The last month has been filled with “You’re going to do what?” moments. I won’t bore you with them. I’ve got a few more things happening this week and next before they start the actual treatments on June 13.

Status

Everything is on hold. I have put the Cat on the side beside me in my chair to keep my company.* If I can write at all, I’m going to work on the three new Ishmael books. I have zero expectations that I’m going to be able to focus on them.

What Am I Reading?

I ripped through the latest Backyard Starship books from Chaney and Maggert, discovered some interesting paranormal work – Afterlife Academy from Arizona Tape, and found a quirky space opera from M. R. Forbes called Starship for Sale. I may get back to that in a bit so I’ll hold off on it for the moment. All these are really good, and about what you’d expect me to be reading.

Then there’s T. Thorn Coyle’s Bookshop Witch. It’s completely outside my normal envelope and perhaps that’s why I enjoyed it so much. Paranormal mystery. Short-ish. Lots of Oregon coast vibe. Thoroughly engaging characters. I sucked it up with a straw and went looking for the next book in the series.

You can read the description but do yourself a favor and grab a sample. See if you’re as enchanted by this story as I was.

Looking Ahead

That sounds a lot better than “Last Words,” doesn’t it?

Treatment will take 7 weeks starting on Monday the 13th. It’s going to be chemo and radiation in tandem and I’ve been warned that it’s rough. I’ve been told to expect a few weeks – possibly, a couple of months – of recuperation after. One piece of advice I got was to focus on what I’ll do afterward. I’ll be looking forward to getting it all behind me, certainly, but my main focus will be “survive today.”

I do plan to keep up posting my monthly updates. I don’t know if I can do more than that. I’d rather under-promise and over-deliver over these next few months.

Thanks to all the people who’ve offered well-wishes. It’s greatly appreciated.

Until next month, safe voyage.

*Ginger Lonergan noted – correctly – that cats are a comfort.

I’m late on purpose. I had a meeting with my doctor scheduled for this morning so I waited until I knew what he was going to say.

The bad news: It’s cancer.

The good news: It’s treatable.

The next few months are probably going to suck, but I should recover.

Status:

The Wizard’s Cat
I have had a few epiphanies about that story. Why it’s so hard for me to find the story. What the story is about. All that. Fingers crossed that the Good News will free my brain a little so I can actually – you know – write a bit.

New Ishmael
He’s still in the wings. This long hiatus has given that whole new series time to mellow in my melon. I’m really happy with what I’m thinking.

Audio
I don’t think Audible has fixed the chapter 15 problem. Anybody who’s seen it on Chirp or the other platforms? I might be corrected there.

What Am I Reading?

I’m still reading a ton. This last week has been Michael Chatfield’s Ten Realms series. I talked about it on my morning walk a few times already. It’s Cultivation GameLit (like Tao Wong’s Thousand Li) but with two ex-GIs/ex-mercenary soldiers who are whisked away to a strange land of stats, dantians, and mana cultivation. It’s not quite wuxia but maybe wuxia-adjacent.

I’m liking it because it has a different take on the genre with the two characters – Erik and Rugrat – working to improve themselves but also the village of Alva. I can’t say more without spoiling it, but it’s a fun read.

Maybe grab a sample and see what you think.

Last Words

For the last couple of months that heading carried a lot of freight. I wondered if – in fact – those might be my last words. The latest rounds of doctor visits, diagnostic processes, and health assessments show that it should be a while yet before I get to the actual last words. My future holds surgery, radiation, chemo. Maybe immuno-therapy. They’ll work it out between the various doctors and specialists.

But I’ll have a future beyond the treatments as long as I don’t get hit by a truck or something.

Safe voyage.

I remember I had great plans, wonderful energy. Even walked a few days early in the month. The good ship foundered on a collection of misadventures, some of which I can share. Others, not so much.

Status

Tanyth Audio Snafu
Chapter 12 in Hermit of Lammas Wood has chapter 15’s audio. Unfortunately chapter 15 is also chapter 15. I got the correct files from Artistic Whispers and corrected the uploads, but it’ll take a bit for them to work through the system. Sorry about that.

The Wizard’s Cat
This month is Camp Nanowrimo and I’m going to get this book off my desk. We’ll see how well that goes.

New Ishmael
Nothing to see. The three books are still sitting there, staring at me.

What Am I Reading?

I’m reading a lot. I went through a space opera series by Julia Huni early in the month and then a paranormal women’s fiction series by Kate Moseman. I tore through book 5 of the Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinneman before moving on to finish (I think, it’s over) the Star Scavenger series by Ogden and Ogden. Fun pulpy space opera goodness there.

Right now I’m grinding through Carrie Summer’s Stonehaven League and loving every minute of it. It’s a great take on GameLit that postulates a kind of game where the goal isn’t to kill everything and take their loot. There’s still some of that but … well … I won’t spoiler it. Suffice it to say I’m enjoying the heck out of this world and the main character’s cognitive dissonance between real and virtual. I’m into book 4 now, but the story starts with Temple of Sorrows.

Maybe grab a sample – and buckle up. It’s fun ride but keep your hands inside the vehicle at all times.

Last Words

April is going to be a challenging month, I’m not going to lie. Doctors are involved, and not the PhD kind. It’s going to be one heck of a distraction but maybe it’ll be the incentive I need to get these books off my desk and into your hands.

Fingers crossed.

Safe voyage.