Updates from Your Favorite Bearded Author

Hello, friends! Has it really been a month since my last update? More. How the time just flits out from underneath us. Winter has gone on vacation, opening the way for spring and all that entails as a homeowner and nature lover. But you deserve an update. So here goes.

Updates on The Jayu City Chronicles

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading The Hermes Protocol and Necropolis Alpha as much as I enjoyed writing them. I’ve already had a couple people asking when book three is coming, so here’s an update.

Book three is done. It’s in the can. That’s the good news. The maybe-bad news is that I’m changing agents. I have nothing but love and respect for Katie Salvo, my current agent. This change is nothing but amicable as she transitions her career, but that does mean that there could be a delay in book three while I navigate this change.

As soon as I have a release date for book three, though, I’ll be sure to share it with you. In the meantime, please send along your positive vibes as I query for a new agent.

Writing

So, what am I writing now? Book four of the Jayu City Chronicles is all mapped out. Honestly, I knew what book four was going to look like for a long time, so it was just a matter of getting through book three and then writing down the plot for book four.

I’m also working on something new. I won’t say much other than it’s a planned fantasy trilogy. I’m in the very early stages of world building, plotting, planning, and I have started to write the opening chapter. It’s all very exciting, very secret work.

Reading

I just finished reading 110 prose submissions for Kansas City Voices magazine. I joined as a prose reader last year and then joined the board for the magazine this year. Now, I’ve turned my attention to Sirens of the City by Joanne Starer and Khary Randolph. I’m listening to Cibola Burn by James S.A. Corey. I’m going to dive into Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune next.

Nebula Awards

Don’t get too excited. I’m not nominated for a Nebula Award. Not yet, at least. However, I will be in attendance at the Nebula Awards conference June 6-9 in Pasadena, CA. I’m moderating a panel on creating authentic characters and I’m co-coordinating the LTBGQIA+ meetup there. If you’re going to be there, be sure to find me. Let’s have a drink and chat!

Performance

No big, out-of-state (or country) performances planned this year. However, I’ve been keeping busy doing staged readings with The 1994 Project. I’ve played small roles in Four Weddings and a Funeral and Dumb and Dumber, for instance. I also handled the script adaptation for True Lies. I’ll be involved in the staged reading of Clerks in August and The Crow in October. Knowing Katie G (the boss in Boss Betty, LLC), I’ll probably have some small involvement in most of them.

Oh, and I’m going to be in a KC Fringe Festival show in July. More details coming soon!