Skyla Dawn Cameron

My characters kill people so I don't have to.

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“When’s that book coming?” Spring 2024 Edition

I haven’t slept all week and I think I’m about ready to crash for the weekend, and this should have gone up last month, so let’s just jump right in.

What Released

The third Waverly Jones book!

Two months ago, Waverly Jones was given a reason to remain in her small hometown of Port Milton indefinitely. Her problem is that even for a private investigator who has solved several high-profile cases, her client pool in the area is limited, and there isn’t enough regular work to justify taking on the odd pro bono job—especially when strapped for cash because her agency is no longer a single-person operation, either.

For the first time, Waverly has an assistant—one who is as much her moral compass as he is a welcoming face to those in need of an investigator. So when the grieving, working-class mother of Madison Simmons—whose body was found in the woods after the spring thaw—comes to them for help, Waverly can’t say no, even if the sliding scale won’t be enough to cover it.

Despite the failure of authorities to look for Madison when she went missing, the death has since been confirmed a suicide. Still, questions plague her mother: why the sudden change in Madison’s behaviour before she died? What factors drove her to suicide?

And could there have been another person involved?

Kindle – Kobo – iBooks – Nook – Payhip – Paperback – Hardcover

That’s three books in that series out in under a year. I’m beat and now we’re doing yearly releases while I draft the rest.

I thought at this point it was really obvious, both given how I’ve talked about the books as well as in the text itself, but just to reiterate: this series will have an endpoint and that is when The Crossroads Butcher case will be resolved. Each book itself has its own mystery that concludes, while weaving in the series arc. I call this The Buffy Arc Method, which I also use with Livi Talbot, so the books are like episodes with conclusions but there’s a season-long arc that has its own structure as well.

This isn’t me stretching that mystery out because I feel like being awful; it’s because it directly ties to the characters and their arcs. The primary players need to be in the right place themselves for the various reveals, I even inserted two books not originally planned just to ensure everything falls the right way. The seventh is in progress, I’ve got rough titles and primary plot points for the concluding five volumes. After that, I might write Waverly standalones, just because I have a lot of ideas that won’t make it in the main series (because as much as I don’t want to rush it, I also don’t want to drag it out with filler).

I am just stating this all up front, again, before I start to drive myself insane second-guessing whether this was somehow unclear previously.

What’s Upcoming

In a couple of short weeks…

Waverly will be at StoryBundle!

I’m extremely excited about the lineup. I wrote a bonus novella, Haunting at Hayward House, that is included with The Killing Beach just for StoryBundle.

This will run from May 22 until Jun 13 and I’ll have lots of details for you later.

Current status of the Hell Fire paperback is… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I had like three nervous breakdowns in April and depression got pretty bad, and I am so exhausted, I just have not pulled it out to revise and ready for edits. I also have no ETA on starting to serialize Demon Fall. Again, I am tired. All that stuff is still vaguely slotted for “summer” and if you point out summer is almost here, I will be very cross with you.

BUT don’t forget…a new horror book!

a promo graphic with the book cover for The Taiga Ridge Murders, which shows a snowy landscape and a wooden ski lodge. The graphic says "there is a moment in every horror story where the protagonist has the opportunity to heed the signs, but Maya does not believe in them and so she drives to what used to be home."

Kindle | Kobo | Nook | iBooks

Nothing bad happens to the cat.

I’m hoping to do some cool things with the interior for the hardcover with this one–in general I try to do nice print books (Dweller and Watcher both have fun extras in the layout, both paperback and hardcover) but I am going to try to step up my game here.

So far the only firm thing set for 2025 is Waverly 4, Silent All These Years, which is currently in revision and up for preorder at Kobo. Other links coming early next week.

I know what I would like to release fall 2025. I do not know if I will have it written or not. If it’s not drafted by this fall, well… We’ll see if I can write another horror book or bump up Waverly 5 instead.

What I’m Working On

Waverly 4 revisions. I finally, finally know what I’m doing…sort of…mostly. It’s so much work (god, why do I spend so much time on things that will make pennies when I’m done?!? lolsob) but once I get these main pieces into place, later revisions should be easier. I hope.

Then I guess I have to tackle Elis’s books.

Last time I mentioned adding a Payhip alternative to Patreon. That is still on the agenda, I just…I am just so tired and spent all of April like this–I think I’m only partially upright yet.

A still from the Barbie movie, with Barbie lying on the ground with a blank expression.

Now I’m hoping to sleep the sleep of the dead, so I can be refreshed and tackle finishing the freelance to-do list this month. My medical stuff was all moved to this month as well, so crossing my fingers I’m still in remission.

More StoryBundle details coming soon!

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Soundtrack Sunday – ALONE AT NIGHT

I think I solved the problem for why some emails weren’t going out from the blog as well as my feedback form (I had to upgrade the PHP). ICYMI: I had a new release, the new hardcovers arrived, and everything else has been a mess. If I did not solve the problem, oh well, no one is going to get this outside of whoever clicks on social media. 🙃

My release day nearly two weeks ago was incredibly shitty, even accounting for how demoralizing publishing is in general. I had a few posts drafted here with updates about how things have been, but they sounded like whining so I haven’t posted them. Just insert Barbie here, cheerfully saying, “I’m definitely not thinking about death anymore!” (It’s fine, I’m fine, just a lot going on, and April is always terrible.)

Anyway, usual caveat–I listen to a lot of the same songs on repeat for this series, so check out the playlists for The Killing Beach, A Wild Kind of Darkness, and there are other series songs on the overview.

Zayde Wolfe – “Save Tonight (cover)“
This is probably the dark trailer theme song for the whole book for me.

Agnes Obel – “Riverside“
Waverly goes through Madison’s room/any scenes reflecting on the ghosts of dead girls in this book.
“Oh my god I see how everything is torn in the river deep//And I don’t know why I go the way//Down by the riverside”

Kirsty Bows – “Crawling (cover)“
I kind of hear this as Madison’s theme, even though she’s not in the actual book.

Alanis Morissette – “Perfect (acoustic)“
I think it should be painfully obvious why Waverly doesn’t get along with her mom (Rachael), but while her mothers aren’t quite this bad, this is what I hear with the household she grew up in, and certainly her little brother feels this way.
“We love you//just the way you are//if you’re perfect”

Ashley Johnson – “Take On Me (cover)“
Ashley Johnson has a beautiful voice–and I really admire how she can sing in character, keeping Ellie’s rougher, tentative voice for her TLoU songs (including “Wayfaring Stranger”, live). So this very quiet, gentle version of “Take On Me” was on repeat a few times in Alone at Night. Specifically the chapters putting the bed together, talking about the past case, etc.
“We’re talking away//I don’t know what I’m to say//I’ll say it anyway//Today is another day to find you//Shyin’ away//Oh, I’ll be comin’ for your love, okay”

Otis Redding – “For Your Precious Love“
Technically this was the song playing for the characters in that scene, though, lol.

Jessica Curry – “Mandus“

Sarah Brightman – “He Doesn’t See Me“
If anyone knows a more melancholy/darker/acoustic version of this, that’s more Waverly, hmu (I love SB, this is on the soundtrack for the lyrics). This is when she oversees someone seemingly on a date.
“When he passes me by, he’s a ray of light//Like the first drop of sun from the sky//And I know he’s a king who deserves a queen//But I’m not a queen, and he doesn’t see me”

Billie Marten – “In for the Kill“
I don’t know if I can specifically point to a scene for this one, although it gave me vibes of Waverly’s frustration and disappointment, and also in the latter part of the book when she’s watching him risk himself for the case.
“I hang my hopes out on the line//Will they be ready for you in time” and “I’m hoping you’ll understand//Now let go of my hand“

Sierra Eagleson – “A Case of You (cover)“
There are a lot of quiet moments in this book I love–one of them, without spoilers, is when Waverly finds her apartment very full of guests, and there’s a scene where they’re sitting on the floor and she confesses the maternal gene skipping her, and the different perspective she’s given on it.
“Oh, you’re in my blood like holy wine//You taste so bitter and so sweet//Oh, I could drink a case of you, darling//And I would still be on my feet”

Angelo Badalamenti – “Twin Peaks Theme (Instrumental)“
There’s a scene in this book that is 100% an Agent Cooper Moment, I don’t care that it’s blatant–I literally heard this song playing as I was typing despite not listening to anything at the time, and even the editor commented “He’s so dreamy.” (What is an ACM? When the theme kicks in while Cooper is kind as he declines Audrey’s advances, or one of the only great things that came out of The Return for me was the “I am the FBI” scene.)
“…there are vows we make, obviously, as part of our duties. But I made an oath myself to uphold certain values. One is to be in service not only to my community but to the world around me. Another is to never hold myself above anyone, victim, witness, or accused, and to afford each person I meet with the dignity everyone is owed from their very basic humanity. But the final one, perhaps the most relevant here”—he turns and looks at me—“is that the job is never above what is right. And if ever the job comes into conflict with what I believe is right, then my choice, while perhaps not easy, is clear and I will know the steps to take. I am not making a great sacrifice here. Even if it affects my case. Even as it most certainly affects my job prospects. There is right and there is wrong. What we’re doing is right.”

James Marshall – “Just You“
Last chapter/epilogue song. (Also, James has always been cool.)

Alone at Night is now available everywhere.

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New Release: Alone at Night

New Waverly book is here! Waverly tackles systemic police corruption while babysitting so if RAGE mixed with ABSOLUTE HILARITY is your thing, here’s the book for you.

Two months ago, Waverly Jones was given a reason to remain in her small hometown of Port Milton indefinitely. Her problem is that even for a private investigator who has solved several high-profile cases, her client pool in the area is limited, and there isn’t enough regular work to justify taking on the odd pro bono job—especially when strapped for cash because her agency is no longer a single-person operation, either.

For the first time, Waverly has an assistant—one who is as much her moral compass as he is a welcoming face to those in need of an investigator. So when the grieving, working-class mother of Madison Simmons—whose body was found in the woods after the spring thaw—comes to them for help, Waverly can’t say no, even if the sliding scale won’t be enough to cover it.

Despite the failure of authorities to look for Madison when she went missing, the death has since been confirmed a suicide. Still, questions plague her mother: why the sudden change in Madison’s behaviour before she died? What factors drove her to suicide?

And could there have been another person involved?

Kindle – Kobo – iBooks – Nook – Payhip – Paperback – Hardcover 

I’m taking the day mostly offline–I’m going to take another stab at the rewrite of Waverly 4 (I think once I get this first chapter sorted, I’ll be more confident going forward), reorganize my tax expenses, take a shower, consider a walk. Release days are weird because there’s a build-up of energy but nowhere for it to go, because books are rare read right away, so you can spend two years of your life on something, anticipating it being read, and then it might take a while before you know if it has been (or was liked). (Also adding: someone read it early, a couple of people are currently reading it, and those folks have all loved it, so I am pretty lucky in that regard.)

Amazon is taking a few weeks to ship if you’re getting the hardcover, but hopefully your patience will be rewarded because this is (IMO) a great book–some more clues for the series arc, Waverly Being Waverly, glimpses at WHY Waverly is the way she is, several social justice rants in a trenchcoat, the behind-the-scenes section is loaded with long rants on the concept of unlikeable women. And while every book in the series is a little different–the character dynamics are always changing, etc–this book is sort of the prime example of my somewhat joking tagline: “She’s a feral cat. He’s a Disney prince. Together THEY SOLVE CRIME.”

(One day I will be able to afford commissioning a Disney-style drawing to that effect.)

I will try to get the soundtrack post up for Sunday, I just have to dig out the songs from it. (The only one I remember off the top of my head is Ashley Johnson’s in-character cover of “Take on Me” for the putting-together-a-bed-and-awkwardly-pining chapters.)

A reminder that Silent All These Years–Waverly 4, which is primarily focused on The Crossroads Butcher, as well as some of Waverly’s, uh, choices having consequences–is not due out until May 6 2025, so there’s no preorder outside of Kobo because everywhere else makes me wait until it’s a year away.

So I hope you enjoy this one and if you’re not started on Waverly, you can get the first book for 25% off with the code MEETWAVERLY over at Payhip.

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To Be Seen

I rolled out of bed this morning, got dressed for the sudden temperature drop–very briefly, spring seemed to be here, but it’s gotten chilly again–and hauled ass to the post office to mail all those books.

There are two others I earmarked but have no rush on, that I need to package and send out, but the six that folks bought over a matter of hours last night are off to their destinations. I had bought ten total, quite nervous and unsure if they’d move at all (hardcovers are so expensive!), so I’m very relieved.

Not only that, but surprised and delighted and…perhaps humbled, I guess? I was not expecting that level of interest.

The Killing Beach came out May 30, and now the third book is due to arrive in a week and a half. Three within a year seemed like the best way to get folks invested while maintaining my sanity (I cannot, and will not, do rapid releases for anything; I did that over a couple of years under a pen name and damn near killed myself), and we’re mostly moving to yearly releases now, although the odd time I might be able to squeeze in two a year (though not in 2025; the hope is to release Livi 7 that fall, but WE’LL SEE). I’ve written far enough ahead that I can do that and still have some breathing room (yes, to those who like to send me objections periodically: the unprofitable mysteries will continue until morale improves).

I did get a little down on myself recently, as I’ve been combing over sales info while preparing taxes, and that was…not smart when it came to Waverly lol. But at the same time, I feel like that’s for the best–I do not want a repeat of Livi which, despite its low sales, is still higher than Waverly, and has just enough attention that I get hatemail. I want to be able to pay some bills and devote that time to writing something I love and not get yelled at in the meantime, so lower sales but great Patreon support has been working out best.

What is tremendously heartening for me, though, is how much a handful of people love these stories.

Because that first one was so hard to write, and I had a serious crisis of faith a few months before I finally finished it that almost led to me scrapping the book and series entirely–I’m so grateful I didn’t, because I needed these stories, and it seems others do too.

I know some sales are because people love the hardcovers–they come out beautifully, they’re packed with extra stories and “bonus features”, the covers hit that nostalgia feel, and folks will invest in them and pop them on the TBR for later. Other sales are from regular readers who like my work but maybe mysteries aren’t their thing and the haven’t tried them yet.

But a for a few others I’ve talked to, they needed Waverly the same way I have.

I think her cold prickliness serves the same purpose for readers that badass, burn-it-all-down heroines (or want-take-have heroines, like Zara) do. Women are socialized to care about everything and everyone, all the time. Most women I know are exhausted with caring, especially with everything that has gone down over the past four years. For me, personally, compassion fatigue has broken something in me I’m not getting back again. And spending a few hours in the head of someone who is distant and unmoved by most things and wants to be left alone is a great outlet.

The hardcover edition of Alone at Night, in the behind-the-scenes section, I dedicate a few pages to picking apart the concept of likability in women, linking it to how it’s used against victims in real life and discussing how subjective it is. One of the long-running themes in this series is what it means to be fully seen and understood, whether our perspectives of ourselves match reality, and how we’re prone to listen to the voices that reinforce our worst opinions about ourselves.

Some people I’ve talked to seem to really see and understand Waverly, and that keeps them engaging with the series–along with the need for detailed murder boards of clues, of course.

I am so grateful for that.

I hope when the books I just shipped arrive at their destinations, folks are pleased with the physical presentation again and eventually the story when they read–and for everyone else, Waverly is back April 2.

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Skip the Etsy Line – UPDATE

Lookit! Lookit the beauty that is the third Waverly hardcover!

And…they’re gone! At least the six I had available for sale, so I’ve removed the info here. Damn, y’all!

I have a couple more that are earmarked for various reasons–one to someone who preordered, one for the proofer, one for my shelf. Technically that leaves one more, and I will aim to get it posted at Etsy, but I only printed six digital download codes, so I’ll need to do some more.

I am truly surprised that people were eager to get signed copies. I hope everyone loves this new book as I do!

Look at the pretty books altogether!

MEET SKYLA DAWN

Writer of urban fantasy, thrillers/mysteries, and horror.
Fifth-generation crazy cat lady. Bitchy feminist.
So tired all the goddamn time.

My characters kill people so I don’t have to.

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What I’m Working On:

Taiga Ridge edits and Waverly 4 Revisions.