Gratitude for You

As I've mentioned before, I'm no stranger to being a published and active author on the Internet. A concise summary of my publishing experiences is here. I've had to stop publishing in probably...um...2015 and while the writing itch did not go away, ideas and snippets of dreamy creative thoughts organized and hid themselves away in my mind as reality hit me in tons of ways.

I didn't attempt to publish anything or write until February 2025, a few weeks after my birthday, which is the first of the month.

I didn't think anything of it--just remembering that Draft2Digital and Smashwords were merging in some articles I'd read in the past--and republished my first short story about a magical Black girl and her friends that I wrote when I was 13 years old. I spent over 10 years editing it and re-educating myself on writing and my creative process over time. (I'll write an in depth post on it in the future. I'm derailing myself).

I thought I was crazy for doing it again.

"You're just gonna give up again,"

"No one reads or likes short stories,"

My first deposit from Draft2Digital was $10.00 and I made no money after that, but I did have a crap-ton of free downloads which is always awesome...it meant people were reading my stuff...hopefully enjoying it, too.

What was that about no one reading short stories?

My second check was $15.00...Literally just enough to help me cover a medical bill.

Now I'm about to get paid again on the 15th of this month. And this next payment will grow even more than what I'm looking at to be deposited into my bank account now...If I push it more and keep going.

Holy hell, it might not mean much in the bigger writing/independent publishing space, but for my confidence as a writer...it's a welcome and much-needed boost.

I quit my stressful boss (I loved my library technician job as a whole--did it for 8 years before moving states) in November of last year for my sanity. Work I enjoyed doing was no longer enjoyable and no one likes that.

I'm a person who thrives on the quote: "You can't pour from an empty cup," In my case, it was a barrel that I'd been scraping from at the bottom.

I can't be my best for everyone else if I don't feel supported, loved, or needed first. Someone has to show you how to love and be confident before you can do it yourself. It's your choice to absorb that confidence or trap yourself in your darkness.

I'm done with doing the latter. I've had major life developments...some welcome, others not. But I use them as fuel for my writing and it's my therapy. (See my work under Seraphine Vale. The first book I wrote under that name is about the state of my marriage, but it's changing for the better now.) Writing has helped me figure things out and untangle some knots in my heart.

I want to thank you all, my readers and writer friends. For reading this blog, for downloading and reading my short works, I really appreciate you all.

Look forward to more things from me in the future.

Thank you for lifting me up through success and failure in this journey.

(I'm currently in the final stages of editing my next release. I hope it will please my older readers and heat things up for the colder months to come.)

Find my stories here: Barnes & Noble • Amazon • Kobo • Smashwords • Hoopla

Welcome to My World—Short Fiction, Big Feelings

Hey there, beautiful readers. I'm so glad you stumbled across this little corner of the internet, where stories smolder, hearts break (in the best way), and every sentence tries to punch you right in the feels. I'm an Aquarius and Earth Dragon—writer, dreamer, INFJ introvert in survival mode—and I publish under two pen names that reflect the duality of my storytelling soul: Rin Nocturne , where I get unapologetically bold, dramatic, and just a little bit magical. Think Sailor Moon vibes crash-landing into raw emotional landscapes, with a sprinkle of modern fantasy and mythology. Seraphine Vela , the name I use for stories that carry a different kind of weight—more literary, still emotional, but grounded in character and language-driven worlds. Let’s talk shop for a second. What I Write ✍️ I specialize in short fiction —because sometimes you don’t need 100,000 words to wreck someone emotionally (in a good way). Whether it’s a 10-page gut-punch or a novella that mak...

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