YAY!!!

Winterhome is now available everywhere. (Kinda surprised that there haven’t been any reviews yet. Y’all have had it for at least twelve hours now… heh.). Petron is due back from my first reader in the next week or so, and then I’ll fix everything she finds before it goes off to the Canadian Copyeditor Babe(tm) for her touch.

Due date: December 10. There will be other reminders and other side projects related to it as we get closer, so keep an ear open.

Now a side jaunt is upon us for the summer: The Star Dragon.

I wrote the first book, Awaken the Star Dragon, exactly a year ago at a writing retreat (One week, one novel.) It got hurriedly published as part of a storybundle last summer, but we never did paper or pushed all that hard, as I was in the process originally of writing a whole series to drop month over month.

That is what’s coming next. Awaken is being renamed Birth, and the series will look like this:

• Birth of the Star Dragon (available now)
• Flight of the Star Dragon (Jun 10)
• Call of the Star Dragon (Jul 10)
• Shadow of the Star Dragon (Aug 10)
• Trial of the Star Dragon (Sep 10)

For all of them, ebook, paper, and audio will go live on the same date, which is another layer of awesomeness that I didn’t have as an option before.

Additionally, these are part of an extended universe, so you can get a head start on Gareth and read his first adventure: Patrol Cutter: Bellerophon! in Issue 006 of Boundary Shock Quarterly. This takes place several years before Birth of the Star Dragon, and let me set things up. Another Gareth/Sky Patrol story will come out in Issue 008 of Boundary Shock, so mark your calendars for Tin Can Pirates in the fall.

When setting out to do a story for Ray Guns & Space Babes, I wanted pulp. And not just any pulp, but that specific 1950’s American Science Fiction that you got in bad B movies and shorts. Noble/Bright and a touch innocent. Manly men with lantern jaws taking on criminals and throwing them in jail. Horrendous monsters from outerspace intent on kidnapping teenage girls for whatever it was they did. “Ray Guns & Space Babes”

It was a fun challenge to write Gareth St. John Dankworth as a 50’s pulp SF hero. And to introduce other characters like Eveth Baker and Jackeith Grodray, who were cops with a more 70’s/80’s bent to them. Worn and tired and grumpy.

I even got a fantastic review the other day on Amazon for Birth of the Star Dragon. 5 stars and all.

“5 stars5 Stars as a “Tongue in Cheek” Complement to the Young Adult SF of the 50’s and 60’s

May 4, 2019

He gets it. And I’m glad he enjoyed it.

Noble/Bright is the exact opposite of the Grim/Dark that everyone in YA circles seems deeply committed to. Bad things and bad people. Gareth is really Vo Arlo without any of the anger issues, when you get down to it. And I had so much fun with Birth that I had to write the rest of the series.

And, in keeping with the campy, pulpy feel to things, I got to introduce gods, aliens, technology, and a career criminal names Morty who really was my favorite voice. He’s the one I’d just sit around with and enjoy a beer or six. When they cast him in the video, I’ll demand a Queens or maybe soft Jersey accent for the guy, because that’s how I hear him in my head.

And it concludes nicely at five novels, although I left myself two openings. One, I can tell more of the Pulp SF stories of a younger Gareth (Patrol Cutter: Bellerophon! and Tin Can Pirates). Two, I left a nice segue at the end, for how a Star Dragon and his friends could fight crime and explore the solar system after the crazy events of the ending of Trial Of The Star Dragon (!!!).

There will be more dark and ugly things written later, but I wanted to write something happy. Too much of the world is one stream of unrelenting ugliness right now. Once upon a time, science fiction was supposed to be fun. At least if you’re an old fart like me.

It’s time people remembered that.

So we’re getting close to the end, and I wanted to thank those of you who have already gone ahead and bought it. Hopefully, you’ve all started reading it and learning all sorts of useful things about the new world of Indie Publishing and how you really can make a nice living at it.

A side note: I’ve had the conversation more than once recently with folks who were some flavor of Traditionally Published at one time or another. Those folks have, unfortunately, watched all their income potential evaporate over the last decade or so. Median incomes keep declining. Royalty statements are down to three digits per month.

“You can’t make a living as a writer anymore.”

But that’s a load of horseshit. I retired from the day job in February 2018, and completely support myself at a nice living from my writing. Not editing. Not design work. Nothing else.

Just my monthly residuals from my writing work. And while I’m not back up to the income I had as a Database Architect/BI Designer in Seattle, I’m aiming to get there in 2020.

You can make a very nice living as a writer these day, just not in TradPub.

All of the folks in this bundle can tell you that.

The world has changed. It will continue to change. You, as a writer, a creative, an artist will need to learn to adapt with it. Become a new person every few years as the market, the technology, and the industry changes.

The old world is never coming back. I’m sorry, but Indie will eventually replace most of it. We will all become pocket publishing empires, but that’s one of the best ways to make money right now, and I’d rather be rich than famous. (See Taupin, Bernie)

So go look at these books and buy them. Or buy them for the artist in your life as an early birthday present. Writing with Chronic Illness. Writing Non-fiction for money. Understanding Kobo as an alternative to Amazon. Ways to make money as a writer and creative.

The future is now. But time is running out, both to get all these books cheap and to hug your favorite artist.

Don’t delay. You might come to regret it.

The world has changed.

We’ve got just under two weeks until the 8th Jessica Keller novel is available in ebook. (I think you can order the paper right now.)

Winterhome

By now, hopefully most of you have read the CS-405 trilogy that takes place right after the end of St. Legier, when CS-405 has a jumpsail failure. Those three novels run parallel to the first half of Winterhome and then drop you in as Admiral Tom Provst is getting ready to step into the war at Jessica’s right hand.

• Queen Anne’s Revenge
• Packmule
• Persephone

Additionally, the ninth and final Jessica Keller novel is in the hands of Fabulous Publisher Babe(tm) being read for the December release where I get to wrap up Jessica’s story. (At least for now. I left it wide open at the end on purpose, in case I get the bug to come back and add more, but this ends on a good note IMHO.)

Petron is the ninth title. At least until someone tells me they have a better idea. Coming December 10, 2019 everywhere you buy books.

I’ll probably also hold a lottery or raffle for folks in my newsletter list to get themselves a copy early enough that they can lord it over everyone else, like Dorn’s already been doing. (He read it before anyone, due to the nature of scheduling conflicts. His Shire was thoroughly harrowed as a result. Heh)

With the above in mind, make sure you’re signed up for my newsletter so you see the invite to participate when it comes. I won’t post it here or anywhere else on social media, as a way of thanking my loyal fans for all the support over the last couple of years as I told Jessica’s story. And everyone else’s.

It’s always an interesting feeling to bring something this huge to a resting point. I have more Science Officer stories in the can, beyond #8, but I had that same moment of relief when I finished Hammerfield Payoff. And Javier will return for more adventures, once I finish off some of the current projects and can circle back.

But with Jessica, I’m not sure where I’d go that would be interesting. Her story covered more than thirteen years of her life, as she went from amazing to legendary. At the same time, all the Epilogues set me up to spin off several other series if I wanted to, following folks that will surprise some of you and entice others.

But I need a break from Jessica. And her team. Handsome Rob doesn’t count, even though his timeline is roughly equivalent to Flight of the Blackbird and The Red Admiral. Javier and Henri are two that I need to get back to, but I’ve been finishing off the Star Dragon novels (June – September, with audio on drop), followed by the Longshot novels. (Oct – April, with a break for Petron in the middle).

I also have three, completely independent Novel Ones in three new universes, that I’ve been writing in between the major projects, mostly as a palette cleanser. Pretty soon, I’ll look at them and start writing Books Two for various things. Those are likely to just start coming out as supplements to regular titles on the tenths of various months, because I’m still writing around two novels per month, plus short fiction and other projects.

There’s also a patreon out there, where you can get exclusive, early peeks at some of the short fiction that I’ve been writing in my spare time. Did the math yesterday and I have nearly twenty of those that none of you have read, in about five new short story universes and various genres, beyond simple Science Fiction. They won’t be on the publishing calendar until sometime in 2020. If you would like to support me as I experiment with new forms and formats, that’s the place.

For Example: my long-suffering assistant Ollie was complaining that he doesn’t get nearly enough love, so I started a new space adventure series, putting him in command of an old Cargo Carrier named Boundary Shock. (He giggles every time I bring that joke up.) One of my projects soon is to teach myself how to write comic book scripts, and then take the Ollie & Rufus stories and transform them, with an eye to eventually hiring a team of lunatics to make me some comic books I could sell with his face on them.

We’re also shortly available in GERMAN! The Science Officer books will slowly be translated into German over the next few years so I can expand my audience base that way. (Also working with some friends on getting a few shorts into Arabic, just because this is the future and I can.) Links when I know for sure what they are.

AUDIO!!! heh. We are relaunching Awaken the Star Dragon as Birth of the Star Dragon (#1) in June, as well as dropping #2: Flight of the Star Dragon at the same time. Both will have audio on day one, as will each of the rest when they come out: Call of the Star Dragon (#3, July), Shadow of the Star Dragon (#4, August), and Trial of the Star Dragon (#5, September).

Tell all your audiobook friends. (Or fiends, whatever typo works)

Going to be a busy summer. Hope all of you are staying well hydrated and tanned.

Let me know what news you’d like to hear in the future, beyond just my regular rambling.

b

West of the Mountains, WA

Blog post for the creatives out there. Not just writers, but all the folks with art in their soul and a willingness to put mind to reality and put it out there. You’ve recovered from the candy high (we hope.)

Just a reminder: you rock. Most folks never commit art. You’re already in some pretty awesome company.

With that in mind, I want to remind y’all about the 2019 Write Stuff Bundle, currently live over at StoryBundle.

Here’s what you get for the base price:

• Practical Meerkat’s 52 Bits of Useful Info for Young (and Old) Writers
• Business For Breakfast – Vol. 10: Growing As a Professional Artist
• How to Write Non-Fiction
• The Rational Writer: A to Z

Laura Anne, Leah, Joanna, and Mindy. All top notch writers and really awesome ladies on top of it. For the Bonus round, they’ll include these titles as well:

• Writing With Chronic Illness
• WMG Publishing Presents: Carving Out Time for Your Writing
• Money-Making Business Models for Writers
• The Million Dollar Writing Series Boxed Set
• Killing it on Kobo
• Business For Breakfast – Vol. 11: Beginning Marketing for the Professional Publisher

You’re a creative. There’s something here for you, from the beginner to the expert. Artists, photographers, writers, sculptors, you name it. Artists.

Names like Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Kevin J. Anderson, Dean Wesley Smith, Leah Cutter, Mark Leslie Lefebvre, Laura Anne Gilman, Mindy Klasky, Joanna Penn, Tonya Price, and yours truly.

Leah’s book is how to take your inner artist and nurture it. Kris writes about all her health issues over the last few years and how that didn’t stop her. Mine talks about putting yourself out there and looking like a professional.

Not just writers, either. All of these are books for anyone who makes some kind of art and wants to be taken serious as a professional. “How do I market myself?” “How do I make money doing this?” “What do I need to do to take advantage of the future as the world continues to evolve?”

This bundle, like all of them, won’t last forever. You’ll have to suddenly pay way more for these books if you don’t get them now.

And think about the artist in your life, if it’s not you. We all have a child, a niece or nephew, a cousin, or a friend who has an artist’s soul. Maybe you should get this for them as an early birthday present or graduation. Or just because you want them to succeed and don’t know a better way to encourage them.

All an artist really needs it love. Show them you love them. And maybe buy some books, too, but a hug works wonders first.

When was the last time you hugged your artist and told them you were proud of their work?

Start now. Seriously. Do something good for them, just so they know that somebody out there takes them seriously. It takes a lot of effort and depression to actually share your work with an uncaring and maybe hostile world.

But a smile goes a long way.

Hey Gang,
It’s that time of year again. Kris is doing her annual Write Stuff bundle and I was lucky enough to be invited in this time around.

How it works: You pay a single amount and get the four books on the top row over on the website (Laura Anne, Fabulous Publisher Babe(tm), Joanna, and Mindy, all lovely, wonderful ladies). For a little more, you also get Kris, Dean, Kevin (and Rebecca), Mark, Tonya, and me. If you look close, that’s twelve books and a lecture from Dean. Folks, some of these people are the biggest names in writing. There’s a lot to learn from them. I know I have. And they are all really neat people, too.

For you writers, this is a goldmine of information about how to improve your craft, your life, and your business.

I’m going to talk about my book, because it just came out for this bundle: Beginning Marketing for the Professional Publisher.

We’re Indies, most of us. The world has changed, and what you used to do as a writer doesn’t work any more. There are pitifully few contracts. Agents won’t return your message. You think you’ll never get into print. Or if you were once, you’ll never get it back.

I would like to tell you that while Traditional Publishing (New York style) is floundering, the Indie world is thriving. I quit my job Feb 23, 2018 (14 months ago, give or take) to write full time. And I’m making a rather nice living. Well better than minimum wage, let’s just say that.

I’m not afraid to slay sacred cows, to use Dean’s favorite saying, and it has worked for me. But at the same time, my incorporation documents include this important mission: “Build a longer table, instead of a higher fence.”

That means helping people. Other writers like you. So I sat down and tried to lay out all the basics of Indie Marketing that I have learned over the last few years, what works and what doesn’t, for folks just getting started, or discovering that TradPub doesn’t want them around anymore.

Things like websites, business cards, and little-known information about how Amazon (currently) helps you market your books. There is a wealth of information out there, but most of it is only available word-of-mouth. Sometimes, that’s because people don’t want to share what they know, for fear that others will pass them by.

I just hope we can all be successful, because your career is different than mine. How you get to the top of the mountain will be your own path, but I can help show you some ideas.

So it’s April. I know many of you also look at Kevin’s NaNoWriMo bundle in the fall, but now is when you need to be thinking about your career. If you did NaNo last year, good for you. Hopefully, your book is coming into shape and you’re ready to start the publishing process. If not, now’s the time to read up on things to prepare for next year.

Ant and grasshoppers, my friend. That’s how you are successful in the modern age. Work hard, learn from experts, and then go do your own thing.

I can’t want your success more than you do, so now’s the time to commit to making a career for yourself as a writer. I got lucky in timing and teachers along the way, but I only Indie published my first title in 2014, so just about five years ago. And I don’t have a job anymore.

You can do it, too. These folks can help, because they want you to succeed. Why else would they put all their thoughts on paper?

So go get the bundle right now. Or forward a link to that writer friend you know who’s stuck and unsure how to pull the trigger. We want to help. We want you to be successful, but more importantly, HAPPY.

And you don’t have long. As always, these bundles only go for three weeks, so if you put it off, you’ll never get a chance like this again.

Good luck.

as I’m writing this, Friday morning, you have six and a half days (until wednesday) to go get your copy of the The 2019 Space Opera Bundle, curated by Dean Wesley Smith.

His take on things: “Space, the final frontier.”

A famous quote from the opening of maybe the most popular space opera series ever, Star Trek. And wow did I write a lot of Star Trek books. Over thirty, plus a few comics and also some scripts. I even edited for Star Trek for a time.

But before I fell in love with Star Trek back in the 1960s, I had been reading the space opera of Andre Norton and Robert Heinlein and others.

Covering vast areas of space with flashing spaceships and nifty alien races, space opera in the hands of great authors helped me time after time to get off this planet and live among the stars where life was a lot more fun than my real life.

So for me, great, classic space opera is always my favorite kind of reading still to this day.

You and I both know you’re going to be bored this weekend, looking for something to read. do yourself a favor and get this bundle. Seven novels. Two trilogy novel collections. And a Fiction River anthology. All for a low price that will be gone on Wednesday.

Plus, once you’ve read my novel in there: Queen Anne’s Revenge you can move on to Packmule, and conclude the trilogy with Persephone. They stand on their own as a trilogy, and also expand the Jessica Keller universe, sitting between books Seven (St. Legier) and Eight (Winterhome).

If you forward this or tag a friend who doesn’t know Jessica Keller, they can start with Auberon and work their way forward before exploring all of the Alexandria Station Universe, including Javier Aritza, Doyle Iwakuma, and Henri Baudin. There is a lot of material here to keep any science fiction/space opera fan happy.

So don’t miss out. You have six days, and then it is gone forever

One of the hardest things for me to do over the last eleven years was basically turn my life inside out after my wonderful first wife died of cancer in July 2008. Spent time downsizing things in preparation to go…somewhere.

In my case, that means getting rid of something like 3,000 books. Let me put it to you this way, I used to measure my library by the hundredweight or cubic meter, depending. 3/4 of them went away. The old rule was 10% more stuff must leave the house every month than comes in. That went on for years.

Fast forward to “Fabulous Publisher Babe ™, Take Two” (that’s a story for a different time and a lot of beer). She convinced me that I could write commercially successful stuff. And she was right, as I’m a little over 13 months into retirement from the day job and supporting myself rather well.

But part of converting myself from a voracious reader to a voracious writer involved learning how to tell story. The nuts and bolts craft that goes under things, like 7 Point Plot Structure (Lester Dent) or 3 Act Plot Structure (or 2 or 4).

I began to read critically. I’m given to understand that this is part of the normal process one goes through, as you can’t turn the brain off and just enjoy the story, because lizard-brain at the back is analyzing constantly.

Plus, I had gotten rid of most of my books, so the ones I kept were the ones I liked and I have a hard time even reading some of those. Instead, I’ve taken up histories, biographies, and related non-fiction.

Recently, I picked up my copy of “The Dragon Never Sleeps” by Glen Cook. I had all of the Black Company books at one point, but only ended up keeping the Books of the North. Had others, but he likes to play games with a series reader that I find distasteful bordering on unethical, so only four titles survived the cut and I won’t buy any new ones he puts out.

Started re-reading this one because I want to steal some of those grand and magnificent ideas he dreamed up, for a project I’ve been planning for several years, but I had to put it on the shelf and walk away for now. Got the tidbits I needed, rather than the whole story, so that was enough. (Critical voice, but there were other issues.)

But all the mentors I listen to keep telling me I have to read in order to write. Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Steven Barnes.

So after the morning writing session, I decided to play hooky. Got about 3500 words of the normal goal of 4000, but brain needed a break. Drove in to Enumclaw and hit the bookstore. “The Sequel Books” The owners are friendly, and we talk business.

Today, got myself the usual mocha, chatted with them for a bit, and wandered back to the shelves for a deep dive into SFF for the first time in many years. B&N’s SFF selection is shrinking in size and relevance every year. Partly, because SF is less and less and F is growing as an overall share.

(Personally, I think SF and F should be separated into their own thing, like Mystery or Romance have done, because Fantasy tends to bore me with its predictability these days. There appear to be three or five general stories, and the only difference seems to be the gender of the heroic character, and who ends up being the dragon. But I digress.)

Stood there drinking my mocha and starting with A. Ignored folks who had published so long ago that I looked at them in the 80’s or were dead of old age. Not because I don’t like them, but brain wanted fresh inspiration, and the world of literature had changed.

Oversized paper books (trade paperback, sort of) tend to be Indie or Special Edition, so brain locked on those as I scanned. I’m looking for big SF, with Big Space Idea, rather than Science of Discovery stories (where an ordinary scientist makes an earth-shattering discovery and everyone tries to kill him to get/suppress it, usually. Those have turned into Thrillers today, for the most part).

What I have found, for doing this consciously since that time four years ago at Powell’s books which caused me to write Auberon in the first place:

• I will popcorn-kitten like mad, just reading titles or good blurbs. I emailed myself two whole new series ideas, just shopping today. Schedule TBD
• I have to just find things at random, buy them, and then start reading, rather than open the book after reading the blurb, because page one might shut me down. It’s the inspiration of the ideas being explored that fuel me, rather than the story itself.
• Concepts that sound interesting, but which I have some expertise, tend to turn me off, because one of the series I looked at was so far from able to suspend my belief that I had to put it back. Writer-brain would be “Just how the hell do they recreate all the technological tools necessary to even operate in that place?”
• Star Wars qualifies as Space Opera SF, even though many people consider it Space Fantasy. But depending on who you ask, FTL makes a story Space Fantasy, when they demand to look down their noses at people who don’t write “hard science science fiction.” (Much of which is technologically perfect, and boring as shit, which is why Andy Weir surprised the hell out of me by making such a fun story. He, however, tends to prove the rule.)
• We live in an age where cyberpunk still beckons, as does Apoc and Post-Apoc, but I still tend to prefer FTL/Space, however you get there. Aliens (which is another thing hard science pricks say makes it fantasy rather than scientific. GFY, bubbles.) give me the chance to wonder around in a whole different viewpoint that us.
• I want entertaining and detailed stories. I recently had to stop about halfway through one of those “Year’s Best SF” collections or whatever the title was, because the editor liked great ideas, and really didn’t care if the story made any sense or contained any wallpaper. As in, the female main character that I couldn’t tell if she was 14 or 44, even after reading it?
• A character. In a Setting (which includes a lot of Voice and not just random thesaurus output). With a PROBLEM. Try/Fail. Denouement.
• My mentors hammered me hard on developing rich characters with interesting foibles, beliefs, and fears, rather than “Just Another Chosen One” story. Villains that are more than cardboard scenery chewers. Places you go “huh” as you think about.

So I bought myself four books today, and only made it as far as M in the time I allotted myself. Two of them appear to be Books One, so I might have the store order me sequels if they turn out to be any good. None of them are people I know, with the exception of Vonda McIntyre, whom I have never read before. (My SF background was WAY different than most of you, let’s just say that.) But I want to read more folks, and her story struck me as something that looked fun. Plus, Vonda was a most gracious and wonderful woman the few times I met her in person. (My wife knows EVERYBODY, I think.)

So wish me luck. I’ll try to remember to post book reviews and links if I get through them. (The most interesting thing I have learned to handle better is that many books might be perfectly good, and I’m just not the reader for them. Or maybe someone is just not my writer.)

So what are you folks reading to stretch your minds?

Heya,

This is the reminder to tell your friends, if they haven’t already done so, to rush right out and buy the latest Space Opera Storybundle. Book One of the CS-405 trilogy is in there (Queen Anne’s Revenge) and Book Two (Packmule) is already out, with Book Three (Persephone) coming in just a few days.

They’ll get themselves seven novels. Two separate three-novel collections. Plus a Fiction River Presents for a very amazing price.

For the rest of you, I’m going to just pretend that you’ve already purchased Packmule and given me one of those nice reviews I read to cheer myself up. And that you have Persephone on pre-order so it will just magically appear in your device listing overnight Tuesday/Wednesday.

And then the countdown is on to Winterhome! May 10. Have you got your calendar marked? I have gone places even my first readers were surprised and excited with Winterhome. And the last scene from Persephone comes in about midway through Winterhome, lacing everything back together so you are fully prepared for all the insanity about to erupt onto an unsuspecting galaxy.

But first, you gotta read CS-405. Start with the storybundle. Move on quickly. Time’s running out for you to get an amazing deal and keep yourself entertained for a few days while you wait to see what happens to Jessica Keller next!

So it was probably inevitable. The world keeps changing, and as artists, we all have to change constantly to keep up. And that’s a good thing, don’t get me wrong.

Today, that means that I finally had to pull the trigger on setting up my own Patreon creator account. I’m late to the story, but lots of other people I know have done their own patreons, and been successful at it. I’m leaving money on the table that frankly could help me be more successful as a writer.

So I talked to several folks about what to do. These are early days for me, and I’m still figuring it all out, but here’s the pitch.

PATREON!!

Every month, I will dig into the backlog of short stories I have, and post one up for everyone at the right level. Right now, that’s more than a dozen stories nobody has ever seen, including three new Science Officer shorts that are part of Season Two (Book Nine when I finally start publishing them again.)

Starting on May 1, The Unbloomed Rose will be available to all my backers, which may or may not include the thirteen people out there who have ever actually seen it. There are two others that I will intersperse after that, with some other stuff and things.

I write mostly science fiction, but there is also some sword and sorcery fantasy in there, including extensions of existing bits I published back when, before SF took off. One Alicia story that picks up her thread. I also wrote a short story that probably needs to be chapter 1 (or prologue, maybe) to a whole Urban Fantasy novel or series. Dunno. Not my comfort zone, but some days the words refuse to not be written, so I had to tell their story. And the rest is in my head and my notes. Seriously. Urban Fantasy. WTF?

But you’ll get to read a new Science Officer short, before anybody else. And some other as well.

My plan is that I won’t actually publish anything that goes up to patrons for at least six months. Maybe longer. Dunno. Still trying to figure it all out. Any constructive advice useful.

Maybe, I’ll do a Patreon collection later, just so you know you already have it and don’t need to buy it again, before individual pub. But you’ll be helping me make a little money on the side so I can afford to take a few more risks. Like publishing an urban fantasy novel that might actually sell, if you folks enjoy it well enough to encourage more. And more fantasy, just so I explore those lands as well. I don’t go down those paths because SF pays the bills and I don’t want to damage that.

But I am also writing at Pulp Speed Two right now (100,000+ words per month), so I’m generating novels on a monthly basis. My short fiction just doesn’t get priority on publication. I just finished a novel yesterday that is scheduled to be published March 2020. And I’m on to the next one today. Them’s novels, mind you. Book five in a series none of you have even heard of yet.

But we’re going to do the Patreon thing, and hopefully we can make it work. Your assistance, support, forbearance, and whatever else would be welcome.

Let’s dive facefirst into the future.

So this wasn’t the blog post I had originally planned to write, but I had unexpected company last night at dinner time and it sort of threw everything sideways. We had just pulled a pair of lovely steaks and were letting them rest when I looked up and realized that an elk was walking over the rise from the middle meadow.

Ten point buck. Just meanders up as we’re eating. A few minutes later, the matriarch of the herd appears. Lucky for me, I have a buffet table ready for such folks at all time.

Over the next twenty minutes, a whole bunch more arrived. All total, I counted seventeen head, including a spike buck with two single horns about 18 inches tall each, plus a couple of males with just little nubs for horns, so I presume they are a year old.

Never had that many elk standing around, to be able to tell the genders part by the color of their fur. Boys are much lighter on the flanks and top, while much darker on the belly than the women. Helps when you have that many boys bouncing around.

So they just kind of grazed for about an hour before they meandered off down the hill to the left.

Kitty, however, wasn’t too sure about all this silliness, even when she got up on her shelf to look at them. She’ll boop deer through the sliding glass door, but them elk are strange looking, like vultures with hair on the neck. She was not impressed.

At one point, one of the females was walking along, next to the box where all the fruit trees are. I wish I’d had the camera out, but it was in my pocket.

I have wires that hold the posts on the box upright. And I have covered them with duct tape to mark them so I don’t clothesline myself when I’m mowing. Because wire at a sixty degree angle, covered with a dark green rubber finish.

She walked right into the middle of the tape, right where it looks like a flag. Bounced right backwards with the most embarrassed look on her face, turning to me, standing inside the house at the slider, as it “you didn’t see that, did you?” After a few moments, she picked up her dignity and sauntered off like she meant to do that.

One other funny thing I saw. The Matriarch was standing close to the bull, between him and another mature female. Don’t know what passed between them, but the Other Female had her butt to the Matriarch, who proceeded to take a bite of the first woman’s ass and pull out a huge tuft of fur that she dropped. Other Female got her ass gone in a hurry after that.

Those are US quarters, for scale, about an inch across. The hairs are about 5-6 inches long, dirty on the end and about as heavy and stiff as straw. Put them in a bag, just because every good fish story needs a little evidence.

Who knew that elk bite fur for pecking order?

So I never did write the other blog post I had planned. And that’s okay. If you head over to Facebook, I’ll post all the rest of the pictures I took shortly, along with several short videos.

It was a silly Friday night.