Autumn Awesomeness with a Dash of Christmas – September 2025 Wrap

September turned out to be a fantastic month for me both as a songwriter and author. From receiving awards nominations and recording new songs to celebrating anthology publications, getting my first lit mag acceptance, and more, I’m ready to share all the highlights.

My Two Nominations for the 4th Annual Holiday Music and Film Awards

It felt like Christmas in September because I found out that I received two nominations for the 4th Annual Holiday music and Film Awards being held in Jacksonville this November. “Candy Cane” is up for Best Christmas Jazz Song, and “Tinsel Heart” is up for Best Christmas Pop Song.

I wrote all about my nominations in this blog post. Huge thank you to the HMFAs for this recognition. I’m so grateful and honored to be a nominee again this year.

My September Studio Session

The Christmas vibes continued when I went to the Vault for a ten-hour session to wrap recording for my two new Christmas singles coming this holiday season. Once I finished my Christmas songs, I worked on a new pop song that I’m beyond excited about.

I wrote all about my session in this blog post. Studio days are seriously my favorite.

My Last Time Playing at the Murrysville Farmers Market 

After a fabulous summer, I played at the farmers market for the last time this year. I had so much fun.

Live music warms my heart, and I’m so glad I got to perform at the farmers market again this summer.

Two Anthology Publications

In September, I celebrated two anthology publications.

First, Seasons of Romantasy: Autumn by Quill & Flame Publishing House released on September 4. This anthology features “A Slice of Fire and Apples,” a young adult romantasy that I co-authored with my friend, Jessica Lee Minneci, under our pen name, Sadie Lielle. I loved writing this story with Jess, and I’m so glad it’s finally in print for readers to enjoy this autumn and beyond.

Second, GORE 5 (Curses): A Halloween Anthology by Poe Boy Publishing came out on September 26. My young adult gothic horror heist story, “The Amber Opal,” is in this book, and I wrote all about my eleventh solo anthology publication in this blog post. I love writing for Poe Boy Publishing’s Halloween anthologies, and I’m already eager to find out the theme for GORE 6.

I’m so happy both of these anthologies are on my bookshelf. I’m definitely feeling the autumn vibes.

More Anthology Updates

In September, I got my sixteenth anthology acceptance and submitted four new short stories. Yes, you read that right. I think I added another jewel to my crown.

First, I couldn’t be more delighted to share that my new adult literary fiction piece, “Piano Sonata No. 1 in A-Flat Major,” got accepted for Capture This, an anthology by Linton Press. I wrote this one about two and a half years ago. Until I saw the submission call for Capture This, I couldn’t find somewhere to send the story. Capture This is the perfect home for “Piano Sonata No. 1 in A-Flat Major,” and I can’t wait for Lydia’s story to be in print. The anthology is expected to be published next spring.

Along with my sixteenth anthology acceptance, I’m stunned I submitted four stories this month. That’s a lot, even for me.

First, I can’t believe my new adult strawberry field dark romantasy is officially under consideration. My fingers are crossed for an acceptance. I’m unsure when exactly I’ll receive the decision, but I’m anticipating sometime next month, since the book is supposed to be published in December. My strawberry field story is definitely in my top three favorites now, so I really hope it finds a home in this anthology.

Second, I wrote and submitted a young adult flower dark fantasy set in ancient woods. This one is very close to my heart. My beta readers absolutely loved the story, and I’ll find out the decision by December.

Third, I had quite the experience with my snow globe story. Originally, it was supposed to be a new adult romantasy, but once I started drafting, I went in a different direction. The story is a total genre mashup, but I’m calling it a new adult speculative romantic suspense. This is definitely my most experimental story yet, and one of my most original. My beta readers loved this one, too. I should find out the decision in October.

And fourth, last minute, I decided to write and submit a very unhinged new adult gothic horror. I saw the submission call earlier this month and talked myself out of writing something because I was focused on so many other things. Still, I bookmarked the tweet, because of course I did. For weeks, I couldn’t get the call out of my head, since the theme for the anthology is a super unique one I haven’t seen before. A few days ago, I decided to write a dark and twisted gothic horror tale. I had a clear idea, so I drafted the story pretty quickly, then sent it to a friend for feedback before submitting it to the anthology.

I love these four new stories, and I’m manifesting acceptances for all of them.

In October, I’m going to submit my wintery meet-cute that I wrote a while ago because the anthology is finally opening for submissions.

From July to September, I had so many anthologies on my list, but now, I only have a few left for 2025. This is probably good for me because I’m hoping to revise my thriller in November and December. I’ll definitely keep writing and submitting short stories, though.

My goal is to have twenty anthology acceptances by the end of the year. I’m only four away now.

My Micromance Magazine Acceptance

I can’t believe my Christmas proposal story got accepted for Micromance Magazine’s 12 Days of Christmas!

This is my first ever lit mag acceptance. I’m so excited.

At the end of last month, I wrote, revised, and submitted my story the day of the deadline because I woke up that morning and chose chaos. The submission call had haunted me for weeks like the Ghost of Christmas Past or something, and I knew I would be mad at myself if I didn’t write a story.

When I got the email that my submission was selected, I literally flipped out.

I’m delighted to share that “My True Love Gave to Me” will be published by Micromance Magazine on December 22. This is going to be such a special early Christmas gift.

Also, to make this even more magical, the story takes place on December 22, so I love how it will be published on that date.

Huge thank you to Gail and Katie for giving “My True Love Gave to Me” a home with Micromance. I’m honored to be among the 12 Days of Christmas authors and can’t wait to read the other stories.

So, that’s a wrap on my spectacular September. This was a fabulous month for both my songwriting and publishing journeys. I’m ready to flip the page to October and find out what’s next on my adventure.