Journal
& Updates

Notes from the desk—updates, reflections, and insights into the creative process.

This is where ideas take shape before they become stories.

Alicia Anspaugh Storytellers Market author booth announcement featuring her glowing eight-point star artwork and information for the October 17, 2026 event at Merle Hay Mall in Des Moines, Iowa.

Alicia Anspaugh at Storytellers Market | Des Moines, Iowa

Meet Iowa author, artist and storyteller Alicia Anspaugh at the Storytellers Market at Merle Hay Mall in Des Moines on October 17, 2026. Explore books, magazines, webnovels, art and more.

aliciaspaintbrush

6 days ago1 min read

Mystical artwork for What Are You Done Carrying This Lunar Eclipse by Alicia Anspaugh, promoting the eclipse release guide in Crystal Caverns and the Celestial Library.

Lunar Eclipse Release Ritual | Crystal Caverns & Celestial Library

What are you ready to stop carrying? Explore an August lunar eclipse release ritual with crystals, herbs and spiritual tools in Crystal Caverns and the Celestial Library.

Alicia Anspaugh

Aug 251 min read

Atmospheric artwork representing Pied Piper Pest Control, a humorous supernatural flash fiction story by Alicia K. Anspaugh submitted to Glossy Planet Magazine’s Free Space Challenge.

“Pied Piper Pest Control” Submitted to Glossy Planet’s Free Space Challenge

Alicia K. Anspaugh submits “Pied Piper Pest Control,” a humorous supernatural flash fiction story, to Glossy Planet Magazine’s Free Space Challenge.

aliciaspaintbrush

Aug 231 min read

Dark Egyptian-inspired artwork for Alicia Anspaugh's critique Immortal Story, Mortal Patience, featuring a pharaoh, an exhausted reader, books, and an hourglass.

Immortal Story, Mortal Patience: Anne Rice Critique Inspires a New Story

Alicia Anspaugh critiques Anne Rice's Ramses the Damned and discovers that frustration with its pacing has unexpectedly inspired a new supernatural story.

Alicia Anspaugh

Aug 212 min read

Atmospheric image representing “2:13 A.M.,” a supernatural horror flash fiction story by Alicia K. Anspaugh submitted to the Glossy Planet Magazine Doomscroll Challenge.

“2:13 A.M.” Submitted to Glossy Planet Magazine’s Doomscroll Challenge

Alicia K. Anspaugh submits supernatural horror story “2:13 A.M.” to Glossy Planet Magazine’s 2026 Doomscroll flash fiction challenge.

aliciaspaintbrush

Aug 161 min read

Cover of Spirit Guide Basics by Alicia Anspaugh, showing a silhouetted figure reaching toward glowing spirit guides among blue and purple stars.

Spirit Guide Basics Begins | Alicia's Desk

Spirit Guide Basics has begun. Read Alicia Anspaugh's free introduction and discover the story behind this practical Living Book for beginners.

Alicia Anspaugh

Aug 121 min read

Spirit Guide Basics by Alicia Anspaugh | Living Book for Beginners

Join Alicia Anspaugh as she shares years of teaching and real-world experience in Spirit Guide Basics, a Living Book offering practical guidance for beginners.

aliciaspaintbrush

Aug 71 min read

Baby Saran, a peaceful turquoise piglet with celestial markings, sleeps among soft pink clouds beneath colorful planets and stars in this original fantasy painting by Alicia Anspaugh. The artwork inspired the new webnovel The Whole Point.

The Art of Pigs | New Artwork, Baby Saran & The Whole Point Webnovel

Celebrate The Art of Pigs with three new paintings by Alicia Anspaugh, including Baby Saran from the new webnovel The Whole Point, plus the Lucky Lucky Stars excerpt and narrated YouTube reading.

Alicia Anspaugh

Jul 312 min read

See You Tomorrow | Inkitt Second Chance Romance Contest Entry by Alicia Anspaugh

A science fiction romance adventure featuring time travel, betrayal, and second chances. See You Tomorrow has been submitted to Inkitt's Second Chance Romance Contest.

aliciaspaintbrush

Jun 31 min read