Happy New Year, lovely readers! For good or ill, 2024 is gone, and it’s time to make something out of 2025.
On a personal note, whatever happens, survive. Everything else will happen as it happens, but you are more important than any other thing.
When the doors to Az’Kabek opened, it was an issue of great importance. When the doors to Az’Kabek opened, merchantry stopped and schoolchildren craned through windows to see. When the doors to Az’Kabek opened, Ravena never bothered to stay on the ground.
It was useless for seeing anything at her height. Instead, she slipped off the rope around her waist—the one tying her and all the girls her age together—and scrambled up a lamppost to see.
It was easy. It was not difficult. Very little was difficult for Ravena.
ANNOUNCEMENT: CreateIt22 is now the Two Rule Recovery!
Why the name change? To find a way to say what this program was at first glance. The Two Rule Recovery does just that, laying out that this is a simple (though not easy) way to get out of creative block and into a daily habit of creation.
I have a website built, and will be adding blog posts, the daily videos, and more to it over time. Let me know if you have any questions!
IN OTHER NEWS…
BOOK STUFF
SOLOMON’S CHOICE
Coming along nicely, this book explores the question, What is Human?Personhood, queer relationships, a lot of half-baked science, vampires, elves, a neurospicy protagonist… it’s got everything, and I’m having a blast pulling it together. Read chapter one here.
BELOVED, NOTTE
Here it is—my magnum opus. 😉 This is the book I thought up in 2009, tried several times to write, and could never pull it together because I hadn’t yet figured out my creative principles. In many ways, it’s the heart of my series; following the creation of Notte, who was designed to be a weapon to wipe out humankind, but instead fell in love, and transformed human history after. Read an excerpt from chapter one here.
THANKS FOR READING!
My name is Ruthanne, and I do two things: I write weird stuff to entertain you, and I help other creatives make weird stuff, too.
I’ve published six books and fifty-plus short stories. I’ve led a convention panel on world-building, and taught courses on plot and character development. I’ve been the keynote speaker for the Write Practice Retreat.
I’ve also been dealing with severe chronic illness that left me hospitalized, and that pretty much slowed everything down… but we all have a whole host of problems these days, don’t we?
I believe creation is deeply important, and one of the most human things we can do. It communicates truths we may not even consciously know. That’s why I keep writing, no matter how challenging life becomes; and it’s why I make daily videos to help other creatives, too.
We may be in an apocalypse of A.I. and unscrupulous corporations, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still be human. We create for one another, and yes—even the tiniest, silliest creation matters.
If you’re curious, my website has tons of free short stories, as well as three novellas and two novels, with more on the way. I also do daily pep-talks for creatives with a focus on those who struggle with creative block. For other updates, check out my Patreon. I have a free tier, and I love meeting new readers there.
See you on the written page!
