Book Review: Calligraphy Guild by R. M. Archer

 Hello Readers!

Today marks the one-year anniversary of Calligraphy Guild's publication. Now, I feel almost sad to say that, when I knew this book was in the works I brushed it off as just another fantasy that probably included elements I had no desire to read. (Some of my readers may know that I do not favor the fantasy genre, for reasons that I will post about later.) However, as I followed Archer and saw her passion and heart for this story, and learned more about the story itself, I became curious. So curious that,when I was given the opportunity, I bought Calligraphy Guild. I don't usually buy books unless I am convinced that they are worth reading. I have also never bought a fantasy novel. I ask you to keep these things in mind, dear reader, as I try to review this book. Let's begin with the synopsis...

                                    ~🐉~

                    (Can I just say, I love the whole aesthetic of this book!)

~Synopsis~

Dragon ink gives calligraphers the power to set history in stone—or to change it.

Lai Duyên’s dreams are realized when she’s admitted into the ranks of the calligraphers, authors considered trustworthy enough to defend time from those who would change it. She’s thrilled at the opportunity to record her country’s history, and to work with the other calligraphers in her village.

But when Duyên’s guild is set upon by ancient dragons demanding a time-changer be destroyed, her world is flipped upside down. Her guildmates turn on each other, suspicion coloring their every move. To make matters worse, she’s begun hearing the dragons in her head and finds them impossible to block out: a condition that rendered her grandmother insane.

With the calligraphy guild in turmoil and Duyên’s ever-present fear of madness clouding her vision, will the group be able to discover which of their guildmates has altered time before the dragons pass judgment on them all?

 ~🐉~

~My Thoughts~

To begin with, I would like to thank R. M. Archer for including both a glossary and a pronunciation guide. This novel is set in an Asian-inspired world and I have little to no knowledge of Asian languages. I will break this part down into subcategories. 

The World: The world and setting of this novel felt so realistic that I almost forgot it was fantasy. Calligraphy Guild immersed me in Hairen and I didn't want to leave. There is a strong sense of culture and community throughout the novel that I really enjoyed. My favorite part was all the different guilds and how they worked together and the different options for choosing one. I would love to work in the Calligraphy Guild. To go to work to write and write with other people would be a dream come true. 

The Characters: Lai-Duyên is the main character/protagonist. She reminded me a lot of myself. Her relationship with Ryuu was adorable. They were so sweet together and there were times I just grinned at the book because 😍 they were adorable. I appreciated the portrayal of a couple of characters with chronic illnesses. I think this was the first book I read with that kind of representation. 

I don't know if the dragons were considered "characters" or not, but for the purpose of this post, they are. The dragons were really fun! The snark and the way they interacted with the characters were fun to read. Especially ManhZen's pet dragon, Emiko. I think I need an emotional support dragon now 😆. 

The Plot: One of the characters gets the idea in their head to break one of the foundational rules of the guild. I am very bad at making guesses in mysteries as to "who dun it?" but I guessed correctly and that made me sorta happy... though I was disappointed in the character themselves for thinking they could just get away with doing what they were expressly told not to. *pokes them* they should know better 😒. The plot is slow, but that was good for me because it helped me keep track of everything going on and focus on how the characters were growing and building relationships.

The Prose: I'm a writer, so I can't help but talk about the beautiful way that this novel was written. The words and ways that the scenes were described were lovely. This novel was very well written. 

Overall Thoughts: As I began reading this book I was prepared to put it down and say it wasn't for me if there was anything that made me uncomfortable. I had forced myself through another book that was awful and learned my lesson the hard way. I appreciated that Archer kept all of the witcraft-y parts of fantasy out of the book. 

~🐉~

I would give this book a solid 4/5 stars and recommend it to anyone who enjoys clean fantasy without witchcraft and other questionable elements. It's also great if you love dragons with snark and sass. 😏🐉 

If you would like to add to the reading experience, you should definitely listen to the Calligraphy Guild playlist on Spotify while reading! You can find that and learn more about the book, find a character test (I got Lai Duyên), and the Pinterest boards you can find on the book page Here!

That brings this post to a close, if you would like to connect with R. M. Archer and see more of the amazing work she does you can follow her on...

R. M. Archer's Facebook Page

R. M. Archer's Instagram

R. M. Archer's Website/blog

Buy Calligraphy Guild Here!

That's all for today ya'll! Have you read Calligraphy Guild? What did you think? Do you want to read Calligraphy Guild? Let me know in the comments!

Blessings,

Mattie May

Because Life Never Goes As Planned...

 Hello Readers,

Much has happened since my last post. I had intended to post more frequently, but life has a way of hitting all at once. The past few months have been a whirlwind of school, work, a vacation, a friend's wedding, and turning 21 :o.

Since this blog has been neglected, two important birthdays have happened. First, at the end of March, this blog turned 3, I can't believe it's been so long. I was only 17 when I started and I am happy with how it has developed over the years. The second birthday was Everlasting Gold, my novel has now been in the hands of my precious readers for 3 years as of the end of April. I want to thank all of you, readers, for coming alongside me as I walk this road of writing and blogging. Your reading and commenting mean so much to me. 

Schoolwork was the main time stealer. I have been enjoying my online classes at The Master's University so much. I learned many new things that I will hopefully remember beyond the finals. I've learned more about myself and how I study and, perhaps most importantly, that I am able to pull at least two all-nighters in a row given proper motivation and caffeination. I do not recommend this style of getting assignments turned in on time, but it does work in a pinch.  

My family and I took a trip back east to my friend's wedding this summer. We finally got to go to the Ark Encounter in Williamstown, KY which was definitely a highlight of the trip. We also went to Dollywood, TN, (while there we celebrated my *21st birthday*. Y'all, I feel so old. I am fully legal, which is kinda scary) and Mt. Airy, NC. Besides getting an allergy/head cold during the trip, it was a lovely time. The wedding was beautiful and I'm so happy for my friend. We also got to visit some old friends, and reconnect with even older friends (meaning, we've known them longer, sorta... it's complicated in the best of ways).  

Since I'm on break from school for the next couple of weeks, I thought I should revive this blog. In the next few days, I will be posting another book review because, with the school semester over, I have once again been able to read books for pleasure instead of school. 

I hope y'all are having a lovely summer! 

Blessings,

Mattie May

Well it’s that time of year for a new one to start

Dear Readers,

I apologize for falling off the face of the blogosphere. School started, life happened and here I am almost four months later… writing a long overdue blog post. 

I had a lot of plans for this year, and not many of them actually happened. And the word that will continue to be my excuse is… school. This wrap up post will not really be my usual one because it’s more exciting that way. (Actually because I’m writing this and it’s almost 2023 :o) 

Sadly, with school I didn’t get hardly any writing done. I wrote some, mostly poetry to help process some of the things that were going on in my life. Most all the prose I wrote was for school. 

I also didn’t do much reading, but I’m on Goodreads now if you care to keep up with my reading. 

The podcast got neglected after April because I started school. I’m hoping that as I fall into the swing of school and work I’ll figure out my time and maybe get an episode out, we’ll see. 

I learned a lot this year. I learned more about me and I learned about people. I learned the importance of being honest with people. And I learned the pain of loss. Above all though, through the crazy insane things that life will throw God is still sovereign and on the throne. 

This is where I would usually talk about my goals or resolutions for the new year, but I haven’t given them too much thought at this point…. I’m also working toward keeping my goals realistic so I don’t completely fail, but I also want to challenge myself. 

I think I will close this post with the words of Longfellow. 

“Then peeled the bells more loud and deep

God is not dead, nor doth he sleep.

The wrong will fail, the right prevail

With peace on earth, good will to men.” 

~I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 

Happy New Year! 

Blessings in Christ, 

Mattie May

August Wrap-up

 Hello Readers! 

I’m back again for another wrap-up post! This will probably be a short post because I’m currently with my family on vacation and I didn’t plan ahead enough to post this before we left… so here I am in the car, writing this post. 

The big news for this month was switching schools. As you might know from my last post, I was struggling with some of the theology from CCU. In the midst of trying to figure out if I could take some Bible classes at The Master’s University I discovered that they had a creative writing and publishing program starting in the spring! 

Now I’m also working on school in the car because my classes started Monday! So far I am really enjoying them and learning lots. 

I didn’t get much for writing done this month except continue to learn about WWI and the events and people surrounding it. It has been very helpful as I try to grasp some of the complexities of a full-blown worldwide war. I have an editor scheduled to help me in October, so we’ll see how that ends up going. 

That’s all for today, y’all! Are any of you doing college? What are you looking forward to most this school year? Hope you have a lovely almost fall! 

Blessings, 

Mattie May

Random Life Update

Hello Readers,

This month has flown by. It seems that so much has happened, and I lost track of it. So here I am doing another blog post... later than I hoped. 

Things that Have Happened...

- 4th of July

We had a party and a pie contest. My pie won for the best looking and I'm really proud of that lol. We also went to see the local fireworks for the first time. 

-My family had two birthdays this month. 

-I finished my 2nd college class and started my 3rd. Almost done with my first semester! 

These past two classes have been challenging in a theological sort of way. But they have helped me solidify my own beliefs. 

-I started working. 

I work for a very sweet family that goes to my church. A bonus with gas prices going up is that they live one house down from me, so I get to ride my bike! An exciting thing that happened this week was when I dumped dirty mop water into a meat bee hole... somehow I managed not to get stung. 

- I got some editing done on OtF!

This was a highlight of my month. I got some editing done. Not as much as I would like, but at this point, anything is a win. I have found it very helpful to ramble at a writing friend about my characters. I think OtF may take a slightly different turn theme-wise than I originally planned. (As a side note in my writing life, I wrote a poem that I might share with y'all at a future time.)

-I feel as though I am an official adult.

Between phone calls, emails, signing paperwork, doing college, work, getting a new phone, and starting to pay my own bills... ahh, adulting here I am.

I have ideas for more thought-out blog posts in the future. I'm hoping as I settle into a routine I can factor in more time for blogging. 

I hope y'all are having a wonderful summer!

Blessings,

Mattie May

Character Quotes Blog Tag

 

Hello Readers,

I realized that today was the last day of June. I also realized that I have yet to do a blog post for this month. And so here I am, fashionably almost too late... oops. 

Earlier this month, I got tagged by the lovely Abigail over at Diamonds in the Rough for a blog tag that she created in an attempt to get to know her own characters better. I also need to get to know my characters better, and so here I am, actually doing the blog tag... (I may have a list of tags that I have yet to do... o.o) 

Instructions: take the characters from your current WIP and list a quote that describes each one. It can be something they do, a piece of dialogue they say or something of that nature. Do what you will.

I am going to be taking the 6 main(ish) characters from my WWI disaster WIP. (Please note this story has had minimal editing.)

Jenny Blair

"She was nervous, but wouldn’t admit it. That would show weakness and she was strong; she must be strong in honor of her dad. In honor of all the other men fighting. She would have to find out when she arrived if she would be brave enough. She sincerely hoped she would. She must be brave."

(Possibly my favorite character... she's sweet, strong, and stubborn...)

George Blair

"“I have every intention of us both returning home safely,” George gave his friend a reassuring smile. George felt a shot of adrenaline rush through his body as he said the word safely. Yes, they would both return home safely. George noticed that James’ hands were shaking. Wanting to support his friend, George put a hand on his friend's shoulder. “We'll get home alright, just wait, this war will be over before Christmas,” George hoped that would help. Just then, something deep inside told him that it wouldn’t. That it would be a bloody war, that lives would be lost, that he- and all the men standing with him would never be the same. That they might not return home safely. A sinking feeling made his heart feel like a ship's anchor, cast into a turbulent sea. George tried to push the feelings further down; he had to be strong for James’ sake. For the sake of the men around him."

(Husband, Father, Soldier... what else can I say?)

Mabel Blair

"“You could refrain from encouraging your dad and Mr. James to go get killed.” Mabel replied a little sternly."

(Anxious wife? Yes. Supportive wife? Also yes. Honestly she's really sweet and just cares a lot about her family and friends.)

Kenneth Martin

"No matter what anyone said or thought, he didn’t like the idea of fighting or going off to war. He didn’t like the idea of men killing one another. Kenneth winced as he thought of what it might be like to have a bullet hit him. He never thought of himself as a brave man. How would he fare when he started fighting; would he turn and run like a coward? Would he hold his ground? Kenneth didn’t know, he likely wouldn’t know until his first battle."

(My farm boy turned soldier...) 

Fred Martin

“Kenneth, it is your duty to protect your country; how dare you think you’re going to stay here on this farm for the duration of the coming war!”

(Slightly over patriotic father who wants his son to do what he cannot. Hint, Kenneth does not appreciate it.)

Peggy Martin

“Fred, Kenneth, please, calm down, we aren’t going to be able to help the war by creating one at the kitchen table.” 

“I’m not taking sides; I just want to help. You two need to stay in line or I’ll whip the lotta ya,”

(Kenneth's mother, trying to help and throwing a bit of humor in with it.)

Tag! You're it! 

If you have yet to do this tag, consider yourself, Tagged. 

I hope you all have a patriotic 4th of July and lovely summer! 

Blessings, 

Mattie May

April Showers Bring May Flowers

Hello Readers! 

It feels like summer is already here, technically it's not, but it sure feels like it. 

This month and last month have felt like a whirlwind. 

I know I never posted the giveaway results, so I'll go ahead and do that now! 

Congrats to Naomi W! 

Life has been very busy this past month. I'm always amazed at how God takes our life trajectory and then flips it upside down. What I'm about to tell you about I never would have thought that I would, but here I am. 

I am a college student now. 😮

As is typical for me, I didn't decide to do college till about four or five weeks before registration ended for summer classes. I seem to be a last-minute kind of person. I'm currently working toward a Creative Writing degree at Colorado Christian University. I have one week left of my first class and so far it hasn't been as bad as I might have expected. My first class was an introduction to college writing and so far I've made it. One of my biggest fears of doing college was writing a college paper. I didn't think I could do it. But now I've written a few, and they weren't as bad as I might have thought they were. So that's my first bit of news. 

The second bit is that I done left the teen years. I guess I should probably update my bio since I'm no longer a teen writer. 😦😂 

It feels weird. 

You know how people ask if you feel any different on your birthday... up until now, I've said no... but now... I think I feel a little different. It could be purely psychological, but I have no way of proving it. I had a very lovely birthday with friends and family. 

I don't really enjoy all the attention having a birthday gives me, but I guess you're only two decades once in your life and you may as well enjoy it. 

I've lived a wonderful twenty years. It's been beautiful and ugly. It's been hard and easy. There have been hills and valleys. And I thank the Lord for each and every blessing and trial that He has allowed me to walk through. 

I've learned so much about life and growing up and while I might be in shock that I'm not a teenager anymore, I hope I can learn and grow a lot through this next decade of my life. 

Blessings,

Mattie May, The Blossoming Writer