Crazy Week and It's Only Monday

I spent the weekend filling boxes with loot from last year's Kickstarter. It will be a relief to have my living room and office back. DH asked why I wasn't sitting on the floor, which has been SOP for years when I was mailing Christmas presents to out-of-state nieces and nephews.

Needless to say, I dared him to sit on the floor. He quickly learned that if a human is on the floor, it's a signal to Princess Bella to drag all her toys over to you and place them in the open boxes. Some of my backers almost ended up with Kongs.

I'm still putting together the paperback for Queer Eye for the Super Guy. The re-write of Spells and Sleuths is finished and edits have started. And I need to finish the two short stories that were the part of the Kickstarter stretch goals so the audiobooks can be recorded.

There are surprises in the works for the Justice series' tenth anniversary. I really, really hope the readers of that series love the things in the works. My artist is doing some wonderful artwork for the projects.

Best of all, I had my annual mammogram this morning. For the last five years, it's been like sitting on a grenade. Has the cancer taken hold in the other breast? I've already had a lumpectomy, several needle biopsies, and a core sample. 

To my relief, the radiologist said everything looked good. Which means I'll be off tamoxifen at the end of June and I can drink during a writers' retreat I'm going to in July in Oregon. Like I told a few friends, it's not that I'm a huge drinker. I just don't like choices being taken away from me.

Actually, it's the second best thing. Genius Kid and the Grandpuppy are on their way here. Which means it'll be a Cincinnati chili and Long Johns week, too.

My Subconscious Wants a New Project

I had a bizarre dream last night of an alternate Star Trek universe. Captain Kirk was a vampire. The Trill had become a warrior race. Seven of Nine was the Borg Queen, and Jadzia Dax convinced Seven, her ex-lover, to help the Trill and Vampire Kirk to protect the Vulcans from some strange, unknown race trying to wipe them out. Oh, and Vampire Kirk finally declared his love for Spock and tried to convinced him to let Kirk turn him into a vampire so they could be together forever.

This is Subconscious's way to convince me to move on to a new project. Which I will as soon as I finish Queer Eye for the Super Guy and the two stretch goal short stories for the Soccer Moms of the Apocalypse Kickstarter campaign. I also need to ship out the reward boxes for the last three Kickstarter tiers. Everything should be done by the end of May. *fingers crossed*

Then, THEN, I can write The Books of Apep series.

But damn, Subconscious is impatient!

Just a Note to Say...

I'm still alive, but things are busy at Casa Harden. Hopefully, the edits will be done for Death in Double Mocha later today/early Tuesday morning.

Then I need to jump back on Queer Eye for the Super Guy since Jeremy's in the middle of a murder investigation of an up-and-coming designer he took a shine to. (More of a possible protege. Jaye's firmly committed to his husband.)

Hope to have some more news by the end of this week!

Update on Releases

I tried to finish both Death in Double Mocha and Queer Eye for the Super Guy last month. Getting sick at the beginning of March set me back nearly 50K words for the year to date. In my attempts to catch up, my back started giving me fits.

Now before anyone starts on my case about exercise, I do get up frequently for breaks, and I take Princess Bella for may short walks during the day.

No, my problem is stress. And when I'm stressed, it settles in my hips and lower back. The teeny, tiny tendons and ligaments torque, the muscles spasm, and anything short of deep pressure point techniques doesn't relieve the pain. And there's no point of getting a pressure point massage if I don't deal with the source of the stress.

Therefore, I called Amazon on Monday and politely begged them to let me push back the release of Queer Eye for the Super Guy for a month, and Cecilia, the representative I spoke with graciously allowed me to do so.

Those of you who preordered Queer Eye should have received a notice from Amazon by now about the delay. The last thing I want to do is put out a half-assed product.

As of this writing, I have roughly three and a half chapters left to write on Death in Double Mocha. It will of course be sent to the Soccer Moms of the Apocalypse Kickstarter campaign first, but it will be available to the general public in June.

Queer Eye for the Super Guy is a little over a third of the way finished, but the idea's have been in my head for so long that the writing is going fairly quickly. It will be released on May 12th.

 

Things Are Going to Be Quiet on the Blog This Week

I'm trying to finish both Death in Double Mocha and Queer Eye for the Super Guy this week. That will be followed by a lot of editing. I'm excited for both books to be released soon!

Once the paperbacks for Death in Double Mocha arrive, I can start shipping the last of my Kickstarter reward packages.

In the meantime, I'm in the initial stages of putting together a sooper sekrit project for 2025. Okay, I'll give you a hint--it'll be the Justice series 10th anniversary.

More cool stuff is coming your way!

I Need Some Help Deciding on a Cover!

My cover artist came up with three versions of the cover for Queer Eye for the Super Guy. So I need a little help in picking one.

The first one, aka COVER A, is based on my original request. I told her I wanted two men and  rainbows because Jeremy, Leo, and the LGBT+ cast of the 888-555-HERO takes center stage in this story.

The second one, aka COVER B, has the title toned down a little bit, but still has lots of color.

The third cover, aka COVER C, takes the title down to an almost metallic silver color.

Tell me what you think in the comments below, or you can send me a private message through the CONTACT ME! tab above.

Thanks for your help!

Three Down, One More to Go!

I finished the third book in the Soccer Moms of the Apocalypse quadrilogy, War in White Chocolate, early yesterday evening.

Alas, there is no rest of the wicked. I need to finish the last proof of the paperback for Famine in French Vanilla today and jump into writing Death in Double Mocha.

Ironically, there's been three deaths in the family over the last eight months, and frankly, I'm not only peopled-out and funeraled-out, I'm approaching burn-out with my writing. It's not a good feeling, and a friend I trust said it was rather obvious in the last 888-555-HERO book.

That's not a good sign.

I plan to finish the Kickstarter books, and write Invasion! and the other two books on pre-order. Then, I will take a huge break for a couple of months. I really need to refill my creative well.

Part of the plan is to start working on OOAK Barbies again. I haven't had time to sew, much less face paint or re-root hair since Genius Kid was a toddler. And yes, I'll post pictures over the coming months.

There's also the MCU movies and series I haven't had a chance to watch over the last two years. I have over a thousand unread books, including research tomes for future writing projects. (She says as the gods on the cover of Budge's The Book of the Dead stare at her.)

I will still be writing, though not at the furious pace I have been since I recovered from cancer surgery. I've been working at such a ridiculous speed because I feared dying before I could write down all the stories in my head. Then I buried myself in writing to keep from stressing out over the pandemic.

None of this crazy behavior is healthy for anyone. And I need to relearn how to live.

We all do after the damn pandemic.

Hug your loved ones and furbabies. Take care of yourselves. And as the Doctor says, be kind to others.

Just Another Manic Monday

I was trying to finish Hero Ad Litem the same weekend DH's sisters wanted to work on their parents' house. It was fortuitous that I had our house all to myself. Bella crashed on my lap and slept while I wrote, except when she needed a constitutional, which usually correlated to my need for more caffeine.

But something broke within me while I worked Saturday. I don't know if I hit the wall of burnout or what, but all of the sudden this story wasn't fun for me (even if it did get me out of cleaning the in-law's house). I admit I cut it a bit shorter than I originally intended and dropped the price correspondingly. So, unless something drastically changes, I think Queer Eye for the Super Guy will be the last book in the 888-555-HERO series.

Maybe what DH and I both is a vacation most of all. We haven't been on a real vacation since before GK was born. Next month, we're heading to Millersburg, Ohio, for a long weekend. It's research for me, but it'll be nice to get away from home for a little while. As a friend pointed out when she did a Tarot reading for me recently, there's been a lot of shit going on in my life over the last two that had nothing to do with the pandemic.

So, yes, a little ghost hunting in Ohio Amish country will be fun. Maybe I'll find my mojo in the process.

Just a Quick Note

...to say I am still alive. I'm trying to wrap up Hero Ad Litem since it needs to be uploaded this weekend to Amazon.

Publishing three novels in thirty days. What the hell was I thinking?

Except this was NOT the original plan. But life rolls happen.

So if you see large gaps in my release schedule for 2023, it's me trying to carve out some time for me. The last thing I want is to burn myself out and stop writing. None of us will be happy with that scenario.

Paperbacks Arrived!

Yesterday, the UPS guy dropped off three cases of paperbacks. That's ninety copies. All of Pestilence in Pumpkin Spice. It's a little overwhelming since I've never sold ninety paperbacks in total over the last six years I've had paperbacks available.

The bubble envelopes for the Kickstarter folks who only wanted a copy of the first book already have the address labels on them, so tonight, I'll stuff envelopes while we watch TV.

I've also received some nice comment from folks about the quote magnet sets I've sent out already to the digital-only backers. I wanted to give something to the all backers that didn't cost an arm and a leg in shipping fees. (It's become rather ridiculous to even mail a package to my alter ego's cover designer who lives in Canada.)

Between stuffing envelopes, fixing A Measure of Knowledge, and finishing Hero Ad Litem, I've got a busy weekend ahead. I hope y'all get to enjoy the warm weather and sunshine!

The Beginning of Summer

As much as I'd like to purchase a chaise and lounge on the deck with a good book, there's far too much for me to accomplish.

Of course, top of the list is fixing A Measure of Knowledge. Then comes finishing Hero Ad Litem, Famine in French Vanilla, War in White Chocolate, and Death in Double Mocha. After which, I have a couple of stories to write in the Soccer Moms universe that are stretch goals for last March's Kickstarter camppaign.

I'm exploring some new ways to do audiobooks at a cost I can afford.

And lastly I'm toying with some ideas for an anniversary edition of A Question of Balance. Maybe even a guidebook similar to the Pern guidebooks in my extensive library. Heck, I'm even looking into designing a Tarot deck. These would be a lot of work, but I think they would be a lot of fun!

If anyone has any thoughts on the above, leave a comment or shoot me a message.

Writing and Sleeping

I'm on Day 7 of the cold from Hell. It's not COVID. I had DH pick up tests for me because we've been cleaning out the in-laws' house. Last thing I wanted was to pass it to the rest of the family if it was COVID.

It wasn't in my case, but one of the sisters and her family did have COVID, so they quarantined for a week.

In addition to writing on Hero Ad Litem this week, I've been double-checking A Measure of Knowledge. I'd already FUBAR'd the release by rushing through things. I figured taking my time and rechecking the entire manuscript was the best way to make sure I didn't do anything stupid again.

Because of the cold I've been sleeping. A lot. As in, I slept until  6 PM today. But I needed the sleep. This is the closest I've felt to normal since the FIL passed away.

And right now, I'll take that as a win.

Mail, Mail, Mail

I ran out of stamps last night while I finished stuffing and labeling envelopes for the Kickstarter Stretch Goal magnets. So on my tea run this morning, I bought more stamps, and...

I obviously miscounted because I have one lonely little envelope with no stamps. LOL I'll stop by the post office again this afternoon when I go in for a much-needed haircut. But you don't to hear about that.

In other mail news, a reader asked if Invasion! is part of the Justice series.

Technically, sort of, but it's more of a one-off. Invasion! is my version of Crisis on Infinite Earths or Secret Wars. Blame DH. He asked what would Chief Justice Anthea do if she ever met Sam Ridgeway from the Bloodlines series. But anyway, a vague idea took shape and I added Aisha Franklin from 888-555-HERO and Shan Wong from Seasons of Magick...

And I'm have a damn good time writing it! Plus, I have an excuse to introduce the Grey Ladies from an upcoming series.

So, yeah, this will be a fun book of the heart. It will address the prophecy Reverend Mother Alara mentioned way back in A Question of Balance if you REALLY want to know about that, and Aisha ends up coaching Anthea on how to control her lightning.

But if you need something that's stupid fun while trapped in a vehicle of some sort during the winter holidays, Invasion! is the book for you.

It'll be up for pre-order once I get the cover!

New Release and 24 Days until Christmas!

We got an early present. Genius Kid and Puppy Anubis are in town for the week. Princess Bella was slightly disturbed at having two oversized visitors.

Or she was until she discovered how delicious Puppy Anubis's food and snacks are.

Also, A Very Hero New Year dropped today. It's available right now at Amazon. I'll update links on the 888-555-HERO page as they go live.

Have a great December 1st!

I'm Buried Under My To-Do List

I've spent the first half of the week doing one last proof of the paperback interior of Hero Amicus Curiae and trying desperately to finish A Very Hero New Year, which seems to really want to be a grown-up novel like it's brothers and sisters instead of a little baby novella.

Interspersed between those, I tried to get rooms cleaned and boxes unpacked before our Halloween party on Saturday. I think any writing will have to be set aside for tomorrow and Friday in order to finish cleaning and making some pies for the party.

So TL;DR - don't expect too much brilliance from me until Monday when National Novel Writing Month starts.

Have an awesome Halloween!

Status Update - October 2021

It's been a busy end of 2021 for me!

A Very Hero Wedding (888-555-HERO #8) dropped last Friday on Amazon. It should be live on other retailers soon-ish.

"A Place at the Table" will be released somewhere between October 25th and November 2nd under the WMG Holiday Spectacular. On November 4th, the anthology Halloween Harvest will be released by WMG with "A Place at the Table" among the many great stories that were selected.

On November 15th, another holiday story "The Yule Switch" will drop. It's currently on pre-order  across all online stores.

On December 1st, my last New Hallowthanksmas story A Very Hero New Year (888-555-HERO #9) will hit stores.

I'm still playing catch-up with my Angry Sheep Publishing paperbacks. Hero Amicus Curiae (888-555-HERO #7) will be out in a couple of weeks if I can get a breather next week to review the print interior. That leaves the latest two Justice and latest two HERO books to put together for paperbacks.

Once A Very Hero New Year is finished (hopefully, this weekend *fingers crossed*), I'll be going full bore on the Soccer Moms of the Apocalypse series. I plan on doing something a little different with this series. I'm going to do my first Kickstarter and release the series all at once to my backers before the books go on sale in stores.

Why am I doing this? Because outside deadlines make a bigger impact on my production focus than internal deadlines do. Second, I've been supporting Kickstarter projects for the last ten years, and now, I want to try one. Third, I've already been ordering some nifty rewards to make sure I have them in time for my Kickstarter. So stay tuned for the official Kickstarter announcement!

Oh, the picture above? That's the magnet currently on my refrigerator. I'm so excited about this project! 😎

Coronavirus Pandemic Day 587 - Slowly Rolling and Staying Safe

Known COVID-19 Deaths in the U.S. - 44,914,859
Known CVOID-19 Cases in the U.S. - 724,499

--------------------------

I overslept today. After catching up yesterday thanks to Friday's release, I thought going to bed on time would morph into my usual eight hours.

No such luck.

And since I promised DH coffee and the Starbucks down the street closes at 1 P.M. on weekdays, I had to drive to the next town.

I'd planned on going to Las Vegas for 20Books, but with the fall surge, I nixed that plan. So did several friends. Even my doctor was "Nope-nope-noppity-nope. You're still a high-risk cancer patient. Stay here and go get your booster shot."

So I did. Again, unless your doctor tells you not to get a vaccine because of REAL health issues, like you're allergic to the ingredients, get your damn shots, folks. Everyone I personally know who's had this damn disease wouldn't wish it on their worst enemy.

In the meantime, an idea flashed for a holiday novella regarding a secondary character in the 888-555-HERO series. So between writing that this week and getting some boxes unpacked, I'm slowly but surely getting some shit done.

It's Release Day!

That's right! A Very Hero Wedding will drop on Friday! You can preorder it at Amazon. Otherwise, I'll update links as they go live.

BLURB

 Aisha Franklin’s baby brother is getting married, and the whole office has been invited to the big event in Atlanta. However, trouble follows them across the country, and it’s not the usual superhero shenanigans. Personal conflicts may tear the firm apart before they even get to the nuptials.

Can the bride and groom rebuild their family and friends’ relationships before a super battle erupts at their reception and becomes the leading story on the evening news?

Call us at 888-555-HERO. The Law Offices of Winters & Franklin, where the only thing more dangerous than a superhero is his attorney.

Amazon, all countries

Catching Up

Last night, I updated links on on my master sheets and one of my websites while DH watched TV, and I chatted with a writer friend online while she also did managerial tasks.

With the Delta variant of COVID-19 surge, I don't dare go places I don't have to. So I have to resort to phone calls, texts, e-mails, and various social medias to keep in touch with friends.

The need to distance is chafing my psyche, even for someone as introverted as me.

We bought a house with a guest room, added some awesome furniture, and yet none of our friends have been able to visit.

Heck, I haven't even had a chance (or the bravery) to shop for patio furniture and a barbeque grill. I only wave to the neighbors. And it looks like I'll need to figure out how to incorporate medical masks with my Halloween costume.

Maybe Psycho Surgeon?

Anyway, for those of you who don't like shopping Amazon, I've been uploading the files on the other e-book retailers as I get them from my formatter. In regards to the paperbacks, I'm uploading files, but Ingramspark is also behind due to employees out with COVID-19. So far, only one book out of five loaded have made it through the gauntlet.

In the meantime, I'm trying to finish A Very Hero Wedding in between file reviews. And I'm really hoping to have a very special announcement soon!

Status Report - May 2021

Hey folks!

After putting out books every month since February 2020, I'm taking a little break for June and July this year. For those who haven't heard, DH and I will be first-time grandparents!

Adorable Spawn's due date is July 6, but babies like to come on their own time table. Not to mention Genius Kid and Significant Other live 1300 miles away, so we're keeping our options open.

That doesn't mean things won't be happening!

1) From now until the Fourth of July, Bloodlines: The First Boxed Set will be on sale for $0.99! The first three Bloodlines novels are sexy, hot hero fun when you're lounging by the pool or on the beach this summer.

[ETA] Oops! I forgot the buy links!

Amazon, all countries
Apple
Barnes & Noble
Google Play
Kobo
Smashwords

2) The rest of the Bloodlines series (Books 2-9) are on sale from $2.99 to $3.21.

3) If you're outside the U.S. or you use another retailer other than Amazon, Blood Magick is free. For those of you in the U.S., Amazon set it to free last week, then abruptly raised the price on Friday. I've complained a few times, and the answers from Amazon have ranged from "It's a problem with your browser" to "Tough shit, we can do what we want".

So I'm asking you to please contact Amazon's customer service and complain. They will listen to customers before they will listen to me, though I plan to constantly nag them from now to Labor Day.

3) The two-month break doesn't mean I won't be writing. I'm working on rewriting the Millersburg Magick Mysteries, which I hope to have out by August.

4) I'm also working on August's new release, A Hand of Father (Justice #7).

5) The Soccer Moms of Apocalypse series is shaping up. However, I want to have all the books written before I start releasing them. That may mean the first release Pestilence in Pumpkin won't be until November. I really love this series, and I want to make it as perfect as possible,

6) The late release for Soccer Moms is because I'm looking forward to the chaos of A Very Hero Wedding (888-555-HERO #8). Let's face it--weddings can be crazy enough. I know mine was. Add in crazier supervillains on top of crazy relatives, and...

Well, you get the drift.

Anyway, that's what's happening in my world. If you have any comments or questions, enter them in the comments section below, or send me a private message through the Contact Me tab.

Next week, I'll start posting snippets from A Hand of Father.