ISWG: June and Cover Reveal for Dreams of Stars and Lies

How is it June already? Even with most everything closed for a couple of months, you'd think things 

If you're not familiar with 

the Insecure Writers Support 

Group, check it out here 
and find links to all the other 
participating writers.

would be more relaxed, but it sure doesn't feel that way. I've been finding plenty to do and because my day job is half e-commerce, I've still been working too. 

Since it's time for another Insecure Writer's Support Group post, I'll start with writing-related happenings. The question this month is: Writers have secrets! What are one or two of yours, something readers would never know from your work?

Well, it's not a big secret that I have a new book coming out soon. Dreams of Stars and Lies will release late June or early July. With all my usual signing venues shut down right now, I'm feeling a little more relaxed with the publishing schedule I'd originally set up for the year.

Dreams of Stars and Lies is a collection of five short science fiction stories. The front cover features a scene from the story, Sipper.

Poverty has shaped Tia’s life since childhood, labeling her a roach. A day without hunger pains or despising looks is pure fantasy until she accepts a job offer to explore a wondrous deserted city on a distant world. All she can think about is the life-altering payout she’ll receive in six months. 

A hundred roaches are set free in the city of crystal spires. Their mission: To learn what they can about the previous occupants and to verify that the place is habitable for the host of wealthy future occupants waiting in orbit. 

Well-provisioned, Tia and her fellow roaches scatter to explore the dunes and spires. Then people start to disappear. Are they being picked off to lessen the payout or is there a killer among them? 

All the credits in the world won’t change anything if she’s dead.

In other news, I'm trying my hand a co-authoring a book. An early YA book. Secret? I've never managed to write a story for that age group, though I've tried. We'll see if I can keep my dark and twisted plot brain harnessed.

And an actual secret? Long ago, the genre I first wrote in? Mystery. I was surrounded by mystery books as a kid. My mother was addicted to them and so when I started reading chapter books, guess what area of the bookstore I was introduced to? Yep. Mystery. While I do enjoy working that angle into my stories now, it's not something that ever quite clicked for me as far as writing. I still enjoy reading it though. 

ISWG: May Flowers and Rituals

If you're not familiar with 

the Insecure Writers Support 

Group, check it out here 
and find links to all the other 
participating writers.

Welcome to this month's Insecure Writer's Support Group post. It's finally spring here in Michigan, meaning the weather is generally above freezing now, even at night. Is it warm? Not reliably. One day it's 70 and sunny the next it's 35 and raining with occasional spurts of snow flurries. But, on the bright side, flowers are finally blooming and my ducks are growing up.

But before we get to flowers and ducks, I should probably talk about writing. There hasn't been a lot of that going on. Though I did manage to read a book so that's progress - more so than binge-watching 8 seasons of Vampire Diaries and season 4 of The Last Kingdom.

Dreams of Stars and Lies, my next upcoming release, is progressing nicely. I have two short stories to finish formatting and then I'm waiting on the cover art. Look for the release of this collection of sci-fi stories mid-summer.

Bound In Blue: The Narvan Book 3 is going through another round of edits before it hits proofreading, but that is also on track for a Fall release.

Book signing events continue to be cancelled, with my next possible one now in July. I miss talking with readers and networking in person with my author friends. This is part of my lack of motivation. I usually come home from events all energized to work on whatever next project I have on deck, but right now life is a too quiet.

This month's question is: Do you have any rituals that you use when you need help getting into the zone?

My writing rituals usually include, turning off the lights in my office, sitting in my comfy chair, lighting a candle, maybe some incense, and making words happen until the story starts coming out of my fingers. Sometimes that means writing with my eyes closed to further block out distractions. It's often the getting the fingers going on the keyboard that is the most important step. Once that happens, the story isn't far behind.

And now... flowers and ducks

The ducks are getting their wing feathers, not that they will be doing much flying.

Violets are one of my favorite flowers

Fancy daffodils after one of the many spring rains

Yep, we had more rain

Not a stick! This Easter Hognose snake slithered through the yard.

Nap time for duckies

Visiting Donald Levin's Blog

Today, I'm doing a blog visit for author Donald Levin's Indie Monday. We talk about The Narvan series, writing, and my upcoming projects. If you like Mysteries and Michigan Authors, check out his books while you're there. We've done several author events together and he's a great guy.

Online reading of Trust

Last week I did an online reading session with How Writers Write with my long distance poetry buddy Michael D Jones. He's got a new book out too.

We talked about Trust, The Narvan, Chain of Grey and writing in general. Check it out here

IWSG: April Lockdown

If you're not familiar with 

the Insecure Writers Support 

Group, check it out here 
and find links to all the other 
participating writers.

I am fortunate to work from home all the time, so my income is generally not affected by this whole Covid-19 mess. But we have my elderly MIL staying with us so she's not home alone during this shelter in place decree.

Beyond that, most of my book launch events for Chain of Grey were canceled so I've been doing a few virtual ones.

Check out Quarantine Con for some fun con merch from the comfort of your own home.

or this author reading and interview series by How Writers Write
I'll be doing a reading from Trust on April 16 and having a chat with my poet pal, Michael D. Jones about his new poetry collection.


And also, I had the itch to add to our pet inventory.

It seems that I don't ask for anything for my birthday anymore. The past few years, I just get a new pet. 

It started with my little dog, Bitsy, five years ago.

My pond with goldfish.

Then came chickens.

Then, after losing a couple to illness and a hawk, the next year, we had chickens round two.

And this year, ducklings.

Next year? I think I'm good with creatures to take care of now, but I'm not going to say it won't happen.

Really though, with all the crazy going on in the world right now, we needed a little cute, cuddly fun.

I was just going to get two ducklings, but once I was there at the store looking at the big bin of ducklings of the variety they'd ordered at my request, my gut whispered for me to get three. Always listen to the gut.

We're on shelter in place until at least April 13 so that gives us plenty of time to get acquainted with our new ducklings. We've had them since March 24.

Right now, these adorable little feather babies are living in my writing room. How is that working for writing? Not all that productively I must say, but they're darn cute so I'll forgive them for making so much noise. Soon enough they'll be living outside and we won't be seeing quite as much of one another.

These three are Indian Runner ducks. They'll be generally flightless and will help clean up the bugs in the yard and my flowerbeds in between playing in the pond and hanging out with our chickens. We're just hoping they all get along. We won't know if they are male or female for a few weeks yet so here's hoping we have a couple females because I'm looking forward to some duck eggs.

How are things in your corner of this crazy world?