Remember when I said that I wanted to set my next horror novel in the Ottoman Empire’s front lines?

Get in loser. We’re going to the Western Front.

Well, you see – the thing about horror that I have to pay attention to is the Other. The whole thing about the Other (an Ottoman soldier) surviving the horrors of war is by eating the flesh of the wounded and the dead is that it has to be something specific to him. If he’s among other Ottoman soldiers, then there’s a chance that the knowledge could be passed on to others. It kinda loses its punch. But if our Ottoman soldier is in the Western Front – there’s a lot more I can do with that.

Good thing I didn’t buy a lot of books about the Ottoman Empire, then?

When does it stop being a tax write-off and start becoming a problem?

I can see both sides of the argument. Making the German the Other in this story would make us a little more sympathetic to him (well, as sympathetic as we can get for a Hun) and his circumstances, especially if he’s put into a place where he can’t leave readily. Historically, there were Germans who served in the Ottoman Front, mostly as intelligence and training artillery. Whatever happens in this story, I want the historical aspects of it to be spot on.

However, having the Ottoman serving in the Western Front, which happened, can really key into our xenophobia, making the Ottoman the Other (The Other being a staple in horror) in more than one way. I’m still in the plotting stages of this novel, which I am not going to get to until year after next. Tyro is still the priority for 2026.

I am still outlining Tyro’s novel. I’m a third of the way through – Chapter 16 for those of you keen on numbers. I’m thinking this is going to have thirty-five to forty chapters at this rate. I’m slowing down a little because I am moving out of the chapters I have written in my head and moving into uncharted territory. It’s still fun for me, but I need to really buckle down and go when I am at the desk.

Well, the year is winding down for me. I am looking forward to taking a small break during Christmas – horror movies and hamburgers being a long tradition for me. If you have any suggestions for me, please put them in the comments below. I’m looking for some recent movies that I might have missed in the theaters. I’m thinking about watching Misery again. It’s such a classic horror movie. RIP Rob Reiner.

Well, that’s all for now. Just trying to settle on a spot for the novel and get the appropriate books bought and scoured through. I might stick with the Western Front because there seems to be a lot more information about it than the Ottoman Front. We will see.

Ta-ta for now.

That’s right. You read it here. Tyro — the main character for my project going into next year — hijacked the outlining process of her novel. Is this a symptom of schizophrenia? Let’s find out.

I was outlining a scene where one of the other characters is drawing a magic circle to return back to where their Master was waiting to get the second in a long line of McGuffin’s that may or may not be crucial (I honestly don’t know). I didn’t stop to think ‘what should happen now?’ like I usually do. Pen was firmly planted on paper and butt was firmly in seat when the amazing happened: Tyro did her own thing.

That thing she did was snatch the chalk out of the other servant’s hand and start drawing her own magic circle. I’d been describing how she had been collecting magical glyphs here and there earlier. She thought she had enough to get away from wherever their Master was holed up to somewhere that wasn’t there. As I continued to write the aftermath of this scene — Tyro getting roughed up by another servant and ending up going on her own, I asked myself: What just happened?

I always talk about my characters as if they were alive in my head. If I had to describe the acting of writing for me — it’s me watching what my characters do, then writing the after-action report. This was a little unnerving to say the least, but it ended up being good. I got to introduce a couple of new things that I wasn’t going to involve until later, and I have explored a little more of the dynamic among the ushabit. All in all, this was fortuitous.

But it’s weird. It’s like that moment in Baldur’s Gate 3 where one of the characters breaks the fourth wall and asks how we’re doing. I didn’t stop, I didn’t plan on it, obviously. It just happened. I had a different scene in mind, with Tyro looking in at a family and her memories pointing out that this is what they want, and one of them makes the offer to help her get away in exchange for that family situation. Well, that scene isn’t going to happen now. I don’t know if it is going to at all now. I might have to save it for later.

I want to ask you, the audience and especially of you’re a writer like me — have you ever had moments like this? Moments where the characters do something and you’re left standing there confused and shouting “YOU CAN’T DO THIS TO ME! DON’T YOU KNOW WHO I AM?!”

Well — in spite of what happened, I am continuing on with the outline. What’s going on next? Don’t know. Can’t wait to see. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are looking forward to Christmas. For me — it’s donuts for breakfast, horror films and hamburgers! Ta-ta for now!

That whooshing sound is coming, but I am not worried about it. I’m just going to relegate Tribal to a weekend project after I’ve done my words for Unbroken, or maybe a Sunday only project. I did pay for the cover, so I should do something. I’m also getting a cover done for The Agonizing Alibi Day, so look for that in the New Year.

It’s hard to believe that the year is almost over. Where did it go? I can remember when a year seemed to never end. Now, I blink and half the year goes by. Is this what getting old is like, I don’t like it. I want to have a longer autumn.

The Christmas season has started, so I get to do some Christmas shopping. You should be, too – and what would be a better gift than any of my books? Comedy, horror and fantasy-romance is well represented in what I have written. Grab then now!

And we leave the shilling behind. It’s something that I am neither proficient at, nor really feel good about doing. I know that I must sell myself since I am an indie author, but…I’m the stereotypical quiet wallflower writer. I don’t feel comfortable trying to sell things. If I could, I would be selling cars or houses. A note to any indie authors that might be reading this – drop me a line and tell me how you manage to get the word out, especially if you’re an introvert like me.

Given that I am writing fantasy for the next year, don’t think I am abandoning horror. I’ve got an idea for a World War I novel, but I’m afraid that I am re-treading well-worn ground by me again. I can’t seem to keep away from the whole notion of cannibalism and mayhem. Valentina’s Feast has it. Serve Me Now has it. Tribal has it. I think I am becoming a one very, very gory trick pony. I don’t want to do vampires because I have a novel idea that uses vampires. I think I’ll get these novels out of me and take a break from cannibalism for a while.

Well – I am looking forward to 2026. Seriously continuing Unbroken, outlining several other books and trying to get more books sold. Wish me luck for this year and the next! Ta-ta for now!

I’m going to say this statement and let the comments rain down from Heaven: Horror films aren’t scaring me anymore.

Before you point out the obvious two films that come up in this conversation – yes, I’ve seen Weapons and I’ve seen Sinners. I’m not saying they’re bad films. They’re great films, but they’re not horror films in my eyes. The last film that scared me – I mean made me afraid to close my eyes – was The Ring, and that’s a film that I watch during my Christmas Horror Movie Marathon.

Is this going to void my warranty?

I don’t know if I am getting cynical in my old age, but movies now are getting ridiculously over-hyped. Yes, I grew up in the Eighties during the height of the slasher genre, and I loved the blood, guts and gore of it all. Now, my tastes are more to the pondering sort. A good horror movie for me now promotes thought. I liked The Substance, even if I’m not a huge fan of body horror.

I also think the trailers have more to do with it. Trailers now show you everything but what was on the Craft Services table. That and YouTube will show videos like this. It’s getting harder and harder for me to come into a movie without knowing anything about it ahead of time. Honestly – you could take two or three trailers for a film, cut them up and have the whole film there in front of you.

Speaking of horror: Tribal is coming along. I like the new twist I put in, and I might work a little more on it today. I also think I’ve got a decent way to end it, so I’ve got that going for me. I’m also working on the outline for Unbroken. I’m liking the idea of taking a situation and saying to myself ‘what’s the worst thing that can happen right now?’ and seeing the characters react to the results. This is taking the book in directions I didn’t really think about, but it’s not wandering away from the grand plan I have in my head.

That’s all I got for now. What’s your take on my horror movie opinion? I’ve love to read it in the comments. Ta-ta for now!

For the most part, I’ve followed the advice of W.C. Fields when it comes to working with kids and animals when I write. I don’t count werewolves as animals because for the most part, they’re still human. A technicality, but one I am going to cling to for all I have.

Father of the Year!

Of course, I had to break this rule when writing Tribal in that the main character has to make another werewolf for the pack he’s gotten himself tangled up in. Lycanthropy is transmitted by bite in this book, and Edgar is told up front he needs to bite someone.

So, he bites a young man because that’s what you do, among other horrible things. I really didn’t have this in my original outline, but I had no idea how to get along with the story. When in doubt, think of what’s the most likely outcome to cause chaos and go with it. I don’t think it’s one of Pixar’s rules for writing, but it works.

I also have the feeling that Tribal may not get finished by the end of the year, and I am okay with that. I can still fiddle around with it when Unbroken is at a standstill. Since I haven’t finished the outline to that yet, that is almost a certainty. I probably should work on it tonight, rather than paint minis. I can do minis later in the week, or next week when I have more days off.

On a lark, I got myself a dip pen. It’s neat to write with it. The ink flows very nicely, it’s smooth – not a smooth as my best fountain pen – but it’s neat. I recommend getting a dip pen and writing with it for your journal or notes. Obviously, it’s not for every day, common use. It’s good for me because the pen writes much drier than my fountain pens, and I have a problem with smearing because I write with my left hand. There are problematic notebooks that I like to use, but smearing is prevalent unless I use a particular brand of ink, which really limits my color choices.

Yes, I am one of those weird people that write in different colors. I’m not organized about a lot of things, but my writing and my notes are a different matter.

I did manage to see Netflix’s Frankenstein, and it is well worth the viewing. It follows the book very closely and has some very good performances in it. If you have the chance, I would see it. There are a couple of jump scares, but all in all it’s a rather interesting metaphor on hubris and childhood.

That’s all for now – living this exciting life and all. I need to go get to some laundry and finish putting Tyro through her paces. Ta-ta for now!

I’m starting to hate Tribal. I’ve been told that pregnant women close to the end of the third trimester just want the baby out and done. I don’t know, I’ve never been pregnant. I do however empathize with those women. I want Tribal to be done so I can move on to the next book. A new idea popped into my head, and I think it might help me tie the book together in the end – which we all know I have problems with.

I’ve also restarted the Kyklos Saga – a cringeworthy name – and I am thinking that I am going to dip my toes into progression fantasy, since it seems to be still popular. Progression fantasy is a genre that tracks the advancement of a character, watching them become stronger and more capable book after book. The series I’m writing fits this nicely. It also has cute bunny people. Can’t go wrong with that. I’ve started outlining that when I’m not outlining Tyro’s series.

At least when the New Year begins, I can go to Tyro – speaking of her — and maybe that will get me back into it. Lately, I’ve been avoiding writing (*gasp*) anything on Tribal for the reasons outlined above. Is this common? Do other writers get to the point where they’re just done with the characters and want to shove the whole kit-and-kaboodle off a cliff? If I didn’t have this deadline, I would actually set it aside and work on something else long term, but I’ve got to have something published for this year and The Show Must Go On is not ready for that yet.

Might as well bear down and try to get it finished before December. I am going to take a break from it while I work out how this new idea is going to lead to the end.

Other than that – everything is going well. I’ve taken up light jogging and I feel a little better for it. With the weather turning away from summer, I am ready for the crisp fall air, soup for dinner and the crunch of leaves underfoot. I love fall.

Well – ta-ta for now. I should get back to work on something.