Well, I did it! 4 chapters a week, 17 weeks, from the start of May until the end of August. Chapter by chapter, I posted my newest novel, Girls and Monsters, on three websites: Royal Road, Scribble Hub, and Tapas. The whole novel is now up in its entirety and still free to read for anyone who is interested. (Although, if you want to send me money, there is a donation button at each site.)

I had never published on any of these three websites, and part of my experiment was to see which website was the best fit for my novel. As far as raw views went, there was a clear winner and a clear loser. On Royal Road, I got 8700 views and on Tapas, I got 288 views. This means I'll probably publish Book 2 on Royal Road and maybe close my Tapas account entirely. (I'm undecided about Scribble Hub.)

If you happen to be interested in the process of publishing a novel serially on various platforms, I intend to blog about it this month. You can check out the behind the scenes publishing angst at my personal blog, which is: rebeccalangpersonalblog.wordpress.com

So, what now?

This is the end of the first book of Girls and Monsters, but it is not the end of the story. I'm already hard at work on Book 2, with about 300 pages written and the general plot complete. It is in messy condition, but if I can clean it up, maybe I can repeat this experiment all over again next summer.

I updated my website to include a snippet of a scene from the next book, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at the original idea. 

I'm also considering publishing Girls and Monsters on other websites, like Wattpad or Inkitt, or even taking the plunge and publishing it on Amazon. What do you think? If you have any thoughts on this matter, please let me know in the comments.

Last year I started a new blog, creatively named "Rebecca Lang's Personal Blog," on wordpress, with the idea that I could use it to freely express my opinions and write whatever I wanted without the pressure of using it as a tool to create content for my audience or sell books.

That said, I didn't know what to do with my blog and it was mostly abandoned--until this spring, when I started to feel inspired again. My blog entries took on an interesting hybrid of "here's a random thing I've been doing lately" and "tips for how you, too, can do this random thing." This emphasis on action might be because, after 2 years of being stuck in semi-isolation, I have the urge to go out into the world and try new things again. I don't expect these kinds of blogs to be standard (since it would require me to do new activities), but I've been having fun writing them.  

* * *

"The Benefits of Keeping a Private Diary" 

After spending a year meticulously writing down events and emotions and forcing myself to re-read them, I make some interesting self-discoveries--and you can, too, with my list of trips for keeping a diary.

"How to Write a Poem About a Weeping Peach Tree (Part 1)"

An excruciatingly detailed account of me trying to observe the peach tree in front of my house for the sake of writing a poem, before finally hitting inspiration--with tips on how to brainstorm your own poems.  

"How to Write a Poem About a Weeping Peach Tree (Part 2)"

The excruciating process of editing the raw observations of a peach tree into a semi-respectable poem--with tips on editing a poem.
 
"How to Host a Poetry-Writing Excursion"

I try to teach poetry to friends and family, which ends up mostly being an excuse for everyone to hang out at a botanical garden--with tips on how to host your own poetry-writing event.

"How to Tutor a Preschooler on Facetime with the Help of a Mischievous Stuffed Lion"

As I tutor my nephew on my phone, he suggests bringing his favorite stuffed animal into our teaching sessions, and I give it a try--with tips for how you can tutor a young child online and links to free worksheets.

* * *

To conclude, I hope that you have had the opportunity to expand yourself, try new things, and just have one--in a safe and healthy way, of course. If any of these blog entries, inspired you or gave you ideas for something new that you can try, then it has done its job. Take care everyone, and please check out my new "Girls and Monsters" novel I'm publishing right now online for free.

Girls and Monsters is a novel that I didn't mean to write. The idea for it had floated in my head
since 2014, but back then it was a soap opera-ish bedtime story I played in my head right before I fell asleep. In 2019, I actually started writing it down, not as a serious project, but as a way of amusing myself. I kept writing in spurts of passion, until suddenly I had a novel.

Girls and Monsters

When she is abducted by a powerful sorcerer who hides his true face with illusions, Seri fears the worst. As soon as she arrives at his isolated tower, the sorcerer puts a curse on her. After a grace period of three months, Seri will begin a painful transformation into a dragon, and once that transformation is complete, she will become a mindless beast, obedient to him. Brand, the sorcerer, offers to lift the curse--but only if she gives him something he wants.
 
Seri, however, is determined to resist him. She meets other girls that Brand has kidnapped and becomes a leader among them, urging them not to yield to Brand’s twisted demands. But Brand has a secret. The sole survivor of a terrible massacre, he’s vowed revenge on those that killed his family. The dragon curse is key to his vengeance. But when Brand develops feelings for Seri, he starts to question his choices. What sort of man does he want to be?

I had a novel, and it was fun and kind of addicting, but I didn't know what to do with it. I wanted to share it with others who might get some enjoyment out of it, but I didn't want to go through the trouble of publishing a novel (not yet, anyway). The idea came to my head to publish it serially on one (or three) of the many platforms that host authors. This lets readers read my novel for free and gives me an opportunity to build my audience.

I will be posting chapters of Girls and Monsters on Royal Road, Scribble Hub, and Tapas every Monday through Thursday, from May to August 2022, until the novel is complete. This story will be free to read, although, you can support me financially through donations. If you enjoy my story, please rate, review, or send me a message!

I've never published serially, except maybe on fanfiction, so I'm going to try this out as an experiment. (For those interested in the experimental publishing aspect, I'll write more about it on my personal blog.) I'm excited to have the opportunity to try something new and learn and maybe find new ways to connect to other readers and writers. Please check out my story on one of the three platforms, if it sounds appealing to you. Thank you for all your support.

Content warning: Girls and Monsters does contain strong language (mostly toward the end), some frank discussions on rape and consent, and briefs thoughts on suicide. Sex is suggested, though there are no graphic sex scenes. 

As I laid the "News and Reviews" section of my website to rest, I decided to start a new blog on wordpress. I called it, rather unimaginatively, Rebecca Lang's Personal Blog (rebeccalangpersonalblog.wordpress.com), because I wanted to emphasize that this was not a promotional tool for my writing, but simply a place I could practice expressing my thoughts. I even wrote an entire article explaining Why I Decided to Start a New Blog.

Basically, I don't have set topics or a set schedule for this new blog. I write about whatever I want whenever I want. So far, this had included me attempting to re-read my own book and an essay on the necessity of creativity. This is a way for me to hone my voice, and as such, it may be of some interest to young writers or to anyone who wants to get to know me better. Honestly, I don't see this blog having a large following (or any following, really), but that's okay. It gives me the freedom to express my opinions, and that's what it's meant for. 

The link to the blog can also be found under the "About Me" section of my website. 

Hello, everyone. I hope you are enjoying the lovely spring weather.

If you popped onto Rebecca Lang Stories lately, you may have noticed that the layout of the website looks slightly... different. I've been in the process of revising my website since the start of 2021. I wanted to make sure the main focus of my website is my books, and so I tried to streamline the content to display the books.

One of the ways I want to focus on my books is by creating some new and exciting bonus material for each book. Right now Company is the only book that has this bonus content, but I have some ideas in mind for The Changelings. (Let's just say that my primitive painting skills may soon get put to good use.) Keep your eyes open for that in the coming months.

I have not deleted any content, but some of it is hidden. Any writing that does not center around my published books (or books I intend to publish) can now be found under the "About Me" section. This includes my poems, writing tips, fanfiction (which now includes an introduction as to how fanfiction made me a better writer), and my blogs. The teaching resources section is now under the Three Floating Coffins section.

I have created this "News" section to focus on on any new projects, books, content, or events. If I release a new book or if I create a new webpage or if I make an appearance, this will be the place I'll announce it. However, I will not be using this space to write reviews or talk about my writing process, as I've done before. The previous "News and Reviews" section can now be found under the "blogs" page of the "About Me" section. 

The process of revising this website is ongoing, so in the coming months you may notice many changes. I hope these changes will work out for the best and help create a warm and welcoming experience for you.