April 2022

With the third book of my newest trilogy out, it’s been a looooong time since I’ve dropped by to update my web site.

Once upon a time I regularly created content here, but as I may have mentioned, I’ve decided that if I’m going to be spending time writing I’d rather be drafting stories. And so I have been. One complete volume of Hanuvar’s adventures is circulating among publishers, and I’m halfway through the rough draft of its sequel volume. That’s a lot of work to have achieved in less than a year, especially since I’m not a particularly fast writer, and I’m pleased with that, although I’ll be more pleased when I sign a contract.

I’ve mapped out enough content for four full books, wrapping things up in a fifth or sixth. We shall have to see how it all develops. Right now I’m enjoying writing more than I have in long ages, and I have high hopes that readers will like what I’ve created.

I’ve signed up for the GenCon Writer’s Symposium this year, so I hope to see many of you there. What other conventions I attend will be partly determined by whether or not/which publisher I land with my Hanuvar series.

In Tales From the Magician’s Skull related news, I’ve been laboring long with magazine preparation, and the rest of the staff has been working just as hard. Issue 7 has been released, issue 8 is at the printer, the Kickstarter issue is in layout, and issue 9 is with the copyeditor. This month I’m going to make a final pass through issue 10.

I haven’t had time for any boardgames lately, but I’ve managed a little tabletop role-playing with my wife, and that’s been enjoyable. I’ve been reading a long arm length of historical fiction, mostly by Simon Scarrow, John Maddox Roberts, and Steven Saylor, all based in the ancient Roman Republic or Empire, depending upon the author, and all the final research steps for the Hanuvar books. It’s one thing to read a non-fiction description of a society, which I’ve been doing for years. It’s another thing to see that society brought to life by a skilled author.

Later this month I’ll update a couple of pages on the web site here with my upcoming schedule and my publications.  And I’ll try to remember to update this site a little more frequently. If you don’t see anything new from me, though, remember: I’m too stupid to stop. Silence means that I’m working hard on a new product.

And because I still miss my loyal hound, I’m going to add her picture in again. She sure loved checking in with us as we cleaned up the yard and planted things every spring. As I worked in the garden yesterday I felt her absence pretty keenly. But then since she was my office pal I continue to feel that absence.