I took a quick look at my blog yesterday and cringed. I hadn’t updated since January. Lots of things happened since the beginning of the year. Some okay. Some not so fun. And some were just downright frustrating. 

PART TIME

First up, I took on a part-time job. There are many reasons I did this, the most obvious was to get out of the house. Many of my friends have moved away from Georgia and I needed human stimulation. It sounds wonderful, this working from home. But not when you become a shut-in. *shivers* The days I work are killer on my feet and when I get home it’s all I can do to go into my office to work. Most of the time I keep my laptop with me to write words, whether on the couch or sitting up in my bed with my feet in an ice bath. Concrete + Sneakers = Pain. 

This has slowed my output tremendously, and I’m working on getting back on a regular publication schedule. I’m juggling several series which I want to wrap up and concentrate on a single one as I did with The Eldritch Files. 

SERIES MISSING BUT NOT GONE…NOT COMPLETELY

Some readers have noticed Oak & Ash & Thorn is no longer for sale. Unfortunately, book one was released to very dismal sales and unhappy feedback in email because many readers had not read the short story and felt the first book was like starting in the middle. I was trying to come up with a way to fix that when… 

The debacle of the CAST IN SHADOW series I started with a co-writer came to a head. Books 1 & 2 were instant successes, but book 3 was caught in the middle of the ending of that relationship and suffered immensely from what became an intense…separation. I am happy to say, I am now in control of that series and added my name. I also added in Chapter One of the 4th book at the end of book 3 (Smoke & Mirrors) to hopefully reassure readers the swirling miasma of book 3 does serve a purpose, which will become evident in book 4. Just think of that name: Smoke & Mirrors. 

Oh and just so readers know, the paperback, if you order it, still says the pen name on it. I’m working on getting a new one up so that will stop. 

And as I struggled with these issues, another series reared her cute little head. 

COZIES

I enjoy cozy reads. And shows. I am an avid Murder She Wrote fan and I regularly watch the Hallmark Channel with the women of mystery series. All of them. Frustrated with dwindling sales, I binged watched several of these series and read three whole series, and then binged 3 seasons of Castle… 

And I dreamed of an idea. Of a small town named Castle Falls (based on a real place in South Carolina) where Supernaturals can retreat and feel safe…though not always cause…they’re Supernaturals. I saw a red-headed witch, a snarky black cat, and a handsome vampire shifter doctor/boyfriend, and a grandmother who ruled them all. 

WITCHES OF CASTLE FALLS was born with a complete arc, and the possibility if readers want, spin-offs. I am thoroughly enjoying writing these and plan on a more regular publishing schedule.

If you enjoyed THE ELDRITCH FILES, I think you’ll enjoy these books as well. A bit lighter reading but still fun. 

This doesn’t mean I won’t finish CAST IN SHADOW or OAK & ASH & THORN or publish another book in the DISCORD AND RHYME series. Or eventually, publish Zoe’s last book. I also have two Fantasy Series (epic fantasy!), a Young Adult Dark Fantasy, and a four-book Urban Fantasy series with vampires and music makers (complete with covers from Ravven!). Not to mention the next two books in my LitRPG series. 

I mean to do them all. One book at a time. 

*looks at what she wrote* Pffft…anyone got an immortality potion? Or at least something for old, tired, concrete sore feet?!

And a final word… 

KINDLE UNLIMITED ISN’T FOR ME FOR SERIES.

For those readers who bought THE BOOK OF ILL DEEDS in Kindle Unlimited, then found it was no longer there, and now see that book two is also not there, there is a reason. Unfortunately, I don’t feel safe actually posting up that reason. Amazon is a very large and powerful entity, and it does what it wants. I’ll just say myself, and hundreds of other authors were caught up in their efforts to stop scammers. I’m glad they’re trying, but they take out the livelihood of innocents along the way.

After receiving a lot of email about the smaller stories for Zoë Martinique, and posting the question in facebook, I am happy to announce, the following stories are now available once again, with new covers and reformatted. Not all of the vendors have populated yet. Just know they will be available on Kindle, Nook, Kobo and iBooks by the end of this week. I’ll put out a newsletter with full links, as well as update the links on this website. 

AND, Zoë has now been added to my list of books, from the four published by Penguin to the later ones. Also, the reading order has now been posted in FAQs, which is a page I really need to update. 

Going on the record now, these are the only shorts / novellas for the series. As of right now, DOMINION is the last book in the series—but not the FINAL book. So any books that come up in google searches, if they are not listed here, they are not relevant to the story of Zoë Martinique (except for Native Soil, but I haven’t included it here because that’s a book about Jason Lawrence). 

But for convenience, here is the READING ORDER FOR ZOE MARTINIQUE. 

The individual books are listed here with links to their pages on this site (as of the posting of this information, the books are only available on Kindle. More vendors coming this week). Please excuse the quality of the images, I’ll be fixing those in the next week or so.

Also, if you want them all in one spot, scroll down for the anthology. 

WEB GINN HOUSE
This is the first story with Zoë and Nona, before WRAITH, before anything else. This story was originally published in the DAW anthology, CRIME SPELLS.

OUT OF THE DARK
When I wrote Wraith, I wrote it kinda long. This story was a part of the original book (though not finished at the time) before I cut it off at the bathroom scene. This story is very Dags centric and takes place in the last scene of WRAITH. 

HOLLY & IVY
This story was written as a promo for a local shop I adore, The Phoenix & Dragon Bookstore. The ghosts in this book are real, as is the hole in the basement of the shop. 

BEYOND THE DOOR
This book is a bridge novella between REVENANT and GEIST. 

WALKING SHADOWS
This takes place between GEIST and DOMINION. 

SOUL CAGE
A bridge novella between GEIST (Book 5) and DOMINION (Book 6) of the Zoë Martinique Investigation Series, SOUL CAGE introduces the issues at stake at the opening of DOMINION. 

Also, for those who do not want to get them separately and want to keep them all together, there is an anthology called TALES OF THE ABYSMAL PLANE also available. 

When last I posted, it was to make a deleted scene available to those who wished to read it for the Eldritch Files –  A series that will always be close to my heart. 

Since then, I’ve been working steadily on side projects, as well as the new Urban Fantasy Series, Oak & Ash & Thorn, with a promise of making it available at the end of the year. So this brings me to the next question I get frequently…”Why isn’t the new series available yet?” 

Good question. Answer — Because I wanted to either release the books at once, or in rapid succession. And those books aren’t finished yet (books 1 & 2 are done, 3 is WiP). I’m also working on the 4th book in the AJ Brahms series, CAST IN SHADOW. The estimated publication on QUOTH THE RAVEN, NEVERMORE, is beginning of 2018. 

There have been several personal issues that have delayed the new series; issues that are mine alone and have to do with family and health. My editor (Chelly Peeler at Ink It Out Editing Services) and my Cover artist (Lou Harper at Lou Harper Designs) have been gracious, beautiful and patient at my long delays. 

But, in order to give readers something for the Holiday season, I’m putting what I call A Book Of My Heart on sale until December 25th. 

FROST – A TALE OF JACK FROST. This story came to me after watching the original Jack Frost from Rankin / Bass. My daughter and I had just watched Rise of the Guardians as well and had fallen in love with that movie, especially the portrayal of Jack. 

Given my love of urban fantasy, I wanted to write my own Jack Frost, but with a bit of Dark Fantasy. Usually it sits in the inventory and sells for $2.99, but for the Holidays it’s up for .99¢!

“He wore my face.

How often had I shown that face indifference as I shaved it? Washed it. And on occasion cursed it. I’d seen it green when sick, red when sunburned, and painted for Halloween.

But I’d never seen it dead.”

Something else I wanted to offer readers is the first 3 books of the CAST IN SHADOW series. This series is under the pen name AJ Brahms, an agreed upon moniker between myself and another writer. That writer has now moved on and I will be continuing the series on my own. 

CAST IN SHADOW Series, books 1-3

But to give readers something to cozy up with this Holiday, the first 3 books are on sale for .99¢! On sale till December 25th.

I am a Vampire’s worst Nightmare. I am a Ghoul with no Master.

I’m also a photographer, and a sort of investigator. I tried to live my life away from the Vampires, and away from their rules and restrictions, but my training as a Chevalier, a Vampire’s Knight, made that impossible when the Prince of the City’s largest Vampire Family, Jedediah Talmadge, called on me to solve a mystery. That of a dead body left on the doorstep of their public home.

A series of events spiraled my life out of control, and where I am now, is simply something you’ll have to discover. And where am I going? That is a story still left to tell.

So, what’s on for the new year in 2018? I’ll list up the series / books now on the schedule, but I’m not sure about exact dates yet. The listing here isn’t in order either. Some might not be till 2019. But I’ll post here first when I know! 

New Series
Witches of Castle Falls, cozy mystery paranormal
The Dark Backward, urban fantasy
The Iron Song Saga, fantasy
The Prophecy’s Edge, fantasy

Cast in Shadow Series: 
Quoth The Raven, Nevermore, book 4

Oak & Ash & Thorn
Midsummer Knight
Lammas Calling
Mabon Harvest

2018 promises to be a challenging one, but one I want to be the best year ever when it comes to fiction for readers. And that includes more updates, and more communication from me. 

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO EVERYONE, AND THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING ME AND MY CRAZY FICTION!!