal teams in my writing class. Oof. I should spend some time writing now, but I'm not sure I have the energy for it.

#WritersCoffeeClub Do you prefer to write protagonist-driven stories or ensembles? Why?

I guess I like to do both. My *Revin's Heart* series and *A Familiar Problem* are both told from the point of view of a single protagonist. But the *Better Angels* are generally about the Angels as a whole, but are sometimes primarily about David or one of the other characters as well. And, in both cases, I sometimes write short side-stories that are from the viewpoint of other characters as well.

To learn more about Mama Kane's, read *Where There's a Will*, a "side quest" in the collected edition of *Revin's Heart*. https://waterdragonpublishing.com/product/revins-heart/ #books #bookstodon

The Queen of Belleriand set down on Candlemain. With the end of the war, the Queen had been commissioned by the new government of Havelock and no-longer needed to stay concealed.
Men poured down the gangplank and ran into town where a huge celebration had been ongoing for days. Two, who had drawn lots and lost, sat glumly by the Queen to keep watch.
"Let's go before they drink the town #dry," said Grip.
"Let's," agreed Will. "But let's see if we can get that room at Mama Kane's again."

#wss366

#WritersCoffeeClub How does it feel knowing strangers will read your work?

My 1st publication was *The Third Time's the Charm* which had a trans protagonist. I worried that I might get attacks from the right (from transphobia) or from the left, in spite of my efforts to create an authentic character who happened to be trans. When I published the 2nd book, I still worried. By the 3rd book, I felt more confidence.

It's wonderful when people you don't know express appreciation for your writing.

Cecelia collapsed, bawling.
Kasseh approached, stroked her hair, & murmured comforting words.
"Don't look at me!" Cecelia sobbed, weeping. "I look #ugly."
"You are always beautiful to me, dear heart."
"I want to stay with you!" Cecelia whimpered. "I want go with you. I want to see your dreams come true!"
"I'm sorry," Kasseh said. "I'm so sorry. I got scared & didn't trust you. I will never doubt you again."
Cecelia quieted as Kasseh soothed her, then turned as her lips sought Kasseh's.

#wss366

Kasseh came in after Lord Kenderback had left. She said, "May I assist you in bathing, Milady?" in her false, sing-song voice.
"Oh, Kasseh!" Cecelia said. "What are we going to do?"
"It's not my place to say, Milady."
Cecelia broke down in tears, sobbing. "I can't take it, Kasseh! Please stop! Please be yourself."
Kasseh began crying too. "Aren't you going to accept his offer? It would be the right thing for you."
"No!" Cecelia screamed. "Never! You're the only one I love." 1/2

I wrote a blog post about the recent positive reviews of Revin's Heart, mostly for my forthcoming newsletter. https://stevendbrewer.com/fantastic-reviews-of-revins-heart/ #books #reviews

Why had I never heard of this before? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheela_na_gig