After the muddle of the past few weeks, this full moon is a clarifying moment. Aquarius offers us a safe space for dreaming and encourages us to tap into our weirdest impulses.
Aquarian energy pushes us to think outside of the box and to trust in our own originality. Whatever strange clarity is coming to you now, whichever odd steps forward seem suddenly apparent, it's time to trust the wisdom in your weirdness.
I drew the 9 of Cups Rx for this full moon. This card is about getting deep into our feelings. If we can't see the exact path forward or the way that things will work out for us, this is a signal to get into our emotions and embody the way we want to feel.
I'm talking about paying attention to the heavier things and the quirks that make us unique. The 9 of Cups Rx is more about observing our inner world and interrogating why we hold these parts of ourselves back from prying eyes.
It's a good time to ask ourselves what stories we scary about fitting in and how the withholding that once protected us might be the very thing holding us back from what we want.
Full Moon in Aquarius - This full moon is a time for getting wild and embracing the things we care about most. Clarity comes from dreaming big about these things without limits. We don't need to know how, but we do need to understand what is most important to us in the present moment.
Take a breath and select the card you feel most drawn to. The card you selected represents how you can see beyond your mental barriers.
The Chariot Rx- Whatever you have been waiting on is not going to go at the speed you'd like. Frustrating as that may be, when the chariot shows up reversed, it's usually a sign that you are the one who is holding up progress. Notice what resistance and rigidity are coming up around this particular goal from inside your own mind.
The World - This is the perfect moment to pause and sit with the joy and sorrow of endings. The world is a card that encourages us to stop moving the goalposts every time we hit a milestone. Take a moment to truly celebrate what you've accomplished and feel that pride in your body.
The 4 of Cups Rx - You've been settling for inadequate emotional support for quite a while. Frustration is what is pushing you beyond that mental barrier, but that rupture is offering you new perspective and the ability to turn your caretaking energy back on yourself.
UPCOMING AUDIOBOOK RELEASE:
A LEGACY OF STARS AUDIOBOOK COVER
I FINALLY received the audio files for A LEGACY OF STARS this week and OH MY GOODNESS. It's always nerve-wracking when you choose narrators because you really hope that who you select matches what readers have in their heads.
I had no doubt that Emily Woo Zeller and James Fouhey would do a phenomenal job because they are so talented, but I did not anticipate how emotional it would be to hear the continuation of this world. You can hear a clip on Instagram here.
I'm about 70% in, and I'm totally blown away by their performances. I knew they would be perfect, but I was not prepared for how much audio would turn up the heat. They absolutely delivered on Stella and Teddy's chemistry.
If you're planning to buy, I would be so very grateful if you would preorder as preorders signal to the publisher that they should keep buying my books. It's available on Audible, Libro.fm, and anywhere else you get audiobooks, and you can pre-save it on Spotify as well.
A LEGACY OF STARS is out on audio AUGUST 19, 2025. Bring a raincoat (Sorry, mom).
BONUS: Dreamscape Media is currently running a Author Besties giveaway for the entire Lost God Series on audio as well as Helen Scheuerer's The Legends of Thezmarr Series.You can see all the details here.
Feral Forties Birthday Library Drive Reminders
We are cruising along with about thirty-five audiobooks requested so far, and just ten days left.
Libraries are having a tough year. Between funding cuts and censorship lawsuits, they need our support now more than ever.
One of the best ways to help libraries is to use their services. Check out books, borrow books on Libby and Hoopla, and in this case, request that your library order your favorite indie authors' audiobooks.
Requesting that your library order books you want to read not only helps them effectively distribute funds to books they know their members want to read. It also shows that they are spending the tax dollars they're granted to fulfill requests from engaged patrons.
It also helps me since library copies of audiobooks tend to come at a higher royalty rate.
So what am I asking of you? Request my backlist from your local library and help me get THE LOST GOD Series, SONG OF THE DARK WOOD, and A LEGACY OF STARS into as many libraries as possible.
This birthday celebration will help your local library while also helping me reach tons of new readers, and who doesn't want to go shopping with someone else's money? Put those tax dollars to good use.
Then, pop over to my form and let me know which books you requested and from which library. For every book requested, I will add a tree to the FERAL FORTIES AUDIOBOOK FOREST, and I'll keep a weekly tally on my Instagram stories of how the woods have grown.
On top of my undying gratitude, I have another little gift. If I reach 40 requests by August 20th, I'll do a giveaway, and one lucky winner will get The Storm King Library T-shirt from Book Club Clothing Company and a $25 donation to the library of their choice.
Follow progress every Friday over on Instagram, or wait for the update in the new moon newsletter.
THE POISON DAUGHTER ARC Update:
Since I'm anticipating being really busy with drafting and prepping for Villains and Vixens over the next month, I will be starting to go through and accept ARC readers for THE POISON DAUGHTER this week.
I will have a glimpse at the hardcover case art in our next newsletter, and I PROMISE you do not want to miss it.
A reminder that this standalone dark fantasy romance is out October 3, 2025. The preorder is live, and there will be some fun goodies for preorders that I'll talk about in the next newsletter. So hang on to your receipts.
If you are interested in an ARC and you are not already on my street team, you can fill out the interest form here.
What I'm Writing:
THE POISON DAUGHTER - Proofreading
Copy edits are done, and the book is off to my lovely proofreader, Tabitha. She's having a great time:
a manuscript reaction from Tabitha
Is it literal? Is it emotional?
You'll just have to wait and see. Regardless, we are in the final weeks of edits. Once I get it back from Tabs, I'll go through all of her changes and then do one final readthrough where I will inevitably change something at the last minute and add typos as I always do. It's tradition at this point, and maybe even part of my charm (RIGHT?? RIGHT??)
BALLAD OF THE HEARTLESS - Drafting Take Two
This one is still slow going, but little by little, it's coming together. I still don't feel like I'm totally in the zone yet, but I think that's largely because I keep getting interrupted by other ALOS and TPD related tasks.
I gave myself the challenge of writing in first person present for TPD and now switching back to third person past for Ballad is a fun little exercise in which I still occasionally slip back into first every few paragraphs. Then I realize, curse, and have to go back and rewrite in the correct POV and tense.
In TPD, I gave myself a fun and unusual task of writing a fully colorblind character, thinking it would be a good way for me to develop my scene description skills. How swiftly I was humbled. That shit is haaard.
Did I learn my lesson? Decide to take it easy in Ballad?
No. Of course not. Where's the fun in that? What would I complain about? The (sanity) challenge I've given myself for Ballad is that our FMC, Winter, has a familiar. I've quickly learned that giving a character a familiar is a great way to be frustrated in every single scene when you inevitably forget to add it in.
Why do I do these things, you ask? Because I enjoy having a new challenge with each book. It keeps me interested, and it pushes me to keep improving my craft and look at my stories from different angles.
If you want to send some good vibes, I could certainly use them as I have a looming deadline on this one. I'd like to get this draft finished off ASAP so I can get some feedback on what's working (probably the magic) and what's not (everything else). Hopefully, by our new moon, I will be feeling a bit more accomplished and pumped up.
For the TBR Stack:
Thorns & Fire by Helen Scheuerer - This is the second book in The Ashes of Thezmarr Series, and I've been dying to read it after the way book one ended. (Seriously, the ending was so mean that I laughed out loud and then texted Helen that she was an evil genius). As not to spoil, I will just speak about book one. Iron and Embers follows Wren, a vigilante alchemist, who must put her revenge mission on pause when she's offered the chance to compete in a series of grueling trials for a slot at the alchemy school of her dreams. Everything is going according to plan until an assassin starts picking off students, and the very man who broke Wren's heart is assigned as a bodyguard to protect her from the imminent threat. Click the cover below to check out the book on ebook, KU, print, or audio.
The Forgotten Dawn by Laura Blake - So happy to see this one out in the world since I had the privilege of chatting with Laura while she was working through the editing process.
In a desperate attempt to earn the cure to save her ailing father, our FMC Brida enters herself into a dangerous magical tournament called the Fae Trials, where she must hide her identity and dodge the enigmatic Prince of Shadows.
A moment for this gorgeous cover. You can click it to go check out the book on ebook, KU, print, and audio formats.
Book Bonus Chapters:
A Legacy of Stars bonus epilogue is now available here and should be read after finishing the book, as it contains some major spoilers.
Song of the Dark Wood bonus chapter from Cade's POV is now available here. It does contain spoilers and should not be read until after you've finished the book.
The Lost God bonus chapter of Rainer's POV is now available here. (This is a spoiler so don't read it until you're finished reading the book.)
The Memory Curse bonus chapter of Evan and Sylvie's meet cute is now available here.
The Storm King bonus chapter of a villain POV is now available here.(This is a spoiler so don't read it until you're finished reading the book.)
The Godless Kingdom bonus extended epilogue is available here. (This has MAJOR series spoilers. Don't read it until you finish The Godless Kingdom)
TLG, ALOS, & SOTDW Merch:
I am delighted that there are currently three shops offering some amazing and creative bookish merch.
Creations by Polich Co. has some stickers for The Lost God Series, Song of the Dark Wood, and A Legacy of Stickers and Pins.(Including out Little Dove logo in sticker and pin format)
Sheila Reads and writes A new moon for grounding our intuition... This new moon in Virgo offers us insights into our intuitive journey. Virgo energy offers us the grounding we need to better trust that soft intutitive voice in our bones, if we can just release intuition. It doesn't matter if I'm doing a collective reading for this newsletter or a private reading for a client, there always seems to be some part of the reading that's directed at me. (Stop attacking me, Tarot) Today's new moon...
Sheila Reads and writes A new moon of courage and chaos... This mercury retrograde came for me hard. As someone born during a mercury retrograde in Leo, I thought I might be spared, but alas, I'm in the thick of it. This is a time of noise, of old lessons returning to test if you've really learned or not. If you are feeling TESTED you are not alone. But mercury retrograde, especially in Leo, the sign of warmth and courage, are also an opportunity to reflect on how we have grown and what...
Sheila Reads and writes A full moon for celebrating progress... A practical Capricorn moon paired up with a lot of major astrological shifts has really made for some chaos in the world, and it shows no signs of slowing down. It figures I drew Temperance for our collective reading. Ah, we met agian, old nemisis. A card that asks us to move slowly, to think before we act, to show discernment and patience as we try to sort through complicated feelings. What a nightmare...amirite??! All jokes...