Welcome to our new home!
What is this Blog About?
I am a writer, and I have always been fascinated by how stories work and develop. I explore this through reviews, posts about writing, author interviews, ideas, and much more.
The main focus is books and writing, but I do look at other media such as television, movies, video games, etc.
I am not locked into one specific genre, but I gravitate mainly towards speculative fiction.
Who Am I?
As a Writer:
I am a writer of dark fiction, particularly horror, dark fantasy, mystery/thriller. I have published many fiction pieces with more on the way. My debut collection, Thin Slices: A Collection of Horror Flash Fiction came out January 12, 2025. I’m a contributor at The Horror Tree. I also slush read for Frost Zone Stories.
I am an Affiliate Member of the Horror Writer’s Association and the secretary for the Ontario Chapter. I am also a member of the Sisters in Crime.
Outside of Writing:
I studied Anthropology and Classics in University and then taught Ancient Greek Myth/History part-time for a few years. I am especially interested in Greek Mythology and modern retellings. I currently work as a Legal Assistant. My interests include embroidery, cross-stitch, reading, video games, and martial arts. I trained in Taekwondo for several years and am currently training in Meibukan Goju-Ryu Karate. I’ve also dabbled in Fencing, Wing-Chun, Aikido, Jiu-Jitsu, Tai Chi, and Muay Thai.
What is the Story of this Blog?
Years ago, I started a tiny blog because I set myself a challenge: to actually read all the books I own before buying any new ones. Well, I failed at that miserably because I can’t resist new and interesting books even when I’m already in the middle of five others.
From there, I shifted more towards book reviews. I taught myself how to take a review beyond the basics of “I liked it” and turn it into something deeper. My appreciation for books and storytelling in general grew through this process. I learned to see stories as more than entertainment, but as a part of life.
This understanding pushed me to try my hand at writing more than just reviews. I started including yearly top book lists, analyzing different genres, spotlighting authors through features and interviews.
All of these steps along my blogging journey have led to this newest phase. Blogger was my writing home for many years, and it served me well, but I want to continue to expand and develop Melody Writes. That is why I have made the decision to transition to WordPress. Moving here will allow me more opportunities for different styles of posts, all still centered around storytelling, and primarily books.
Thank you for following along, whether you’ve been with me a while, or are just finding my work now. Stay tuned for more to come!
You can still read some of my old reviews kicking around Goodreads, and I will be cherry-picking some of those to update and republish here.
AI Statement
I do not use generative “AI” to write my work. I develop my own ideas, titles, and writing. Sometimes I will use a random word generator/name generator such as this site to help inspire me to name people/places. And I will use basic grammar functions that come with all writing software, but all the words I write are my own.
For me the purpose of writing is TO WRITE. If I’m not writing, then I’m not a writer.
For my self-publishing, I will never knowingly use AI-generated art for my covers or an AI-generated narrator. I support my fellow human creators.
Unless otherwise labelled, all site pictures/graphics are made by me (not including book covers for reviews). I do use stock imagery, but I do not use AI-generated images with my knowledge. If you notice any, please let me know right away.
Other places you can find me:
Horror Writers Association – Ontario Chapter
Interviews: