Update Link: You’re Not Sorry – Part 62

I was feeling better until this weekend, when I started to feel really tired and rundown all over again — and then last night, the chest congestion kept me up until almost 1. I barely slept again, and so I made the decision to call out because the only cough medicine that really works is the one that makes me super drowsy. Anyway. I feel a little better now but I’m still coughing more now than I was a few days ago, so that’s fun for everyone. I am determined to drag myself through the half day tomorrow, but the thought that I would still be in my room right now with kids that I have to keep alive makes me want to vomit honestly. This has been the most annoying month of my life.  (Oh, and I tried to sleep some more after schlepping downstairs to feed the cats their wet food but Lizzie came up to randomly attack me until I gave them dry food so that was fun.)

I thought I’d try to update and then I’m going to take another nap.

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Update Link: Foolish Games – Part 3

I really can’t wait for the first day of break on Wednesday. I really need a few days off in a row where I can just sleep an extra hour or two. One of the hardest things about recovering this last week is just feeling completely dead by 7:30, 8pm every night. Even when I try to push it, I’m still drifting off around 9. And right now, I’m exhausted and all I want is a nap. Seriously, I think Covid was a faster recovery.  The cough is still lingering and I hate it so much.

I hope you guys enjoy the switch to a different story on the weekend. It lets me switch focus and exercise different creative muscles, especially going back to a story written in the late 90s. Honestly, it feels like writing a historical fiction piece at this point which makes me want to vomit considering we’re talking about my teen years but truly — the lack of the internet, social media, cell phones — it’s just such a different world. Plus, it’s always a good excuse to listen to 90s music. Outside my Taylor Swift obsession, 90s music is literally the best musical era ever. (Along with 80s ballads). Plus, it also gives me a chance to sketch out more of Not Sorry. We’re heading into a really complicated set piece and I want to make sure I make good choices.

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Update Link: You’re Not Sorry – Part 61

Well, here we are two weeks after my last update and my experience with the plague. I’m still catching up on sleep, and have been mostly passed out by 8 or 9 every night this week. But I made it to Friday, and the kids have been taking it easy on me for the most part. I’m just happy to get back to regular updates.

I think we’re back to daily updating for the next few weeks. The original marathon was scheduled to go through January 5, I’ll probably extend it through the end of January along with all the other December Patreon perks and then we can evaluate our 2026 schedule in February.

We’re switching back to Foolish Games for the weekend story to get back on schedule.

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Just checking in to let you know I’ve been recovering on schedule. Wednesday really was the worst day — and you can tell by how badly my update post was worded, lol. But I got a really good cough medicine, two types of anti-biotics, and an inhaler. Plus, my mom hooked me up with some extra nebulizer treatments that definitely helped out. Last night for the first time since last Thursday, I actually slept four hours in a row. Plus my dad and cousin came up today and did some housekeeping that really boosted my mood. It sucks to be so sick and live alone. Every small task drained every bit of energy, just ugh.

Anyway, today’s the first day I also had an appetite which was nice, lol. I can take full and deep breaths without wheezing too badly.  I’m also sitting in the office, feeling up to going through the pack of emails in my work email and starting to think about next week and going back to work on Monday. I had already planned a super low key final week of classes for the kids, and I have every expectation that the majority of my kids will go easy on me this week.

That being said, as many of you expressed in your comments, pneumonia is no joke and I’m going to be careful with my recovery. I’m making zero promises about this upcoming week. If I feel up to updating, I absolutely will. We were getting into a good groove there and I miss it. But I’m just giving myself a break. This was a really awful week, and I’m not rushing to repeat it.

Our Patreon December Christmas Perks will be extended into January or February depending on when I get back into regular writing again.

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I found out at the doctor that I had pneumonia.

2025 blows.

Obviously updates are paused for a moment. I’m sorry sorry, and me, I’m angrier than you are.

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EDIT, Dec 9

So I ended up not sleeping on Sunday night or feeling much better on Monday. The only way for you to get better after chest congestion is to have a productive cough, and that didn’t actually develop for me until overnight. I was able to get a quick telehealth appointment with CVS Minute Clinic (if your insurance covers that, I’ve had two super amazing experiences; I recommend them). She sent in a prescription and I just picked it up. I ended up taking another day off because I honestly couldn’t see myself getting into work and not being dead. But I slept slightly better last night and then was able to nap today for the first time since Saturday morning.

Honestly, I’m exhausted, physically and mentally. I have to go back to work tomorrow and I haven’t looked at a single thing — I didn’t even post my lesson plans. I’m so frustrated. I worked so hard to make December a relaxing month where I could get everything done at work, come home, and do a lot of writing for you guys, and now I feel like that entire plan failed. Right now, I’m not guaranteeing any updates return before Saturday. I don’t know what happens tomorrow when I get to work, how much I’ll be able to catch up and reorganize, or how I’ll feel when I get home. Hopefully, the meds kick in, I get an okay sleep tonight, and the kids are sort of relaxed tomorrow (they might, they like me and I just gave them two free days) and we can talk about updates. But I just don’t know.

Let me tell you RIGHT NOW that 2026 is going to be the year we fix my immune system because what the absolute fuck.

TL;DR: I’ve been sick since Friday. I don’t really know with what, but my guess is some sort of sinus thing that has resolved and is lingering with chest congestion that makes my life annoying. Should be back to updating tomorrow or Tuesday at the absolute latest.

— more if you want

I didn’t mention it on Wednesday but I ended up calling out of work because I was feeling extra tired and achy — the kind of thing I was hoping some extra sleep and rest would fix because I had December so perfectly plotted out and one day out wasn’t going to derail it all that much. But I didn’t actually feel all that much better, and pushed myself to finish work for the week. I thought maybe a nap on Friday would help but I just started to feel worse and worse and now here I am on Sunday night and the only thing I’ve accomplished this weekend is rewatching Season 1 of Stranger Things. I haven’t properly slept since Thursday night, getting maybe 2-3 hours at a time scattered. And of course I left my wallet in my desk drawer so I had no cards to go to do urgent care or get meds in person, and Amazon Prime has been a real bitch lately. I literally just got my refill of cough drops which is the only thing that helps me relax enough to sleep. I called out tomorrow because I honestly need a full day of sleep.

I sort of feel better??? But it’s hard to say until I actually try to get some sleep. Will I stay asleep? That’s the real question. With any luck, I get to sleep normally tonight and pick up a few extra hours and wake up tomorrow feeling mostly okay, then I can finish some things before going back for the last 10 days.

Either way, I think we’ll get back on track with the December perks tomorrow. If not, almost for sure on Tuesday. If I’m not up to it then, I’m going to a doctor, lol.

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Update Link: You’re Not Sorry – Part 60

I appreciate you guys letting me detour for a few days to 1997 🙂 I jumped into a marathon without a lot of pre-planning, and like I said, this story has a lot pieces and I felt like I wasn’t making progress or that I was spinning my wheels. I like to do a really detailed breakdown with dialogue notes because then I can write faster.  For example, here’s a breakdown of a much earlier scene (you can click to make it bigger). I do a lot of my outlining this way because I can make notes about the dialogue I can see/hear in my head without really having to put it into prose. That way when I’m actually writing in a timed session, I’m thinking about how to write the scene, not what to write. I can go faster and cover more ground.

So taking two days off let me take a minute, take a deep breath and outline without the pressure of having to write the scene in an hour. I was able to sketch out three full updates (or what I think should be three updates) which takes me into today and Friday — and then I’ll sketch out next week over the weekend when we switch to Foolish Games.

Anyway, thanks again. It helps to have your support. See you tomorrow (hopefully around the same time)

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Update Link: Foolish Games – Part 2 

Honestly so tired tonight I think I’m gonna get a bowl of cereal for dinner and go to bed early.

85% chance tomorrow’s update is Not Sorry. Spent a really good hour today organizing my notes and working out the timeline, and then plotted out the next two parts down to dialogue beats (which is my preferred plan before writing because then it’s so much easier and my brain knows where we’re going). Then it’ll be Not Sorry for Thurs/Fri, back to Foolish Games for Sat/Sun and we’ll be on our new schedule 🙂

See you tomorrow!

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Update Link: Foolish Games – Part 1

Happy Tuesday! Yes — that is a new story. Let me explain –

Short Explanation: Need to sketch out the next section of You’re Not Sorry because I’m winging it, and didn’t want to miss a day or several. Not Sorry will return either on Thursday or next Monday. If I’m not ready to start writing again on Thursday, I don’t want to write the new story for three days, switch to Not Sorry for 1 day and come back to the new story since it’s the new weekend story.

Longer Explanation

You’re Not Sorry has ended up being a deeply complex story with several strands and subplots that I didn’t plan for and I’ve been winging the last few parts, which I don’t like. (For example: the entire teen storyline has been a massive addition and was not planned in the slightest. I don’t mind the detour because it’s given me more motivations for Kristina, but it has been a detour, and I haven’t been able to sit down and plan the rest of the story.)

I’m taking a little time (1-3 days) to take a moment, and finish sketching out the story — without complicating life more. To avoid messing up my marathon, I’m going to start the story I had planned next. It will be your Flash update for today and maybe for a few days, and then we’ll make it the weekend Flash story until You’re Not Sorry is done.

Origins of New Story

As for this story, Foolish Games, it’s set in late 1997/early 1998. I’ve been mildly obsessed with this era for some time. I got inspired by a gif someone posted back in 2018 about the 20th anniversary, about Liz being at the shooting at Luke’s the night Jason saved Nikolas’s life, and I got struck with — what if she was a nurse and in Jason’s age range? Since Becky Herbst is actually older than Liz, it doesn’t feel weird to go back and age her to be about 22 since she was 21 at that point.

That particular plot bunny morphed into a story Kismet, that I wrote a little bit for an old Flash Fiction (Part 1 | Part 2) and was the November 2022 NaNoWriMo project. I started to write it according to my plot sketch — and then detoured into a mob storyline I hadn’t planned and that would either make Kismet super long — or I needed to rethink what that story was about. I recently decided that I was more interested in telling the story I’d started and not the one I’d planned. Kismet began as the “What if Elizabeth was part of the Michael story, not Robin?” and it’s become “What if Jason didn’t get involved with Michael’s paternity at all?” At least that’s the new plan.

If you’re interested in Kismet, it’s the $5 reward over on Patreon, and for Dec/Jan, I’ll be doing 25-minute writing sessions on Sundays to get it moving and then decide which story is going to be the weekend Flash Fiction series on Patreon (where I write first drafts of novels in flash fiction sessions). Right now, the choice is between Kismet and For the Broken Girl, Book 2 (the $10 Obsessed tier reward).

(I’ve also written another 1997/98 story: Karma).

A New Direction

Since I decided to remove the Michael element of Kismet, I had two choices: let the storyline I’d planned fade into the ether or….spin it off into its own story, and that’s what we’re doing here. Foolish Games begins after Michael’s death and the lie has begun, with Elizabeth as the NICU nurse and Carly who has already taken off.

I hope you guys are okay with the mild detour while I get Not Sorry in order 🙂 It might serve as a break to those of you not particularly invested in current day GH, to back to a simpler time. Writing about 1997 feels like historical fiction at this point, lol. No smart phones, wheeeee!

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Update Link: You’re Not Sorry – Part 59

Happy December!

I posted the December Patreon Perks this morning, and thought I’d summarize the tiers because every tier is getting new content this month 🙂

• Free: Crimson Swift Song Videos. 3-5 minute descriptions of the songs and my ideas for writing. Starts Dec 4.
• Fan ($1): The first 11 chapters of Malice, a first draft flash fiction I worked on last year. Will be posted Dec 3.
• Devoted ($5): First 6 chapters of Kismet posted Dec 2. 25 minute writing sessions on Sundays in Dec/Jan.
• Obsessed ($10): For the Broken Girl, Saturday Flash 25 minute writing sessions. Starting Sat, Dec 6.
• Stalker ($15): Out of the Woods, daily 25 minute writing sessions. Started today!

See you tomorrow! Should be earlier, I hope.

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