September 2023 News

Merry Christmas! That's what some people will say in several months. Not today obviously. That would be ridiculous and confusing. 

Then why'd you say it? You love Christmas or something?

Not especially. I just struggle with opening these news posts sometimes and give randomness a vote.

Writing

August 4th I published Violence & Vigilance, a gritty epic fantasy featuring Irdessa the Undying - daughter of the strategist Andelsior of Vim, partner of Torvald the Tactician, slayer of beasts and bastards alike, and Basalt Kale - the Consonant Void, the first Entropomancer, Erudition's Undoing. 

Go buy it on Amazon.

I simply can not recommend this book. Wait no. I meant, I can't recommend this book enough. It has all the things I love in a book: My name on the cover, my bank account connected to its Amazon purchase page, and lastly, words. 

Good lord. I've gotten no better at touting this f*cker. Good thing it's so gorgeous it sells itself.

That's 8 lbs / 3.6 kgs of fantasy fiction right there

There are gracious and daring souls buying this beast around the earth as we speak. It sells best in the US, but has also reached the UK, Australia, and even Italy. Of the reviews it has gotten, every last one of them (there are two) compares it to Wheel of Time. I can barely fathom this. I haven't read Wheel of Time and it was not an influence. I don't aspire to incorporate any Wheel of Timery in my writing. In fact there's more swearing in V&V's prologue than in fourteen books of WoT. However, I'm grateful. WoT is hugely successful so there must be something to gain by folks finding the comparison. I suppose I should mention that V&V's developmental editor John Jarrold happens to be the literary agent who found Robert Jordan, the author of Wheel of Time. And John said of V&V, "This is in the top 15% of debuts I’ve worked on as a freelance editor since 2002." 

I'd love to tell you progress is chugging along with book 2, the conclusion of Turesia Untamed, but it's not. We're still in V&V's honeymoon period wherein I heave my weight into promotion and marketing. I gotta. I don't have a team working for me. On that front, V&V and I have appeared online in blogs and vids, as such:

Sometime in July - DB Rooks hosted an interview of Irdessa on his blog

Aug 4 - Matt interviewed me live on his YouTube channel, Beards of Darkness Book Reviews

Aug 4 - Pub Day Spotlight: Violence & Vigilance, on the Shaggy Shepherd

Aug 9 - Mihir Wanchoo interviewed me on Fantasy Book Critic

Aug 25 - Indie Author Spotlight on Beards of Darkness (I come in around 9:23)

Anyways, go rate my book. You can purchase it (again) too, but most importantly I need reviews. And if you or someone you know has a blog, YouTube channel, or any new-fangled deviation of such, know that I'm happy to appear on it and inflict the world with more rambling nonsense. In the best way.

Finally, DragonCon... I'd love to be there. It's a little over an hour's drive away and crowded with authors I have cavorted with online. It would be an amazing opportunity to get V&V out in the real world some more. But the planets are not aligning this year. 

Kayaks

Lake Hartwell Kayak Rental and Delivery (LHKRAD) thrives. Summer's relentless pace diminished as school resumed but now out come the campers and weekenders. 

Payne's Creek Campground

Big Oaks Recreation Area

The IT dork in me is forever fascinated by the data I record on rentals and interactions. Trends emerge. The day will come when I sell this business for retirement money. Every decision we make is toward that end. 

We have one more weekend out at Lake Russell State Park, wherein we booth-sit, renting yaks and selling snacks. 

Going over the setlist out at el lago

Will we return to Russell next year? Unsure. It is a great opportunity at times. We've had $1,000 weekends and $60 weekends and unlike the main business it demands a ton of time. I think that the only way we could feasibly return is if I hire help. This may sometimes result in losses but between you and me, I don't think we hit our maximum potential out there. Signage for snacks, kayaks for the local campers, local promotions... these are all ways LRK could improve. Time'll tell.

The Band - Something Once Sacred

Yes SoS is getting a section this month. We've been playing around the area here and there, and have some shows lined up. To my knowledge the only September show we're playing is at Southern Hart Brewing Company, right in downtown Hartwell, Ga. If you're in the area at 9pm EST on Sept 9th stop by for a brew and a jam. I'll have books, too, and I'll sell ya a signed one.

On that, I can't NOT share this picture. 

Sylvia has been around since A Sawmill's Hope dropped in 2014. She's been encouraging and enthusiastic about my writing ever since. I sure hope she has a stomach for vile deeds and bad language.

The Paludarium - Kingdom of Zeal

I want to tell you about Glenn, the frog. I found him a few weeks ago when you could hardly take a step outside at night with out crushing a baby frog. I frognapped him invited him to move into the paludarium. My justification for such relocations has always been as such: This is okay because you won't get eaten in here like you probably would in the wild. 

He's an awesome guy and fit right in

Judging by the way he'd watch this rotting pear you'd think it was cable TV

Eventually he started paying more attention to the outside

hiraeth: deep longing for something, especially one's home

You know where this is going. I let him go. Boyo and I did, two nights ago. He promptly ate an ant and bounced off into the darkness, where maybe he'll be eaten by something but if so, he'll have his freedom. 

I don't know if I'm cut out to harbor animals in glass prisons. Maybe I just need to work on the entertainment. And food. 

Next Month

Progress will have been made on book 2. I'll have bombarded more book reviewers to give V&V a chance. LHKRAD will have slowed further. Death will be one month closer, if she doesn't arrive in the meantime.

see ya then

dtl