Good morning, !

Sometimes I get confused about which author is sending me what email, so here's a reminder: I'm Christy Matheson, I drop ordinary people into Irish fairy tales, and I write playful newsletters with lots of dogs.

Speaking of dogs, the "good" news around here is that Inish is learning to use his words. You know how people say that to toddlers, meaning that they shouldn't hit? That's what we're talking about, although I'm looking forward to the next stage of linguistic development when he helps me write books.

I put "good" in quotation marks because this looks like Inish growling at the other dogs (a lot!), which does not seem good. However, reading about dog psychology, if they feel confident using doggy language to clarify what they need, they are less likely to engage in aggressive behavior. Inish is shy, not aggressive. But while the other two were bouncing around telling me how much they love me (and the food I'm holding), little Inish would go sulk in the corner and sing: "Nobody likes me, everybody hates me, guess I'll go eat worms..."

So, now that he has learned to defend what matters by growling, he no longer feels like he needs to eat worms all day long.

What matters to Inish, you might ask? It's a peculiar list:

• he wants to drink without any other noses in the water dish
• if he wants to rest in his crate, no one should attempt to enter the crate or steal his collectibles (dirty socks, pens, kitchen clips, dog toys—the usual)
• a couple times a day, he wants to get special pets and cuddles from Top Human (aka me), and if any other dog wants pets Inish is quite sure that they are going to steal all his love and affection for forevvvvverrrrr

Once these needs are met, Inish is able to be friendly, affectionate, and playful for the rest of the day. There's a moral in this story, but meanwhile here's a picture:

Inish, Prince of the Side-Eye &

Conquistador of the Lap

This is me, supposedly writing after bedtime, but actually not writing because Inish decided that his love bucket needed refilling Right Now Please.

So what am I not-writing currently?

When Inish insinuated himself into my lap and wiggled my laptop out of the way (suspicious creatures, those laptops), I had been working on THE KNIGHT AND HIS MAGICAL ARMLET. This is the continuation of Rian's story, as an adult, when two unexpected people show up. I had originally planned on writing it as a short story, retelling the scenes in The White Deer of Kildare when he meets Maura. But I just had too many good ideas so I'm turning it into a novella, and it's so enjoyable to write!

This is definitely a love story, with two adults in their 30's managing serious other commitments. Neither of them are sure if they have the time or energy for what is blossoming between them.

But Rian balances all the pieces by staying unnoticed, and when Maura acknowledges the real him...he might not be able to resist.

There's still plenty of plot to complicate the slow-burn romance—Rian might lose his adopted son, Nessa has a new set of plans, and Maura is tangled up with the Dark Man (but Rian doesn't know it yet).

I'm writing slowly this month to make time for family plans, so this is due to release in September. I hope you enjoy Rian's adult struggles to balance parenthood with responsibility....and also protect his heart.

Pre-order The Knight and His Magical Armlet

What can I read while I'm waiting?

Do you ever feel like there are twenty bazillion books in the world, but you can't find anything that fits your mood at the moment? Me too.

A couple that I have enjoyed this summer are fantasy/historical/romance Celia Lake, and this totally charming and intriguing Twelve Days of Faerie Christmas. (The links are to my reviews.)

Meanwhile, here's some free book links for you to browse.

I have found several books I've enjoyed in other months of this Cozy Fantasy Promo. I see some new cozy romantic fantasies, and I'm going to download a couple!

Free Cozy Fantasy

Or if you want to cast your net more broadly and look at ALL kinds of fantasy, there's even more books here....

Free Fantastic Fantasy Tales

Or you like ALL the books? Me too. It's hard to pick a favorite genre, so let's try...

Lucky Finds, Free Reads

Oh, and if you missed Rian on his earlier adventures, don't forget to grab.....

The Squire and His Magical Library

In Magical Libraries, one of the short stories is adapted from when Rian discovers his magical library in Squire — and if Rian's coming-of-age story made you curious about the logistics of the magic, answers are coming when Rian is older in The Knight and His Magical Armlet.

Speaking of coming soon...

The Leprechaun's magical library is also coming soon (included for all my subscribers!) but my friends..... you need to be more decisive. I gave you these three cover options, and I LOVE getting your responses....but they came out absolutely even! Perfectly! Good grief! 😂

So, if you haven't responded yet, please reply to this email and tell me which cover you like the best. If you have responded, I promise I have your vote (and thus your entry in the yet-unnamed contest!), but you are welcome to write me back even more persuasively.

Now back to dogs...

In the middle of writing this newsletter, I dropped my daughter off and took the dogs for a walk. On the way home, I stopped at the bakery (and replaced the pastry that Malin stole, if you remember that story!). For the drive home, Inish hopped into the footwell of the passenger seat, where he could watch me...and my bag of pastry.

There was no side-eye. No growling. No need to go worm-eating. He looked happy, hopeful, and adorable.

He's learning that he's loved, and that gives him the space to be the dog he wants to be. One of these days, he won't even need to growl any more. He's only 11 months old; we can be patient while he learns and blossoms.

And my friends, that is what I write. Relationships. Caring for another through a difficult stage. Lifting each other up through the hard parts.

And then I add some monsters, some spy networks, and a generous sprinkling of magical books. Thanks for joining me!

The Castle in Kilkenny: Fairy Tales

Yours in magic and puppy-kisses,

Christy & the Shelties

Malin & Adare prove they can share water

Inish just has to find his own way, and that's okay

I love this picture. Boat dog.

A little beauty to uplift your day ❤️