Bookish Breakdown 39: March 2022

Hello, lovelies! Welcome to another Bookish Breakdown post, my monthly wrap-up where I talk about last month’s reading, as well as life musings, blog hopping links and intention updates!

March wasn’t too bad a month. It was definitely a bit of a roller coaster month. I had some high moments, like: writing more than once, celebrating my Mom and brother’s birthdays, seeing my favorite team make it to the men’s basketball Final Four and getting a week off of work for spring break. (I mean, I used vacation to take it, but still.)

There were also lows, like: having really high depressive episodes, anxiety increasing over the pandemic and the removal of mask mandates, and being mentally bogged down and overwhelmed by the cruelty and hatred of the world. But, overall, it was okay and I’m hanging onto that.

So, let’s check in and see how I did creatively this month!

Reading Breakdown

What I Read

This makes it look like I read a lot more than I did. Yet, I also made a lot more progress than I have all year, so I’m certainly celebrating it. I finally finished (saying finally because of my own brain funk, not because of the quality of writing) The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart. Then, I started and finished Assassin’s Gambit by Amy Raby (review to come on Friday). And, just today, I actually finished So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo, which was fucking incredible, especially as my first anti-racism non-fiction read of the year.

For writing research, I am almost down with Viking Age… by Kristen Wolf. I also have wanted to read Hall of Smoke just because it sounded awesome, but then looking more into it, I thought it might be a good potential comp for BLOOD PRICE. I’m only about 30% into it, but it’s definitely the closest comp title I’ve found so far…👀

What I Hauled

Thank you so much to Orbit Books for ARCs of The Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah and The Hunger of the Gods by John Gwynne! I am very excited to dive into these.

Otherwise, I got the other three books from my local bookstore thanks to a holiday gift card. Then, I bought The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid because I couldn’t resist (95% due to Fadwa @ Word Wonders glowing recommendation).

Reading Challenges Update

Blogging Breakdown

What I Posted

I am very, very thankful that blogging has continued to stay a consistent in my life. Plus, this month had some really fun topics. I covered different aspects of freelance editing (what I love about it and some of the stigmas in the writing community around it); a few discussions post, some challenge updates and even a book review!

I hope you’ve all enjoyed the content this month. If you haven’t check it out, here’s a list of what I wrote this month:

Read Around the Blogosphere

Check out some of the fantastic posts from this past month from other bloggers below! I didn’t get to blog hop as much as I wanted (birthdays and basketball messed up that regular routine), but that doesn’t make these posts any less special!

Intentions Check-In

As you saw from my intentions post, I tried to narrow in my focus this year. I still do want to check-in each month and see how I’m doing, so I don’t lose sight of what I’m hoping to achieve, change and celebrate!

Looking Forward

March and April are the height of my busy season at work, before we get a very brief break in May and then get completely swamped over the summer. I am hoping I don’t become too drained, so I can continue working on what I love: my writing, blogging, reading, freelance editing, Patreon, video games, etc. etc. But, I’m also hoping the weather will continue to improve and get a bit more like spring and be a motivator for happier days and outdoor adventures.

Thanks for reading this month’s Bookish Breakdown. I hope you all are staying safe and healthy. I particularly hope you are able to take care of your mental health right now.

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