This year. Wow. I am not sorry to see 2019 go. It’s been a quiet year overall for me, in part because of an unexpected death in the family. Additionally, I had my very first run-in with pneumonia, and it packed a punch. I’d also be lying if I said I wasn’t affected by the tenor of politics, the lies that go unchallenged every day, the brink it feels we’re perched on and have been for awhile now. My brain can be a noisy place, and this year it was too often deafening.

But it wasn’t all bad—not by a long shot. My book baby Implanted got some award recognition which was so gratifying see now that its one-year anniversary has come and gone. I finished another novel project I’m excited about that I’ve been chipping away at for the last two years, and I’m plugging away on a new one that I not only love but love the challenge of writing it as well. There are also other ideas (of course!) percolating in my hind brain that I can’t wait to get to too. You can’t have the highs without the lows, and while this feels a little bit like a trough for me at the moment, I’m really looking forward to next year and what it might bring.

So, without further ado, the year’s highlights:

Award love for Implanted:

• Shortlisted for the 2019 Compton Crook Award for best first science fiction, fantasy or horror novel by the Baltimore Science Fiction Society!

• 2^nd place in the 2019 Sci Fi and Futuristic category of the PRISM Award by the Fantasy, Futuristic, and Paranormal chapter of Romance Writers of America — I just received the certificate and finalist pin in the mail, and they are so sparkly!

• 2018 SFR Galaxy Award Winner naming Implanted a “standout” book in Science Fiction Romance!

• Grist.org named Implanted as one of 7 Sci-fi Stories That Imagine a Better World
• SyFy.com named me as one of Six Feminist SFF Authors Exploring Climate Crisis

New Short Story:

“Sing! And Remember” was published in the inaugural “Founders Issue” of DreamForge Magazine and illustrated by the Hugo-award winning illustrator Elizabeth Leggett.

I talked about the story here and here on the blog, but it is a story that means a lot to me, and I’m so grateful it’s out in the world thanks to the passionate team behind DreamForge magazine.

#Authorlife Appearances:

• I did my first book club event and hope to have more in the coming year.
• I got to participate in Creative Santa Fe’s disruptive future’s Cli Fi event and talk about Implanted and the climate crisis.

• I got to emcee fellow Angry Robot author Reese Hogan’s Shrouded Loyalties launch at Barnes and Noble.

• I attended the Nebulas, Armadillocon, Bubonicon, and MileHighCon and got to see old friends and new as well as participate on my share of panels.
• I also participated the Williamson Lectureship, held each year in Portales, NM, on Eastern New Mexico University’s campus, and it was great to see my book in the library there!

Wishing everyone a fitting end to 2019. Onward to 2020!