Back to Writing (and Recording?)

I've been writing my butt off over the weekend in an effort to finish Demons Run at Halloween. It's the last bonus story to complete from my Soccer Moms Kickstarter campaign. It's also the only bonus story that will be available to the general public. Yep, y'all will have the opportunity to buy and read at, well, Halloween. LOL The preorder for the e-book will be available as soon as it's finished, edited, and formatted.

I also promised to do audiobooks of the three bonus stories. Unfortunately, the gentleman I wanted to read Analyze Me had to drop out due to personal issues. So, I'll use the opportunity to test a text-to-speech tool I recently purchased.

That doesn't mean I'm not mindful of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. In fact, I thought long and hard about using an AI tool for one of the audiobooks. It comes down to the fact that I cannot currently afford quality voice talent. I'm doing the voice work for Demons Run at Halloween, and I bartered with a friend to do the voice work for Apocalypse? Not Now!

What I am paying for is an artist I like and respect for a HUGE job. She agreed to tackle a special project for the tenth anniversary of the Justice series. I can't say much more than that at this point. I'm hoping everything will come together as planned.

Besides, I think the Universe seriously owes me one after the cards she dealt me in 2022.

Awesome News!

The news is awesome on two fronts!

First, Apocalypse? Not Now! and Pestilence in Pumpkin Spice are going through their final tweaks with my formatter. I swear it doesn't matter how many eyes I have on a manuscript. Invariably, I will find a typo or five when I go through the e-book and print files. So, Jaye is slipping the final corrections in, and the Kickstarter backers will have their e-book copies before the end of the month.

Second, our plumber had a cancellation and will be at the house tomorrow! For those who might have missed the tragedy of our primary bathroom, DH managed to yanked the entire shower arm out of the wall our second night in the house.

Then the painter accidentally broke the toilet lid while he was painting the bathroom a couple of days later. He offered to replace the lid, but I declined. The previous owner is a tiny woman. (Seriously, she'd reach five-feet with hair extensions and an entire bottle of Aquanet.) And she had a tiny toilet. Which was killing both mine and DH's knees to the point where we didn't use it. I used the broken toilet as an excuse to replace it with a bigger unit.

And then both sinks and the garden tub developed leaks. I was beginning to think I was never going to use the primary bathroom as it should be used.

I put off getting the stuff in the bathroom fixed right away because the new grandbaby took precedence last year. Then we came home early from that when our basement flooded. And then,a couple of weeks into the new year, the dishwasher croaked.

Upon receiving our tax refunds, we called our plumber with the list of issues. She came out on Monday to take look so she could write up the estimate, but she was booked for the rest of the week and had vacation scheduled for next week. No problem, we said.

But she texted yesterday and said she could come tomorrow! Yay! I can finally use my purple bathroom!

Now, I'm off to get some editing done on a different book before I have to clean out the cupboards in the kitchen and bathroom.

May everyone's toilet flush properly and their sinks, showers, and tubs not leak!

It's Almost Time!

This week, I've been busy finalizing my very first Kickstarter for my new series Soccer Moms of the Apocalypse! I'm so excited! The official launch date is March 15th, but the preview page is active! Click here to check it out!

Today, I need to redo my video. Statistically, a personal appeal will more likely to get your project funded. And the current video is the...well, I'm not sure, but I did over a hundred takes over the course of three days last weekend. I admit me and cameras are not friends. The people who critiqued my previous video tried to be kind, but I sounded like a hypervetilating hippo.

And that was the best take out of over a hundred.

I know some folks are almost as excited about this series as I am, but I won't be putting up the preorders on the retail sites until after the Kickstarter ends on April 5th. Also the prequel novella Apocalypse? Not Now! is only available through the Kickstarter. So if you want your books early plus the exclusive novella, think about supporting my kickstarter!

The Joys of Being an Artist/Businessperson

After sun and a sixty-degree weather at the first of the week, it's back to cold with snow on the way.

In the meantime, I'm keeping myself busy with a couple of classes in between writing and marketing. I've made a few alterations to the the Soccer Moms logo so it shows up better on the canvas totes I've selected for the Kickstarter. I'll order a few next week to see how they look in real life.

I'm finishing up Apocalypse? Not Now! this afternoon. It will go to the Alpha readers later tonight so they can pick it apart. I doubt if I finish Pestilence in Pumpkin Spice tonight though I'm at the climax and the downhill slide to completion.

I was hoping to get the Millerburg Magick Mysteries revised and back up at retailers long before now. Rest assured I'm plugging away at those. Hopefully, the recent classes I've taken and the hard look at my time and process will kick those projects into gear and get them back where they need to be.

So that's my Hump Day. How's yours?

Ice, Snow & the Apocalypse

While last night's sleet tinked against the windows followed by quiet soft snow, I finished the novella, Apocalypse? Not Now! Unfortunately, it's not the only thing in the completed pile.

I'm taking the holiday weekend to get a lot of editing/proofing done before plunging back into the climax of Pestilence in Pumpkin Spice. Once it's done, proofed, and formatted, I'll launch the Kickstarter for the series.

I'm tickled with this series and I hope the readers are, too!

Catching Up on the Writing

I don't think I realized how much I needed Tuesday's break, even if I was filling a trashcan with used tissues and trying to swallow comfortably with a LOT of green tea.

I finished up our tax stuff on Wednesday while still getting a ton of words done. I highly recommend WMG's classes on Making a Living Writing Novels and Pulp Speed. Just the first two weeks of lectures and homework have helped me take a very hard look on my efforts and how I spend my time.

Our twelve+ inches of snow from Winter Storm Landon is disappearing beneath the warm air over the last two days and today's steady drizzle of relatively warm rain. I already miss watching the squirrels cavort in the drifts in the backyard.

Now, I just need to wrap up Apocalypse? Not Now! and Pestilence in Pumpkin Spice this weekend or possibly early next week so I can pass them on to the people who do their magic.

Anyone want to take bets whether we'll get more snow? Spring is just a hair over a month away.

Words, Taxes, and Stuffy Noses

On Monday, I was bebopping along on doing tax stuff when I hit my usual snag. No matter how careful I am over the year, medical transactions were effed up. After working through the transaction detail reports two times (I swear it's the same as proofreading a manuscript), I gave up for the evening. DH and I hit the grocery store, dropped off bills at the post office, and ordered pizza to pick up on the way home.

I was tired and had a bit of a headache, which at the time I chalked up to staring at numbers all day. So I went to bed at 1 AM, fairly early for me. I only stayed up to watch Nathan Chen's short program. I'm not much of an Olympics fan, but I do love figure skating.

Unfortunately, I woke up in the middle of the night with a sore throat and congestion. By daylight, the body aches and chills had started. Therefore, Tuesday was spent curled on the couch, watching more Olympic coverage, sipping tea, and toodling with Apocalypse? Not Now! and Pestilence in Pumpkin Spice.

I felt a little better when I woke up this morning, but by the time I finished my third round on the medicals and everything reconciled, I was exhausted. I don't know if I have Omicron. This feels more like a middling cold, but DH isn't taking chances and won't be going to see his dad regardless of what I'm infected with.

It is funny how drugs and disease got me to see some issues in both manuscripts I'm working on. I spent yesterday forming the connective tissue between the two. I'm really hoping readers enjoy these books!