Happy full moon!

I don't know about all of you, but for me, January has managed to feel both like it passed in the blink of an eye and like it was approximately 182 years long.

Somehow, we are ushering in a new month with a full moon in Leo. Leo is enthusiastic, courageous, and creative. It delivers energy that can help us break out of ruts and move forward with purpose.

I had to laugh when I drew the Temperance card for our collective full moon reading. If you have been subscribed for a while, then you know that I find it particularly challenging to be in the energy of the Temperance card. It's not a bad card by any means. It's just so typical of me to pull this card when we're all feeling most eager for progress and change. Of course, we have impatient, fiery Leo energy butting up against the slowness of Temperance. The tarot is nothing if not a teacher giving the exact lesson you need at the most annoying times.

This card teaches us to sit in the quiet and cultivate self-trust. It asks us to examine the limits of our courage. It offers us a chance to face our inner world as honestly and wholeheartedly as we face our outer world. Temperance shows us how we can be more patient with our most tender wounds so we can finally allow them to heal.

Wishing you a pleasant full moon.

What you'll find in the rest of this email:

• THE POISON DAUGHTER - Agent News
• TPD Q&A - popular requests
• Writing Update
• TBR Stack
• TPD Merch
• A more in-depth Pick a Card Tarot reading

THE POISON DAUGHTER News:

You might have already seen it on my socials, but I'm truly thrilled to announce that I've signed with literary agent Alyssa Morris at Trellis Literary Management. Until now, I've handled my contract work with the help of a lawyer, but the administrative burden of contract negotiations has grown beyond my capacity over the past few months.

Alyssa and the Trellis team are already hard at work, and I'm so happy to have them as a strategic partner as I enter this next stage of my writing career.

I've already received a whole flood of questions about what this might mean and what news might be coming soon (I've added a Q&A below). I don't have any additional news to share yet, but this newsletter will be the first stop for all exciting announcements moving forward. I was hoping to have more for you today, but publishing is a notoriously slow business. I promise you want to stay put, because this is just the beginning.

In other exciting news...THE POISON DAUGHTER has continued to blow away all of my wildest expectations, hitting 106 in the Kindle store last week, 10K Goodreads Reviews on Friday, and having another major record-breaking page reads month, bringing our total to more than 30 million page reads for this book alone. (Yes, we were at 10 million at the beginning of the month.) I'm still holding out hopes of getting into the top 100 and giving away my last physical ARC of The Poison Daughter as a celebration, but the algorithm gods weren't with us last week. Maybe February is the time.

I thought it might be helpful to do a TPD Q&A with all of this news:

Q. Will there be an audiobook of TPD?

A. Yes. There will be. The timing of it is still a question mark for me right now, but I will update you as soon as I know anything.

In the meantime, you can find my entire backlist on audio with some truly phenomenal narrators. The Lost God series has four fabulous voice actors (one for each POV), including Caitlin Kelly (who you might know from The Cruel Prince audiobooks), Will Damron (from Ali Hazelwood's Bride), and Tim Campbell (from FBAA and The Witch Collector Series). Song of the Dark Wood features Irish narrators, including Aoife McMahon (from Sally Rooney's Normal People) and Dermot Magennis. Last but not least, A Legacy of Stars, Emily Woo Zeller (From The Poppy War and The Bone Witch) and James Fouhey (from the Shatter Me Series).

Q. Will there be any special editions of TPD?

A. Yes. I know how much a special edition is coveted, so I've covered all my bases, trying to get TPD as many special edition opportunities as possible. Right now, there is one upcoming subscription box that I've hinted at, as well as a preorder that I'm sworn to secrecy about. I loathe keeping my own secrets, but I'm afraid I must for now. I promise I will share loudly and repeatedly as soon as I'm permitted.

In addition to those options, I am also working on a Mojo Dojo Book Club exclusive edition, as a thank you to the virtual book club that showed such early enthusiasm for this book.

Q. Do you offer signed copies?

A. I don't at the present moment. I have a full-time day job, and unfortunately, I have not had the time to manage fulfillment. I would like to be able to offer signed copies in the future, and this newsletter will be the first place to hear about it.

Q. I loved TPD. What should I read next from your backlist?

A. If you are mourning the end of TPD and wondering what to do next, I made an Instagram for exactly this purpose and it will help you decide where to go in my backlist.

Q. What's the best way to get more people to read TPD?

A. There are a few things you can do to help the book grow.

First of all, I am forever shamelessly asking for reviews because they are the metric most of the publishing industry uses to gauge readership. I would be very grateful if you would leave a quick one or two-line review for my books on Amazon and Goodreads if you haven't already done so. You can copy the review from one platform to another.

Second, you can request a physical copy of TPD at your local library. Not only does this help me, it also helps local readers find a new romantasy read, and provides evidence that your librarians can use to prove that local readers are using their services. Most libraries have a digital or physical form you can fill out. Your local librarian would probably be thrilled to point you in the direction of it.

Finally, you can recommend the book to your reader friends, share it in Facebook reader groups, tell your local bookstore to stock it, or post about it on social media.

Every little bit counts, and I'm so grateful for your support.

Q. I tried to order your hardcover on Amazon, but I'm getting an error. Is there still a way to get it?

A. Amazon decided not to deliver my book (and other indie books) at all to certain parts of the US. If you encounter an error stating that the book is not available in your region, it's likely due to their new "efficient" AI features. That's right. They drove most book stores out of business, established a monopoly, and now refuse to deliver to certain areas, even inside the US. I am working to get this remedied, but I don't have high hopes. If you are a reader who is experiencing this error, I HIGHLY recommend you voice your displeasure to Amazon customer service.

My advice in the meantime is to buy the hardcover elsewhere. In the US Booksamillion, Barnes & Noble, and Bookshop.org are options. In Canada, I reach out to the Indigo Chapters team with every release, so it should remain listed there without issue. Same for Waterstones in the UK and Booktopia and Fishpond in Australia.

What I'm Writing:

BALLAD OF THE HEARTLESS - Intermission

Being indie published (and I imagine also being traditionally published) requires that we wear many hats. I've to switch back to my business manager hat for a few weeks. Right now, I have a unique opportunity to capitalize on The Poison Daughter's early success. Writing is my favorite thing, but I'm eager for this chance to strategize.

I have jokingly said "I'm living the dream" over the last year, but I'm not joking anymore. I've spent three years shouting about my books to anyone who would listen (with the help of my street team), and suddenly more readers than ever are listening. I've heard from countless bookstores that they can't keep TPD in stock. I've had DMs from book clubs reading the book. I've had so many kind messages about the chronic pain representation that have brought me to tears.

All I've ever wanted is for more readers to find my books, for them to see themselves in my characters, and to see my books on the shelves in my favorite book stores. It's surreal watching all of this happen so swiftly. (crying again 🥹). I'm trying to stay as present as possible and really soak in the joy (and agony. Sorry, not sorry 🤭)

Often, publishing feels like being a duck. On the surface, it looks like nothing is happening, but underneath, we authors are paddling like hell. Readers rarely get to see the enormous amount of work that goes on behind the scenes to create a book.

Last year, I tried to remove some of the mystery in the process by keeping all of you on my newsletter up to date on my progress as I finished drafting TPD, went through all my rounds of edits, and did the supporting administrative work. It's basically become a journal look back at the writing and launch of my most successful book to date, which is very cool.

Over these last few months, I've spent a lot of energy trying to figure out how I can buy back my time to write more books.

With a full-time day job, there's always something that has to give, and I do my best to ensure that thing is rarely the actual writing. Unfortunately, for the time being, I only have so much brain space, and the majority of it is going to the business side of my books. My hope is that this sets me up for fewer trade-offs in the future.

I'll happily accept all your luckiest vibes on this Leo full moon 🧿 More fun things to come soon.

For the TBR Stack:

Black Warden by Ciara Hartford - Not only is Ciara an excellent storyteller, she's a fantastic artist. I highly recommend checking out her Instagram to check out her character art. Rosalin Greene volunteers in her sister's place as a sacrifice to the Dark Fae. But when she's taken to meet her fate, Keres, the beautiful warden of the Gatehouse, refuses to answer her questions. Instead, he shepherds her through his shadow portal to the Unseelie Court whether she likes it or not.

From the Silence of the Shadows by V.B. Lacey - This is a Hades and Persephone meets Six of Crows in this dark fantasy romance standalone with dragons, shadow wielders, hate-to-love no spice romance, and an epic rebellion against their darkest foe.

Full Moon in Leo - This full moon shines light on all the work we've put in over the last few months. Look back at the path that led you to this present moment. Imagine where you'd like to be 6, 12, or even eighteen months from now. Take a few deep breaths, holding that image in your mind.

Then, choose the card you feel most drawn to.

Then, scroll down for the reveal.

THE POISON DAUGHTER MERCH:

Polich Co. now has TPD merch available in their Etsy store. Click the image below to check out the collection of stickers, bookmarks, t-shirts, and sweatshirts.

The Lovers- The most helpful medicine for you this full moon is to surround yourself with people who accurately reflect your truest self. Note that I did not say people who make you feel comfortable. This card is a call to truly reflect on your strengths and weaknesses, and through that honest self-reflection, find a path forward toward your goals that is more aligned with how you want to show up in the world.

3 of Cups - It's very important to cultivate friendships with people who can cheer you on. Time and habit can keep you hanging on to friendships that make you feel like you must minimize your success, and friends who dismiss your excitement as naivety. You deserve to make space for your triumphs, to hold the duality of joyful circumstances even when the world is violent and senseless, and to feel supported and nurtured along the way.

Wheel of Fortune - Pay attention to the small ways luck shows up for you in the next few weeks. If you feel like the noise in the outside world has you stuck in an anxiety loop, change up the story you're telling yourself, if only for a few moments. Spend as few breaths every day imagining best-case scenarios. What if you get exactly what you want? What if everything works out for you? Notice the shift in your body after that simple exercise and try to carry that practice through the Lunar New Year.

I hope your card was resonant.

In the Media:

Storybeast Podcast - I was a guest on Story Beast, which is one of my favorite bookish pods. What I love about this show is that they talk so much about the creative journey of writing a book. I love hearing other authors talk about craft, but as we all know, I also just love to yap about it myself.

​Apple Podcasts - Spotify​

The Broke Book Girls Podcast - I had a lovely chat about The Lost God Series and The Poison Daughter with Anne and Bree of the Broke Book Girls Podcast last week. It will air tomorrow/today, depending on where you are in the world.

​Apple Podcasts - Spotify​​​