I’m not sure what’s new here, but the quarterly newsletter went out yesterday, so it’s time for one of these on the blog too.
It’s been A Week. My day planner was full (this month is very full) and I had some grand plans for cleaning* but a couple of things waylaid it. It’s all out of the way now (including, once again, issues with my medication; I don’t know why the pharmacy keeps having issues, or whether it’s something with the claim going through to insurance, but AGAIN my case manager fixed it, and I’m positive she’s a witch or something and one day I will dedicate a book to Ola). But after my med delivery today, I lay down for an hour (not quite napping, but resting my eyes, which almost has the same effect), took a walk to get some fresh produce, and had a mocha frapp, and I can report that has near the same restorative quality as a shower day reset.
(*cleaning = I dug out the Organization Solutions for People with ADHD book that I bought years and years ago when I was like “Huh, wow, all of this ADHD stuff applies to me but I don’t have ADHD” LOLOL yes, really**. Anyway, Krista Ball (who posted her brief review here) and I have been going through it and applying different things to our respective households and it’s definitely helping, although you wouldn’t know it to look at my apartment.)
(**I am not diagnosed, and I’m very hesitant to self-diagnose, but we’ll just say that while I remain on the family doctor waiting list to ask about it, gosh, yes, I kind of fit the woman-in-her-forties-finally-admits-she-might-have-ADHD stereotype.)
So today has been organizing my massive to-do list for tomorrow and doing some admin tasks, like this and some website updates (I rearranged the home page to better feature my latest release and what’s new).
What Released
Waverly 2 is out, A Wild Kind of Darkness. Near and dear to my heart, because the book’s mystery is based on the unsolved murder of my good friend’s aunt–and gives Waverly a whole lot of feelings that were fun to delve into. And again, the handful of people reading it are enjoying it. (To quote a Kobo review: “I love how this series centers women and really appreciate the masking, abolition, and cat rescuing on top of a smashing good mystery.” That’s the series: centering women, and medical masking/police abolition/pet rescue atop mystery solving.)
Kindle | Kobo | iBooks | Nook | Payhip | Paperback | Hardcover | Signed Paperback on Etsy | Signed Hardcover on Etsy
Several new shorts at Patreon, as well–the last couple are set in the Elis/Demons world and link to Hell Fire as that’s about to conclude in February.
What’s Upcoming
Waverly’s back, first with a short at Patreon–“Take Your Dog to Work Day”–coming next month, and then April 2 Alone at Night releases. That puts it at three books in less than a year, and then we’re moving to a one-a-year schedule.
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, work is limited, and clients aren’t consistent enough to compensate for some pro bono cases who need someone like her.
One such case lands at her desk: the body of Madison Simmons was found in the woods after the spring thaw, and the death has been confirmed a suicide. Her working-class mother doesn’t doubt this, but she’s still after answers. Why the sudden change in Madison’s behavior in the year prior to her death? What factors drove her to suicide—and could there have been another person involved?
There’ll also be a special edition hardcover, like with the others.
It amuses me terribly, and hopefully amuses the people who know Waverly, to have the “please don’t call me nice” thing. Even though a big part of the series is reframing the ways in which we view ourselves after being told something for an entire lifetime, she knows what she is and what she’s done and she’s so resistant to any kind of label suggesting she’s kind.
From Alone at Night for y’all:
Kobo readers can preorder the fourth book. Tentatively it’s set for May 6 2025, however I might bump that up if revisions go okay (who knows, though, the book is a mess).
After that, around June or so, Hell Fire (Elis O’Connor #4) will release in paperback, and then I’m hoping to start serializing Demon Fall (Elis #5).
I’ll be closing out a the year with a new horror book, The Taiga Ridge Murders on November 12. I’ve done a couple rounds of revisions on it now, and it’s sitting at around 74K words. I’m really happy with it at the moment (esp the stuff I find deeply romantic; related: some folks are going to beg me to stay away from writing anything romantic ever again lol).
It’s been thirteen years since Maya McGlynn set foot in Taiga Ridge Lodge, the northern Ontario luxury resort where she grew up. She was Maisie, daughter of the caretakers, and thought of the lodge as her own.
That was when her parents were arrested as serial killers.
It’s been ten years since Maya last had contact with the lodge’s owner, who promised her—upon the conviction of her parents and her whole world forever altering—that she’d always be taken care of.
That was when she changed her name and stopped returning his calls.
It’s been two years since Taiga Ridge Lodge had visitors. Since bookings wavered and rooms were closed off, its halls grew silent, and it never fully reopened after pandemic lockdown.
That was when she forgot it existed.
Now, Maya has received notice that the owner has passed and, as promised, she is being taken care of: Taiga Ridge Lodge and all its property is hers to dispose of as she sees fit…as soon as she visits her old home to make the final arrangements.
Now, a winter storm approaches, trapping her with restless ghosts, a stray cat, and a single voice on the radio for help.
Now, Taiga Ridge Lodge might not let her go again.
Like my other standalones, it’ll be available in paperback and hardcover, but if you’re into ebooks, you can find it up for preorder. Also NOTHING BAD HAPPENS TO THE CAT.
I’d really like to get a map of the lodge designed. I think it’s beyond my skillset, even though I can see it in my head. But I’m still figuring out if I can hire help for the Waverly 3 drawing or if I’ll have to use one of my own this time, so I’ve got a few months to consider it.
What I’m Working On
All revisions all the time for the next couple of months.
Alone at Night is out for edits, and I’ve got a handful of little tweaks and things in my head for when I get those back, along with whatever is called for in edits.
The Taiga Ridge Murders will need another thorough pass when I’ve had some distance.
Hell Fire needs revisions for the paperback/final patreon ebook release.
Silent All These Years needs so much revision I wish I could clone myself so I had someone to talk the book out with.
I’m hoping after I get through the next month or two of freelance + cleaning with the damn ADHD organization book + doing some general things for my health right now, I’ll have rested enough from everything I wrote last year to dive in and finish Waverly 7 plus write some new things. Top of the list has to be Demon Fall so it can start serializing.
Another big thing is getting a Payhip subscription system off the ground.
I’ll be duplicating Patreon posts, and it’ll essentially be an alternative for readers who would prefer it. Because every time Patreon does something boneheaded, people leave, and I’m hoping some might consider popping over there instead of leaving entirely.
To be frank, nothing I’m publishing is terribly profitable right now. Dweller on the Threshold being featured in a Kobo email gave me a good boost in the fall. Waverly sales are…negligible. Preorder numbers for the horror book are abysmal (which is not unexpected; there are certain buying patterns with different readerships, and it’s very different with standalones vs series; that does not mean the standalones are never profitable, but that it’ll probably be several months after release before I actually see more than a dozen people buying it).
Anyway, that means it’s crucial to keep patronage alive and make it as easy as possible for folks to access monthly support. Payhip actually allows a lot of the same things Patreon does, although I’ll have to use a third party to connect Discord, and I have to do some work setting up the page and graphics and that.
It’s hard to launch mid serial so I’m planning to make it public March 1.
That’s it for now. Hoping next week is quiet so I can focus on work and laundry (because my life is that exciting).
Holla!