

The Nameless Soldier
The Nameless Soldier is book 4 in the Annals of Alasia young adult fantasy series. Haven't read all (or any) of the others? That's okay! The books can be read in any order, and each one can stand on its own. Description: What do you do when you’re the only survivor? Nineteen-year-old Tarvic bears the name of a mighty hero from Alasia’s past. However, the young soldier feels anything but heroic when he regains consciousness to find himself the lone survivor of a brutal attack


Tropes and why they are a guilty secret
I've been talking to my students about tropes. I really do enjoy them, the good ones like the Chosen One and even the bad ones like Mary Sues. I think it is because tropes speak to a part of us. A trope flirts with our Id. Which brings up the question of why do we like the bad tropes as well. Here are some tropes that we secretly like and yet should eradicate from our literature. Born Sexy Yesterday Jenna Moreci talks about this and I bet you probably haven't heard of this tr


Bad news advice trap
This last week we had to share some bad news with friends and family. Mostly we got messages of sympathy and this was greatly appreciated. Some, though with all the best intentions, gave advice. Now I've made this mistake myself because I am a terrible know-it-all so I know the need to be helpful and it is a sentiment filled with hope and no malice. But unfortunately, some advice can be taken the wrong way. I've had this with my weight. People assume that my weight is due to