D2D and Bookshop.Org (Yay, Expansion!) -- Also a Writing Update

The most recent news in indie publishing involves Draft2Digital partnering with Bookshop.org for distribution of indie e-books via independent bookstores. 

😄

That means readers can now buy books by self-published writers (who use Draft2Digital) from small, independent bookstores -- not only in print formats, but in digital as well. My print books, for instance, are already listed on Bookshop.org, and I made sure to use that link for my main print store on my navigation menu here and at my Payhip store. 

And now I happily submitted all 49 books on my backlist to Bookshop .org for their digital storefront. And this means readers don't have to go to the bigger and more corporate stores like Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Walmart, etc., for their books in either format.

If I were to limit my reach, I'd delist my books from the big stores and stick to this one, Smashwords, and my Payhip store. Libraries are also a no-brainer. This is something to think about down the line if I want to do some major spring cleaning, especially if my sales channels tend to number less than five despite the ever-widening distribution Draft2Digital is determined to go for (and kudos to them for being aggressive about it).

In writing news, I've already detached myself from Doppelgänger and have begun putting together the character and place list for The Shadow Groom. I already have the first chapter mapped out in my head (and my notebook), and I'll be diving into that tomorrow. Normally I'd be worried about pacing myself, but with my new work schedule, I can breathe more easily, and it'll be no problem catching up on the brief lag with my occasional extra days off. 

The book will be like The Twilight Lover in tone and setting in that it'll be a romantic comedy set in a fairy tale-ish place. I'm also leaning pretty heavily on trope reversals so that the more traditional family unit is bizarre and wild while the more eclectic family unit is more prim and conservative. So we're going to be back to having fun with family dynamics and how they influence our lovebirds. 

So yeah -- first step done, tomorrow will be devoted to the first chapter and Errol's family.  

 

'Doppelgänger' Gallery Page Now Up

Just a quick post here, ladies and gents -- the gallery page for Doppelgänger is now live. However, there are no links to the bookstores yet because the book might be uploaded for preview and pre-order purposes, but the final version is still being worked on. 

So head on down to this page for some tidbits on the book.  

'Doppelgänger' Blurb

Oooh, man, I'm so excited about this book. Now granted it started out completely different, but that version of the book hit a brick wall, and I just had to set it aside and start from square one. And let me tell you all, it was the right decision to make.

And as I continue to work on edits now (revisions are done), I guess it's time to share the book blurb:

An impoverished young teacher loses his job when the informal ragged school where he works shuts down. A much-needed stroke of luck, however, brightens Alec Herridge’s prospects when he stumbles across a frame-maker’s shop and is offered a job. This puts him squarely in the path of an enigmatic and wealthy family from France—expatriates whom gossips whisper about. Something, they say, has followed mother and son to England, and day servants complain about a heaviness in the air whenever the family is at home. 

It’s a dark energy that turns its attention to Alec now that his new job requires him to work closely with Marguerite and Théo LaSalle. It also appears to him as a silent lookalike of Théo, its presence marked by whispers in a child’s voice. Urging, pleading, desperately reaching out to Alec for help.

Folklore defines doppelgängers as heralds of ill fortune, but Alec soon discovers there’s much more to Théo’s double than a warning. That whatever horrible secrets the LaSalle family believes were left behind in France aren’t the kind so easily explained away. That something has, indeed, followed them in exile and now refuses to be ignored or forgotten.

I was originally planning to have it out in April or May when I still had the six-month calendar to work with. But with my day job schedule changing (and it starts this week), I find I'll have just the perfect amount of wiggle room to continue with the more challenging 4-month release dates.

This book's release will now be on March 1 -- not a lot of time left, but that's because of the problems I had that required me to start over. Plus I did take nearly a full month's break as well during the holidays to rest the brain cells. So it's going to be a tight final stretch, but I can do it. My energy levels and motivation are very high this month, and it's going to work out. 

And, you know, this turned out to be a book that ended up being very close to my heart. I've also said this about some of the books on my backlist before, but while I'm proud of everything I've written and published, this is one of the select few that really, truly felt good working on because everything in it means something to me.

Anyway, there's the blurb, and I'll be posting more updates on the book as we get closer to the release date.  

Grabbing the Bull by the Horns

Idioms aside, that's just me making a liar out of myself. I spent the past couple of weeks thinking -- and overthinking -- my future releases given changes taking place at the day job and other situations in the real world. And you know what? Fuck the noise. I'm doing this. Now that it's possible, yeah -- I'm doing this.

But firstly, I made a formal commitment (to myself, anyway) to move forward with the overhaul to Eidolon, which is now called Liminal Child. I'll be tackling that last, but it's officially part of my queue now. 

And I have a cover (why, yes, my name partly disappears again, but I love the image, and I'm keeping it), in which I recycle the hand print that was on the alternate cover for Valérian:

I'm going to hold on to the first five or six chapters with a lot of tweaks worked in. The PoV will shift from Emerick to his two fathers, and the setting will be some amorphous place that's similar to what I originally used in the Curiosities series. I'm going to try to keep things fairly close to the first incarnation of the book with more of a dark fairy tale aesthetic -- which was, to be fair, what the entire Curiosities series was all about. 

I'll figure out the details when I get there, but I do know how to approach the changes overall.

And secondly, bringing us back to the post title, let me repeat myself: fuck the noise. I'm doing it. And that's in reference to the calendar again now that I'm going to be getting some extra time for writing (official confirmation's been done). In brief, ladies and gentlemen, I'm going to go back to the old 4-month calendar. I managed to do that for a few years with a heavy load at the day job, even shifting releases earlier here and there because things went either smoothly or badly enough for me to finish earlier or later than planned. But things are going to change starting February, and I refuse to be at loose ends on the writing front as it's one sure-fire way of driving me crazy.

So this is for 2026 (click the image for a closer look):

And this is for 2027 (ditto):

I do like to keep mentally busy on my extra days off, and that's not counting just kicking back and reading whatever book I've checked out from the library. I want to write, and I love every minute of it despite the excruciating nature of creation. I also work best with a set schedule to guide my pace, and the coming year or two will see an easing of the pressure as well in spite of the reversal to the 4-month plan.

Over the years, I was more like a steady workhorse with my writing. This year feels a little different even though we barely started the second half of the first month of 2026. I feel oddly lighter despite what I'm seeing around me (real world-wise, that is), and I want to take that energy and motivation and run with them. 

I'd like to be not so much a steady workhorse this time around, but an aggressive and steady workhorse. An odd combo, but there it is. That's my aim. I want it, and I'm going for it. Part of it has to do with my Payhip store and my second attempt at selling direct to readers. I wasn't too sure in my first attempt and was easily discouraged by it (plus I was on social media, too, which didn't help my efforts), but with all the changes I've discussed pertaining to Draft2Digital's policies, I don't want to be passive about stuff. It was good while it lasted, but if things change, I have to pivot accordingly if I want to keep doing what I'm doing and benefit from it, no matter how little.

So, yeah -- I'm going for it. God help me, I am. 😈

P.S. I'll updating my Book News page later this week to reflect this change. 

Still Playing In the Sandbox

You can tell I'm getting pretty hyped about my upcoming WiPs because I'm playing with cover art and coming up with alternates. 

So this is the same image from yesterday, only kept in its unedited format and also shifted to the right. I want to emphasize the halo behind the head since it's part of the mental trap the MC will be getting sucked into. Also you can at least see my name in this case, so that helps.

And this is the alternate cover:

This works effectively in establishing the mood and atmosphere of the book, and every element suggests something important about Valérian. It's not as subtle as the first image, which is meant to work like a ruse, but either cover art will work. I'll be making my final decision down the line, of course, as it'll be a while before I get going on this.

I'm down to the final five chapters of Doppelgänger revisions, which I'll complete next weekend. Then it'll be another round of lighter edits. THEN it'll be The Shadow Groom, which will be another nice change of pace since it's going to be another comedy-horror based on the Grimm Brothers fairy tale. If I play my cards right, it'll be in the same vein as The Twilight Lover. 

As for my Payhip store, I do intend to offer sales each quarter, and that includes BOGO (Buy One, Get One [either free or half off]) sales that'll last two months. I'm still sorting through how best to stir interest in my books in between releases, especially since my backlist is not only extensive, but old. And getting even older by the month. 

I'll certainly talk about it here as the ideas come. And they do. I can't shut my brain off.