August 2026 Newsletter
Updated: Aug 28
Welcome to our August Newsletter!
We have so much to celebrate at Interleaf Ink! Our social media community has officially grown to more than 350 followers, and we are incredibly grateful for every reader, author, partner, and supporter who continues to engage with and share our work.
We are also excited to celebrate our new partnership with Storyrise, which will help us continue expanding the resources, opportunities, and support available to the authors and readers in our community.
And we are not slowing down. We have several exciting announcements on the way, including new opportunities, upcoming projects, and more ways to connect with Interleaf Ink. We cannot wait to share what is coming next!
A Partnership with Storyrise
We are excited to share that Interleaf Ink is beginning a new collaboration with Storyrise!
We recently had a wonderful conversation with the Storyrise team and The Storyteller’s Shelf Podcast about the importance of community, meaningful collaboration, and supporting authors throughout the feedback process.
We are looking forward to exploring everything Storyrise has to offer, including the new formatting tools and community updates they have coming soon. This collaboration feels like an exciting step toward creating even more opportunities for authors, readers, and literary professionals to connect and grow together.
A special thank-you to Storyrise and The Storyteller’s Shelf Podcast for taking the time to meet with us. We cannot wait to see where this collaboration leads!
Explore the Active WIP Alpha Now Available
When Shadows Burn by Bridgett Evans
London Reign has spent her life hiding what she is—a halfling born with the forbidden Spark. She carries a power the Tribunal has hunted for centuries. In Solvaria, those who possess the Spark are not imprisoned. They are erased.
But as her magic goes on the fritz, her secret threatens to destroy everything she holds dear.
Kieran Alexander is a Collector, one of the Tribunal’s most feared hunters. Bound by oath and shadow, his duty is simple: find those marked by the Spark and deliver them to judgement.
But when Kieran meets London, he hesitates. For there is something ancient stirring beneath London’s fire. Something calls to him.
As the prophecy begins to unravel and long-buried truths surface, London discovers her power may be tied to Kieran whose own past has been carefully rewritten, concealing a truth powerful enough to shake the foundation of the realm.
With enemies closing in, and fate tightening its grip, Kieran must decide whether London is truly what the realm should fear—or the spark that should be set free.
Because some fires were never meant to be extinguished.
Available Now. If you are interested in joining this WIP team, please reach out to Interleaf Ink today!
Upcoming Beta Book Release
Second Half of Love by Mike Owens
When Robin steps across the line to death, Dan now age seventy, her marriage partner of fifty years, is left dangling like a jellyfish stranded in the sand—helpless and adrift among their meticulously collected home. Struggling, he reaches out, and his minister suggests therapy. A psychiatrist suggests online dating for seniors may help. After exploring a few different relationships, from disastrous to surreptitious, he learns about himself and how much he depended on Robin. Through online partners, he finds a warm, pragmatic widow, Jane, who sees past his awkwardness.
Together, they begin to build something new, navigating the delicate process of blending two lives, two histories, and two families. For the first time since Robin’s death, Dan feels a flicker of hope for a future. The central conflict is Dan’s struggle to build a relationship that honors Robin’s place in his life and gives room for a new partner. Eventually, he commits to this second chance at love, he must learn that healing from grief isn’t about replacing what was lost, but about finding the resilience to love again, knowing that every connection is fragile.
Jane and Dan have a variety of experiences with a two-year-old granddaughter, a dying dog, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Love Notes play, and an episode of anaphylactic shock in a public park, all of which bring them to a marriage in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Dan and Don grow from adversaries to good friends. Women Dan met before he married Jane reemerge, leaving the reader wondering what could be.
Available August 7th. If you are interested in joining this BETA team, please reach out to Interleaf Ink today!
Meet a Few of Our Community Partners
One of our favorite parts of building the Interleaf Ink community is connecting authors with professionals who understand the creative process and want to help them succeed. This month, we are celebrating two of our wonderful community partners!
Funky Like Feathers
Every story deserves an editor who recognizes its potential while respecting the author’s voice. Funky Like Feathers provides thoughtful literary support through developmental editing, copyediting, manuscript evaluations, writing coaching, and more.
With feedback designed to help writers better understand their stories and move forward with confidence, Funky Like Feathers is a wonderful resource for authors looking for guidance, encouragement, and an experienced eye on their work.
Website: https://funkylikefeathers.com/
J. L. Ott Bookkeeping
Creative businesses need strong stories, but they also need strong financial foundations. J. L. Ott Bookkeeping works with authors, artists, content creators, freelancers, and other small-business owners to make finances feel more approachable and manageable.
From everyday bookkeeping and account setup to budgeting, cash-flow forecasting, and financial insights, Jenny Ott helps creative professionals better understand the numbers behind their work so they can spend more time focusing on the businesses and projects they love. Website: https://www.jlottbookkeeping.com/
We are grateful to have both Funky Like Feathers and J. L. Ott Bookkeeping as part of our growing community of professionals supporting authors at every stage of their journey.
Author Spotlight: Nico Teop
This month, we are excited to introduce a new recurring feature celebrating the authors in our community, beginning with Nico Teop.
Nico is currently working on A Song of Stars, a rockstar romance set in Kyoto, Japan. The novel explores creativity, identity, connection, and the complicated relationships that form between people from very different worlds. Filled with music, emotionally layered characters, and slow-building romance, A Song of Stars is currently undergoing developmental edits.
Readers may also recognize Nico as the author of The Relentless Pursuit of Ora Bennett, an emotional contemporary romance centered on longing, vulnerability, and the difficult journey toward allowing yourself to be loved. Ora and Adrianna will be returning to Interleaf Ink for another round of Alpha reading at the end of August as Nico continues developing and refining their story.
Want to follow Nico’s writing journey and get updates on upcoming projects?
We look forward to using future Author Spotlights to introduce more writers from our community and celebrate their stories, creative journeys, accomplishments, and works in progress.
Join the Interleaf Ink Author Network
The Interleaf Ink Author Network gives authors more ways to stay connected, strengthen their writing practice, and participate in our growing literary community.
Members can access reading opportunities, author accountability sessions, educational resources, community networking, and opportunities to earn discounts on select Interleaf Ink services by supporting other authors through the feedback process.
Whether you are working toward your next draft, preparing for readers, or simply looking for a supportive community that understands the writing journey, the Author Network is here to help you keep moving forward.
Watch your inbox and our social media pages for more information about joining the network and upcoming member opportunities.
Thank you for being part of our reader network. We’re so grateful for the opportunity to get our indie authors’ books into your hands, and we truly appreciate the time, care, and effort you put into reading and reviewing.
Happy reading!
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