Ellis Van Wyk

as my 5 year anniversary on Wattpad passes, i am left staring at my writing and my books and the feeling of stagnation and disappointment that sits there. while my writing has, in my opinion, definitely improved, and i write consistently longer works, i find i am still wanting for an experience i had only with my first novel, Severing Quilby (here as Greyhound). 
          
          
          there was so much research and note taking and studying of my characters that even an immaturely written story with so many holes and flaws is still my favourite, my standard, my darling. 
          
          
          that being said, i think i'm going to step away from Wattpad more permanently to focus on writing in the privacy of my notes apps and journals. i'm not sure as of yet if i will be deleting my profile altogether. i miss not being required to write a chapter at a time, just letting the flow of a story write itself in whatever order it chooses. maybe i'll reincarnate as a new author somewhere down the line (this is my seventh or so writing personality since i began writing at 9 years old). for now, i'll be stepping away from social media as a whole, but if you ever want to reach out, you know how to find me. 
          
          i love you all and wish you the best xx

sick for the umpteenth time - how am i supposed to get a job to make money if every time i work, i get sick immediately and either have to quit, or be told to go to the hospital for a doctor's note or i will be fired? doctor's note? i don't have insurance because i can't work a job. what kinda doctor's note can i afford rn? 
          
          (grumpy, achey, wheezy and unable to read or write anything for another week. grr. how much is a ticket to Bath, UK?)

@EllisVanWyk thank you, you're the best ❤️

horror/thriller onc stories, share your links here! i'll be adding them to a reading list while i try to work on my last year's once/wattys-reject Falling Into You, a collaborative work with my dear friend @elsewhither (which you can find on their profile). 

resisting the urge to finish and immediately publish the first chapter of a standalone gothic 'romance.' must finish other stuff, must finish other stuff. i don't think i'll be able to get another rotten parts chapter out by the end of the year, but the new year will see me writing the second part of the book a *lot* more consistently. 
          
          severin is still awaiting my slow adjustments to the plot (we're going with split POV's, methinks, and getting rid of one character. this is for the best, ellis) before i start scribbling. 
          
          my anthology piece for Greykin Press will be done next week (awaiting edits and whatnot after that), but lookout for more announcements on that front. 
          
          keep thine cold toes warm,
          and if they already be,
          may they stay just so. 
          
          a wintry haiku and farewell for the rest of the year from ellis ~

chapter 30 of rotten parts is out! it took ages because I have had no motivation to write for a year. i suspect this will be the end of part one, which should set the book to be about 160k words (woah). hopefully the second part's plot threads will make some sense, and have been set up well, but I am extremely excited to get that going underway. might even change up the storytelling a little bit. 
          
          writing a slow new story in the background, planning out my severin quilby rewrite, and finishing up a short story for a Greykin Press anthology. 
          
          happy holidays, warm winters, and many cups of tea to ye
          
          ~ellis

my hopes are already pretty low, but did any horror stories win a watty this year? 

republished saturnalia in its fullness. it's a sort of sequel to severin quilby, but a lot more weird and freaky. takes its inspirations from stuff like midsommar and the wicker man, if any of ye who haven't read want to. 

after four years... i am finally able to see how to rewrite Severin Quilby (now Greyhound). i've always known it wasn't fully what it needed to be, essentially since i wrote it in two months and never edited it, but sitting here with not much to do, i have my answer (i think). i will try to write this new version to completion before i post it (it will be in a newer book version here while i hunt down ways to publish it), so this idea will be birthed into a viewable state sometime around April (i'm hoping. also juggling a short story submission and a new novel and a story i have to finish... aha...), but if you're around to see Greyhound become something beautiful (and oops, still tragic), i thank you for your patience in waiting ♥️

taking a moment to thank all the people who've read Lonesome Ghosts (or, Winn Peterson) in the last two years. i know i've been spotty and grumpy and taken down my stuff more times than i can count, but i'm grateful for everyone who's been a part of my stories ♥️