How much do I love Vella?Well, probably more than I should. And let me start by saying yes, I am aware of the love/hate relationship people have with the mighty ZON. Amazon. I know being beholden to a giant corporation isn’t the best. But when options are limited, Amazon is the most versatile, friendly, and easy to use. Most importantly, it doesn’t cost anything upfront. Freeing me and others like me up to use our money for immediately important things like covers and editing services. It allows me to start small and retain all creative control. These are win-win. And truthfully, do not dismiss Amazon out of hand, there are a lot of small businesses that sell through and depend on Amazon.

Small businesses like mine!

I digress–as per usual. Pulling this back around to the subject at hand. I started Vella one year ago when I first heard about it. I thought, man! I wish this had been around when I published Case Study #3 and RynRaven! Those stories would have been perfect for Vella. Alas, that was not to be. And that’s okay. I’m going to make this work. I have big plans for those two stories, anyway. More on that later in this blog.

Vella! Here’s a super quick backstory about Scarlett Ribbons. I’ve been writing and loving on this story since I was in my early twenties. How old am I now? None of your business. Haha! Suffice it to say, I’ve been writing this story for a couple of decades. There, that’s as close as I’ll get to revealing my age.

I know these characters better than I know myself. And I was never 100% sure I wanted to share them with the world. As a compromise to that idea, I began to write ‘around’ those characters. Hence Case Study and RynRaven. And approximately four other stories to be released in the next two years. All of these are part of the Children of Forever legacy series. And Vella couldn’t be more perfect for these stories.

After lamenting the fact I couldn’t release RynRaven on Vella, I got brave and decided it was time to let my special characters in Scarlett Ribbons see the light of day. Scarlett Ribbons is the linchpin in the whole Legacy World. Everything revolves around this pivotal story. So, it was always a struggle to decide how and when to release. But since all the other stories give away some of the plot points in Scarlett Ribbons (Even RynRaven if you are an eagle-eyed reader), it’s necessary to release it in its entirety before the others. That’s why I put a pin in Wolf Moon, because I realized as I was prepping new episodes, I was about to release a spoiler. Eh, it’s how it goes with a huge story. And this is a huge story–from start to finish it will span at least, about 900 years, at most–eternity. Maybe be a little hyperbolic. But not too far off that. Each story is a standalone but is connected.

After last December, I was not consistent. However, now 26 episodes into this, I’ve gained traction. And more importantly, I gained a love for the constant need to get a fresh episode out. Vella is motivating. And it’s not all down to the program. I’ve come into a writing community unlike any I’ve been part of before. Other Vella writers are a different breed of writer, and they are the most welcoming, friendly, and helpful group of writers I’ve ever had the pleasure of surrounding myself with. And ALSO, I couldn’t do any of this without my IRL writing friend, Jackie! So, a huge shout out to her!!! Thank you!!!

And on to goal setting!

2024 What can readers expect from me?

I’m in the process of revamping the website. If you’ve visited, you’ll notice it’s a hot mess. Hopefully, at the time this gets published, I’ll have everything hidden so you can’t see what a hot mess it is. You can still access all my previous blogs. But the main sections are down for maintenance.

ALSO! I’m pleased to announce January 2nd will not only be the date the new website is launched, but it’s also the day my Patreon page goes live! More details on that will be dripping out throughout December. Over there, you’ll have access to all episodes before they are published, and depending on the tier, you’ll have access to all the behind-the-scenes of whatever books are coming out next. Etc. Again, there will be more on this throughout the month.

To say I’m excited about all this would be an understatement!

Cheers to the future!

What are your plans for 2024? Please let me know below.