20240617

[As usual, three weeks lag here, if you aren’t reading this on my Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/blazeward). If you’d like your news fresher, and the monthly Anti-Stodgy/Redneck Chef newsletter, all I ask is a buck to help keep the lights on around here.]

At least the foot’s better. Took a week. Since Saturday, been dealing with other issues and down and snarly a bit this morning. Late start, so writing blog first instead of last. Not a lot of material here, mostly because other things to do.

Coming down on the end of the second Scour book. Probably finish it this week. Not sure which of several projects follow on. Probably sidestep and work on creating a bunch of short fiction for now, filling in slots. Got more Beckett planned for future BSQ. Well ahead there for reasons.

As of now, I am also taking over as Managing Publisher of Thrill Ride Magazine, beginning with Issue 09, early next year. I’ve been in all eight issues so far (06 coming later this week) and plan to keep that up. At the same time, I needed to hire an editor to herd the goldfish. Eventually, I plan to make him do everything, but he’ll need a year to get there.

More short fiction to write. Not enough hours in the day for all the stories I want to tell, but that’s the nature of the beast. Saw someone I generally respect comment that he thought the line where artists don’t say they are competing with each other was bullshit, but I wasn’t in the mood to go hammer and tongs with him over it. Finding more and more places where he and I diverge in our opinions, but that’s mostly him getting grouchier in his old age, as he apparently believes that he has found the magic handshake key to success instead of understanding that luck plays a tremendous role opening the door, after which a great many people pull the ladder up behind them. As I suspect he’s doing.

Personally, I find that to be a load of horseshit, but I have also found that many “Big Name Authors” turn into assholes. Or they always were, and reach a point where they stop pretending otherwise. Bill Murray always said that you had about 2 years from the point you got famous to determine how you dealt with it.

Some folks turn into bigger assholes. Good for them. My goal is not to, because that’s usually a symptom of deep unhappiness. I’d rather be happy, thanks.

Had a great Saturday night. Enumclaw did their Beer Walk (Wine Walk is in November) and folks go store to store shopping and drinking. Sold a bunch of books. Met a bunch of fans. Met a bunch of other local writers. Had a good time.

Next year, I need to bring my Thriller/Action-Adventure books, because beer drinkers are different than wine drinkers. All the more reason to write more Chace, more Gator, and more Sasha. And whoever else. Tomorrow night, we’re having the half-year corporate meeting, so I’ll lay out my publishing plans then. (Or she will.)

Got a bunch of individual titles, but not really complete series to drop at the moment. And the back half of the year to write more and fill in holes. We’ll see what we have when we get there.

Hopefully, y’all will stay along for the ride.

shade and sweet water

b

West of the Mountains, WA

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