Looking ahead Writing Projects

Today marks a landmark in my third The Sword of the Dragon novel. I passed 100,000-words! The novel is coming along beautifully with new insights into characters such as Ilfedo and Specter. The story is a bit daunting, from a writing perspective, but that is due to the loads of great story still to tell.
This novel will have been finished by the end of May and I have been seriously considering what project to accomplish next. So I have reached the conclusion that I will finish an offshoot novel to The Sword of the Dragon series. My plan is to publish The It'ren On Eiderveis River as a full-length novel this Fall. I will make it available in paperback and on Kindle.
Also, since I am planning to attend the American Christian Fiction Writers conference in September, I'm hoping to finish my science-fiction political thriller Starmist.

Back from New York

My trip to Johnson City, NY was very productive. My wife wasn't able to accompany me on this trip, as she had a previous commitment singing in our church cantata.

I sold 40 books and met a lot of great people. The staff were particularly friendly. I've been to this store once before when I met Bryan Davis at a signing he held at this location. They have a great selection of books and gifts; a very diverse and thorough inventory.

The manager wants to arrange a follow-up event, probably end of Summer when my second novel has come out.

Now I need to simplify my schedule for the next few weeks. I need a breather and I need to finish my third novel. This has been a hectic time but a very rewarding one, too. ....So now I'm off to prioritize my to-do list.

My trip to Peoria, Illinois

Last week my wife and I (and Andrew of course) were in Indiana and Illinois. One of my fans, Nichole (pictured above on the right) spread the word that I was coming to Peoria, IL. I started off with a signing at the Hoerr's Berean Christian bookstore on Thursday night. I anticipated ahead of time that a signing on that particular day was not going to be crazy busy but I still sold 7 books.
Next I had a booth at APACHE Homeschoolers Convention. The event was not very busy but we still sold around 50 books. The best part of the trip was meeting Nichole and her family (who were extremely hospitable). We stayed with Nichole's cousin, Evie (who was very friendly but with whom we hardly had time to visit) and at some point soon I hope to return there and visit some middle schools.

I also got to meet Jay Wile (pictured with me above). He wrote the high school Biology course that I took and I just think his work is fantastic. I was thrilled to meet him.

These last two pictures were taken by Nichole during the Convention.

E. Lyme Middle School in CT -success!

I spent the last three days giving ten presentations to middle schoolers in East Lyme. Of course I was aiming to sell books, too! And boy did it sell; the kids bought 92-copies of Swords of the Six! Next week I'll be in Illinois for a short tour.

per school request, faces not shown

Barnes & Noble in Hadley, MA -Sold Out!

The drive to Hadley, Massachusetts was almost two hours. Lots of time to listen to my music CDs. The terrain up there is quite beautiful; rather mountainous, and the weather was beautiful. The store had 15 copies of Swords of the Six in stock, and a steady flow of customers allowed me to sell and sign every last copy in just over 2 hours. Even with all the driving time I got back home just after 3 o'clock with time for some writing. Praise God for a great day!