Newsletter: (Almost) Right on Schedule
A few community events, plus some news on book two
I hate to do it, but I should probably start with the bad news.
Last year, I published a list of upcoming milestones for book two of my fantasy series, The Hope and the Ruin, which I originally hoped to publish in Summer of 2027. I’m probably preaching to the Substack choir, but most readers are aware that there are a lot of factors that go into writing a book, and that creativity rarely happens on a set schedule.
Long story short, I missed my deadline for finishing the third draft by July 31st. I did not actually finish the third draft until August 5th, almost a full week later. This will come as a shock and a disappointment to my legions of adoring fans, but I don’t know what to do except to apologize and promise to do better in future.
The good news is that my beta readers are already lined up and ready to read, so I should still be on pace for the promised Summer 2027 release date. I’ve also talked to the cover artist and copy editor for book one, and they’re both looking forward to working on book two, so I’ll be emailing in a month or two to get on their official schedules.
In the meantime, if you’re looking for something to read, Company of Ghosts is available on both Amazon and Bookshop. If you haven’t seen any of my previous posts about it, it’s a low/forbidden magic fantasy world set in the aftermath of a brutal war of succession. History/mystery vibes, pairs well with cooler weather, so this is a good time to order it if you want to cozy up with a fantasy novel and pretend it’s already fall.
In fact, if I get 100 new sales by the end of August, I hereby pledge an entire week of perfect fall weather for the entire first week of September.
Just Add Water
July was also an important deadline because I planned to go to my friend’s bachelor party in early August and wanted to enjoy my time without stressing about all of my neglected WIPs.
To celebrate his upcoming nuptials, we rented a cabin in central Virginia and floated innertubes down a six mile stretch of the James River. The first stretch was a bit tough because we had to haul all of our gear through half a mile of rocky creek in order to get to the river, but once we joined the main waterway we had a pretty relaxing time. We also forgot the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches we’d made the night before, which, I’m not gonna lie, broke some spirits.
I didn’t get any pictures of the river itself because I had my phone in a dry bag in a dry bag (repetition intended). I did, however, get some pretty good selfies with my friend’s dog.
The trip also recharged my batteries a bit, which is good because I have a lot of community events coming up this month!
The first is Season 11, Round 4 of the Lunar Awards. Zachary Roush tagged me to judge this round’s entries, so I have a lot of reading to do over the next week and a half. The winner and runner-up will be announced on August 22nd, so keep an eye on that page for updates.
I’m also taking part in Gregory Blair’s Murder in the Mansion event. The deadline is August 31st, but I’m shooting for the 28th so that I can count this as my usual Flash Fiction Friday post. I love murder mysteries, but I’ve never tried to write one, so it should be a fun writing exercise if nothing else!
That’s it for this month. I’ll be back on Monday with another microfiction. Stay cool until then, folks.