C. R. Collins 🌳 🐸

Tree-hugging indie fantasy author
Currently located in the SoCal desert
https://crcollins.org
#IndieAuthor #FantasyBooks #HopePunk

Public Key

npub1hlftkt7td4enzkd3wx6p5qarl03cwn6xt8ar5tq0j79xs5xtx54sfdqyuw

NIP-05 Address

crcollins@writing-exchange.mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqstl54m9l9k6ue3txchrdq6qw3lhcu8far9n7369s8e0zng2r9n22cpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0ds0dzskc

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub1hlftkt7td4enzkd3wx6p5qarl03cwn6xt8ar5tq0j79xs5xtx54sfdqyuw

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Last Notes

2026-10-27 11:27:50 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1167
Post a snippet involving spirits, such as a character talking to or about them.
“No. Although spirits can roam. At times attach.”
“Roam?” I cocked my head. “Like a ghost?”
She squinted. “Those things in movies? No. We were taught a spirit can linger, tied to its place. They have a radius they cannot breach. It’s thought some of what we call nature spirits are extremely old mages. Dead or faded. I’ve not heard of them traveling without assistance.”

2026-10-27 11:23:21 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 27
Do you collect (unaltered) natural materials for projects?
Closest I've come to this is rocks. I've collected them most of my life. Small ones for shelves and plant pots. Larger ones for garden borders.

2026-10-27 11:21:12 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 27
What location in your story would you most like to visit? What location would you absolutely avoid?
That's a tough one. 🤔 I want to visit them all. 😀 Well, okay, I'll pass on Maldhonia Province in any of its incarnations after the old mage kingdom fell. And certain places in Ballorn Hills. And a few other places on the western continent I've not sufficiently fleshed out yet.

2026-10-27 11:18:11 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 27
As a writer, what do you need right now?
More readers! 🤣 (*waves hands spookily "Come! Come! Lose yourself in the woods!"*)

2026-10-26 13:19:24 UTC

#Today Season of the Bluebonnets BOOK II is off for its copyedit. 😀 🥳 Now back to self editing BOOK III.

2026-10-26 11:17:25 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 26
How did you develop your voice?
I write 1st person POV, so try very hard *not* to have a singular voice. MC voices vary according to their time, place, background, & personality. I probably don't completely succeed, no doubt something of me comes through, but I work hard at minimizing that.

2026-10-25 11:55:41 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1165
Can the dead truly return to the “land of the living” in your universe?
This is what Maggie learns, which isn't much:
Fragments of esoteric ramblings spoke of the dead, always in negative terms: the dead could not be reborn, could not walk among the living, nor follow them after burial.
“It didn’t say the spirit couldn’t remain,” Addie pointed out.
Nor did it say they couldn't make use of magery.

2026-10-25 11:51:26 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 25
What's something you accomplished this past week?
Got another chapter of Season of the Bluebonnets BOOK I posted on my site.
Finished clearing out overgrown vegetation between our & our neighbor's site & found a baby tree! It is now mulched, with space to continue growing. 😀
Season of the Bluebonnets BOOK II is nearly ready for its copyedit.

2026-10-24 21:32:24 UTC

What is this shit? 🤬
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/117/498/022/687/711/971/original/419edf78aa94d220.jpg

2026-10-24 11:27:36 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 24
Which character would survive the longest if suddenly dropped into our world with no money or identification?
Hard to say, as the mage characters would eventually lose their powers being in a world without magery available to replenish. Even if they did well at first, their success may fall off. One of the human characters might fare better long term. Maybe King Garland, who is a standard boorish type of man who might make friends with the "bros."

2026-10-24 11:21:23 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 24
What is currently provisional in your workflow (or work)?
Unpublished works are always subject to change until launched.

2026-10-24 11:16:11 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers #TTMD Oct 24
@nprofile…p9kg
It's YOU day!!! 🥳 🎇
Tell us about your editing process. I keep seeing you post about "targeted editing" & have been meaning to ask about that for some time. How is this distinct from regular editing & how do you think it benefits your work?
Also, any plans to go wider with your books?

2026-10-23 12:34:55 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 23
How do you make sure you deliver on your writerly promises?
I guess the promises I've made would mainly be release dates. I tend to keep those general, like "summer" rather than a specific date, although I used to do 3 specific months per year, not naming the day. I've followed through on those. Also, there's the labels I use, like #HopePunk , which set an expectation I make sure to deliver.

2026-10-23 12:30:26 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 23
Our next featured creator enjoys hiking. Do you enjoy being outdoors, and if so, does it have an impact on your creativity?
I've loved to hike (plus walk rather than drive) all my life. Even lived in the woods. The last few years I've been unable to indulge as much, as it's too hot most of the time. I've also not found a good local place. Dog & I walk before dawn every morning & I garden (my personal desert oasis) every day. Nature definitely inspires me. 🌳

2026-10-22 13:37:38 UTC

#Spooktober Oct 20
What might lure you into a situation against your better judgement?
Behind on these again.
Plants! Anything claiming to be a nursery or garden center. Particularly if there's the word "native" on the sign.

2026-10-22 12:48:52 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 22
Share a sentence from your WIP that you're especially proud of
I can never decide, but came across this one while editing this morning:
Far to the west, a series of loud explosions broke the silence and my heart.

2026-10-22 11:56:14 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 22
Share a work you found really challenging to read.
Can't think of any fiction offhand. When I was younger & haunted libraries, I brought home a lot of philosophy & science books that were often slow going because I wanted to learn everything.

2026-10-22 11:33:01 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1163
MC POV: “I’m always late, I never remember birthdays, I’m much too tough on myself, I have a hard time apologizing, etc.” What annoys the ones you love (about you)?
Maggie: "People complain I think I know best, basically a know-it-all. But I do & I am."

2026-10-22 11:27:00 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 22
Our next featured creator enjoys making maps. Have you ever made a map?
I've got a bunch on my website I made on the Inkarnate site. They were fun to make & give readers an idea of location, though they are not to scale as the world is much larger than could fit in a map.
https://crcollins.org/maps/

2026-10-21 14:31:34 UTC

#Spooktober Oct 21
What’s a good spooky movie for the Halloween season?
Poltergeist
Blair Witch Project
And, of course, Rocky Horror, just for fun. 😁

2026-10-21 11:29:50 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 21
How cerebral do you consider your creative work?
Deep topics are touched on, as I enjoy them, but I try to make the books entertaining first & foremost. I suppose they'd fall somewhere in the middle of the curve.

2026-10-21 11:22:31 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 21
How do you make your works approachable?
I work hard during editing to make sure everything is clear & easy to follow, including, since these are ebooks, keeping paragraphs shorter to be easier on the eyes. I offer several sales options, including regular vendors & a direct buy store (discount for buying direct.) I'm also serializing one book on my site now so potential readers can get a taste before they spend money.

2026-10-21 11:02:10 UTC

Escape to the improbable world of Ardonna 🌳 🌲
A new chapter of Season of the Bluebonnets BOOK I is now live: https://crcollins.org/2026/10/21/year-1-month-6-day-4/
Read from start: https://crcollins.org/2026/08/26/welcome-to-the-world-of-ardonna/
Learn more: https://crcollins.org/season-of-the-bluebonnets/
#Bookstodon #EpicFantasy #SFF #Fantasy #HopePunk #Polyamory #Magic #Today #Trees
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/117/478/554/891/622/730/original/d45594bfa06469f5.jpg

2026-10-20 10:46:08 UTC

#Today Public service announcement for anyone buying a car from a dealership: When they shove that tablet at you to get your electronic signature, insist they show you each & every document to review. DO NOT trust them to be following what you agreed on. We discovered every optional service had been added in, increasing our loan amount by $10K 😳 Had to go back in yesterday & have them cancel them all. 🤬

2026-10-20 10:32:52 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 20
What's the shortest work you've ever finished?
Poetry 🤷
I wrote a couple of short stories for a college creative writing class, but my prose works are normally long.

2026-10-20 10:30:10 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1161
Do you have any mythology around the afterlife in your universe?
The People of the Code have some sort of heaven/various hells thing. Mages honestly have no clue what happens to spirits after death, though Maggie learns more about that later in her story. Trees believe some portion of themselves live on in their remains & set a general mood which depends on the circumstances & method of wood harvest, but also seem to believe in some transition to somewhere else.

2026-10-19 11:43:44 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 19
What does your MC keep that they probably should have thrown away years ago?
In the course of her 4 book story Maggie loses everything she owns twice, so she's not keeping anything long term.

2026-10-18 12:27:45 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 18
Line from WIP where a character is lying. Do they get away with it?
Not forever.
“‘What about your friend?’” I asked. “‘The shadow mage following?’”
“I’d no idea he was there. You can’t see them.”
He’d stopped sweating. Eliam Finnegan seemed an accomplished liar. Quite comfortable, once he’d decided on a track. He couldn’t lie to me, exactly, but he could choose his words.
“‘Did you know him?’”
Eliam considered his response. “It’s possible. I had many business contacts.”

2026-10-18 12:16:41 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1159
If you told your characters about Hallowe'en, what would they think?
The "pioneers" came from Earth, so knew it. There's a scene where it's mentioned:
“Favor’s the same guy. It’s just . . . now . . .” She pinched her lip, pondering her next words.
“He’s in permanent Halloween mode,” Elios concluded.
The mage representatives took a minute to decipher that word, couldn’t do it, and let it be.
Jez’s eyes glowed yellow. “An Earth holiday. People dressed ghoulishly.”

2026-10-17 17:40:47 UTC

#Today filled out my ballot. Woot woot! 🥳 Vote early, everyone!

2026-10-17 10:48:03 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 17
What is the worst possible first impression someone could get of your MC? Would it be accurate?
That she is evil, scary, & out to dominate them.
Maggie isn't evil. She can be scary but usually doesn't want to be. She only tries to dominate those who pose a danger to her people, to get the truth out of them.

2026-10-17 10:44:51 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 17
What are the defining traits of your niche in your genre?
Epic eco-friendly hopepunk alternate world fairy tales for adults

2026-10-17 10:41:47 UTC

I have successfully trained Bluesky's algorithm to show me mostly trees, sunsets, & flowers. 😀

2026-10-16 11:34:10 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1157
Tell us a random, interesting fact about your WIP.
It was supposed to be one book, but now it's four.
Season of the Bluebonnets is kind of a running history of Ardonna, which ties all the other books together & expands on the world. If you've read the others you might find it fun & interesting. If you haven't, you could always enter the world from the south, instead of the north.

2026-10-16 11:14:27 UTC

#Spooktober 15
Talk about a real-life creature that seems especially weird/alien/haunted/intriguing to you.
Aye-ayes are pretty alien looking. I have a stuffed one that's cute and cuddly though.

2026-10-16 11:08:11 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 16
Do you feel you do your best creative work completely solitary, working collaboratively with one or more people, or working near but not with other people?
I'm a solitary writer, but I do collaborate with an editor later. That works best for me.

2026-10-16 11:05:41 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 16
How do you feel about people reading your works without buying a personal copy?
Getting it from a library? Great!
Getting a copy from a friend who purchased an ebook? Fine. Please review
Pirating? Feels frustrating after all the effort & money I spent to put out a good book, plus they don't cost much. They can at least make an effort to leave a review somewhere so other people might buy it.
I currently have one of my books available to read for free on my site.

2026-10-15 12:00:24 UTC

#Today is bittersweet as we sold our Mini yesterday. We had it for years & I loved that car--it had been my dream car for years before that. Economics now has us in an electric vehicle, which I am extremely happy about, though it'll never be my Mini. 🥹
One nice thing: the Mini was bought by a dad as his excited 19-year-old's 1st car, so someone else now loves it. 😊

2026-10-15 11:53:38 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 15
What piece of backstory did you invent just for yourself that readers may never learn?
Can't recall doing this for character backstories.
I do have thoughts on ethnicities within populations which I tend not to delve into as they don't carry the same importance as in our world. Also linguistics, which I had to limit to only a couple of sentences. A lot of world details aren't critical to the stories being told.

2026-10-15 11:44:50 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 15
How confident are you feeling about your work today?
Today is more editing, which I'm pretty confident about.

2026-10-15 11:40:05 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1156
If your MC had (more) money in their possession, what would they do with it?
She'd put it in her vault with the rest of the currency for her foreign agents' use. They don't have money in Quenelle, so she'd have no use for it personally.

2026-10-15 02:05:45 UTC

Finally got my ballot today--the final day before I could officially report it missing. My husband got his last week. I was beginning to feel like I was on somebody's "enemy list." 🤣

2026-10-14 13:19:06 UTC

#Spooktober Oct 14
You're setting out food for the fairy folk. What do you leave them?
Tacos! 😆 Modern CA fairy folk so I won't forget the guacamole. They will thank me later.

2026-10-14 12:11:33 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 14
If your MC could ask their future self one question, what would they ask?
"Did he ever come back?"

2026-10-14 11:54:50 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1155 Do you enjoy musicals?
Yes! Since I was a kid & watched Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. 🤣 And West Side Story.
As a teen, I saw the original production of Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway, with Ben Vereen, for a class trip. In college, I was a stagehand & worked props for Les Miz for a week, which got me on stage singing along. 😀
Other favs:
Fiddler on the Roof
Rent
Paint Your Wagon
Rocky Horror

2026-10-14 11:47:59 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 14
Who do you wish you could share your work with, but can't?
As long as I'm fantasizing ...
The Wachowski sisters. They'd be my dream producers if my work was ever made into a series. 😀

2026-10-14 11:44:53 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 14
How do you feel when a show that is non-musical inserts an episode with a musical number?
I think it's good fun. Nobody expects high art from that, I wouldn't think. A couple of my favorite shows--Buffy & the Magicians--did this & I enjoyed it.
"Bunnies! Bunnies! It must be bunnies!" (Sorry, I'll leave now)

2026-10-14 11:40:59 UTC

Escape to the improbable world of Ardonna 🌳 🌲
A new chapter of Season of the Bluebonnets BOOK I is now live: https://crcollins.org/2026/10/14/year-1-month-6-day-3-afternoon/
Read from start: https://crcollins.org/2026/08/26/welcome-to-the-world-of-ardonna/
More info: https://crcollins.org/season-of-the-bluebonnets/
#Today #Bookstodon #Fantasy #EpicFantasy #HopePunk #Polyamory #Magic #SFF
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/117/439/071/410/774/002/original/15a50eec4dd4cb97.jpg

2026-10-13 12:05:54 UTC

#Spooktober Oct 13
What are some songs for a spooky playlist?
Ghostbusters
Werewolves of London
Monster Mash

2026-10-13 11:50:35 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 13
What writerly weakness do you overcorrect for?
Any word I tend to misspell or overuse, use wrong, or whatever other blunder, is added to my edit search sheet. I then search for each as part of my self-editing process, which means I'll go through the entire manuscript multiple times. This is probably obsessive over-kill. 🤷

2026-10-13 10:32:25 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 13
Schadenfreude?
Well, I'm seeing Russia lost a good percentage of its bot farms this week 😆

2026-10-12 11:48:07 UTC

#Spooktober Oct 12
What are your thoughts on doppelgängers?
I've had no thoughts on them since that Vampire Diaries storyline 😆 Not seen too many stories about them.
One time, someone told me I must have a sister in CA (this was long before I moved here) which got me excited, as an adoptee (turns out I had more than one sister living here at that time.) I'd heard something similar years before so guess there's at least one person who looks like me wandering about.

2026-10-12 11:22:11 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1153
Do you ever incorporate elements of horror into your work?
I do! Which is funny considering I can be such a horror wimp.
My books contain some awful deaths, plus a hell-world creature infestation, plus some nightmare-ish settings.

2026-10-12 11:20:06 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 12
What do you specialise in, prose-wise?
Long ass epic worlds, evidently.

2026-10-12 11:18:37 UTC

So, from perusing my feed this morning, the topic of #today seems to be people returning to "X"? I'll never get this. Never liked that platform back when it was Twitter, never had much of a following, or interesting interactions. Many folks were just nasty. I left prior to Musk & deleted my acct after he took over.
Mastodon has been my best social media experience. I have way more interesting conversations & online friends here than I got anywhere else. Am I odd in this respect?

2026-10-12 11:11:32 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 12
Which relationship in your story changed the most from what you originally planned?
I never have firm, set-in-stone plans, but my favorite story about this happening concerns my favorite romantic couple: Beau & Zag Dovlin.
They were originally 2 of the MC's best friends who didn't get along very well, then, one day, I was just typing a paragraph & a line popped out suggesting something more between them--completely unexpected. I liked it & ran with it.

2026-10-12 11:06:02 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 12
Do you ever talk to people in song lyrics?
Not that I can recall. 🤔
If we're talking about characters in my books, they don't either, though they've been known to sing. They're all songs written by my characters (so by me) & therefore not subject to any copyright concerns.

2026-10-11 15:27:49 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 11
Is there a word whose meaning is benign that still grates on you for some reason?
Lately, it's "super." As in "super intelligence." 🤮

2026-10-11 14:19:35 UTC

Poor little hungry feral kitty braved the rain to tell me, in no uncertain terms, she still expected food and treats.

2026-10-11 13:08:03 UTC

#Today
Still raining here in the desert since last night. My gardens will be pleased, but the dog was not when she went out for her morning potty. If this keeps up, I expect there will be flooding everywhere. Coachella Valley is a big bowl.

2026-10-11 13:02:03 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 11
What's a turn of phrase you've 'inherited' from someone else?
In life or in my writing? My sons & I tend to fling Monty Python quotes at each other whenever we get together.
Oh, on two of my book pages on my site, I have this:
"The links below lead to my only authorized vendors. Those who approve of courtesy (at least) to living authors will purchase from these and no others."
Not exactly the same as the original but close. Points to anyone who recognizes it.

2026-10-11 12:51:49 UTC

#Spooktober Oct 11
Describe a time when you caught an animal staring at you.
I used to be a zookeeper, so this happened a lot. 😆 I regularly had an audience. Harry the patas monkey had a mirror hanging outside his behind-the-scenes cage which he used to follow your movements when you'd passed beyond his sight. Joey the mandrill sometimes got an erection when he spotted me outside his exhibit during public hours--made for a not so family friendly display so I had to sneak around to check on him

2026-10-11 12:34:12 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1152
MC POV: A time you ran out of options was…
I blinked back to consciousness. “Stop! Stop! Stop!” I pawed at the hover control, but kept swirling.
Spinning. Like the uroborus. Like down a damn drain.

2026-10-11 12:30:23 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 11
Passage where the setting is doing as much storytelling as the characters.
The fog was far more dangerous. It made it near impossible to navigate. Jez and Pentiere attempted to lead, but the wind brought back silence. The pair threw blasts, while water adepts leached out moisture. In some places, this worked: the veils proved thinner. We glimpsed the sun or moons and got some idea of how fucked we were.

2026-10-11 11:40:13 UTC

Buy Books Direct from Authors Around the World (sorted by region)
Including #Fantasy #SciFi #Horror #Romance #Mystery #Comedy #Historical
https://elisecarlson.com/2026/10/06/books-direct-from-authors-around-the-world/
#Bookstodon #ReadingCommunity
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/117/422/059/813/686/279/original/fd21e809951738eb.png

2026-10-10 12:26:34 UTC

#Today
SoCal is supposed to be getting actual rain this weekend, from a passing tropical storm. 🤔 It's not supposed to hit our valley directly, but we shall see. The wind already picked up yesterday--it never misses an opportunity to cause havoc around here--though it's quiet now. I've got gardening tasks to do but, after that, fingers crossed for a good soaking.
Here're photos of my newest garden "child." My hibiscus is flowering!
Have a great weekend, all.
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/117/416/591/338/710/357/original/6b725a0f440fd22f.jpg
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/117/416/592/305/996/314/original/fc6395d555513d9c.jpg
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/117/416/592/979/777/062/original/c745d2b843082acd.jpg

2026-10-10 11:29:37 UTC

#Spooktober Oct 10
Going door-to-door and asking for treats/sweets: in your country/culture, when do people do this?
In the USA, this happens the evening of Oct 31, our Halloween.
Back when I had a house & lived in a suburb we had a lot of visitors to my neighborhood. People would drive their kids in from elsewhere. I loved it. I went all out with decorations, spooky music, witch hats. My little dog, who loved people, wore a costume. It was great fun seeing all the kids. My favorite "holiday."

2026-10-10 11:22:47 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 10
What is one thing your antagonist genuinely admires about your MC?
The majority of antagonists fear Maggie's power rather than admire her. They respect that enough to be very careful. However, a few do admire her commitment to her people.

2026-10-10 11:20:03 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 151: What is your MC’s relationship to what modern society considers the paranormal or supernatural?
A running theme/joke newcomers have is that much of which they'd considered "supernatural" was normal on Ardonna.
However, one question still persisted. No one can explain what happens to souls after death. In BOOK III of Season of the Bluebonnets, Maggie begins to find answers. It's as "paranormal" as my books have gotten.

2026-10-10 11:14:01 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 10 #TTMD
@nprofile…8dc9
Happy YOU day!! 🥳
How wasn't I following you already? 🤔 Anyway, that's fixed now.
Went through your website & found the link for Broad Universe. I'd never heard of it before. How does this site differ from other author sites in regards to what it offers writers?
Now the BIG question: Please tell us about knitting a sweater for a cow. 😀 Why did this cow need a sweater?

2026-10-10 10:47:01 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 10
Do you have a guiding principle as a writer?
Don't punch down. Avoid hurting the feelings of anyone who doesn't deserve it.

2026-10-09 23:47:04 UTC

My husband got his ballot 2 days ago. Where is mine? 🤬

2026-10-09 12:27:44 UTC

#Spooktober Oct 8 & 9
I'm already behind, so I'll jump in with 2 days.
Zombies: Hate them. I have a weird love-hate relationship with horror stories--some I love, others ... Zombies tend to fall in the "Ewww" category. I rarely finish shows with them.
Vampires: I've enjoyed them, but lately, I might have reached capacity. Many stories seem to have questionable ethics in terms of making mass murderers sympathetic. And don't get me started on the teenaged girl-200 year old guy trope.

2026-10-09 12:10:26 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 10
Our next featured creator is a 'relentless optimist.' How full is your glass?
I was never one of those, not even as a child. 😆 But I remind myself that good things happening have the same odds as bad, depending on the effort put in, so I can't say I'm a pessimist either. Day to day, I expect life to be a challenge. I'm stubborn enough to persevere & try to tip those odds toward the better by my actions. As long as one keeps fighting, there's hope.

2026-10-09 11:57:36 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 9
How does your own sense of mortality influence what you write?
I don't know if it influences *what* I write, but it does influence *how* I write. At my age I have to be more disciplined to get these works done. I didn't get serious about my writing until I hit 60, so I now have less time to dither.

2026-10-08 11:50:43 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 8
Tell us about someone who supports you on the sidelines.
My husband, sister, & 2 sons have all been supportive in different ways. Most recently, my sister tested all my blog features--subscribed & sent me a tip--to see if all was working as it should before I launched. My eldest son usually buys the first ebook from my direct store after a new one is launched to make sure there're no glitches.

2026-10-08 11:44:04 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1149¾: Bonus Question: If your character is ill, who would care for them? Would they provide good care?
Maggie's good friend, Addie, is a healer. She'd get excellent care.

2026-10-08 11:42:38 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 8
Which character is most likely to make a terrible decision for a very good reason?
Mitchel Pinori of the Zayladas & Lassen of the Zayladas have the great cause of setting Earth beasts free & protecting their native beast allies but terrible methods.

2026-10-08 11:40:18 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 8
Do you engage in multiple creative activities or stick to one
I write & garden, which takes up a good portion of each day.

2026-10-08 11:04:10 UTC

#Today
Looks like Trump wasn't kidding about sending seniors "under $100" to "help" with Medicare drug payments. Two $90 direct deposits from the US Treasury just showed up for husband & me. Woo hoo that'll go a long way to fix what he broke. 🙄

2026-10-07 11:59:21 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1149
Your MC/MCs come across some spooky scary skeletons... What's next?
Maggie would call her agents in to investigate

2026-10-07 11:55:47 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 7
Share a line of dialogue that tells us everything we need to know about a character's personality.
Hmm. Difficult, but this one gives a hint:
“My kind is the type which survives. You had the idea magery made you noble, but it serves any goal. My affinity’s been helpful, allows me to manage the unwary, but Tomin has a profitable skill. We weren’t hurting anyone in Atlantea. Didn’t strike the first blow.”

2026-10-07 11:46:24 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 7
Create a four line rhyming poem that includes the word goose.
"It's Christmas time, " Papa said
"Time to kill the goose."
"Fly! Fly!" I darted ahead
And set her loose.

2026-10-07 11:42:15 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 7
Does your editing process tend towards addition or reduction?
Both. The first rounds are always addition as my early drafts are incomplete, like scaffolding or a line drawing. I add details which bring the story to life.
Later go throughs are about trimming excess words or duplications, revising to make things clearer, etc

2026-10-07 11:33:02 UTC

Escape to the improbable world of Ardonna 🌳
A new chapter of Season of the Bluebonnets BOOK I is live on my site: https://crcollins.org/2026/10/07/year-1-month-6-day-3-morning/
Read from start: https://crcollins.org/2026/08/26/welcome-to-the-world-of-ardonna/
Learn more: https://crcollins.org/season-of-the-bluebonnets/
#Today #Bookstodon #EpicFantasy #SFF #Magic #Polyamory #HopePunk #ReadingCommunity
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/117/399/403/563/268/611/original/41e1d028bbd6b6dd.jpg

2026-10-06 11:53:28 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 6
What might an inattentive reader miss in your work?
I throw in a lot of cultural references for fun, which have no bearing on the story. They might miss those. For example, two main streets in Sharren City are named for my favorite comedians. There are also lines here & there, usually within an MCs musings.

2026-10-06 11:46:14 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers 0ct 6
On a scale of 0-100, how much conflict is necessary for a compelling story?
No idea what this scale represents. Numbers of conflicts? Percentage of the book? One rule of writing every aspiring author learns is that "a story MUST have conflict." I have seen backlash to this idea, but I can't think of any stories without conflict, even if it's just internal, or dealing with a health issue. I feel like there *should* be examples & I'm probably missing them.

2026-10-06 11:35:39 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1149
Think of a choice your MC made. How did it lead to where and who they are now?
Maggie chose to petition for space for herself and the archives on the starship Eriander. The rest is Ardonnan history.

2026-10-06 11:33:14 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 6
What is considered completely normal in your story's world that would seem bizarre to us?
Burying oneself alive to live longer.

2026-10-05 12:45:09 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 5
Excluding unfinished work, what's the longest it's taken you to complete a project?
Over 30 years. Though most of that time I wasn't working on the book at all. 😆 But it started in the late 1980s & was published in 2022.

2026-10-05 12:41:42 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1148: Is your favorite genre to read also your favorite one to write?
Sort of. I enjoy fantasy but have also read a lot of hard scifi, which I don't write. Suppose they're both speculative.

2026-10-05 12:39:26 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 5
What haunts the narrative of your current work?
The matrons. What do they want? Are they even real? There's no hard evidence, yet rumors persist. Whispered tales based on half-remembered glimpses of women wrapped in shadow, an eerie feeling you've forgotten something which raises the hair on the back of your neck. What can you trust if not your own memory of events?

2026-10-04 11:37:38 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1147
How does your SC feel about those around them?
Maggie is, at bottom, a caring person, though some might be surprised to learn this. She adores her family & friends, & wants all her people to live good, satisfying lives where they are safe with all needs met. However, she also holds the firm opinion that lots of folks are "intellectually challenged."

2026-10-04 11:34:14 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 4
How isolated are your characters in your current WIP?
Maggie is usually surrounded by people, many of whom she cares for & who cares for her so, in that sense, she's not isolated at all. However, few completely understand the Librarian and her motivations. She's been condemned for various library actions & policies, sometimes rightly, but other times because they didn't see the bigger picture. It's a constant struggle, even with those closest to her.

2026-10-04 11:21:28 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 4
What is your MC's most irrational fear?
Most of Maggie's concerns that other people would call "irrational" (though friends & family phrase it more kindly) stem from her librarian brain being able to spot patterns before most other people & make predictions as to where this is headed. She might not always be right, but *could be* & has been often enough most people pay attention to her.
People have suggested she focuses too much on probabilities which have not happened yet.

2026-10-04 11:15:02 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 4
Do you include details in your work that are important to you even though no one else will likely notice?
Probably. I am obsessed with not leaving any loopholes or loose ends. I'm always thinking of questions a random reader *might* ask & wanting to provide answers.
That being said, my story world is so epic, in terms of both time & space, I am constantly thinking, oh, I never properly explained this bit, then talking myself down as it has no bearing on the story

2026-10-03 12:54:19 UTC

#PennedPossibilities 1146
Does romance ever feature in your work?
There're subplots with side characters as well as one with the MC. I enjoy interpersonal relationships in general--my work includes many family and friend storylines too--but romantic relationships are particularly interesting to delve into for character development. However, I don't write "romance," per se. The adventure plot is always at the forefront, though often heavily interconnected with character relationships.

2026-10-03 12:44:35 UTC

#WritersCoffeeClub Oct 3
How do you feel about spoilers?
I tend to be the odd one out on this topic. I love them & actively seek them out, particularly for shows. I have a hard time dealing with suspense at times. While sometimes I am fine waiting to see, I don't always enjoy that feeling, depending on the topic it can create unpleasant anxiety to the point I might stop watching. I have comfort shows I'll watch again & again, where I obviously know everything that happened. 🤷

2026-10-03 12:39:14 UTC

#WordWeavers Oct 3
Share a line from your WIP that foreshadows something important without giving it away.
More than one line, but heavy foreshadowing.
“You have no right—nor power—to dictate what dragons do beyond our borders,” Jez growled. “They are free beings in this world. Learned enough to take their own counsel. If Quenelle withholds their welcome, we will live to regret it.”

2026-10-03 11:16:06 UTC

#ScribesAndMakers Oct 3
Is there a common thread throughout your creative work (apart from the fact that you created it)?
Trees rule the world.
There's plenty of common threads, actually, since I'm still working in the same series. If I ever write something else, I suspect they would still be a love of nature involved.