News:

In personal news, I finally got my car A/C fixed. It’s been years, but for the sabbatical year and the unemployment year, I could just drive when my A/C wasn’t struggling so hard or I didn’t drive at all. I put it off for as long as I could to try to amass some savings to cover it, but starting pretty much today, we’re moving from storm season to summer. Last Sunday, I tried to get ahead of the derecho hitting the NTX area, but I failed and ended up delivering in nearly opaque rain conditions at night. Which was fun. In a totally not fun way. Now we’re heading into ‘sweat just by existing outside’ weather, so I’m super glad my air conditioner is no longer just blowing slightly less hot air when the sun is shining on my car hood. Expensive, but damn, worth it. I also got to read a big chunk of The Fisherman while I was waiting all morning.

If you’d like to help me cover the cost of car repairs from the last few months, I wouldn’t say no to buying your author a Ko-fi or buying one of your author’s books. There have been a lot of expenses lately and not quite enough income. It’ll start equalizing soon (I hope), but I wouldn’t refuse a little help. I’ll start posting poetry here again, so think of it as tossing a penny to your poet, if you can spare.

In writing news, I forgot to share the submission call for this month’s Shallow Waters flash fiction (<1500 words) theme at the Crystal Lake Patreon last week. It’s Mystical Listicles! Usually the theme is content-based, but I felt like shaking things up with a form-based theme, to see what people bring me. For full sub info, click here, but here’s the gist:

“This is something I sometimes saw during my fanfiction days. It seems like a perfect structure for flash fiction, and I’d like to see what horror can bring to the form. These can be top ten fave or least fave lists, twenty interesting facts, fifteen things to do or not do at a location, instructions, grocery lists…whatever checks your boxes and terrifies. They can be utterly random, subtly narrative, or a story in beats (and they don’t necessarily have to be supernatural, I just like the rhyme).”

You don’t have to be a member of the Patreon to submit, become a finalist, or even win. You do have to be in a $5/month tier or higher to read other finalists and vote.

Works in Progress:

I’ve been editing short pieces that have been sent back to me from publishers, and I got Tooth & Claw (Meridian Book 7) problems fixed then a chunk of it edited over the weekend, but since then it’s been slow going (not least because I spent all Tuesday morning at the car place). A lot of real life things and real world things getting in the way. However, I’m happy with where the novel is right now, and if I can concentrate for longer than five minutes, maybe I can polish it properly.

Books I’m Reading:

The Fisherman by John Langan
Playlist of the Damned edited by Willow Dawn Becker and Jess Landry (finished)
Raising Loki: A Memoir by Elliot Manarin
Haunted Plano, Texas by Mary Jacobs

Things I’m Listening To:

Silent Hill playlist
Piece by Piece by Kelly Clarkson
Poetry for the Poisoned by Kamelot

Things I’m Watching:

The Nun
Watson series (finished)
Jeopardy Masters series
WandaVision series
CSI: NY series
Brooklyn Nine-Nine series
The Equalizer series

Poem of the Week:

homeless nameless loveless heartless
i am someone’s daughter under this sky
i didn’t crop from nothing
like Venus from the sea
a spontaneous lifeless seed
discarded or left for dead
does someone dream of me