A new thriller is coming!

I'm excited to share a (probable) title and a (visual) sneak preview of my next book, a thriller set in modern-day North Carolina.

What you are seeing here is a concept cover (I'm looking for an artist for a real one) on the first draft, which I always print on paper and share with Reader Number One, my wife, Christina. She uses the wide right margin to make all kinds of useful notes and corrections and suggestions. This time, now that we're in a new neighborhood, I was able to use a small local print shop rather than Kinko's or Office Depot, which was cool (and cost me less), and as a bonus, I could bike there, which is why the picture looks a little strange.

The book is a humorous thriller about a recently-fired professor whose life has already fallen most of the way apart. He learns rapidly, however, that there is much farther one can go in that direction. Piecing together a mystery from his family's past while under threat from assailants both visible and unknown, he relies on his small group of allies to help him unwind the riddle as it grows ever more dangerous.

After Reader #1, I have a very helpful set of early readers whose suggestions also help me polish up my books, and then I go through a detailed edit and proofread, and then send off to Tami, my editor. I'm really excited to get it out there. A release date is still tentative, and there's a lot left to do, but it will probably be out in December or January.

NaNoWriMo V: The Faster and The Furiouser

It's November, which for me means (for the past five years) that I'm doing National Novel Writing Month, known to the cool kids as NaNoWriMo. This is a fun event where writers try to get 50,000 words written in the 30 days of November. For me, that's not actually a novel, because mine usually run to 100,000 words or more, but it always provides a good start. I'm getting a bit faster at writing now that I'm not teaching. In 2021, I was able to finish a complete first draft of Got Trouble, and last year, I wrote the first 75,000 words of what's now called What Grows From the Dead. It's a breakneck pace, and not always sustainable, but I'm already off to the races with over 3000 words on this, the first day.

I usually write in double shifts, one after midnight, and one during the day, so that's the two totals. They're cumulative wordcounts (which is a lot easier to read off of MS Word).

Mark your calendar for free and discounted books!

I'm running two promos this month that you can take part in:

• One is a giveaway of Flames Over Frosthelm. It will be free on Amazon from November 5th to November 9th.

• The other is a flash sale for Kenai. It will be discounted to $0.99 on Amazon from November 9th to November 15th

Feel free to get my stuff for cheap or free!

Some stories to try

I'm part of several author collectives, and we share each other's work to try to help all of us reach more readers. In many cases, the books we share are are free or discounted. Sometimes, they ask that you sign up for a newsletter like this one. Here are some new books I have to share this month:

First off, I'd like to feature fellow author Elizabeth Lavender, who's been a great supporter of my work. She has her own fantasy sci-fi series, the SunSpear series, starting with The Spinning of Deception. In these books, expect to find a brave set of warriors resisting all kinds of evil, exploring mysterious magic, and fighting to save their way of life. Great stuff! I hope you'll have a look.

Second, I have Her Perfect Murder by AJ Faris, a romantic suspense novel featuring a woman with a troubled past sucked into an investigation after she returns to her hometown. A winner of the Literary Titan book award.

Next, I have Bloodstained Skies: The Core of Rage by Dagmar Rokita. Now there's a title that goes all-out. This is a free book, a military sci-fi novel featuring rebels, superweapons, and (it appears) all sorts of explosions.

Finally, I have three group promotions. First is a big feature group of 45 sci-fi books. Many of them are available free for Kindle Unlimited users. There's a ton of variety here!

Next, there's this group of 28 action and thriller books and series, all free for Kindle Unlimited members. Lots of action and adventure here!

And finally, here's a set of 38 fantasy and sci fi stories and books, all 100% free for everybody. There's sure to be something in here that fits your mood.

Thanks

Thanks so much for being part of my newsletter. I hope you had a good spooky season with plenty of candy, or whatever your pleasure is. I'm looking forward to sharing my new thriller with you in only a month or two, and I'm really excited to be launching into fantasy again after some time away from it. I'll keep you posted right here.

May the Bloodmother watch over you - 

Dave