2020 in Review

January: I return to SMU and process the Documents series of the Otis and Velma Davis Dozier collection. I start playing Elga of Dale in my gaming group's current campaign in The One Ring and continue research on childhood in 18th-century Europe.

February: I process the Ephemera series of the Dozier collection and have a friend-date with K. to see Little Women. I return a book on the history of the 18th century to the library with a note correcting the entry about the "Rise of the Novel".

March: I hastily pack up the Dozier collection and prepare to work from home for a few weeks. Tuesday game night goes virtual. I cease going to a cafe for my research sessions and experiment with homemade chai lattes. I cancel travel plans to see family and friends in South Carolina.

April: Definitely did not bring enough work home with me in March. Research focus shifts to identify elements from Pathfinder's Mummy's Mask adventure modules that were used in the D&D campaign that inspired WINTERS. Friends come to the rescue when I have to repair a car during a pandemic. My cat resents the eviction of a mouse from under the sofa.

May: My hand hurts from pre-labeling countless number of folders for the Dozier collection. I sit outside and begin typing up my Mummy's Mask campaign notes. A friend brings me flowers on my birthday and I rearrange my workspace at home.

June: Cautiously return to campus to complete processing the Dozier collection and spend a week reading several hundred AP English essays. Typing up campaign notes continues, even in the summer heat. I participate in Black Lives Matters by attending protests in person and supporting online.

July: Begin unemployment. The cat suffers from pandemic restrictions when going to the vet. I also become an Avatar: The Last Airbender fan. I do #ASummerInWriting on Instagram.

August: Masked friends help me pack my earthly belongings. I complete typing the campaign notes to use as reference while replotting WINTERS and celebrate the debut of IGNITE THE SUN by Hanna C. Howard. I say farewell to my friends in North Texas and move to South Texas.

September: Recovering from moving takes most of the month. Adjust to living with my parents again. I read about Lady Hester Stanhope, usually with a cat nearby, and wrap up another season of Savage Worlds: The Last Parsec. 

October: I bring home a kitten from the shelter and name her Hazel. I did "Thinktober", a writing version of Inktober, on Instagram and decide upon THE ARCANIST as a working title for my WINTERS novel. I devour the long-awaited RETURN OF THE THIEF by Megan Whalen Turner. I introduce Ana Page in our new campaign using the Fantasy: AGE system. I vote and continue to self-quarantine.

November: National Novel Writing Month to begin drafting THE ARCANIST. My dad and I build a catio. An artist brings three deities in WINTERS to life. Much time is spent chaperoning the cats. I and countless others hold our breath and celebrate with HAMILTON at the election results. I have Thanksgiving alone with my cats.

December: I use my NaNoWriMo experience to make a plan regarding further research and outlining and celebrate an unusually low-key Advent and Christmas. I end the year by watching fireworks from the window.

2020 was a year. May 2021 be a happy new year indeed.