On Fairytales, Mad Science, and Escapism 💖⚙️📚
🎙 Listen to my podcast interview + where to find me!
Hello,
After taking last week off from the newsletter, I’m back today! I needed to regroup and focus on revisions. I also spent time with loved ones, attended book club, watched movies, and made a dent in my TBR stack. Wherever you are, I hope you are safe and caring for yourself. If you're not, my thoughts are with you, and I hope your situation changes for the better soon.
I hope this week’s newsletter offers some fun escapism. I was recently on the Women Fantasy Authors podcast! We talked about why I love writing steampunk, the importance of community, fairy tales, mad science, romance, world building, and other things I love. I even got to talk about Nikola Tesla for a little bit!
But before I go any further, I want to take a moment to recognize everyone who is scared and hurting. I see you. Be kind to yourself and others in the days to come. Make a point to keep doing things that spark joy in your life, even if you have to start small. 💖⚙️📚
The Women Fantasy Authors Podcast
Looking for a break today? My interview for the Women Fantasy Authors podcast hosted by J.L. Henker is live! 🎉 I had so much fun during the recording. If you are in need of an escape, listen here or by clicking the banner below:
In addition to hosting the Women Fantasy Authors YouTube Channel, J.L. Henker is a fantasy/sci-fi author and blogger. She founded Women Writing Other Worlds (formerly Fantasy Women Writers Support Group.) I’m one of the newest members, but I already love the sense of community from our monthly meetings. You can learn more about Women Writing Other Worlds here and about J.L. Henker’s work here.
Where to Find Me
With the ever-shifting landscape of social media, I thought I’d share a quick list of the places you can find me online:
I will likely have more to add to this list in the coming weeks and months. I feel funny sharing the list now, as my revisions schedule has made my posting sporadic. However, being able to spend time with my community and connect with readers is important to me, so I thought I’d share anyway.
I’m also considering joining Tome when it’s made available. The app is meant to be like the BookTok side of TikTok. I have my username reserved for when it goes live, though I’d mainly be using it from my desktop until it’s more widely available. (The app is coming to iOS first.)
A quick note about Discord:
I used to be more actively involved in a few Discord servers, but for the last several months, I have been mainly just checking in with some of the author-specific groups I’m involved with. I’m hoping to share more reader and steampunk-friendly spaces in a future post or newsletter. For now, here’s one that’s both: Steampunk CommuniTea, hosted by Madame Askew and the Grand Arbiter.
If you have Discord serves to share, I’d love to know about them. Please let me know in the comments or send me a note.
Happy reading!
Kelsey
P.S. In light of the ongoing fires in LA, here are a few organizations that are helping. I’ve donated to a few and thought I’d share for anyone who’d like to do the same:
LA Regional Foodbank
Community Foundation's Wildlife Recovery Fund
California Fire Foundation
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles
Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation
World Central Kitchen
Pasadena Humane Society
And remember, local actions matter. Consider looking to your own community by donating blood, contributing to foodbanks, and checking to see what your local humane society needs. There's so much wrong with the world, but we're at our strongest when we empower our communities. 💖
