What’s my reward for staring down my obsessive-compulsive disorder and going inside a Dunkin Donuts during the pandemic, rather than using the drive-thru?
Straws. As many freakin’ straws as I want. And napkins too.
Stranger Shores, fantasy, and fruity wine
An interview with fantasy author Katie Zaber. Wine-making, writer-chaos, and visits to Stranger Shores.
Virgins and apples
Along with my Stars Fall Out revision, I’ve also been drafting Bitter Machines, the sequel(s) to Stars. Working this way has some pros and cons. Cons? Drafting a second, likely 200,000-word book takes a bit …
It’s quite simple, really
In this excerpt from Stars Fall Out, Vilari walks into her new life as the first-ever student of a mysterious, engineered magic, and finds that Professor Ghordaa lives up to the rumors. This is another …
One does not simply walk out of the bakery
It’s been a long, long time since I posted an excerpt (or anything else, for that matter) on the blog. In a figurative, internet-posting sense, I’m a terrible juggler; if I’m updating my newsletter regularly …
Going Back to Normal Bingo: COVID-19 Introverted Pessimist Edition
Because it’s not all beach parties and booze, and anyway, screw beach parties and booze.
In addition to bakery fire burns, bruised jaws, and deep gashes, I can now add printing acid injuries and goat injuries to the list of bodily traumas I’ve had to Google in my Stars Fall Out research.
I found a site called MoonConnection.com in my Stars Fall Out research. It seems like a nice enough site, but what a waste that it’s just lunar information and not a werewolf dating site.
If I am ever granted three wishes, I shall waste one of them swapping handwriting with one of those people who prints in small caps.
Or a cybernetic arm that does the same thing. I’ve thought about this too much.

Continuing last summer’s re-read of the Dune series by Frank Herbert, I picked up with God Emperor of Dune a few days ago.
My reading choices are often dictated by whim or nostalgia, and so Dune has to be read in the summer, just like the first time I read it.
So far, I’m enjoying the character of Leto II quite a bit. Where Paul Atreides is all doomy and self-important, Leto II is much more fun and quixotic.
A choice of two doors
I’m now living in an actual situation in which I have to decide between Door One and Door Two, and both options suck. Door One used to be our main entrance into our apartment. We …