[Huzzah] End of beginning

Jan 30, 2026 6:17 pm

One Month In Already...

This year is already moving fast, and as I mentioned in the end of year wrap last time, 2026 is going to be chock full of things. January was no exception.

The biggest news is that the physical editions of Children of the Gods shipped out around the middle of the month...

CotG Fulfillment is a wrap

Merrick Books finished up sending out the last packages earlier this week. I've heard from a lot of US backers who've received their books already. International backers should start seeing them arrive here very soon.

But all the packages are in the mail, at this point.

The past couple of weeks have been a lot of fun, seeing these books finally arrive on bookshelves. Thanks to all the wonderful folks who've shared pics on social media, or sent DMs about the arrivals.

It is really fun to hear so many people loving how everything turned out, in physical form, and how many people have been enjoying the story itself as well, whether in digital or physical formats!

Here's a few lovely shots from backers:

What about Book Two??

I've had a number of people asking about the next book in the series, and I am hard at work on finishing that over the next several months.

I've already got a lot of things in the works.

Joe Requeza will be working on the cover in February, and then, Rachel St. Clair will be getting the design completed after that.

Some interior artwork is already underway, and I've got my editor scheduled for the summer, and Tim Campbell ready to narrate in the fall.

Children of Ash & Stone is set to launch on Kickstarter in August 2026, if all goes smoothly.

I'll be in touch over the next few months with cover reveals and campaign announcements as things continue to come together and we get the pre-launch page up, etc.

But book two is going to be very epic.

Darkling Queen Deluxe Proofs and Signed Pages

The first sample copy of Darkling Queen arrived a few days ago. The first, because we are going to make a few small changes, based on how this one turned out. That has been the protocol for all the books I've produced thus far.

Nothing too major. I like this crimson foil on its own merit quite a bit, but alas, it doesn't quite match the brighter foil tones of the first two books. So we are going to try a different option that better fits the series as a whole.

We are making a couple of other very small adjustments to the spine design and interior, based off of the proofs.

I also signed a big ol' stack of title pages, which are going to be bound into the final book.

At this point, we should be on track for a Spring Fulfillment, and a May launch for the final edition for Well of Shadows.

You can already follow along here, and we'll be doing a cover reveal in a few weeks!

Writing Updates

Children of Ash & Stone (30% complete)

I spent the first week or so of the year, working back through the opening chapters for Children of Ash & Stone. There was one section in particular that wasn't working for me, and I ended up completely rewriting a couple chapters, adding a couple others, and then, polishing up the rest.

By the end, I felt really good about how the book is starting, and since then, I've been making really steady progress. I have a really good vision now for where all the characters are heading over the middle section of the book, and am ready to just write, write, write over the next few months.

Swordslinger - Pantheon Arc 2 (5% complete)

Surprise! After writing a few chapters last year, and not being happy with them at all, I set this aside. But a burst of inspiration came, and I've written new opening chapters. And I really like them this time.

Progress will be slower the next few months. But it has been a fun break from the heavier and more epic writing in Age of Fire, and as I have time, I plan to keep adding chapters, with more focus coming to it in the summer while Children #2 is in edits.

Now that I'm writing full-time, I feel like it's reasonable I could have a draft of Swordslinger Book One written this year as well. I've had the vision for the book as a whole in my head for a long time, so now that the beginning is sorted, I think I'll be able to plug away. But we'll see how it goes.

What's Entertaining Me

TV - Rewatching Severance, this time with my wife, who warmed up slowly, but at the end of S1 is pretty hooked

Books - I'm trying to read more fiction this year, and I already finished three books... granted they were shorter ones. But still.

In January, I read Dark Matter by Blake Crouch, Skysworn by Will Wight, and Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by GRRM... all pretty different... all very enjoyable.

Okay, that's all for now!

Burn Bright!

Stephen

Children of the Gods is OUT NOW!

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