When I look back, last month was pretty much all writing. My walking didn’t happen except for a few scattered instances. That problem needs to be resolved this month.

I wrote every day last month except for the one day I took off last week.

Status

Salt is still hanging fire. Neither of us could get it together to finish the cover or the edits. It’s one of those tasks that just seemed to get put off day after day.

The New Ishmael
The bad news is that I still haven’t found the end. The good news is that I’ve found the story. Yes, this is definitely more than one book. At 250k words already, I’m relatively certain it’s going to be three before I’m done.

The Wizard’s Cat is on deck and mewing for attention.

Audio

The Wizard’s Butler dropped. I’ve swapped the covers to use the Podium artwork.

Dark Knight Station: Origins should release on 6/29. Look for the pre-order mid month. Podium shared their version of the cover and it’s pretty spiffy. I may adopt it the way I did for the last book.

What Am I Reading?

The stand out read of the last few days has been book three of James Beamon’s Pendulum Heroes series – The Pendulum War.

I’ve talked about this series before and the newest volume reminded me just how much I enjoyed the first two and Beamon’s ability to spin a tale. It continues the story of four guys caught in a game and learning that, sometimes, winning isn’t everything. The stand out feature in this volume has been the character growth for each member of the ensemble cast. James has woven a terrific tale.

I’ve linked the first book of the series Pendulum Heroes. Maybe grab a sample and see what you think.

[Transparency: James and I both serve on the board of directors for SFWA. I’m not getting anything for promoting this book beyond the knowledge that I’ve shared a good book with you.]

Last Words

April was as much of a struggle as March, but I’m feeling better about May. My ADHD is still kicking my butt, although I’ve made progress on rebuilding the cage around it. Ishmael’s adventure has some form now. I’ve redone the alarms on my phone to help me stay in the moment and focused on what’s really important instead of what’s shiny. I’m fully vaccinated and the rest of the household should be within the next couple of weeks.

In short, I’m doing better and looking forward to what may be a more productive month.

Safe Voyage.

I spent the month writing and not walking. I need to do both but since I couldn’t seem to to that, I wrote.

I got my second shot, spent a couple of days just contemplating my navel. I missed one day’s writing in there. I just couldn’t seem to focus. It was like I was asleep with my eyes open and sitting up. I’m not sure if it was the vaccine doing its thing or exhaustion from the snowpocalypse.

Status

Salt – book 1 of the Barbarians – should be out in the next couple of weeks. The artist is putting the final touches on the cover and I’m only a couple of days away from finishing the edits. Note: This is the book I co-wrote with my daughter and I’m looking forward to having everybody read it.

New Ishmael.
I don’t know what the heck is going on with this. It’s the story that won’t end. I’m pretty well convinced that I’m writing more than one book under this working title but I can’t tell. I’m just pushing to get new words put in it every day and trusting that my vision for the story will clear up once I can see it in its entirety.

The Wizard’s Cat is still on the list. I’ll be ready for it by the time I get done wrestling with Ishmael and company.

Audio

The audio coming from Podium is The Wizard’s Butler. It’s up for preorder now. Release date is April 20. Last month I said it was Dark Knight Station. I claim brain cloud.

What Am I Reading?

I found a new author this month and I’m intrigued. The generation ship genre isn’t my normal fare, but I got pulled into the universe and I’m enjoying the stay.

I can’t tell you too much about the story without spoilering it, but good characters in bad situations. The story is a ship captain whose primary selection qualification not her license. In spite of that – or perhaps because of it – she’s a great character faced with terrible choices.

The book is Exodus by T. S. Valmond.

Maybe grab a sample and see what you think. I’ll be going to the second book as soon as I finish the series I’m almost done with now. 🙂

Last Words

March was a struggle, but I’ve made some progress. In April I need to follow up with getting back on the sidewalk, getting Salt out, and finding the end to the story that never ends. (There is an end. I just haven’t found it yet.)

On the upside, I’m fully vaccinated. My spousal unit will be soon. My kids will be eligible in a couple of weeks. There might be a light at the end of the tunnel after all.

It’s still going to be awhile before I go out without my shemagh. 😀

Safe voyage.

Thanks to a fun little exercise at ConvertKit (my email provider, believe it or not), February got back on track and I made up three of the days I blew off in January. I also got my first vaccine shot a week ago and should get the second Real Soon Now.

No bad news this month. I just let the world go on without me while I worked on the 2k a day habit.

Status

Salt – Book 1 of the Barbarians – came back from Karen over the weekend. I let my co-author have first crack at it but I’ll be digging in over the next coupld of days.

New Ishmael
I’ve been beavering away on this story all month and it’s not over yet. I talked about it in one of my recent podcasts. I know where I want this story to go. I have some ideas about what it might look like but none of these characters are cooperating. Right now I can’t tell if I’ve got one book (that will need some serious pruning) or two books that might serve as the first two legs of a trilogy. The trilogy? That’s probably going to need sequels.

Wizard’s Cat
Every time I turn around, this story slaps me. I really need to clear Ishmael off my desk so I can get to this. Ever had a cat lick your arm and not stop? Yeah. Like that. But my brain. Stay tuned.

Tanyth Fairport
A lot of people have been asking questions on social media. Questions that I answered with “Tanyth Fairport.” Clearly, I’ve been thinking of her a lot. Salt is set in her universe, just not with her.

Audio

Dark Knight Station: Origins is due from Podium on April 20. It’s still in production but it’s getting closer.

Tanyth Audio
The producer (not Podium) still hasn’t given me the files. I need to find him again and get an update. If he can’t do it, I know somebody who can.

What Am I Reading?

I read so much in February. Tons of Glynn Steward. More litRPG. Deanna Chase. All three of T. A. White’s Firebird Chronicles. I just dove into those books like a 12-year-old cannon-balling into the hotel pool.

But somebody recommended this quirky book by C. Litka – The Bright Black Sea.

I’ve seen this book come through my various timelines off and on but the cover and the subtitle turned me off. “The Lost Star Stories, Volume One.” Made it sound like a collection of shorts and I’m too old to read short stories. This time something made me give it a try and I’m really glad I did.

The writing is quirky, atmospheric. The pacing is slow, almost glacial, but the story keeps strolling along. It takes a bit to find the rhythm of it but it’s clearly done with purpose. It’s almost steampunky in flavor but without all the steam powered rocket ships. The characters–specifically the captain Wil Litang–bring this story to life.

I’m about halfway through it but I’m enjoying every page. Maybe grab a sample and think what you think?

Last Words

February was a transformational month. I’ve got my writing going again, at least for the moment. I’ve had my first vaccine shot. Over the last few days I feel like I’ve gotten my feet back under me. In the metaphorical as well as literal sense.

It’s too early to claim victory in my war of the words. I’ve got a solid month behind me, a lot of momentum, and stories that I want to tell. I’m cautiously optimistic about finishing up the first quarter strong with at least one new book in the pipeline even while we work to get Salt produced and out for you to read.

In the meantime, stay safe. Keep reading.