SPECULATIVE FICTIONEER

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Update: Madame Antic's Hotel Grotesque

The original cover art is complete for my next novel, Madame Antic's Hotel Grotesque, and the final stage prior to publication will be layout and design. This is my first experience working with Montag Press, and while a small outfit, they're a professional bunch. Here's a sneak peek at Pierluigi Abbondanza's cool artwork, which really captures the atmosphere of this weird book:

Can't wait to see what the finished product looks like. Madame Antic's is the first installment in The Interdimensionals trilogy, with the next two books drafted and undergoing edits. Victorian surrealism or alt-Victorian horror with a sci-fi angle is a blast to write, and I hope you enjoy reading this crazy yarn as much as I enjoyed spinning it. Unlike anything I've done before, it should appeal to fans of China Mieville, Jeff Vandermeer, and Josiah Bancroft. Stay tuned for a release date...

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Attending My First Con

I'll be at the inaugural BasedCon later this month, speaking on a few panels about writing, publishing, humorous sci-fi, and the future of science fiction & fantasy. Author Robert Kroese is spearheading the event as an alternative for authors and SFF fans with conservative, libertarian, and/or Judeo-Christian beliefs. As cancel culture quickly becomes the fascist rule of law, it's tough to be heard if you don't subscribe to the mob's groupthink and newspeak. I've always been a free thinker with rebellious tendencies, so I like the idea of a con for outsiders who enjoy good stories over message fiction.

For the past decade, I've worked with numerous editors and publishers who haven't shared my particular belief system, and it's worked out quite well — because we've respected each other. But times have changed. The world isn't as inclusive as it used to be, and differences of opinion are seldom tolerated. We're divided with ever-increasing tribal tendencies. Unfortunately, there are many venues now where a straight white Christian male such as myself no longer has a voice.

I'm not joining a refurbished tribe of sad puppies. I'm not looking for an echo chamber where we can beat our drums of discontent. The truth is, I'm often too liberal for conservatives and too conservative for liberals. I've never really fit in with any group. But this is an opportunity to speak about something I love: writing a good story. I'm looking forward to venturing into unknown territory and hopefully learning a few things along the way. I'll let you know how it goes.

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Kindle Vella is Live — So is My New Novel

Newly promoted investigator Sera Chen is having a rough week. Her partner is a clone of the man she killed, whose ghost still haunts her nightmares. Her boss seems to be going out of his way to block her investigation. And not only has a dangerous criminal escaped from custody, but a bizarre cult may be involved in a rash of deaths across the Ten Domes of Eurasia.

Life has always been precious, but it's even more so now with the last remnants of humankind living in ten interconnected biospheres along the Mediterranean Sea. When dust freaks threaten to disrupt the delicate equilibrium of the Domes, it will take a demigod to balance the scales. But even with her special abilities, Sera must first overcome her demons before she can stop a powerful force intent on total domination.

Read the first 3 chapters for free: Details Here

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Fancy a FREE Download?

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Available in PDF, MOBI, and ePub

Captain Bartholomew Quasar and the crew of the Effervescent Magnitude are on their maiden voyage—and on the run from dangerous bounty hunters eager to collect a reward on the captain's head.

Just when Quasar thinks he's escaped them, his ship is stranded in the middle of a heated civil war in an unknown corner of the galaxy. Quasar must rely on his wits, his charm, and his resilient crew in order to survive the ordeal that follows, culminating in an epic space battle where sworn enemies must join forces to repel an even greater threat.

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Editing Update

The first half of 2021 has flown the coop, and on the writing front, it's been all about those edits. First up was Madame Antic's Hotel Grotesque, which will be available later this year from Montag Press. After three productive rounds with my editor, the manuscript is good to go, and now some original cover art is in the works. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

While the plot's fresh in my mind, I figured it would be a good idea to edit the sequel, and I'm about halfway through Underground (working title). So far, so good. At the same time, I received word that Amazon is trying something new for them: serialized fiction. Kindle Vella should be available to readers within the next month or two, and if nothing else, it's motivating me to polish up Dust Freaks & Demigods, the novel I drafted at the end of last year. I'm posting one chapter at a time, and this week I'm working on #10. It'll be interesting to see how Vella works out and how popular it is, but I'm always up for trying a different avenue to expand my audience.

Whenever I need a break from editing, I've been sprucing up the cover art on my backlist. Thanks to Pixabay and Canva, the new graphics are turning out pretty well and haven't cost me a thing. You're welcome to check them out at your favorite online bookstore: Amazon, Apple, Audible, Barnes & Noble, Kobo. If all goes according to plan, I might attract a few new readers who do judge books by their covers.

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Captain Quasar Audiobook 3

Amazon Apple Audible

The Captain Quasar audio trilogy is now complete! In this final installment, our hero is beside himself. Literally. Because he's dealing with a multiverse conundrum, and if he's going to save the day, he'll need the help of his other selves to do it. More than one Quasar will have to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to save all of reality from an extinction-level event at the hands of a ravenous extradimensional threat: the Void. This one was a blast to write, and it's even more fun to hear. Enjoy!

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Captain Quasar Audiobook 2

Amazon Apple Audible

The second audio installment in the Captain Quasar trilogy is now available! Unlike The Space-Time Conundrum, this one's more episodic. Not surprising, since I wrote the first half without realizing I was writing a novel. (I thought I was writing a series of novelettes. Shows how much I know!) Quasar and his intrepid crew must brave dangerous aliens, killer robots, vicious space pirates, and a mysterious artificial intelligence in order to build the United Earth Fleet and return home, where all new perils await. Mwahaha...

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Captain Quasar Audiobook 1

Amazon Apple Audible

The first installment in the Captain Quasar trilogy is now available in audio, thanks to the fine folks at Tantor Media. Eric Michael Summerer did a fantastic job bringing it to life. His style is his own, but the flavor is close enough to E.M. Carberry's that listeners won't notice a huge disparity between the Captain's Log audiobooks and the novels. Looking forward to hearing Books 2 & 3, which should be available in the next few weeks.

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Meet Harold Muldoon, Time-Traveling Detective

Kindle Paperback

Muldoon has a big problem: he's dead. Twenty years ago, a monk with a kodachi cut off his head. Now Irena, his widow, is searching for him. So is Gavin Lennox, power-hungry owner of The Pearl, the hottest night spot in all of NewCity. Cyrus Horton, an eccentric inventor, has also joined in the search. They're all looking for the BackTracker, a time travel device that has caused divergent realities to spiral out of control. In one of them, Muldoon is still alive.

He was a private investigator, the best at what he did. He solved his cases 100% of the time. Hindsight is, after all, 20/20. And the BackTracker allowed him to change the past. But in the process, his travels through time have unraveled the universe, stretching, tearing the fabric of space-time and sending his own mind into oblivion. He can no longer distinguish between true and false memories; he no longer knows who he was.

BackTracker is about a hero dealing with the consequences of his actions. It's about second chances. And it's about what makes us human despite technology's power to shape society. But at its core, it's a story about a man and woman who won't allow anything to keep them apart—not space-time, not even death.

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Audiobook Now Available

Amazon Apple Audible

Injured while jogging through the woods, high school graduate Jillian Thompson must fight for her life when captured by a recluse convinced she's his God-given wife...

Gina Marie Davies did an excellent job bringing this story to life, and now you can do your ears a favor and listen to it for yourself—just be sure to keep a light on.

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