Tag: writing
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The Book I Wrote to Deal With Rejection
I have a new book! Cake and Pewter Chronicles, a cozy fantasy collection, is forthcoming November 30, 2026, from Clay Patin Press. And yes, I wrote every bit of it in the throes of rejection. As of this blog post, in fact, I’ve received sixty-two rejection letters related to my writing this year. Compare that…
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On Health Challenges and Inner Hospitality
“I like the idea of having compassion for the different parts of myself and my experience, feeling different on different days and accepting each of those days as they come. In practice, though …” I live with a chronic health condition, and I’ve only ever made a provisional kind of peace with that aspect of…
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Practicing Impatience and “The Monk’s Knife”
“Her friends used to make fun of her for even thinking she could smell power, but she could, and she smelled it on him.” – from “The Monk’s Knife,” a Cake & Pewter story My new cozy fantasy serial is here! “The Monk’s Knife” will publish in two parts on Substack starting today. It will…
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Encountering Strangers and “The Interruption: A Short Story”
I never know what will come from sitting down with a friend, let alone from encountering a stranger. People invariably surprise me. Any given moment may turn out to be a fight or a dance, an inconvenience or a gift. Some moments may be all of the above, and how I think through that complexity…
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On Rest and Enough: Books I’ve Spent Time With Lately
How much effort is enough? How much attention? How much “success”? Leading up to the publication of my recent novel, Kohelette, I couldn’t help but be aware of all the publishing professionals said a successful author should do to launch a book. The pitches, the marketing, and the business of it all stayed in my mind well…
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Join Me in Celebrating Publication Day
Kohelette: A Novel came out this past Wednesday. I’m beyond thrilled! Advance readers may have had the novel for a while already, but I’ve still relished sending it out into the world more broadly, first with a recent excerpt appearing in The Polk Street Review 2026 and now with this past week’s publication. There may…
About the author
Callie J. Smith writes about women who, like her, are finding themselves. Her essays and cozy fiction (contemporary and fantasy) explore everyday things like hope, creativity, and grief.
SPECIAL! Suddenly Color: A Sacred Grounds Novel Book 2 is on $1.99 special in Kindle edition for a limited time, November 12-18, 2026 (Pacific Time) only. Click here to find your copy.
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