General Update Welcome back, y’all! 2022 has been a lot so far, hasn’t it? In the past six months, I received my official autism diagnosis, which happened a lot more quickly than I’d expected. My intestines then decided to become extremely slow, which is an ongoing problem, and my insomnia also got worse. Part ofContinue reading “My Life as of July 2022”
Author Archives: Kira Thurgood
The A-Z Guide to Being a Novelist
I originally shared this post on my old blog in October 2014, though some updates have been made. I have enough years of experience now to have quite a bit of knowledge about novel-writing. The most important advice I can offer is that you should do whatever works best for you! In case you wantContinue reading “The A-Z Guide to Being a Novelist”
Tips for Supporting Your Favorite Author
Readers sometimes wonder what they can do to better support their favorite authors. Book authorship is a difficult career, not one where it’s easy to succeed! So based on various things I’ve seen professionals say online over the years, here are some tips for readers who want to make an author’s life a little easier.Continue reading “Tips for Supporting Your Favorite Author”
The Words of the Writing World
I originally shared this post on my old blog in September 2013. I talk a lot about writing and stories, for obvious reasons, and you might not always know the terms I use. So today I’m sharing a little dictionary of the language of bookish fandoms to help you better understand and interact with this wonderful weirdContinue reading “The Words of the Writing World”
Autism Stigma and the Magical Multiplying Disabilities
Hey, friends! As noted previously, I realized this last year that I’m on the autism spectrum. This has revealed a lot of unexpected but important truths about the various mental and physical illnesses that I’ve developed throughout my lifetime. I think it’s important that other people understand those truths too. Thus, I’m sharing today theContinue reading “Autism Stigma and the Magical Multiplying Disabilities”
Autism Basics You Might Not Know
When I realized this last year that I’m autistic, it completely shifted my perspective on my life thus far. Next month, I’m going to share the new-and-improved combined version of my disability story. There’s so much misinformation about autism, though, that I first wanted to discuss the basics of this complex and diverse neurodevelopmental condition.Continue reading “Autism Basics You Might Not Know”
My Life as of January 2022
General Thoughts It’s been quite the six months! The most notable update is that I’ve realized I have likely been dealing with undiagnosed autism my whole life. SURPRISE! 🥳 There’s a lot of misinformation around autism, so I’ll be devoting the next couple of months to posts on the topic. Some basics to know nowContinue reading “My Life as of January 2022”
Stuff I Do and Don’t Like in Stories
One of my favorite things about stories is that each individual person has aspects of storytelling that they love to see–and aspects they don’t love to see. Whether you’re talking about genres, tropes, or themes, our personal preferences can be really revealing. They also can guide us in finding new stories to explore and otherContinue reading “Stuff I Do and Don’t Like in Stories”
The Publishing Process
I originally published this post in September 2012 on my old blog. Today’s post provides an overview of the traditional novel publishing process for anyone who wants to brush up on the basics! Authors may deviate from this path in a variety of ways, but this is the standard journey. Write a novel. Contrary toContinue reading “The Publishing Process”
My First Recorded Novel Attempt
When I first decided to become a novelist, around the age of nine, I made various attempts that failed to reach novel-length. (I defined that as “100 pages” then.) Most of these stories were lost a long time ago, but a few were included in the thousands of pages of journals I’ve kept. This story,Continue reading “My First Recorded Novel Attempt”
Tips for Dealing with Writer’s Block
I originally shared this post on my old blog in March 2019. When I first started writing as a child, I didn’t believe that writer’s block was real. Since then, I’ve had many years to learn otherwise! Of the many books I’ve written, the most difficult has been #OCDStory, which has challenged me on multipleContinue reading “Tips for Dealing with Writer’s Block”
My Experiences with Chapter One Events
Hello, everyone! I’ve been attending Ch21Con 2021 online today, so this seemed like a good time to share my experiences with Chapter One Events, which runs both Ch1Con and Ch21Con. These are two writing conferences, one for teens and one for twenty-somethings, that take place every year in Chicago! Fun fact: I had the honorContinue reading “My Experiences with Chapter One Events”
My Life as of July 2021
General Thoughts This year so far has proven to be difficult, though not so much as certain other years. More than anything, I’ve been struggling with a binge-eating problem that has spiraled out of control over the past few years, reaching its peak (I hope!) during the last few months, as I’ve tried to createContinue reading “My Life as of July 2021”
My Writing-Related Discovery of Demisexuality
Hello! Last year for Pride Month, I posted about how, after years of research and thought, I’d figured out that I’m not just straight: I’m actually demisexual and biromantic. For Pride Month this year, I’m sharing that post again here on this new blog! If you’re unfamiliar with the terminology used for different kinds of attraction,Continue reading “My Writing-Related Discovery of Demisexuality”
My Worst Teacher’s Worst Ableism
I originally shared this story on my old blog in June 2017. Like everyone who’s been through school, I’ve dealt with a variety of teachers, good and bad. I’ve had teachers who guided me in my writing career and through my chronic illness struggles, and I’ve had teachers who mistreated and disrespected students and whoContinue reading “My Worst Teacher’s Worst Ableism”
27 Lessons from 27 Years
Today is my 27th birthday! 💃🏻 27 is a good strong number, so I’m pretty thrilled. (Although I basically still think of myself as ~21, so.) Anyway, two years ago, on my original blog, I posted a list of 25 lessons I had learned from my 25 years of life. I’m pretty proud of thatContinue reading “27 Lessons from 27 Years”
The Realization That Transformed My Writing
I originally shared this post on my old blog in November 2019. Over the years, as I’ve developed as a writer, I’ve had many moments where I realized that everything I had written so far was just not original enough. I’d write a bunch of manuscripts, try to get an agent with one of them,Continue reading “The Realization That Transformed My Writing”
My Authorly Bucket List
I originally shared this on my old blog in April 2020. While most people’s bucket lists span a range of potential life experiences, most of what I want to do relates to authorship. There are a sorts of amazing accomplishments and moments a person could have as a novelist! So here is my authorly bucketContinue reading “My Authorly Bucket List”
My Life as of January 2021
General Thoughts Hello! My name’s Kira, and I’m thrilled to be here on my brand new website, where I will be reposting some highlights from my old blog and providing new updates. For those who don’t already know me from my previous blog or my social media, I’m a 26-year-old YA novelist seeking publication whoContinue reading “My Life as of January 2021”
Kira Thurgood 