Greetings Readers!
It's been a few weeks since my last update, so I thought I'd let you know how I'm getting on with my 'Write 50k in 30 Days' challenge, and also announce something special I'll be doing at the end of the week.
Progress on what is for the time being called Triquetra: Fractured Loyalties -- which is my third (fourth?) attempt at a story about witch triplets separated at birth, and living in a society that oppresses witches -- is going well. I've written 23,774 words, and gotten almost to the end of the first act for two POV characters. Progress has been a little slower recently for various reasons, but I'm not letting that deter me. Even if I don't reach 50k, I will have made an excellent start on the story and reinvigorated my writing muse.
However, I am hoping to increase my word count substantially by taking part in London Writers' Salon 24-Hour Writing Sprint: A Day of Writing Around The World on April 25-26. For my own mental well-being, I won't do the full 24 hours (but hats off to anyone who does), but I'm aiming for around 10-12 hours spread over the 24-hour period.
I'll share updates on my social media, and probably some videos of me writing too, so be sure to follow me to know how I'm getting on. I will also post a blog update here at the beginning of May.
To make things extra fun, I decided to host a 'Sponsored Write-A-Thon' raising donations for Stonewall (LGBTQA+) Charity.
With the recent UK Supreme Court ruling regarding 'biological women,' I feel the need to support the trans community more than ever. Trans rights are human rights, and many of the laws being passed in the UK and other countries are appalling to me.
The ruling regarding 'biological women' will affect not just trans women, but trans men too, as well as CIS women and men. No one should be invading another person's privacy when using bathrooms, and everyone should be free to use the bathroom where they feel most comfortable. We need to protect people from possible gender-related hate crimes, and by forcing trans people to use the wrong bathrooms, that is not protecting women; it's endangering them.
The argument that predators might pretend to be trans in order to attack people is invalid and based on a minute proportion of people. Saying that all trans people are predators is a gross misrepresentation that causes dangerous effects. And stopping trans people from using their preferred bathrooms, etc. will not stop predators. All this new ruling is doing is putting a target on an already marginalised group's back.
I know money is tight for many of us, and I am not asking for donations if you can't afford it. Nor am I asking for you all to donate hundreds of pounds each. But collectively, a little bit can go a long way. Even £1 makes a difference. And if you really can't donate, spreading the word and joining me (either writing yourself or cheering me on) while I take part in the Write-A-Thon is also an amazing help.
A 'peace-of-mind' bonus is that Tiltify handles all the donations, so you don't need to worry about sending money directly to me, or question if I will actually send it along to Stonewall. It's all done via Tiltify's website, and I don't touch the money at all.
That's all I have for you for now, but I do hope to see some of you spriting along with me, donating to Stonewall or both!
Here are the links once again, so everything is easy to find.
Until next time. Take care and stay creative!
T.T.F.N
