Author: Erin Penn

Z is for Zounds

Erin Penn 5 Comments

Photo by BoliviaInteligente on Unsplash

Zounds, is one third of 2026 gone already??? Time to do a check-in on my writing goals for the year I mentioned on January 1st. (Next check in will be at the end of August before the year-end crazy starts in September with two writing conventions.)

How is the “Butt in Chair, Hands on Keyboard” (BICHOK) going? Not well, not well. But I haven’t been completely unsuccessful. Slowing me down is day job was unexpectedly successful in January and February, netting me several paying editing gigs. Income is nice.

Now onto the writing goals from January.

One) Reading Goals (A) 24 BIPoC reads  – I’m at 10 reads. Yes 8 of them are children’s books, but they are non-fiction children books about BIPoC people written by BIPoC authors. And I am on schedule. The two BIPoC adult books are The Formidable Miss Cassidy and The Mystical Mister Kay by Meihan Boey. Think Mary Poppins set in Singapore with the kids aged up to teenagers – historical urban fantasy folklore. (B) Book Clubs – Still attending my book clubs faithfully. (C) 12 books for bookcrafting tracked through Storygraph – Nothing done here yet. (D) Bonus Goal: 6 “Likely Reads Book Reviews” for the local NPR station – Not done yet, sigh. I so want to help support NPR especially after my station lost nearly two-thirds of its support (government removal of NPR, and the university also getting government cuts so they cannot support their extra education missions). Maybe during the summer, as it is the slowest season in Texas because of the heat.

**Reading Goals are mostly on track for the year!

Two) Writing Goals (A) writing at least one blog per day – ha, ha, ha, ha. Yeah, right. But I am doing good catchup, having completely finished the 2022 flashes finally meaning I am only behind for 2024, 2025, and 2026 – just over 100 to go; (B) writing at least one short story a month – nope; and (C) writing at least 500 real words per day – again nope.

**Writing Goals aren’t out of reach, but I need to get cracking on them.

Three) Submission Goals – I cannot control if a book or short story will be published, BUT if I don’t finish and submit, it won’t happen. (A) I need to submit the followup short story for my superhero story which appeared in “A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To P-Con” for the 2026 anthology. – I DID NOT MAKE THE DEADLINE – UGH!(B) I would like to submit to two of the Ranconteur anthologies. – NOT YET (C) I would like to publish another 20k (at least) book; “Honestly” is getting lonely out there. – Not yet, but it is going into summer, so more free time.  (D)Bonus points, get a novella or short novel published by Falstaff’s Crush line.  – also a nope.

**Submission Goals are getting into the impossible area. If I am going to do it, I will need to do them during the Summer.

Four) Social Media Goals (A) daily TikTok bookquotes (or embroidery drops); – I met this goal until TT decided to do the AI nightmare and I have finally quit this beloved tradition. (B) transferring bookquotes to YouTube – this was done; (C) making memes (at least 50 this year) – 39 new memes made so far! (D) maintaining this blog; – I’ve been late with a couple drops in 2026, but so far only actually missing one post out of 52. (E) (the likely books review mentioned under reading) – not tackled yet (F) Bonus point: start a substack. – highly likely to be started in the summer now that TikTok has lost me.

**Social Media Goals – I might actually accomplish all of these. Doing great so far.

Five) Socialization Goals (A) two book clubs (B) writer group (C) an embroidery group. – I have found a writer’s group!!! So I now have four social groups outside the house which is essential when you work from home. This is part of the writing strategy because even though I am a real introvert, I am still human and need to feed the social animal side of me. The enclosure needs to be enriched.

**Doing amazingly well with the Socialization Goals, something that was an issue last year.

Six) Three Conventions as a Goal – Went to FenCon in February. Just two more writing conventions to go!

**Convention Goals are on schedule.

Seven) Bonus Publication Goal – Publish a novel – Not done yet.

**Bonus goal – I’ve never published a novel (I do have a novella out – Honestly by Erin Penn.)

Other questions include do I want to participate in the A-to-Z in April or do Novel November? – I did participate in the A-to-Z this year and I think it is my best participation ever. The Novel November question has been pushed off to the final-third of the year me. Next revisit is end of August, as previously mentioned.

Overall, nowhere near I want to be, but some of my goals are on schedule or even ahead of schedule. Summer is the slow season for me for duties and responsibilities outside of writing, so I hope I can focus on the writing. We shall see. Next check in for 2026 is the end of August when the final third of the year starts – conventions, Novel November, and family December.

Zounds, a question for you: What have you accomplished during the first third of the year and what do you want to accomplish over the summer?

Y is for You Can

Erin Penn 5 Comments

Image acquired from the Internet Hive Mind 

I want to reiterate, it is okay to give up. Some things aren’t worth the price. There is SO MUCH you can do with your life; go after the stuff you really want, that you have a chance of achieving, and that won’t hurt other (and if possible, do the stuff that will help others).

For writing or editing or reading or embroidery or art or whatever, if it makes you happy. If you go back and look things over and say…I’m getting better. If you like it – for goodness sakes, keep going. You may never make it big time, but you are allowed to have HOBBIES. You don’t have to master everything. You don’t have to make money at it. Don’t give up / you can to it quadrant is the best.

But don’t ignore the “give up” quadrants. They are equally legitimate. And they give you more time to live in the Don’t give up/you can do it quadrant with the things you really, really want to do.

Flash: Early Notification (V is for Veronica)

Erin Penn 4 Comments

Photo by Mathias Reding on Unsplash

Flicking through the letters, Veronica pulled out the only one not a political ad and dropped the rest into the recycling bucket tucked under the entry way table inside the front door. She sorted through the pile on top of the table looking for the letter opener among the things which didn’t make it past the front door. Coins, keys, rocks, two mini chocolate bars from Halloween, paperclips, a dried pen, the electric bill due next week – oops, no, it had been a week, due tomorrow, but no letter opener.

“Where did it end up this time?” A quick search of the house revealed the jeweled hilted piece of metal in the bathroom, likely to remove the plastic around the bacterial soap. She had thrown a fit last time Jericho had used one of the good kitchen knives for the task.

Moving to the apartment’s living room, Veronica slit open the pristine letter, dropping the letter opener beside the cable remote. She would need to remember to return that to the front door. The letter came out crisp, on expensive paper. She unfolded the tri-folded white page.

“Dear…We regret to inform you…please accept our condolences…died valiantly…arrangements for funeral…”

Veronica sucked in her breath and glanced at the date. Three years and two weeks from now. More warning than the notice of surviving spouse benefits, which she got the week before her husband’s cancer diagnosis.

Hearing a key in the front door, she tucked the letter into her purse on the sofa.  She would need to put it with the other governmental letters she got early.

Don’t cry. Don’t cry.

“Hey, Mom,” Jericho exploded in the room. “The recruiters came by the school today to help us seniors get everything in order for the draft sign up.”

(words 296; first published 4/27/2026)