Illustrated fantasy couple standing close together in a fantasy world with a full moon, header image for a blog post comparing fantasy romance and romantasy genres

Fantasy Romance vs. Romantasy: What’s the Difference?

Okay, but… aren’t fantasy romance and romantasy basically the same thing?

That’s a question I’ve asked myself more than once.

If you’ve been anywhere near the book world lately, you’ve seen the word romantasy everywhere. It’s on bookstore shelves. It’s all over social media. People are recommending romantasy books, arguing about romantasy tropes, and debating whether a particular book is actually counts.

Which brings us to the obvious question: what is romantasy, anyway?

The short answer is that romantasy is a blend of romance and fantasy. The slightly longer answer is that both pieces matter enough to the story that pulling either one out would break the book.

And that’s where things get fuzzy, because fantasy romance and romantasy overlap. A lot.

The Reading Habit Most Book Lovers Never Try

Why Short Fiction Might Be the Best Thing You Read All Year

Last year I read over 150 books.

A few years ago, I read zero. That’s right. A big fat goose egg. Not one book, cover to cover, for twelve straight months, despite the fact that I am a person who’s whole identity revolves around books. Writing them. Talking about them. Trying to tell the world about them. Trying to get my kids to read them. You get the picture.

If you’ve ever googled “how to get out of a reading slump” or gone looking for short books to read, quick reads, or novellas you can finish in a night, I’m right there with you.

So here’s the real question, the one this whole post is actually about: why would a two-hour novella be the best thing you read all year, instead of some 900-page fantasy epic with its own family tree and a map behind the front cover? Isn’t the big one supposed to be the impressive one? The one that will give you the escape you’re looking for in a book?

Hang on. I’ll get there. First, my dirty little secret for climbing out of that reading-zero hole every single time: I stop trying to read a doorstop and pick up something short instead.

How Long Would Medicine Last After the Apocalypse?

What happens to medicine after the apocalypse? How long would medications actually last without electricity, refrigeration, manufacturing, or regular pharmacy deliveries?

As a former pharmacist and author of a post-apocalyptic fiction, I started wondering what would really happen to the medicine left behind when civilization collapses.

Expiration dates are only part of the story. Storage conditions, temperature, humidity, light, and the loss of the medical supply chain can all change how useful a medication remains. And when someone depends on a medication to stay alive, suddenly that abandoned pharmacy becomes a very different kind of place.

Come down the post-apocalyptic rabbit hole with me as I explore how long medicine might last, what happens when it isn’t stored properly, and the uncomfortable ethical questions that come when there isn’t enough to go around.

Because apparently the end of the world needs pharmacy logistics, too.

Image for blog post "What Actually Counts as a Book: A reader's guide to story length."

Novel vs Novella vs Novelette vs Short Story vs Flash Fiction: A Reader’s Glossary

What’s the actual difference between a novel, novella, novelette, short story, and flash fiction? How long is each one? And, perhaps more importantly, does reading a novella or novelette actually count as reading a book?

I’ll give you the definitions. You can tell me what you think.

Somewhere along the way, we decided books only come in one size. Big. Chunky. The kind that leaves a dent in your nightstand and a crick in your neck if you read them lying down.

That’s a lie, and I’m here to correct the record.

Short fiction comes in four distinct flavors, plus the novel you already know, and most readers can’t actually tell you the difference between any of them. You’ve probably heard “novella” tossed around. You’ve maybe never heard “novelette” in your life, unless you were at that party with me. So let’s fix that, because knowing the difference between a novella and a novelette isn’t just trivia. It changes what you should expect to feel by the last page, and, more importantly for people like me, it changes your year-end reading stats.

A wet dog mid-shake, water flying, with the title "Why I Built the Wet Dog Reading Room" overlaid on the image

Why I Built the Wet Dog Reading Room (and What it Means for You)

I used to listen to everyone. Authors telling me to write to market. Readers asking why the sequel wasn’t out yet. Gurus insisting I needed better hooks, more content pillars, a stronger three-second opener. All of it contradictory. All of it loud. Somewhere in the noise, I stopped enjoying the thing I loved most: books. Holding them. Reading them. Writing them.

Then I read a quote that stopped me cold: comparison is the biggest thief of joy. I couldn’t shake it. So I asked myself what actually brings me joy, and I built something around the answer instead of around what everyone else said I should do.

It’s called the Wet Dog Reading Room, and the name goes back further than you’d think. This is the story of why I built it, what it means for readers who join, and why I’m giving my stories away free before anywhere else.

I Was Going to Tell You My Favorite Books. Then This Article Took a Different Turn.

I sat down to write a simple list of my top speculative fiction reads this year—just a quick roundup of the books I loved most.

But while I was drafting it, I realized my reasons for loving these stories weren’t always the reasons a typical reader might give. Yes, these books swept me away with romance, monsters, magic, ghosts, and parallel worlds. But they also did something else: they quietly solved writing problems I didn’t know how to fix.

A ghost romance taught me how to handle impossible intimacy. A sci‑fi mystery showed me the structure I’d been missing. A novella answered a pacing question I’d been stuck on for weeks.

So this list still represents my favorite speculative fiction books—but filtered through an author’s lens, where every story becomes a craft lesson in disguise.

If you love books that teach you something while they entertain, you’ll feel right at home here.

4 Things Readers Do (And Why Your Brain is Probably to Blame)

Why do readers buy books they never read, stay up too late, cry over fictional characters, and reread favorites? A scientist explains reader psychology.

I wasn’t supposed to be near the books. I had a list. I had a plan.

But the books were right across the aisle.

Then I saw her. A woman, mid-thirties, two small children buckled into the cart, a box of goldfish crackers being slowly destroyed by the younger one. She was standing in front of the book display with the focused calm of someone defusing a bomb.

She already had two books in the cart. She picked up three more. Didn’t hesitate. Didn’t calculate. Just added them with the quiet confidence of a woman who has made peace with her choices.

She was not going to read all five of those books. I knew this because I am her. I went home with one more book I didn’t need and couldn’t stop thinking about why we do this.

Here’s the thing about being a pharmacist who writes fantasy romance: I’m wired to ask why. So when I kept noticing my own reader habits and couldn’t explain them, I did what any analytically-minded introvert would do. I started investigating. And then, because I figured I wasn’t the only one, I started writing it up to share.

That became a little side project called A Scientist Explains Readers. Four issues in (over on Substack), and here’s what I’ve found on us:

This is the Part I Panic Through

I have a book coming out in three weeks, which sounds exciting until my brain gets involved.

Then it becomes a full-time investigation into everything I’ve ever written, edited, deleted, or vaguely thought about at 2 a.m. while staring at the ceiling wondering if I’ve misunderstood storytelling as a concept.

The book is about a runaway princess, a thief with questionable life choices, and a horse who behaves like it is personally offended by authority. It’s short. It’s fast. It’s the kind of story you can read in one sitting if you don’t get emotionally derailed by a horse with boundary issues.

But right now, I’m not thinking about the story.

I’m thinking about everything that comes after.

Because publishing a book isn’t just finishing something. It’s the part where you let it go and hope you didn’t accidentally break it somewhere invisible.

And that’s where I am right now.

You Asked. I Answered. (I May Have Overshared.)

What do you actually get when you ask a retired pharmacist turned author — who grew up at a zoo, lived in an RV for two years, and writes from 3 AM to 11 AM — to answer reader questions? Apparently, twenty-three answers and a lot of oversharing.

My readers asked about my writing process, my real-life love story (it involved a broken-down truck and someone’s dad picking us up), where my ideas come from, and yes — the zoo. I answered all of it. Then I added a few questions nobody thought to ask, because apparently I have a lot to say.
If you’ve ever wanted to know what goes into writing romantic speculative fiction, what RV life really looks like, or why there is absolutely no such thing as a writing playlist in this household — this one’s for you.

Top 10 Things I Googled While Writing Mayhem (At least the ones I admit to)

Ever wonder what goes on in an author’s search history?

Fair warning before we get into it: I don’t google things during my first draft. That version looks something like: [Insert Elephant Weight Here]. If I stopped to research every detail mid-scene, I’d never finish the book. Which is probably why my editing takes forever.

Anyway. Here’s the list.