I've moved for now!

Hello!

Thank you so much for visiting my writing blog, but as it happens, I've moved! In more ways than one, actually.

As far as social media is concerned, I've been posting almost exclusively on 𝕏. You can find my account page here!

That's where I've been posting any writing updates and any/all ephemera related to my day-to-day. There will also be sporadic rants about California's high-speed rail project thrown in there every few months. I don't make the rules.

Additionally, though: I've also gotten married and moved to Japan! So I'll be posting photos about my new life here, as well.

But as for a final update here (for the foreseeable future, at least): I've been working almost exclusively on The Shattered Frontier series since my last post. I have a third book coming down the pike and the first unfinished draft, at present, is around 123k words and counting. It'll be the longest book I've ever written and I'm really enjoying how it's turning out. The final book will probably be cut down dramatically, but I think it's still going to be a monster project.

Check out the first two books in the fantasy western (six-guns and sorcery, if you like) series: What Was Your Name Downriver? and A Bad Rune at Angels Deep on Amazon. The third book has a title, but I'll post it when it's closer to being publishable.

Thank you for your interest, and I hope to see you on 𝕏!

NEW BOOK: A Bad Rune at Angels Deep: Tales of the Shattered Frontier (Also, r/Fantasy Book Club stuff!)

Here it is! The second book in THE SHATTERED FRONTIER series!

I can't promise I'll be able to consistently deliver two books a year like this, but quarantine has been a heck of a thing. Let's jump right into the synopsis:

THE CONTINUING TALES OF SIX-GUNS AND SORCERY!

Runes: a form of deployable magick that caused untold devastation during the war. With the stroke of a pen, entire cities were demolished, entire armies decimated--and now one such rune may have come south to Ariasun County.

Acting on scant clues left behind by the vicious lynching of a smuggler, Evaline Cartwright and Trivan Esterhazy head north to track the rune’s passage through the county. All in the hope of destroying the rune--or its possessor--before it can be used for catastrophic ends.

RELEASE DATE: February 23rd, 2020

This has been an odd writing process for me. Legitimately, I haven't been able to write this much in many, many years. A big part of it, I think, was quarantine and just wanting something to engage with. Another part was most of the footwork already being done. Seems strange that WHAT WAS YOUR NAME DOWNRIVER? took years to finish, while A BAD RUNE AT ANGELS DEEP only took three months... and is almost twice as long.  But a lot of that time spent on Book I was planning the big steps and small steps alike, and with all that locked into place I could just get up and go.

It's also very likely that my mind needed a distraction. Losing my old cat took a lot out of me. It's been just shy of five months since he died, but it still feels raw. Taking some time and writing a novel definitely took the edge off.

So, it's up for preorder now! I'll probably still take some time to make a few last minute corrections before I walk away. I'm also in the process of getting the paperback version ready. The preorder page might not be up until the second week of February, but it'll definitely launch concurrently with the Kindle version.

Other bits of news:

r/Fantasy RAF Book Club

WHAT WAS YOUR NAME DOWNRIVER? was selected to be a part of r/Fantasy's Resident Author Fantasy Book Club on Reddit! This was a great surprise and I'm very much looking forward to seeing what everyone has to say.

The book will be read through March, with a Q&A to be posted just before then, I think. If you want to join in, here's all the information. And I'll probably post all the relevant posts here as they drop.

To everyone who will be participating in the book club, I'll try to make the book free for a week beforehand.

Price Drop: The Shattered Frontier - Book I

Since Book II is right around the corner here, I'm lowering the price of WHAT WAS YOUR NAME DOWNRIVER to $2.99 as a means of lowering the barrier of entry to the series. This will likely be where it'll stay.

Lore of the Reluctant Paperbacks Temporarily Withdrawn

Now, I'm still fairly new to all this. I'm always learning, always fine-tuning. I started publishing the Lore of the Reluctant books several years ago to help myself get over the fear of putting my work out there. There was a sort of lackadaisical approach to publishing them that I'm still trying to correct, as a result. One of these was the formatting of the paperbacks of both THE OUTCASTS OF VAMPIRE FLATS and BLADES OF ELSINGR.

Basically, I'm going to spend a little more time fine-tuning the formatting for the paperbacks. Shouldn't take too long, but I didn't feel good about having them up for sale in the meantime.

The Kindle editions are a-okay, though I'll be going through and updating their "Works by" pages (I'm legit blanking on their formal names) to account for A BAD RUNE.

I think that's it! Be well, everyone!

NEW BOOK: What Was Your Name Downriver?: Tales of the Shattered Realm

Another product of prolonged self-quarantine comin' at ya!

I've just gotta say, I'm so happy that I'm finally able to put this out in some way. These stories are the product of a lot of work and a lot of encouragement from interesting places. They're some of my favorite stories in that I love the characters and loved playing in their world.

WHAT WAS YOUR NAME DOWNRIVER? is a collection of three stories (one novella, two short stories) that take place in my fantasy western setting, The Shattered Frontier. They follow the adventures of war veteran, bounty hunter, and famous/infamous gunslinger, Evaline Cartwright, as she endures the travails of one of the most lawless counties in the nation. The kind of fun place where Evaline might fight your average brigand one day, and the next day a volatile mage who can destroy entire cities on accident.

Here's the synopsis:

TALES OF SIX-GUNS AND SORCERY! 

Evaline Cartwright: war veteran, bounty hunter, known to many in Ariasun County by her thoroughly-earned appellation, "Calamity Cartwright." 

Trivan Esterhazy: a woman gravely wounded, hoping to find a better life for herself in more civilized parts of the nation. 

The two have only just met, both riding a steamboat north through the county to escape foul dealings in their respective lives, but a violent attack by a rogue mage has ensured their abrupt alliance. Armed with Evaline's wits and weaponry and Trivan's instincts and common sense, the women will have to plot their way through hostile territory and wild woods in the hopes of defeating the mage and freeing themselves of its volatile magicks.

History Time! If you don't mind indulging me!

Evaline has appeared in a few other places publicly:

• The first short story I ever sold was the first story I ever wrote about Evaline called "The Lonesome Dark." It appeared in BLACKGUARDS and was recently republished in BRIGANDS.

• Michael J. Sullivan put out an open call for short story submissions to be published with the third book of the Ryria Chronicles, THE DEATH OF DULGATH, and, while it didn't make it to publication, "The Horse Thieves of Ariasun County" was a runner-up.

• "Gunfight at the Thornmount Colossus" was a runner-up in the 2016 Baen Books Fantasy-Adventure Award.

After getting that kind of positive feedback, I spent some time really fleshing out the world and the characters themselves, and doing research into American history for flavor, with the intention of writing a novel tentatively titled RIDERS OF BITTER PROSPECT. Another novel commitment was something I couldn't realistically do while I was at university and, subsequently, abroad for a year. The Japanese work week just didn't frequently allow for it.

So I opted for a collection of short stories which, again, was a pretty tough commitment. You might have noticed that progress bar on the side that hasn't moved in a while. One of those short stories just kept going until it became a novella, the anchor story WHAT WAS YOUR NAME DOWNRIVER? It's a straight-forward adventure, but it does the heavy-lifting as far as providing a cross-section for what the setting is all about and what potential stories might emerge as a result.

That's it! I hope you'll consider giving it a try. If this book does well, I'd like to work in this setting indefinitely. Love hanging out there!

Be safe!

NEW RELEASE (Kinda): Brigands: A Blackguards Anthology

A lot going on these days! I'm back from Japan and I've got a new-ish project to talk about!
The first story I ever published was "The Lonesome Dark" back in BLACKGUARDS by Ragnarok Publications. Since then, Outland Entertainment has taken over publication duties, and their first act was to take all of the BLACKGUARDS stories (even those of us published in the e-book and extra digital material) and give the whole thing a proper physical re-release. Pretty exciting!
So while you couldn't get a physical copy of "The Lonesome Dark" before, you absolutely can now!
It currently seems to only be available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble, but I'll update this post and the My Books section if I track down any further marketplaces.
"The Lonesome Dark" is a fantasy western set in Ariasun County, a secondary world where a lot of my current projects are taking place. The main character, Evaline Cartwright, is a bounty hunter/hand-for-hire in a part of the world where it's really hard to find work that doesn't end in some kind of betrayal or undue violence. She takes a job bringing the body of a Sharath boy back to a commonage, which sounds innocuous, but the trip starts to unravel as she draws closer to her destination.
Hope you consider checking it out!
Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Evaline Cartwright makes a return trip!

"The Lonesome Dark" was the first short story I ever got published. I had a fantastic time during the process and was very thankful Ragnarok Publications tossed me into a volume with other authors that I respect immensely.

While I continue plotting out further adventures with Evaline Cartwright, the magick-scarred gunslinger of "The Lonesome Dark," the original short story will be making a comeback thanks to Outland Entertainment.

The new volumes, entitled Brigands and Scoundrels will have all new cover art by Daniel Rempel, and editing will be done by Alana Joli Abbott and Melanie R. Meadors (with first edition credit going to JM Martin). The books will have stories in them by Bradley P. Beaulieu, Lian Hearn, Rob J. Hayes, Anthony Lowe, Anthony Ryan, Linda Robertson, Cat Rambo, Erik Scott de Bie, and many more. Not only will the books have stories that appeared in the original anthology, but each volume will feature a brand new story from fantasy authors not included in the original volume or the ebook companion.

Excited to see how it turns out! Check out the full post here: https://outlandentertainment.com/206648-2/