Hey all, Sam here.
Well, somehow January is over already. I’m honestly getting rather tired of months that feel simultaneously very long and slow but also very fast. It feels like every day feels like an eternity with so much awful stuff happening, but then we’re already a whole month into 2026 already and how does that happen?
Maybe it’s just the living in survival mode that is happening for so many of us right now, but I long for an easing of the pain and suffering and stress that seems to permeate life these days.
Anyway, I guess now that it’s February, I should look back at what I managed to accomplish last month. It wasn’t as much as I had hoped for, but overall I suppose it’s better than nothing.
Reading
I did not exactly hit my goal for reading for the month, unfortunately. I had 10 books on my TBR for January, but I only read five of those books. In total I read seven books for the month, which is just shy of the eight books a month needed to reach a goal of 100 books for the year.
When it comes to timing, January was a terrible month for reading. So many days I wanted to read but work would be too busy, or I would just feel too stressed and overwhelmed, and so nothing would happen. I honestly thought I would do well because in the first week of the year I had already read four books….but then it took over two weeks to finish the next one, and not because I wasn’t enjoying the book.
I actually had a really good reading month in terms of book enjoyment. That was really nice, and hopefully I’ll be able to get reviews up for most of these books soon enough, because I’d like to talk about them. I also find myself hoping that I can read more in February. I really want to escape into stories more for a little while.
Hopeless Necromantic by Shiloh Briar — 5 stars (to be released June 9, 2026)
Thirty, Flirty, and Forever Alone by Christine Riccio — 4 stars
Through Gates of Garnet and Gold by Seanan McGuire — 4.5 stars
This Deadly Touch by Aimee Donnellan — 4.5 stars
This Princess Kills Monsters by Ry Herman — 4 stars
Nightshade & Oak by Molly O’Neill — 4.5 stars (to be released Feb 3, 2026)
Death Meets Cute by J. Penner — 4 stars (to be released April 28, 2026)
Writing
Did I think about my stories? Yes, absolutely. I pretty much always think about my stories and my characters. But did I also struggle with getting words on the page? Another yes. My desire for creativity always seems to spike when I get regular sessions of D&D….and unfortunately due to the holidays and work schedules and fellow players moving and such, we haven’t played since the end of November. It has definitely made my mental health take a nosedive. Hanging out with my friends and indulging in some fantastical roleplaying always makes me feel better (even when the roleplaying is intense and emotional and stressful.
I did manage to write a couple pages of thoughts and snippets for one of my stories towards the end of the month.
Oh, and David started talking about wanting to write an Isekai type story. I reminded him that I had had an idea for that, and he said that he didn’t want to take my story from me, but I interrupted him to suggest that we write a story together. So we’ve started to do rough plotting and worldbuilding for that story. I have no idea how long it will take us to work on it or finish it, but for now it’s a fun little couple project.
Blogging
I did not blog as much as I would have liked in January. Part of it was my work schedule continuing to be a mess…and the other part of it was spending my days off doing not much of anything instead of spending a little bit of time trying to catch up on my overdue blog posts.
In the end, I only managed to publish six blog posts…which is better than nothing, but is still a few posts shy of my minimum goal for myself. I’m really hoping my schedule normalizes more in February so I can get back into a nice blogging groove, but we’ll see what happens.
Books I Want to Read in January
Some of My 2026 Anticipated Releases
Books I’d Like to Read in February 2026
Weekend Writer: A Need for Creativity in Tough Times
Trips/Conventions
Gen Con tickets go on sale next month, so we’ll be picking those up. We have plans to team up with Mousai Crafts for a convention in Des Moines in the fall. And we’re starting to do a little more planning with my mom for a trip back to Ohio in May. Oh, and we’ve discussed a cabin and hiking vacation in Sept/Oct to celebrate our 5 year anniversary.
Basically at this stage in the year most of the updates when it comes to trips and conventions is going to be planning and preparation. We try to do most of our traveling when the weather is a little nicer.
Well, that is all from me for today. Thank you so much for stopping by, and I’ll be back soon with more geeky content.
Free State of Geek 
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