What a couple of weeks it’s been! Things have been fairly hectic over here, and I started getting fussy with myself over not getting newsletters out over these past two Saturdays like I’d intended until I reminded myself that it wasn’t as big of a deal as I was making it out to be and to stop being so hard on myself (something I’m really bad about doing). So here it is, this week’s post/newsletter thing keeping you guys updated on what’s going on in my little writer world.

Notes to Readers

Just in case you somehow managed to miss it, consider this your friendly reminder that Bloodlines, the sixth book in The Becoming Series, is now available in ebook format at most major retailers and now, as of today, officially available for purchase directly through me on this website! I was super nervous about its release, because I hadn’t published anything new (that wasn’t a revised/expanded edition) in this series since 2015, so I had no idea how it was going to be received. So far, the feedback I’m getting is good, so I feel a lot less nervous and a lot more excited about its availability! (Paperbacks for this one will be coming soon, I promise!) You can grab your copy of Bloodlines today by CLICKING RIGHT HERE to check out its product page here on my site!

And if you’ve read the book, please make sure you leave a review on your preferred retailer of choice! Reviews help the algorithm, which helps the book be more visible, which in turn helps me sell more books (and be able to afford to release even more books)!

A Few Quick ThingsAs a friendly reminder and an additional note related to Bloodlines, I’d like to take a second to mention that you should consider picking up and reading the short story “The Night the Moon Died,” which takes place between books five and six of that series and sets up a premise that will be important to upcoming books.As another friendly reminder, don’t forget that you can still purchase e-books and autographed paperbacks directly from me via my shop right here on my website! If you’re interested in supporting me (and not handing cash to a big corporation), this is the best way to do so!A Bit About My Writing

Well, I haven’t gotten as much writing done as I would have preferred over the past few weeks. I got a little bit more drafted on Retribution, but then I spent roughly a week sick, so I had zero motivation to do much of anything and focused on getting my editing work done whenever I was feeling well enough to do so. So unfortunately, I didn’t get anywhere near where I wanted to be in it at this point–last time I updated, I was about 10,000 words in, and I should’ve been close to 20,000-25,000 words by this point and I’m very much not. But that happens sometimes. Such is the life of a writer!

Speaking of life of a writer, I’ve been involved in a mentorship program for the past several months (as a mentee, not a mentor), and it’s been super beneficial so far. We’re currently in the process of planning an entire series that I think you guys are going to love once it comes out. I’m super excited to get fully started on it–I’m very enthused about the concept and am looking forward to actually writing the books. I’ll hopefully be chronicling the writing process on this new series here as I go, and of course as things shake out, you’ll get plenty of updates on availability and such as it happens!

Also, I wanted to take a moment to strongly encourage folks to consider using my shop here on my site to purchase ebooks and paperbacks directly from me. You’re welcome, of course, to continue using your retailer of choice, but if you don’t have a strong preference for a specific retailer, I’d encourage you to use my shop to purchase and send ebooks to your device of choice (when you purchase, it gives you options to send the ebook to your Kindle account, Nook account, Apple Books, etc.). You see, from a purely practical, mercenary perspective, I get to keep more money when I sell a book through my site than when I do through any of the other retailers. Let’s take Bloodlines as an example. It’s currently priced $5.99 across the board. If I sell a copy on Amazon, Amazon takes 30% of that $5.99, then pays me the rest. Same with Barnes & Noble and the other retailers (though that percentage might vary a little bit; I think one retailer keeps 40%, but Lord knows I can’t remember which at this point). However, if you spend that same $5.99 buying the book directly from me, I get to keep something like 97% of the money (the back end that runs my store keeps a small percentage for transaction fees, and I think it’s right around 3%). Honestly, $5.81 per copy sounds a lot better than $4.19 per copy, and that extra $1.62 really does add up over time. So this is why I always remind folks that my store exists and encourage the use of it, just in case you were wondering why I keep mentioning it!

A Bit About My Life

Things have been going relatively smoothly over here in my daily life. The cats and I have spent the past week and a half chilling at home, mainly because of the aforementioned week-long illness (which was, apparently, caused by a combination of different medications that all had nausea/vomiting as a side effect. Yay me). My doctor is attempting to help me find a medication that works well for treating my recent ADHD diagnosis, and I can already tell there’s a difference when it comes to getting things done. I’m having to adjust a bit and re-adapt some of my previously created systems because they were a little slipshod, which is something I didn’t notice before I was medicated until I started trying to use them again. So that’s an ongoing project for me, basically just reordering and reorganizing my life now that I have the mental fortitude and medication to make it happen!

Things I’m Liking Right Now

I’ve got to take a few minutes to sing the praises of a couple of books I’ve read recently (well, one of them I read last year, the other I just finished recently). Anybody who knows me knows I’ve always been a bit of a fan of Edgar Allan Poe’s works, as the man was an absolute writing genius. I think I was about twelve when my parents gave me a lovely hardcover collection of his works for Christmas (I wish I could find my copy of it, as it’s been misplaced in a series of subsequent moves), and I read it cover to cover. So imagine my delight when I picked up What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher and realized that it was a retelling/reimagining of Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher.”

Now, retellings/reimaginings can be tricky things. It can be so hard to pull them off, and to do it well. I’ve read some reimaginings that have made me cringe at the terribleness of them, and then I’ve read some that have blown my socks off with how good they were. These two books are definitely of the latter variety. T. Kingfisher manages to keep the vibe and the atmosphere of Poe’s original work without sacrificing quality and while also bringing a new, interesting perspective to the story. (Needless to say, I don’t think I’ll look at mushrooms the same way again.) I had no idea there was even going to be a sequel, as I’m terrible about keeping up with new releases from most authors, something that probably afflicts all of us, but I stumbled across What Feasts at Night at Target, of all places, immediately recognized the style of the cover as fitting with What Moves the Dead, realized it was a sequel, gasped out loud, and bought it. So much for a Target run without me spending any money lol. It was money well spent, in my opinion, because the sequel is just as good and just as chilling and imaginative as the first. These aren’t very long books, either–both clock in at around 150 pages each–so if you’re looking for a quick “bite” of a book to read and want to get creeped out in a deliciously awesome way by two fantastically written, solidly Gothic tales, I definitely recommend checking out T. Kingfisher’s What Moves the Dead and What Feasts at Night!

Don’t forget to pick up your copy of Bloodlines , and help me spread the word about the book and the series! Tell your friends, post about it on social media, whatever it is you’re comfortable with doing!And if you’ve already got your copy (or a copy of any of the books in the series), reviews on your retailer of choice are definitely appreciated. They help the algorithms at the stores pick up that there’s interest in my books, which helps increase the visibility of them, which in turn makes me more sales, brings in more money, and frees me up from editing a bit more so I can write and publish more books for your enjoyment!