Comicon Greensboro!

I had the opportunity to go to Big Lick Comicon in my hometown, Greensboro NC, on October 4th and 5th. I shared a booth (see above) with Mike Mollman, who's a fantasy and sci fi author, and who runs a popular YouTube show for indie authors, on which I've been a guest a couple times. The convention was in its first year in Greensboro, and it didn't quite have the turnout we were hoping for, but we met some folks, sold some books, and I got a wonderful chance to talk with Mike for two days about writing, publishing, indie authors, marketing, his show, and all kinds of other stuff. This was also the first show like this that I've made a profit on, but that's mostly because I had very few expenses - I live less than a mile and a half from the Greensboro Coliseum, and Mike covered the booth cost in exchange for the use of our guest room. Lou Ferrigno and Sergeant Slaughter were there along with a bevy of former Power Rangers, so there was no shortage of aging cultural icons in attendance.

Writing Update

I'm working on three things at the moment. One is the fifth Inquisitors' Guild book, for which I hope to finish a first draft by the end of the year. I'm back in Frosthelm with a new young member of the Inquisitors' Guild, but I'm also adding another POV character whose origins I'll have to keep under wraps to avoid spoilers.

Another project is only a couple thousand words long so far, but it's a contemporary story about a mail carrier who's suffered a lot of losses. I'm not totally sure of the plot yet, but I have an idea that might put me somewhere adjacent to the magical realism or urban fantasy genres. Not urban fantasy like secret witch leagues or wars between vampires and werewolves or anything like that - more low-key, more realism than magic. Not sure if it works as an idea, but I've been playing around with it.

The third project is the romance novel, Best,. The comma isn't a typo – the book named after the email sign-off commonly used in academia. I am informed by my co-author Sarah Estow that "Best," is more of a passive aggressive email sign-off than a pretentious one as I suggested in an earlier newsletter. I guess it all depends on how you read it and who's writing it. There's no shortage of passive aggression or pretentiousness in academia.

Anyway, Best, is complete as a first draft, and starting next week, we're going to dive into editing. We wrote the book in alternating chapters, with Sarah writing one point of view (Flora) and me writing the other (Mark). Sarah and I have different drafting processes - she's very methodical and builds in more detail with each draft, while I tend to throw everything I can think of in at the start and then try to sort through the chaos and (sometimes unsuccessfully) bring myself to cut the parts that don't work. So, we're expecting Flora's parts to grow a bit and maybe Mark's to shrink. We haven't quite figured out the path we want to take for the book's release, but we will probably either release it as an indie book (like all of mine), which would likely put us somewhere in the first half of 2026 for a release, or we'll think about either working with Sarah's agent or seeking another agent for traditional publishing, which would likely be a much longer process. When the book is ready, we'll make that call. Sarah's agent is currently shopping around one of Sarah's books (a wickedly funny modern take on Pride and Prejudice). Best, is a totally different kind of book, written by two authors, and it may not be what the agent is after, which is totally fine. We'll get it out to you somehow.

I'm really excited about the book. When we were done with the first draft, I put together an ebook version and read it while I was on a recent trip to see my oldest kid out in Colorado. Reading it that way, without all our notes and comments and edits that are visible in the main document, was great, and I had a lot of fun with it. The characters are fun, goofy, romantic, full of themselves, and totally dysfunctional in their own distinct ways, and it's a blast watching them navigate from a place of mutual dislike and distrust to something warmer as they solve a mystery together.

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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, I have The Volcan Council by Laurie Bowler. This is a recent fantasy release (from September) about the rebirth of a legendary order of winged knights, some of whom wonder whether they're actually the good guys, a question that's sure to ruffle some feathers.

Next, I have The Adventures of Space Girl Green by R.A. Davis, the second in a series of retro-futuristic science fiction stories that pay homage to goofy classic sci fi. Yours for just under five bucks - check out the series!

Next, I have Pyramid on the Moon by Grant Kelly. This is a short story (30 pages), and it's completely free to download. It's a mystery story that explores and expands on the pyramid-like shape seen in some of the original Apollo mission photographs that some thought might be evidence of intelligent life.

Finally, I have a big set of over 100 science fiction and fantasy books that are free for Kindle Unlimited users (and usually inexpensive as ebooks). There's an enormous variety here, and there's sure to be something that catches your fancy.

Thanks

Thanks so much for signing up for my newsletter. Please let me know if you have any questions or suggestions for upcoming books! I love hearing from people. If you've read one of my books and wouldn't mind leaving a review anywhere (Amazon, Goodreads, Bookbub, LibraryThing) I'd really appreciate it! Each review helps me reach more readers. 

I hope you and your friends and family are having a safe and rewarding 2025!

May the Bloodmother watch over you - 

Dave