Allie Leigh

It feels like 47 outside, I’m gonna die.

Thank you, air conditioning.

I’m calling this summer Summerween! For a few different reasons. The first: I somehow got published in a horror zine?

I am still not entirely sure how this happened, because when you go look at all the other creators, they look very cool and like they belong there, and I look like I sort of wandered in by accident.

Which, I guess, I sort of did.

I just so happened to have a story that fit the theme and was like, “Hey I could use this as an excuse to finish it.” Then I found out it was a horror zine just as I was about to submit and was like, “There is no way I will get in, but what the heck.” And then…I did. So I guess I can write horror now!

I did really enjoy working on this piece, so here’s some behind the scenes info on it~

• It was plotted in the early mornings of my trip to Banff last year, because I woke up 2-3 hours before my husband and friend, so I went to go hang out at the Starbucks.
• It was inspired after reading Stag Dance with my book club! When I read the first story in that collection, Infect Your Friends and Loved Ones, I thought that the story was presenting the events in reverse chronological order, with the end of each segment linking to the beginning of the subsequent segment via repeated words/imagery. It turns out that was not what the story was doing, but I thought that it would be a really cool way to structure a story, and that a short story was the perfect format to try something like that out!
• Then the idea I had for it was sort of loosely based off the vibes of the very beginning of Nier, where Nier is in the convenience store, but if he was NOT nice and caring for Yonah.
• Have some Snow in Summer for recommended listening 🙂

Anyway, if you’d like to read it, you can purchase a digital copy here or a physical copy here.

The other reason this summer is Summerween – I am working on two paranormal short stories!

The first is another story with Sophie, a delightful paranormal investigator who first appeared in Issue 20 of Indie Bites: Potions and Paramours. In this one, she’s babysitting her friend’s kid when she learns that, surprise! The kid is a werewolf. It’s rather lighthearted and (I think) sweet. I’ve pretty much wrapped this one up, I’m just in the final stages of editing. 🙂

The second is a much darker, much more lyrical, vampire story. I cannot stress enough how different these two are. This is most definitely the most horror-y thing I have ever written. I am partway through the first draft of this one, and am really enjoying it so far, so more news next month, probably!

And then…I continue to fight with the outline that is the third Of Mist and Magic book. I got like 90% of the way through the outline in June, then was like, “I hate this” and so…back to the drawing board, I guess. One day, I will figure out the shape this story is supposed to take.

Last month I did some mini painting for the first time in forever! I am (ever so slowly) painting our characters from our current campaign. This time, my friend’s character Oona joins the crew aboard our ship!

Besides that, I’m still just working my way through Persona 3 Reload ever so slowly. I am…right at the end of July, I think. So I mean, I’ll finish eventually.

At the very beginning of June we tried to go camping. I say “tried” because I forgot to bring a pillow and learned the hard way that trying to sleep on bunched up clothes/clothes stuffed into a backpack is a great way to give yourself a killer migraine, and we had to leave at like 4:30am because I was dying. However, before I died, I got this fantastic picture of Millie.

I like to still count this as a win because I will have this photo forever, and the migraine is already behind me (also, we’re going to try again at the end of the summer. Hopefully we have better luck.)

There will be one other post coming out this month for the Cozy Up With Fantasy sale that’s happening on July 24th, so till then!