Writing is still on hiatus for me, but never the writers! Come back tomorrow for an excellent conversation with my critique buddy, Isa Ottoni, who just launched her debut dark cottagecore fantasy novel, Path of the Crescent Moon.
I have more interviews scheduled for the year, and I plan to revisit one of my 2025 summer guests (a fellow local author from last year’s Viriginia City Writing Retreat) for updates on their year in writing. Scroll down for this year’s Retreat highlights.
I plan to have two (for sure one) short story appearing in upcoming TDB Author Collective anthologies, so stay tuned for those exciting publications. Thanks to all of you who visit my blogs and read my books! Your support is so appreciated.
Health
Meanwhile, on the home front, I’m three weeks past hip replacement surgery and thrilled with the results. The first week and a half, I was a big baby wondering what the H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks! I was thinking. Typical for early post-op days, I suppose. I’ve only had three surgeries in my life, and I’m pretty sure this was even more invasive than my partial mastectomy. Those scars they leave on your butt? Huge! This time I remembered to mention that the only time I can ever throw up is when my body wants to purge pain drugs and anesthesia (last time all the way out of the hospital and in the car on the way home), so the anesthesiologist kindly stuck an antinausea patch on my neck. Beauty!
Oh, and it was my first time at Carson-Tahoe Hospital. I was impressed. Not crowded either…
Okay, enough of that. Can you guess what I’ve been doing during recovery?
Stitchy Update Time!
Virginia City Writing Retreat 2026
It was super awesome having a writing retreat at the end of May right before surgery to keep my mind off being sliced and diced. My friend Dee and I enjoyed our cozy room again, the abundant homemade food, and the classes, like how to write a cozy mystery, researching–the good old-fashioned way (in person and making actual phone calls)–for our fiction and non-fiction stories, and character development. I missed the pitch (to an agent) class but learned it was super entertaining watching the roll-play. The highlight this year was a book display organized by author and awesome cover designer, Salem T. Lynn, where attendees could share and sell their books. I bought two and got them signed, of course. Jacci Turner will be a guest on my August Spotlight. Our wonderful host and author, Kim Harnes, outdid herself once again.
This is the epic annual chat where I get to reflect on the year with my great writing friend, Nicolas Lemieux. Yay! Welcome back to our dual platform, Nicolas. How about we start with introductions and a brief summary of our year in writing, then dive deeper into the highlights?
Read in French – Nicolas has kindly translated our discussion. Thanks so much Nicolas!
First! Let’s Meet the Authors
Nicolas Lemieux
Nicolas lives in Montréal with his wife, Marie-Claude, in a third-floor apartment overlooking a charming green alley. Although French is his first language, he prefers to write in English.
His chosen genre is Science Fiction, where he gets his kicks dreaming up astonishing worlds filled with a sharp palette of badass, quirky characters who get tangled up in all kinds of meaningful trouble. Often funny, sometimes disquieting, always exciting.
Nicolas believes that each time you dive into a good book, you come out better off at the other end because you’ve gained a new, bright spark that will stick with you until the end of time, helping you fend off the pits and falls that might have consumed you otherwise.
As Nicolas works on his novel, Seven Drifts, which features a drifting city spaceship, a wannabe sleuth, murders, a brewing rebellion, and an antique wooden treasure chest, he enjoys blogging about books and his writing life while sharing glimpses into the world of Seven Drifts, including through his free story, DRIFT & CRADLE.
D. L. Lewellyn
D.L.’s unexpected passion for writing ignited in 2020 after a summer of avid, lockdown-induced reading in her favorite genre, paranormal romance.
In addition to self-publishing her series, The Starlight Chronicles, her stories have appeared in anthologies. More novels are on the way. No surprise there. Anyone who knows her will tell you she’s a dedicated multi-crafter. Take a peek inside her colorful, cluttered studio, and you’ll see it for yourself.
She also enjoys blogging about writing and interviewing fellow authors. Her downtime includes lots of reading and sharing popcorn while watching movies or Formula 1 racing with her husband. When they aren’t being couch potatoes, they’re walking the northern Nevada high desert with their rescued fur babies.
Let’s Get Started
Okay, Nicolas, how about you go first? What was your 2025 like?
NL: All year round, I’ve been deep inside the world of my novel, Seven Drifts, and what a wild ride it’s turning out to be! The story is set on a former starship that was damaged, stranded, and, for better or for worse, turned into a long stack of gigantic O’Neill cylinders. It is a politically complex place of varying gravity conditions, led by a benevolent-looking villain, Mayor Larocque, who compels his people into a way of life he calls Driftism. I’m having a ton of fun with the characters, from the failed botanist but passionate amateur sleuth Anita to the trumpeter Blake, who is slated to write the true story of their rebel crew, to Leona, the great-granddaughter of an infamous architect.
Honestly, the writing process itself is one great source of happiness (and growth), and I know you feel the same way about yours. I love how it forces me to dwell in my solution-seeking mode, as we discussed in our emails. It’s a compelling challenge; always worth it!
To make things interesting, let me throw out a few topics a reader of our conversation might want to playfully toss somewhere at the back of their mind as they read on…
What are the three distinct gravity conditions mentioned in Seven Drifts, and what are they associated with?
Could there be characters in the story who aren’t really called “folk” at all?
An antique treasure chest is bequeathed to someone in the story. In your opinion, who could it have belonged to?
Who is Baba?
Do people in Seven use such things as GPUs and VR?
What kind of propulsion drive might Seven have used before it was damaged?
What was the name of Leona’s late great-grandfather?
What specific goal does the narrator, Blake, pursue in the novel Seven Drifts?
It’s an exciting time for me, as the manuscript is finally mostly in place. I’ve gained confidence in my structural choices, realizing that an introductory set of chapters can work just fine if they are beautiful and fascinating enough to hook the reader. I can’t wait to share these characters, this world I’ve created, and that crazy, quirky, action-packed story. Now, let’s dive into the specifics!
DLL: I have totally felt your joy in what you’ve accomplished this year in Seven Drifts. It’s a huge project, and making those structural tweaks and feeling those “aha” moments must have been awesome. I can’t wait to dive into it as a reader.
It always amazes me how each year ends with events that surpass the previous one, even though I often think a year can’t possibly have more going on or more to learn–and yes, I’m still learning tons in my 6th decade. This year, while I wouldn’t necessarily lump all the happenings into highlights, learning definitely played a role. My biggest takeaway is never to take anything for granted.
After retiring early in 2023 to focus on writing full-time, I was given nearly two years of that privilege. But early this year, cancer struck twice in my family: first me, then my sister. We started chemotherapy a day apart and lost our hair together. I realized how much I had taken my health and family for granted.
Her situation is much more serious; her treatments focus on giving her as much time as possible, and we’re hoping for at least a year. My treatments are meant to keep the cancer at bay, and while I’m grateful for that, I would give anything if the same could be said for my sister.
While this was all going on, I had to face that I’d also taken democracy for granted–a truth more bitter to swallow each day. Watching the hatred promoted by our bumbling leaders in a reality TV-style government only makes personal challenges even harder.
So, what does someone do when life presents what feels like impossible obstacles that are mostly beyond their control? My answer is to write every day and make time to talk to my sister.
The second thing I learned is that having a passion to lose yourself in—one of those joys that makes you want to wake up in the morning—even to face a chemo treatment or another loss to democracy—restores the good things in life. I came to this realization by making this year about having fun with my characters and scenes in three new novels—yes, three—that darn multitasking gene—and that’s in addition to the six I already have going. While I haven’t finished a single one, I’ve written probably as many words this year as my 320,000-word series.
That simply means I found the joy of writing again while also spending a great deal of time promoting my already published novels. That effort has paid off, and I’ll discuss why later. I also returned to voracious reading, which is what launched me into this writing journey five years ago. I’ve decided that reading is equally part of the joy and the best way to become a better writer. I’ll share my favorite authors from this year’s reading list. I’ve reached 74 books in a 50-book goal, and the year’s not finished!
Other highlights include launching my new BookBub website, attending a super fun writing retreat, adding my books to Audible via Amazon’s Virtual Voice Studio, and splurging on Grammarly Pro for editing support. More on this later.
Let’s get into the Writing Process
Nicolas and I really enjoy looking back on our emails after a year of correspondence and finding that we had tons of insightful things to say about our writing process that we forgot about as the year progressed.
Here’s us airing out a little about writing ourselves into a corner while we face life’s challenges.
DLL: Writing is my solace. And as I escape each day into my current novel, I’m encouraged with my progress… except that I’m still working on the mechanics of my plot. Dang those plots. That’s the most challenging part for me–thousands of words of great scenes, and everything is moving forward, but once again, I’m writing myself into a corner, LOL. At least coming up with solutions occupies my dreams so I can sleep.
NL: First off, let me tell you how much I admire your courage and resiliency in your approach to your current predicament (and I apologize for the clichés). The truth is, I have no idea how I’d fare myself, faced with the same reality. But from where I stand, I can only say “I’m here, offering my good vibes.” I’m so happy that you’re doing better now and that you’re on the recovery track.
Congratulations on making such good progress! This many words is a body of work to contend with. Isn’t it the best? You write yourself into a corner, and then your creative brain takes over – in its own time – to find solutions you wouldn’t have dreamt of in your waking time. Often, these solutions turn out to be precisely what makes your story unique, personal, human, and truly you; exactly what makes it irresistible and relatable. I find solace in writing as well. I’ve been all over the place in my novel Seven Drifts, moving scenes around and generally making parts of it a lot better. I enjoy how it forces me to dwell in my solution-seeking mode, even though I am often overwhelmed by how long this challenging process takes. Sometimes it helps me sleep, other times not.
During a creative dry spell this summer, I reread my first story (Tides of Cath), and it was nice to go back to the first spark that ignited the rest of the project. It’s the story I wrote first but haven’t finished yet. It takes place centuries after the one I’m finishing now, though, so it seemed only logical to work on the prequel story first. But going back to ToC really got my creative juices bubbling up again. I found it super encouraging, actually. I had no notion of scene structure and whatnot back then, but geez, I think the story works just as well. Maybe even better, I don’t know; as if I was relying on my instincts more when I wrote these pages, and I don’t know why, but I really like how they flow. So it gives me even more incentive to work hard and finish Seven Drifts so I can go on and work on Tides of Cath again.
DLL: Wow! This is so inspiring, Nicolas. I can also relate to relooking at earlier work and often wonder if I’ve given up some of my spontaneity in my writing. For my part, I seem to be constantly in editing mode and worry about overdoing it. That could have something to do with Grammarly Pro. I couldn’t resist a half-off offer on Black Friday last year, and it truly is like having a professional editor on my payroll. However, that editor is also constantly riding my shoulder, slowing my writing every time I stop to see if I can write what’s being flagged better. I mention this AI writing tool briefly as both a pro and a con. But the pro outweighs the con for me, as it has helped me become a better writer.
Back to spontaneity, I didn’t go at my first novels with any kind of coherence, just pure gut instinct, which left holes while somehow also managing to get a story out. Always shocks me when I look back at how much fun I had writing that way. I think this is why I’m having a hard time finishing another novel. I’m not using pure instinct to tell a story. Instead, I’m swamped with too many techniques learned since then that are stifling me. I’ve sort of lost my voice. I miss the old days. I laugh at myself because this is always how I learn to do new things, just throw something out in the world based on pure creative juices, with holes, imperfections, and all. Then, I reverse engineer. Part of that process lately has been reading authors I love and figuring out why I love their storytelling. Still, it’s all part of the passion, right?
NL: Pure instinct: I like these words. That’s how I operated at first, when I wrote a large chunk of the first draft of Tides of Cath, and I can feel it when I read it again. I hope some of it is still there in 7D – I’ll have to trust in the process for that. Funny thing, I experienced the same with singing. At first, it felt natural and easy, even gratifying, until I took voice lessons with various teachers and coaches. Then, for a while (I mean, years), singing became complicated and hard, nerve-racking, almost an impossible dream. But eventually, it became more natural again, in a different way, and more satisfying – but still kind of nerve-racking, but for larger reasons (I mean audiences) and sometimes, downright terrorizing. But it’s the middle part I want to go for, the “more natural and more satisfying”. It’s like once we start learning the ropes, it becomes harder to reconnect all the techniques and knowledge with our first, primordial impulse to create. To reconnect our busy head with our soaring heart takes time and patience, but we get there eventually. Some days, I feel like I need to act like a “bad student” to find that connection again. I need to ignore what I know and deliberately seek the flow without thinking, and to Hell with the technique and everything I’ve been told. Sometimes I find it helps uncover that nugget of truth, or touch that magical feeling of “something appearing out of nothingness” I enjoy so much. Reconnecting with other art forms, such as music, or with other authors, is also a great way to find that connection again. (More on this later.)
Writing Quests
DLL: So, Nicolas, while I was busy writing and undergoing cancer treatments this year, I added a few quests along the way (why not, right?), which I got to share with you in real time. One was switching virtual audio book platforms from Google to Audible. Producing even virtual audiobooks is a cumbersome task, but it felt like an accomplishment to finish all five books! Both have awesome features, both are free to authors (my only reason for doing them instead of hiring actors), but only one reaches the audience (as usual): Amazon. Still, I haven’t sold any audiobooks since my initial launch, and I’ve received no feedback from the few who purchased them. I suspect AI audiobooks are not readers’ preferred format. We talked about the pros and cons of AI voices vs. real actors. I think most are obvious. There’s nothing like real emotion and inflection to tell a story. Obviously, actors are on my bucket list for the future of my series. Your thoughts?
NL: Thanks for the audiobook of Priss’s story! I listened to the first one and enjoyed it very much! That virtual voice is just out of this world, I almost forget it’s not a real human reading to me – so much so that it’s a bit uncanny when I think about it. Now, if I had a choice between a human-read book and an AI-read one, I’d go with the real human voice for sure, as I’d know I’m supporting the work of a real artist, and it would be easier to identify and connect emotionally when listening to a human being. But for ease and affordability, I can understand people settling for the next best thing once in a while.
DLL: I really appreciate you listening to Priss Starwillow and sharing your thoughts, Nicolas. It’s so helpful. And yes, connecting emotionally is definitely the piece that is missing, even with the uncanny voices. Sigh… One day, if I can win a contest with a cash prize, I’ll splurge. I would love readers to enjoy my series on audio.
Another quest this year was attending my first writing retreat with local authors in the wonderful historic town of Virginia City, at a fabulous, haunted Victorian hospital-turned-art center. A local Reno writer, Kim Harnes, hosts these each year, doing all the labor for the cost of the retreat. We had some great classes with fellow attendees, including an agent we practiced pitching our stories to. Check out the fun highlights in my blog. I highly recommend attending workshops and retreats.
NL: I haven’t attended a writing retreat myself so far, but I have no trouble seeing how that learning and pitching process, though intimidating, would be an exciting time for me as it was for you, and I’m sure it would benefit me in all kinds of ways! Back at the end of 2024, I enrolled in QWF (Quebec Writers Federation), but along with my day job and my writing project, I guess it turned out to be one too many things to do, so I ended up attending only one of their multiple online events. I have no doubt I would enjoy and benefit from attempting something similar again in the future, or, better yet, something more punctual, in-person, and intensive, like the retreat you attended.
DLL: QWF sounds like a valuable organization, and it’s great to connect with local groups to explore unique outreach opportunities within our communities, i.e., book fairs and conventions, which I really want to do. But becoming a writer during Covid sort of set me off on the recluse path, promoting from afar (i.e., social media). After meeting many local writers at the retreat, I decided to dedicate this summer to interviewing them. As a result, I had some fascinating guests on my Spotlight, and through them, discovered local organizations and resources.
Like you, I sign up for events, including online classes, but I never seem to have enough time to participate fully. However, the little I manage to fit in always adds at least one helpful nugget to my repertoire, making it worth navigating the overwhelming amount of networking and training available to indie authors—often offered for free–so long as I don’t let it eat up my writing time. That is a challenge, I must say.
I follow Reedsy, AutoCrit, BookBaby, BookBub, and BookFunnel, to name a few, which regularly offer classes or helpful blogs. A few other useful newsletters come from Gotham Writers (which has great classes and blogs) and Writers Write. This last one is ad-heavy, but it contains lots of great content. Check out my latest favorite blog as an example: “What Can Jane Austen Teach Us Today?” They always provide a brief yet interesting post, followed by helpful bullet points and a list of related articles.
This might also be the place to mention my cross-promotion group on Facebook: #RomanceBookBlast. I participated in every quarterly Book Blast promotion over the last two years, as well as the Black Friday sale, which has significantly impacted my book sales and visibility. So, I can highly recommend it as a valid marketing tool for an indie author on a tight budget.
Our group host and admin, Jessica Anderson, has done a fantastic job helping us grow. Participation is free as long as you agree to promote the quarterly events through your newsletter and social media. I average around 3,000 downloads per free offer. In my genre, it’s advantageous to sell exclusively on Amazon by enrolling in Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) to reach Kindle Unlimited (KU) users. My KU pages read have increased significantly this year as a result of the promotions (76,000 pages read!). I also discount my other books in the series, and each event leads to sales of all my books. The group and its followers have steadily expanded, and our events are promoted not only by each other but also on BookBub, Apple Books, and by influencers on TikTok. Thank you, Jessica! She’s been wonderful in driving this promotion to new levels.
If you receive author newsletters offering free books, they’re likely part of a cross-promotion group. I prefer this as my main marketing platform, but it’s also helpful to coordinate with other promotions, such as Written Word Media, BookFunnel, BookBub, and others, to maximize impact. I tried Written Word Media for the first time this fall. I’m fairly certain that my #RomanceBookBlast results improved with the paid promotions, but not enough to use them regularly, except maybe for special events and when I can catch sales. They claim that their emails go out to 50,000+ readers (at least for romance audiences). Sales have continued to trickle in, and I’m thinking the paid promotion helped reach more romance readers.
Also, while it’s not a significant number, my book ratings on Amazon go up a little each promotion, and every bit of that helps as well.
I also took advantage of an offer from BookBub this year to create a website with their new Author Websites by BookBub. I was intrigued because, as a BookBub author with my books featured on my profile, they automatically appear on a catchy page on the site. The free templates are simple, clean, and easy to use. I designed an attractive, author-focused website very quickly. I feel great about using BookBub because they truly understand the readers and market.
NL: That’s amazing, Darci! I’m thrilled and impressed with what you were able to achieve with cross-promotions and groups! It makes me even more eager to finish my book so I can have as much fun finding out what can be done to share my sci-fi story. Written Word Media, BookFunnel, BookBub; I’ve seen some of them, but I haven’t learned to know them – so far. I didn’t know you could create a website with BookBub! I enjoy that kind of stuff, so I can’t wait to dive into it!
DLL: Glad I could share some useful tips, Nicolas! One last highlight to share is about writing contests. You and I have both participated in Writing Battle, which hosts many contests throughout the year. I’ve interviewed the amazing couple from beautiful Nova Scotia who created the platform, which has since exploded in popularity. I entered the Autumn 2025 Short Story contest this year after a long break from contests. It was a bit daunting since it was also my last week of chemo, and I wrote in a chemo fog! But I loved my story, and it did well, reaching the final showdown after passing through the peer judging duels. Writing Battle provides four really unique genres (often more like tropes) for each contest, along with prompts. I got “Vampirical Romance,” with “ice rink” and an “influencer.”
While it is super hard making it to a win for the fabulous cash prizes, at least you end up with a story that, while challenging to write in the abbreviated timeframe with the required prompts, ends up surprising you and being a blast to write. But then you need to find a home for it. I’ve published these stories in my “Priss Starwillow” collection, and you can find them here for free, except for this last Writing Battle story, which became part of an anthology called “Dreams.”
I belong to a wonderful group of indie authors on Instagram who support author Chantal Agapiti’s The Dreamer’s Bookshop, which she created to support indie authors! The physical shop resides in Belgium. The paperback is available in her shop and on Amazon, and you can get the ebook here. Follow the shop for future anthologies and to support indie authors. I’m proud to be part of this ongoing project.
NL: Thanks for the links, and congrats on making it to the final showdown! That’s an amazing feat. I very much enjoyed my two participations in Writing Battle, though I didn’t enroll this year, figuring that I would rather put my limited time on my novel in progress. But I look forward to participating again in the future, for sure!
Works in Progress
DLL: I’ve been overwhelming you this year, Nicolas, with my work-in-progress in our email chats, and I feel terribly guilty, but you’ve been great about offering encouragement and sharing your own experiences. I was also glad to get a sneak peek at Seven Drifts. Then, I managed to talk you into letting me beta-read a scene.
So good! I can’t wait to read the finished novel or possibly get more scenes to dive into… hint, hint.
And wow, Nicolas! You read my series! Thank you so much.
I feel like sharing some of our discussion and our WIPs here. How about you?
NL: Absolutely, share away! And please… No guilt! It was fascinating to read several versions of this part of your work and to witness their progression. I feel privileged to have been part of it, and I hope for that opportunity again.
About The Starlight Chronicles, I really enjoy how you manage so many different characters and their lives and backgrounds, and how you get us to know them better and better, to the point where I feel like I’m part of the family myself. It’s a breeze to get into, despite so many people to track. So well done!
I also love a mix of genres. This is an intense romance with a lot of action. Shifters, vampires, a slew of other supernaturals, even alien princes! I deeply enjoyed each and every reference to history, and how the story makes a fascinating use of the Sumerian language and culture. Gilgamesh rules! Apart from that… Well, TSC had so many compelling characters, each with a fabulous destiny. Also, so many fascinating, eye-widening settings (even the library of my dreams!), and such a complex, riveting plot… Not to forget, what an epic, spectacular ending! So well done.
Another thing I wanted to mention is that I like the way you weave in many short chapters, moving the story forward in a smooth, gradual progression, giving so much information without it ever feeling too charged or complex. My scenes tend to grow each time I look at them, and I always seem to find new details that are missing, so I add them.
DLL: I’m so glad you enjoyed my books (in a few iterations ☺️), and thanks for saying so, not to mention your lovely comments. I can’t wait to return the favor, especially after getting to sample your scene.
Many readers who don’t read fantasy romance (romantasy) are a bit overwhelmed by the large cast, and I for sure got carried away on my first go around. 😁 In a sense, after absorbing stories from so many fantasy romance writers over that crazy summer of 2020, I let my paints spill all over the canvas, even aliens for Pete’s sake. :) But it was a lot of fun and a huge relief that I made some kind of plot out of it. Mostly, I think it’s a fun ride to go on with Selena, sort of like Dorothy through Oz. She finally runs into some serious challenges in Tigris. It’s so hard to make my characters suffer, but finally, I got some readers shedding tears. I’m hoping to do better with that in my spinoff stories.
Here is where I dove into my novel-in-progress with Nicolas, but months later, everything has changed. Surprising, huh? I will offer a fresh take on my projects, then Nicolas will give us a sneak peek at Seven Drifts.WARNING! EXCLUSIVE COVER REVEAL. 😊
My focus has shifted to finishing Gemma’s story first (Selena’s best friend in The Starlight Chronicles (TSC)).
Gemma is set in Quincy, running parallel to the TSC. The Sinclair twins (black panther shifters) return to Quincy during Drago Incendium (Book Two) to run the science and communications hub remotely, while Andras and Selena head to her brother’s lodge in Alaska with Michael Elliott to complete the quest with the Anurashin.
As the series reveals, Gemma likely has a stalker she’s evading. How will the twins help her handle her problem while convincing her she’s their mate? Will it take them into the Sierra Nevada backcountry, where Gemma’s skills are tested, to face a compelling, morally grey (or worse–his character is still developing) antagonist, a rogue bear shifter named Dietrich Braun? Hmmm. While we meet a few new characters, this story will be a streamlined, standalone romantic mountain adventure.
My next goal is to finish a TSC two-book spinoff (already well in the works) for my two favorite secondary male characters. One is for Michael Elliott, who will team up with Halil Enair (who once tortured Michael on the behest of her evil father) and a new character, a powerful skin mage named Spero Vic, in a story that will explore the dragon lore Elliott promises to share with Selena. We get to travel to a new realm, learn about Onyx (Michael’s dragon) and his kingdom, discover Rune magic through tattoos and song, and meet exciting new characters. It’s all coming together in Halil’s Midnight Sun.
Running parallel to this story and set to join it during the climax is Ember’s Dark Flame. This will be a standalone story with its own ending, then moving to a final climax in Halil’s Midnight Sun. It features vampire emissary and spy Mortas, and Ember, the woman he once loved (also Andras Johns’s best childhood friend and favorite witch who appears briefly in Books Two and Three in TSC). What happens when these estranged lovers reunite to rescue a young witch and stop an evil coven’s plot? I can’t wait to let you know! Both novels will introduce new characters and bring back old ones from TSC.
I’ve also started an epic historical fantasy set in 1776 Alta California, The Spanish Maiden Who Dreamt of a Bear. We’ll embark on a true historical expedition with fictional characters, Elara Sofia de Luna Estrada and her father, Alejandro, who join Juan Bautista de Anza’s ‘traveling city’ from future Tucson, Arizona, to future Monterey, California, as de Anza (the first governor of New Mexico) claims territory for the Spanish Crown.
Elara is Andras Johns’s grandmother, a marked maiden of her time who finds bear shifter Broderick Johns when she arrives with the expedition at the presidio in Monterey. When a competing Russian colonist and bear shifter arrives on the scene, he sets his sights on Elara and pretty much everything else that belongs to Broderick, including his status as the most powerful shifter on the North American continent. Elara and Broderick are mentioned throughout TSC.
Of all the non-TSC novels in the works (three sci-fi and one YA urban fantasy), the one I most want to finish is The Fourth Planet of Cinnamon Jones. It’s a sci-fi fantasy set in Eastern Oregon, in the town of Halfway near Hells Canyon, then moves to Portland, which is a hub for displaced fae. It turns out the fae are not just creatures from human mythology, but aliens from a planetary system deep in the Milky Way called Helixia.
We’ll see what happens when a handsome but hardened bounty hunter comes for Cinnamon Jones, a changeling at birth (left with human parents who believe they adopted her legitimately), who doesn’t realize she isn’t human until a car accident throws her and her parents into the Snake River, and she sprouts gills and webbing on her hands and feet. That’s fine because Cinnamon already knows that water is her element. What’s not fine is that her birth parents want her back on Sempria as their weapon in a political power struggle.
Take it away, Nicolas!
NL: Wow, Darci! So many new stories, I can’t wait to dive into! On my end, I’ve been wondering for a while whether to reveal more of my project and risk spoiling parts of it… But the more I think about it, the more I think I’m ready to reveal more about the story, especially now that it’s mostly congealed. (BTW, I like that term.)
So here’s a first, quick-and-dirty – potentially confusing – jumble-teaser intro…
Seven Drifts is not only about chasing after treasure chests, drooling over a cool house, or watching from a rooftop as weird things happen. There are dead bodies. Thieves. NoFolk. Illegal children – lithe kids, an army of them. Places with different gravity conditions, like the heavy, hypergeeUnderlevels, the nogee levels high up in the Eights, and of course, the more familiar legitgee, citizenry levels. It has urban and rural zones, even ski resorts. It has interns, rebels… A big festival, and a jazz band with competitive lead singers. You’ll hear of climate change inside a space city with messed-up weather systems – and that’s just one more clue. It has a bunch of funky, quirky acronyms, like VR (it’s not only a drug), GPUs (General Preservation Units), MAHAL (a type of propulsion drive). At karaoke, Anita’s best friend will meet her tall, dark stranger with a baby face, older than he looks. Leona is the great-granddaughter of a well-known, infamous architect named Felipe Crasotte, who lived a hundred years ago.
Seven is a former starship, damaged and stranded, that was turned into a long stack of O’Neill cylinder-type habitats – or districts. It’s going nowhere. It is led by a benevolent-looking villainous villain who happens to be the mayor of the city and savior of the people…
As a compelling zen master, Mayor Larocque proposes a philosophy and way of life he calls Driftism – capital D – and de facto, he is the city’s drift master – in more meanings than one. Every morning, all citizens must partake in the daily drift virtual session – seven drifts per week – to train their minds to drift along with the Master’s. Mayor Larocque, aka Baba, is very much into sharing his expansive mind with his valued mentees. He intends his beloved people to get his drift just as he gets theirs – in the fullest of ways.
The story takes place over the course of the most important week of a very important year. That year is the second centennial of Seven’s Awakening, which took place after a centuries-long journey. As the saying goes, “only seven more drifts to go before the big festival night…”
(Geez, I’m still having fun after years of working on this!)
I’m planning to use excerpts from Felipe Crasotte’s journals to expand on aspects of the world and its history in a fun way and to reduce exposition in places. Also, I’d like to use the narrator’s POV in the first person here and there, to show other ideas that are useful to the story. The writer is Blake, a character in the story. He is also the trumpeter in Leona’s new band, and he becomes Anita’s lover pretty early on. In the end, he pledges to write the true story of Anita; what really happened with her and her crew, and most importantly, why, so that down the line, after they get to the end of their long journey, the people of Seven may stop hating her for what she did – effectively putting an abrupt end to their beloved, comfortable way of living, while in fact, saving them and giving their ship a true destination and purpose.
Book Recs & Cultural Influences
DLL: As I mentioned, I read a lot this year—the most I’ve done in years towards my Goodreads goal. I’m at 76 out of my 50-book goal. I raised the goal to 60 in November and surpassed it again. This is mainly thanks to a new favorite author, Lindsay Buroker, and her many series. She is a prolific urban sci-fi/fantasy writer who creates stories I dream of writing, with witty banter, fantastic world-building, and relatable characters. Her writing is phenomenal, and even my husband is enjoying her sci-fi series, “The Fallen Empire.” It reminds me of the best parts of “Star Wars,” “Star Trek,” and the sadly short-lived “Firefly.”
Two other outstanding books this year were Andy Weir’s “Project Hail Mary.” Can’t wait for the movie! My whole family got into this one and discussed it. I listened to the audiobook and highly recommend it. The second audiobook I couldn’t stop listening to was the first book in Callie Hart’s “Fae & Alchemy” dark romantasy series, “Quicksilver.” The next in the series, “Brimstone,” has just been released, and I can’t wait to listen to it!
I read both of these early in the year, ahead of the social media hype, which I love doing. They just feel more special that way.
Another author I got into was Elise Kova—wonderful fantasy romance with great characters and worlds.
Your turn, Nicolas!
NL: Seventy-six books, that’s an impressive achievement. I have read The Martian, by Andy Weir; even studied it over a course I did back in 2018, but not Project Hail Mary yet. Now it will be on my reading list! I’ll keep a note to check out Callie Hart’s and Elise Kova’s books.
Reading is one of my favourite ways to calm down and reconnect. I don’t do it as much as I’d like, but reading usually brings me a kind of peace and a lot of inspiration. I don’t set goals, but I try to read a little every day if I can. I keep a list so I won’t buy the same book twice, as I’ve been known to do. Here’s a sample from the last couple of years, so you’ll see the kinds of books I like to read.
The Language of Acorns, V.R. Friesen
Go Tell The Bees That I Am Gone – Outlander #9, Diana Gabaldon
Revenger, Alastair Reynolds (Book #1 of a trilogy)
Children of Gravity Beta version 1, V.R. Friesen
Aestus Books 1-2, S.Z. Attwell
Shadowlake, Olivia Rytwinsky
Gravity Shattered Extra Scenes, V.R. Friesen
Stone of Fire, JF Penn
Day of the Viking, JF Penn
Pilgrimage, JF Penn
Manifesting Your Greatest Self, Nick Ortner & Creating Lasting Change, Jessica Ortner (The Tapping Solution)
Pale Face, W.D. Killpack III
Crown Prince, W.D. Killpack III (Next books in series on my reading list!)
The Shithead, Tim Grahl
Out of Tune, D.C. Greschner
Regenerative Business, Samantha Garcia
Ursus Borealis, D.L. Lewellyn
Drago Incendium, D.L. Lewellyn
Tigris Vetus, D.L. Lewellyn
Shadow Captain & Bone Silence, Alastair Reynolds (books 2-3 of the Revenger trilogy)
Inside a Dark Space, M.J. James
The Trials of Imogen Sol, C.L. Walters
Oh, and before I forget… Thanks for peppering your stories with so many awesome musical propositions! I look them up and listen to them. As a result, I often listen to Neko Case nonstop while writing. I love her voice and music. I have other notes I’ll explore further. Keep suggesting!
DLL: A fantastic list, and so fun to see my titles in there. Thanks again for taking the time to read them.
You’re the second person to mention enjoying the songs and other art references. If you haven’t listened to First Aid Kit, you’ll dig the Swedish sisters, too! Here’s the song referenced in Ursus Borealis.
I added a credits page for my cultural references in Tigris, along with a detailed Appendix for the series. It was fun to put that together, recalling all my side and minor characters and being amazed by the sheer number of them. I also love hearing when a reader takes the time to check out those end materials, which has happened more often than you might think.
NL: It’s wonderful! In addition to great music, I see any art form as a potential nourishment for my creativity. Marie-Claude and I sometimes go out and visit big and small art exhibits. Every little gallery, every museum, every piece of art can be a source of inspiration and energy. Check out these exhibitions we saw recently: Alan Glass, Joyce Wieland, Atelier circulaire, Espace Bougie, BIECTR. I love pottery as well.
DLL: That is a wonderful body of exploration, but not surprising from such a fantastic city where beauty is around every corner, as your walks attest (follow Nicolas on Instagram for some amazing photos, a few of which have been sprinkled throughout our conversation). One day, I will visit Montréal and say hi!
NL: It’ll be my great pleasure to say hi too! Thanks, Darci! Once again, it was wonderful talking to you and getting to know you a little more. I had a great time chatting and collaborating with you on this compilation. I look forward to more fascinating conversations to come!
DLL: Same here, Nicolas. I can’t wait to see what new things we chat about in 2026. Happy New Year to you and Marie-Claude.
Follow D. L. Lewellyn at bydllewellyn.com and sign up for her newsletter and a free story. You can also stay posted on Instagram and Facebook.
Follow Nicolas Lemieux at nicolaslemieux.com. Sign up for his newsletter and get your copy of DRIFT & CRADLE. You can also stay up to date on Instagram and LinkedIn.
My guest and I have been sharing our writing journey for the past couple of years. We chatted on my Spotlight last May with the release of her second book, Hearing Wind.
It’s not often you get an opportunity to meet an online friend and fellow author, and when one comes around, it can be magical, especially when it takes place at Lake Tahoe, where A. B. Herron and her husband recently vacationed.
I am a huge fan of her Elemental Wolf Series and picked up her latest release, Wooden Wolves, to take with me for a signing.
We had a great time exchanging signed books and chatting over lunch in a café with the lake glistening across the highway. As these encounters often go, we barely scratched the surface of everything we wanted to discuss about writing, so I felt a Q&A session was in order, especially since this marks a year since we last chatted on my blog.
Let’s Meet The Author
A.B. Herron grew up pretending to be a wild creature running through the hills of California. Her love of reading is her dad’s fault, introducing her to White Fang, Treasure Island, and Call of the Wild before she could hold a book. Her favorite directive was “read”. Later, when she conquered reading for herself, Herron could be found curled up in her closet, tucked away from reality, riding on horseback, performing magic, and later running with werewolves.
The secret itch to write bloomed in grade school, along with the diagnosis of dyslexia. Professionals told her parents she would struggle with reading, but that information came too late for her to put into practice. However, depositing letters in the right order continues to be a mystery for Herron.
In college, while studying for her BS in Zoology, she started putting pencil to paper and allowed her imagination to bleed out into the real world (so to speak). None of her early attempts found an audience due to her complete refusal to admit to their existence.
Nowadays, Herron splits her time between her dog (well, and husband), her writing, and a full-time job that keeps her firmly rooted in the now, even when her brain whispers “the Mountains are calling…”. Her real-life adventures can be found on Instagram, and her daydreams can be discovered in the Elemental Wolf series on Amazon.
About Wooden Wolves
Becoming a werewolf was supposed to solve his problems.
As it turns out, one needs more than a fur coat to do that.
Tobin barely has time to adjust to his new life before something begins hunting him, and he’s forced to flee Portland for the unclaimed magical territories of Washington. But in those northern wilds, Fey lurk in the forests, and a newly turned werewolf is easy prey.
To survive, Tobin needs to learn fast: what hunts him, how to fight back, and where he belongs in a world where power rules.
The last thing he needs is a distraction, but there is one woman whose scent keeps drawing him closer, making him question his decisions.
Neoma never planned on coming back to her hometown.
Running a bookstore wasn’t part of the dream, and neither was her cranky autoimmune disease. Fighting her overwhelming desire to retreat from the world, she gives connection one more shot. So, when a dangerously handsome stranger invites her into his gaming group, she figures—why not? What’s the worst that could happen? She might actually have some fun?
What she doesn’t know is that some games can change your perception.
Others contain monsters that might change you.
Let’s Get Started
It was fabulous meeting you, Amanda, and what a blast. I started your book when I got home and immediately got hooked. Tell us about your Elemental Wolf series and where it’s at in the scheme of things. What was the inspiration behind it?
ABH: Hello again Darci, and it was so much fun meeting with you in person. I’m still marveling over your own beautiful book that you gifted me; I can’t wait to finish my current read so I can get started on yours. I’m happy to hear you got hooked into Wolves. I have to admit, it is my favorite book in my series currently. Am I allowed to have a favorite when it comes to my book babies?
You ask what inspired the Elemental Wolf series. Honestly, it was during a pretty stressful time in my life, and I was writing short stories for friends as escapism. One friend shared with me a fantasy that they wanted me to put on the page, so I took it, placed it in the Pacific Northwest, rubbed some magic on it, and when I was finished, I looked at it and thought, “There’s a whole book here.”
Jumping ahead, there are now three books in Elemental Wolves, and this new one, Wooden Wolves, is a bit outside the normal timeline for a series. At the end of Watching Water, the first book, I leave a couple of cliff hangers. Hearing Wind, the second book, follows the main character, Nora, on her timeline, but Wolves follows a secondary character, Tobin, on his journey. His story is one that needs to be told, and was supposed to be a short novella to connect his events into Nora’s journey for the upcoming 3rd, now 4th book. As a result, I have Wooden Wolves as book 1.5, and I worry that it will be confusing to readers. However, it gives them the option to read either book, in either order, and they are both happening at the same time. Different storytelling, and I’m hoping it will be well-received.
I will say that I couldn’t be happier with how Wolves turned out, and the secondary main character, Neoma, has a firm place in my heart. She’s strong, feisty, and determined despite the odds against her. I can’t wait to hear what you think of her and Tobin
DLL: Congratulations on your release, Amanda, and way to go. I want to say you fleshed this out and published it in like a year? Tobin is a great character, and I’m excited to be delving into his story. This is your passion story, and it’s coming through in the reading.So yes, there is nothing wrong with authors having a favorite book baby!
I love this cover, the formatting, and your publication mark, all things you’ve been exploring in your publication journey. Can you share some tips and highlights about the process and your resources?
ABH: Awe, I love that you commented on the publication mark. I had to invent this press since this time around I was the full publisher. I had a support team, editor, formatter, cover artist, and an author friend that I kept bugging with questions of “how do I do this?” For the first two books, I used an amazing independent publisher for Indie Authors called Luminare Press. I had no clue how to bring a book to fruition, and they took that stress off my plate and made it happen. They were a gift because I didn’t even know where to start. I had a manuscript and was clueless about what to do next. This was before I got on social media and found the author community. Luminare has a fantastic staff and will make the process easy on you, but that comes at a price point I couldn’t shoulder for this latest book.
Because of the author community and friends like you, Darci, that I have made, I’ve learned a lot more about how to navigate the publishing process and do more of it on my own. An IG friend put me in touch with Becky at Platform house when I was asking how to format. Becky’s an Indie author who does book formatting for other indie authors. She was amazing and budget-friendly. I know I can learn to format, but I was extremely short on time for getting this book to print. I might try to format for the next book, but Becky was worth every cent, and she really made the interior look good.
Now, the cover artist, Ravven (you can look her up just by her name), has been an absolute joy to work with, and her skill speaks for itself. The werewolf howling in the background on Wolves, she made for me when the stock photos she’d found didn’t fit the look I was hoping for. I love what she does, and I keep begging her not to retire before this series is done.
I’m always surprised by how many people a book needs to go through before it ever makes it to print. From the alpha and beta readers to the editors and formatters, this manuscript had more eyes on it than the first two, and it showed. For those who are working on their own stories, my humble advice is to get as many different eyeballs on your manuscript as you can; it will make it better. And find a good editor; they are worth it.
DLL: This is great advice. Thank you! I didn’t even know there were people who offered formatting services. Here is Becky’s website. I also found Ravven’s website, and her work is phenomenal as your gorgeous covers attest. The more eyes, the better, is so true. I’m really happy all this came together so well for you… And that I get to benefit by enjoying a great story.
Where can readers find you and your awesome books in the upcoming months?
ABH: The easy way to find me is to hop on my website www.abherron.com, and there are links to the two places to buy my books online. I’m now in a bookstore in Eugene, Daffodil Books, and will be at four different in-person events throughout Washington and Oregon over the summer. If you sign up for my newsletter, those dates and locations will show up in your inbox, but can also be found on my website.
Thank you so much for having me, Darci. Lunch was a special treat. Somehow, we need to do this again and keep talking about all things writing and books.
DLL: Yes! Meeting you was awesome, Amanda, and it was way too short. I will definitely be looking for a way to get together again.
Thank you for answering just some of the questions that I wanted to ask you at lunch. Do you have any last words of advice for independent authors just getting started?
ABH: My last pieces of advice for new authors are three-fold: 1 – Don’t start your publishing journey with a series, do a stand-alone book first, because you will learn everything you don’t know about the process and how to make it better. 2 – Get connected with other indie authors, it really helps to have people you can ask questions from when you’re feeling lost. 3 – Find a good editor. Seriously, they are worth it, and I can’t stress this enough. I’ll stop there, or I’ll keep sharing all the mistakes I’ve made (and the new ones I’m making) and the hard-won advice I’ve been given. Enjoy the journey, everyone, it’s a wild one.
DLL: Awesome! Thank you! I will leave our readers with a gallery of your fantastic Lake Tahoe photos.
Follow A. B. Herron on Instagram for more amazing photos and the latest on her books.
Last December I shared an inspiring chat in the world of art with my friend and artist Audrey Markowitz. Since then, she launched a new website and got busy creating a whole new portfolio of mixed media art sensations. Let’s check back in for some inspiration.
Thanks for dropping by my blog Audrey! I can’t believe it has been a year. I’ve been watching your collection of stunning pieces grow and wanted an opportunity to check in and find out what this past year has brought you.
Can you share the highlights?
AM. It’s been an awesome year! Created a website: audreysmixedmedia.com; had a wonderful first show at the Silver State Art Festival where I sold a number of pieces; and had the opportunity to go to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and take a 3-day abstract painting workshop.
I also just found out that one of my pieces “Birdwatching 101” was selected to appear in the Depot Gallery of the Sierra Art Foundation’s “Mixed Matched, Made Whole!” exhibit in January. This exhibit runs from January 6th through January 28th. Gallery hours are Friday-Sundays 12 to 5. And there will be a reception for the artists on January 20th from 1 to 4 pm. (Photo of the piece on the next page.)
DLL. This is charming and so fun to delve into. I love the quote, and I wonder who is watching whom? I’m so exited you have an art show this month! I can’t wait.
I’ve learned that each decade brings new growth to my creativity. You’re my model for that and it’s a theme in your teaching. This last year had you transition from teaching art to focusing on your personal creativity. Has it gone as you expected, or brought even more surprises?
AM. It has gone even better than I expected. I discovered a joy and happiness in creating art I have never experienced! Mixed media is definitely my calling: Here are a couple that I will bring to my shows next year.
I took a couple of months to study and experiment with abstract painting when I went to Santa Fe and worked with an amazing abstract painter and teacher. I have found that abstract art liberates the artist from traditional norms and encourages one to play with color and texture and shape in different ways. It has invited me to break away from the limitations of realism, where my own individuality and personal expression can thrive. As Dr. Eric Kandel explains, abstract art challenges our brains to create our own explanations, thereby stimulating higher-level areas of the brain that are responsible for imagination and creativity. The process increases our tolerance for less familiar and even completely alien situations, making us more flexible. I wonder if my husband would agree that I’m more flexible!
Here are a few abstract paintings that are part of my Andromeda Series:
DLL. This is exactly the thing you instilled in me. Never quit learning! I’m thrilled you had this experience and brought it home to take flight. Lovely, lovely pieces. Mixed media is my favorite way to express art as well because of the endless possibilities and combinations of mediums. I’m happy to say the same for writing fantasy romance.
I can picture you smiling in your studio, lost in your art. You had an opportunity to build a new creative space this year. What improvements have you made, what’s different or the same, and how much has it played a part in your productivity and satisfaction?
AM. I have improved the lighting in my studio over my easel. And I continue acquiring more art supplies (if possible!!) I think the wonderful space I have created for myself plays a huge part in my productivity and satisfaction. It’s definitely my “happy place!”
DLL. I’m happy just looking at it! Especially when your fluffy sweet studio pal is in residence!
Part of your experience this year has been attending shows. Can you give us the highlights? And what’s coming up / planned for next year?
AM. As I wanted to build up a body of work, I participated in one show this year. It was the Silver State Art Show at Fuji park. As it was my first, I didn’t know if I’d even sell one painting. As it turned out, I sold 4! One of the highlights was the sale of one of my favorites, “Big Hugs!” It’s a 24” x 24” piece.
Next year I plan to do three different shows (One of them being the Silver State…). I will announce these shows on my website when I solidify my participation.
DLL. Fantastic! Congratulations on the success of your first show.
There are so many wonderful pieces for sale on your website. And I’ve watched so many more being sold. Has this also met your expectations, or exceeded it?
AM. Yes, website sales have exceeded my expectations. In fact, I need to add more paintings and make some cosmetic changes which will separate the pages by type of art and pieces sold. It’s starting to get crowded!
DLL. That is so inspiring to hear. Congratulations again!
Do you have any plans to return to teaching? Can I put a plug in here for at least one class a year? 😄
AM. LOL! I have been asked by a number of you wonderful people, (who I miss dearly) if I would maybe do one class a year! I am thinking about some sort of mixed media class!
DLL. That is exactly what I hoped you’d say. Yay!
Thank you so much for visiting, Audrey!! All the best to you in the next year and I can’t wait to see your next body of work.
You can follow Audrey’s work, support her art, and join her community on her website and Facebook page.
The best New Year to all of you and thank you for visiting!
I really enjoyed featuring a look back at my first guests this week. I can’t believe it’s been a year. I’ll be doing more of these so stay tuned!
Meanwhile, my fall guests are lining up! To stay posted, follow me here and on Instagram, and sign up for my newsletter. Thank you for helping me support Indie Authors!
September Through November!
J. K. Divia – September 10M. J. James – September 24G. M. Chmilar – October 8Linda Ling – October 22Abigail Hunter – November 12Meg Stratton – November 26
The latin above is better known as “time flies.” That’s an overused idiom, but it gets truer every year. I used to hear all the time from old people (that’s me now) that it goes faster the older you get. I hear the same revelation from every age group these days.
Of course, we know time doesn’t speed up, but it definitely feels like it. And an entire year has flown by since I started interviewing creatives. That’s a crazy fact.
Despite the speediness, so much can happen in a single year when you spend your time creating and producing works. In this blog you will have that point driven home by four of my first guests as they share their updates on the exciting things that have happened for them in the last year.
I was thrilled to check back in with sword and sorcery fantasy author Douglas W. T. Smith and see how life is going in New South Wales. Same for fantasy/horror author E. B. Hunter and his crazy busy year in Alberta, Canada. High Fantasy/Horror author Lucky E. Noma has branched out into all sorts of creative endeavors from his home in Nigeria, and he and I have spent loads of time over the last year sharing our writing adventures and brainstorming ideas.
We will also peek into the world of lifestyle adventure photography with Joey MacLennan. Last year Joey told us about his photographic journey in the Pacific Northwest and his recent engagement. It was hard to pin him down between mountaintops then, and even harder now, but I managed it!
Read on for a few words from these bold and creative people on the happy surprises life has sprung over the last year. And feel free to share your own highlights with us in the comments.
DLL. Thank you, Douglas, for dropping by with some exciting updates. I know what a whirlwind year you’ve had. Tell us what’s going on.
DWTS. Wow, a year has passed, Darci. If your readers haven’t read the last post, or are unsure of who I am. I am Douglas W. T. Smith and a self-published author.
My first novella, Shadow of the Wicked, ranked in the Amazon Top 5 List in Dark Fantasy and Sword and Sorcery eBooks in 2021. In 2022, I released the Audiobook which was a finalist for the WriteHive Indie Ink Award 2022.
Since the release, things have been slow. My debut novel To Wield the Stars, originally to be published by Of Metal and Magic Publishing, has suffered many pushbacks, but alas, the book is getting ready for publication. In its final stage of editing (I’ve said it before, but this is serious now).
To Wield the Stars, published by OMAM Publishing in the CORE Series with authors Richie Billing, JM Williams, and EA Robins, has been scheduled to release late 2023.
Since the last time we spoke, I had only one child but now I have two ––and that makes writing hard. To be honest, since having my daughter in September 2022, my writing has been quiet. I suffered from serious writing burn out. Instead, I focused a lot of my time with the family. As the children are getting older, I have slowly gained some time for my hobbies.
One that I am especially proud to release on the 10th of September… I am starting a podcast, Epic Tales & Enchanted Tomes which follows our Dungeons & Dragons campaign, with me as their Dungeon Master.
Also, when not engrossed in the realms of fantasy, I have found a new passion for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. It has given me consistent and structured exercise while managing two children under the age of 3.
Now that the children are settling into a nice sleeping/school routine, and To Wield the Stars is due for publication, I am wielding my literary magic, writing a new book in the same world as Shadow of the Wicked.
DLL. What a beautiful family. I’m really happy to hear your novel is set for publication, and what a great group of writers to be involved with! Glad your writing is picking back up and you’re finding awesome outlets to balance a writer’s life. Good luck on the release, your new novel, and your podcast!
Thanks for having me back after a year! There have been a lot of great things I have had the chance to do, and I appreciate the opportunity to reflect.
Last we talked, I had 3 short stories published by Dragon Soul Press, but my published works list has grown since (with more on the way soon if I’m lucky).
Here is the full list of what I was fortunate enough to have picked up!
Dragon Soul Press:
Graveyard Shift (A down on his luck cashier makes an unwitting deal with a supernatural being)
Everglades (A mother does all she can to save her son after a home intrusion sends him to the ER) and
As you Wish… (A man is possessed by a djinn and granted wishes that he didn’t make)
Kjell of Vittra: Rising Smoke (Kjell faces his first monster, squaring off against the dragon that took his sister)
Pink Lights (The last earthling must come to terms with the loss of his planet as he learns to love again aboard the F.S. Okanis)
I have a story published with Starlite Press:
Luck featured in Starlite Pulp Review #2 (A man blacks out after an encounter with a stranger. He wakes to find he’s been made a pawn in a game between two Irish deities)
I have been fortunate enough to find some success on the website Vocal Media as well, with Graveyard Shift and As You Wish… being awarded Top Story status on the site. If you want to read these stories, visit me on Vocal Media.
Eric has so many stories on Vocal Media I couldn’t fit them on one screen.
Along with my interview last year with you, I have been asked to be on several other author websites and blogs. I was featured on Willow Croft’s Spooky Six blog with Horror Tree (such an honor) and was even asked to be a panelist for WriteHive 2023!
I’ve continued working on my urban fantasy novel Into the Grey, and have sent it out for what I am hoping is a final Beta read before querying literary agents. With having some time between edits, I’ve started on a new project about an alternate reality 1874 Wyoming. This book follows a man who is looking for revenge against the reformed confederate army (the Green Coats) for slaughtering his family. He works with a rogue demon (not bound to a summoner) to take down this force for evil.
DLL. What an amazing list, Eric! Your stories on Vocal Media are awesome! I enjoy following you there and it’s a great place to share stories. And congratulations on being a panelest for WriteHive! I’m excited to say I’m one of your beta readers for Into the Grey and enjoying it like crazy, and after getting the scoop on your alternate Civil War horror project, I am hooked! I can’t wait to see where you’re at next August. All the best to you!
DLL. Just like last year, I had to pin you down to chat before you went aloft on that next mountaintop. You and my niece have many interests, and I love seeing how you fit so much into your lives. This has been a big year. What are the latest highlights, Joey?
JM. When we chatted last year, I was preparing with my fiancé for our wedding. As you know, we’re now married and we managed to travel to Kauai for our honeymoon. We got out for some of the best hikes on the island and snorkeled above some incredible reefs.
Instead of grabbing me between climbs this summer, you’re catching us before our big move back to our home state of California, like this week! But I think I can fit in a few highlights before hitting the road.
I did shoot a few rolls of film for the trip and look forward to getting the photos developed. I will definitely send some favorites over when I get those back. For now please enjoy some photos I took on my iPhone while on the trip. I’ve been really enjoying the freedom of the small phone and editing on the Lightroom app.
Other than that, I’ve become obsessed with rock climbing and have been climbing all over Washington. The move back to California is extremely exciting, as there are some of the most beautiful and classic crags in the world at our disposal. I think a climbing photobook is in the future!
Thanks for having me back for an update, Aunt Darci. Who knows, maybe next year we’ll have more big news.
DLL. Thank you so much for joining me in the middle of a hectic week, Joey, and supporting my Spotlight Interviews. Wow! A rock climbing photobook is an exciting prospect. I’ve seen some of those stunning images!
To see them for yourself, follow Joey on Instagram and visit his gorgeous website. Of course, as the Auntie, I have to include a photo of one of the most beautiful weddings I’ve ever been to. The location, because I know you will ask, is Siskiyou County, California.
DLL. So glad you could join me again, Lucky! I will start off by saying it has been an absolute blast chatting with you over the last year and sharing stories, ideas, and artwork. I’ve learned so much. It’s proof how valuable having a writing community can be. What are your highlights since last August?
LN. As you know Darci, it’s been a busy year writing, laboring over copious amounts of editing, and producing videos for my YouTube channel. I have really enjoyed experimenting with digital art for my stories. And I’ve also enjoyed our brainstorming sessions and covering so many crazy topics.
We even got to collaborate on an anthology project and promote it together on Instagram — inspired by your story Hellbound Hiatus. I’m two up on you. You need to catch up!
DLL.😂 I’ve got another story in my head that needs to get out, but it’s hard to keep up with you, Lucky. As a teaser, here is my digital concept with the help of Photoleap.
by D. L. Lewellynby D. L. Lewellynby D. L. Lewellyn
You’re working on some major epic high fantasy tales. I’ve enjoyed reading them and your short stories. The launch of your novella,African Horror Story, did so well on Amazon ranking at the top of African fiction. That was an exciting day. Thirty: XXXis an equally dark and compelling story. The cover is stunning.
LN. Thank you. That was an exciting day. It was great getting these published in the midst of working hard on my bigger pieces.
DLL. You also made a super clever video to go with Hellbound Hiatus. It will be fabulous when we can put these stories together with video and narration and publish them on YouTube, which is our big goal, in addition to an eBook. Your contributions are Takeshima, Dance of the Gods, and what I decided to call Hell of a Deception, but that’s only a working title and maybe my favorite of the three stories–if I had to choose.
Ah. So many plans. But like the theme of this post, time flies and it is precious. We’ll just have to keep producing a little each day despite life’s big interruptions.I’ll say it again, it’s been a lot of fun hashing out ideas! And if that’s all we get to do, I’ll be happy with that.
Here’s a little more on our digital concepts for Hellbound Hiatus.
by Lucky Nomaby D. L. Lewellyn and Lucky Nomaby Lucky Noma
I really appreciate you showing me the ropes on the amazing AI applications out there. And your digital art is really gorgeous. Your videos are each eerier than the next and stunning as well.
I did a little tech punk portrait of you that I thought I would wedge between your wonderful pieces. What do you think?
by Lucky Nomaby D. L. Lewellynby Lucky Noma
LN. That was a fun day shooting our digital creations back and forth and I loved my superhero portraits! Thanks for having me back, Darci.
DLL. Thanks so much for stopping by, Lucky!
For more amazing interviews, see my Gallery of Guests 2022 and 2023.
Thank you for visiting with us today. Feel free to leave comments and questions below and sign up for my newsletter to stay posted on news and future interviews.
By D. L. Lewellyn 