Adventure Beyond the Stars – Written for Readers Who Want More

Tag: writing progress

  • Audiobook, Honeymoon, Phoenix

    Audiobook, Honeymoon, Phoenix

    You can get autographed copies of all three released books in Selene Reborn (Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, Forging the Chain Breakers) or Mirim’s First Christmas at the Downtown Arlington Farmer’s Market Saturday or Canton Trade Days on Friday or Sunday.

    Spent several days listening to the audiobook of Forging the Chain Breakers. A few line-edits resulted and I submitted the new ebook for review. It came back and I’m working on a final listen on the audiobook before release.

    Big news on Antarctic Honeymoon. After feedback from my beta readers, this morning I decided to completely rewrite the last several chapters of the book. I’m trying to get the Forging audiobook done first, but aside from what I did previously on Martian Phoenix, that story will be set aside for a while until I have a better version of the last chapters of Antarctic Honeymoon. I do have an almost-finished book cover.

    Started work on background for Martian Phoenix. This will be a lot more work than previous books. The Selene Reborn series didn’t have other books to constrain things, so the Moon was fairly free-form and I could detail it as I went along. This will be on Mars—there is a lot more detail there, more people, more area, more complex history, more opportunities for stories, more ideas for stories, more opportunity to make a mistake that breaks the context needed for something in the future. So… I started with detailing some of the characters from Earth instead…

    First step is Beulah’s mentor in courtship and marriage, Tia Dolores. She has a full character bible entry now. https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Dolores_Carrillo_Iturriaga

    I also want Beulah to have a significant transformational arc. To do that, I want her to have a starting point rooted in popular sentimental literature of the 19th Century (what we would call romance novels today). So here is her starting point https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Beulah%27s_Romantic_Theology – sounds a lot like the misconceptions around love we have today – including the “I can redeem him if I love him enough” misconception that traps so many women into abusive relationships. This is her full lore entry: https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Beulah_Gresham

    That meant I needed a lore entry for Nasir as well. https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Nasir_Al-Selene

    Now I need to start fleshing out Mars. So I started with the lore entry for Martian society overall: https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Martian_Lore Then started working on the pieces. I put together a lore entry for the Air Martians: https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Air_Martian_Organization_and_Culture, the Canal Martians: https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Canal_Martian_Political_Structures_and_Governance

    Advertising: 13 sales in March. $54.79 in revenue. $175.45 ad costs. Need to do some work on that for April

    Artemis Rising is #484 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #1,546 in Alternate History, and #2,470 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books). If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Six reviews for Artemis Rising. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord is ranked now. #1,006 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #1,117 in Steampunk Fiction, #2,799 in Alternate History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Forging the Chain Breakers is #1,113 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #1,266 in Steampunk Fiction, #3,098 in Alternate History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. The audiobook will be delayed while I finish Antarctic Honeymoon. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is #6,609 in Colonization Science Fiction, #10,025 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books), and #12,490 in Science Fiction Short Stories. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

  • Raptors, Editing, and the Enclosure

    Raptors, Editing, and the Enclosure

    You can get autographed copies of all three released books in Selene Reborn (Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, Forging the Chain Breakers) or Mirim’s First Christmas at the Dogwood Festival in Palestine, TX Saturday only.

    By Fred Wierum - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=63257507

    Needed another opponent for Antarctic Honeymoon. This is it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deinonychus Thing is, none of the dromasaurid dinosaurs were known in 1891 – and everyone thought dinosaurs were lizards, not closely related enough to birds to have feathers…

    Manuscript and Dramatis Personae for the final book in Selene Reborn, Selene Unchained, was sent to the editor Monday. That is a little early, but maybe it will get back a little early as well.

    Needed a new location bible entry. There are details—way more than will ever fit in a book—about the Aetherwood Research Station on Caproni Island. https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Aetherwood_Research_Station if you are interested—warning, there are likely spoilers…

    Advertising: 5 sales in the past 14 days. Artemis Rising just isn’t selling at full price yet. When I get five reviews for Celestial Accord, I’ll add that.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    Clash of Titans – finished
    Pack in the Mist
    In the Waning Light
    The Enclosure
    Reserve for the Future – started

    Word count is 67,048. Aim is 71,000-78,000. Last chapter and Epilogue are all that’s left

    Artemis Rising is #251 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #897 in Alternate History, and #1,430 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books). If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Six reviews for Artemis Rising. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord is ranked now. #609 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #691 in Steampunk Fiction, #1,892 in Alternate History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Forging the Chain Breakers is #598 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #684 in Steampunk Fiction, #1,852 in Alternate History. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. The audiobook will be delayed while I finish Antarctic Honeymoon. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is #6,545 in Colonization Science Fiction, #9,826 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books), and #12,272 in Science Fiction Short Stories. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. No reviews yet. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    If you want to get early access to chapters in the current book, write a nice review for one of the current novels on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Forging, Alligatormen, and Advertising

    Forging, Alligatormen, and Advertising

    As announced yesterday, Forging the Chain Breakers will publish Friday. Get yours at the Granbury Founder’s Day Jubilee Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

    Somehow I messed up the paleo botany and paleo zoology of the central basin. Had to do some rework of that.

    I have another race – this one definitely not human.

    Alligatormen are an intelligent, semi-aquatic crocodilian humanoid species adapted to life in warm swamps, rivers, and coastal wetlands. Standing taller and broader than most humans, they possess powerful tails, thick armored scales, and long, tooth-filled jaws capable of crushing bone. Their society is primitive but organized: they build crude huts, maintain fires, and craft weapons from materials taken from the creatures they hunt. Their primary armament is a heavy macuahuitl-like club edged with shark teeth, used for brutal close combat, along with javelins tipped with dimetrodon teeth. Patient ambush predators both in water and on land, alligatormen rely on stealth, sudden violence, and their formidable physical strength, making them one of the most dangerous indigenous threats encountered by explorers in the swamps they inhabit.

    I also have a minor character that is going to be fun. “Am I A Mouse?” marks the third chapter the Black Ocelot has appeared in.

    I have a new poster and table sign for this weekend.

    I heard about another location that I might use at some point. Ubar—Atlantis of the Sands. This is what we know in real life: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantis_of_the_Sands so if I use it, it will need some… poetic license applied.

    Advertising: 9 sales in the past 14 days. $120.02 in spend, $24.91 in revenue. Still upside down there, but that may change if I can start getting sales at full price instead of just $0.99. When I get five reviews for Celestial Accord, I’ll add that.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    Alligatormen – Finished
    Am I A Mouse?
    Clash of Titans – Started

    Word count is 54,381. Aim is 71,000-78,000.

    Artemis Rising is #147 in Steampunk Science Fiction (Kindle Store), #446 in Alternate History, and #814 in Alternate History Science Fiction (Books). If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Six reviews for Artemis Rising—thank you Diane. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

  • Pictures, Aetherwood, and Ginkgos

    Pictures, Aetherwood, and Ginkgos

    You can get autographed copies of Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, or Mirim’s First Christmas at the Walnut Springs Rattlesnake Roundup Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

    I spent more time than I probably should have getting better pictures of Eleanor, Walter & Eleanor, Walter and Eleanor for their wedding, and the Antarctic Honeymoon cover mockup.

    I also took time to nail down liftwood/aetherwood details. If you’re interested, you can learn more here: https://greshamverse.fandom.com/wiki/Aetherwood

    One of the distinctive types of trees on Caproni Island are Ginkgo trees. Today, we know that one species of ginkgo – ginkgo biloba – is still extent. In 1891 – the entire family was thought to be extinct, only being rediscovered as a ‘living fossil’ in 1896. I also looked for fossil animals that were known in 1891. Unfortunately, the giant crocodiles, Titanoboa, and even giant turtles are all 21st century discoveries. I do have terrorbird fossils from the 1870’s…

    The advertising is beginning to work. Sold 5 Artemis Rising Books in the last week. That’s 10 since the ads started. It is costing me more than I’m making, so I put the e-book price back to $4.99. We’ll see what impact that has. I’ll probably do a sale in conjunction to the release of Forging the Chain Breakers.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    The Silver Spire – completed
    Alligatormen – Started

    Word count is 47,414. Aim is 71,000-78,000.

    Artemis Rising is #450 in Alternate History Science Fiction (books), #580 in Space Exploration Science Fiction eBooks, and #699 in First Contact Science Fiction eBooks. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Five customer reviews. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Celestial Accord copy-edit is available now. The Audible AI audiobook is also available.

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Selene Reborn and Honeymoon Progress

    Selene Reborn and Honeymoon Progress

    Blog Post

    The box set images for Selene Reborn are done – what do you think?

    You can get autographed copies of Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, or Mirim’s First Christmas at Canton First Monday Trade Days Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

    Forging the Chain Breakers is finished! I reset release for March 13. Hopefully I’ll have copies for Granbury Founder’s Day.

    Editing Forging the Chain Breakers meant there were some additional threads to resolve, or at least address, in Selene Unchained. I think I have those done and it will be headed to Sandra for editing this time next month. Maybe the series will be complete by the time we go to the Galveston Steampunk Festival.

    The advertising is beginning to work. Sold one ebook of Artemis Rising in February. That was only 3% of the royalties I earned, however. The other 97% were from Kindle Unlimited readers. That also doesn’t count books sold at markets.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    Lost Island – completed
    The Silver Spire – started

    Word count is 43,171. Aim is 71,000-78,000.

    Artemis Rising is #259 in Steampunk Fiction, #621 in Alternate History, and #189 in Steampunk Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Five customer reviews. More will help others find the series as well – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Celestial Accord copy-edit is available now. The Audible AI audiobook is also available.

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Characters, Endeavor, and Weddings

    Characters, Endeavor, and Weddings

    You can get autographed copies of Artemis Rising, Celestial Accord, or Mirim’s First Christmas at the Downtown Arlington Farmer’s Market Saturday.

    Got Fiverr folks to start work on an illustration of Endeavor. She will likely figure prominently on Walter & Eleanor book covers, so this will need to be pretty high quality.

    A new character – no plans on her being more than a background character right now. But I figured it would be better to have a complete character outline of María Esperanza Gresham (née Carrillo) and not need it than otherwise. Also her sister-in-law Carmen Gresham (née Salazar). I also needed Thoma’s children so did an entry for him and his family.

    On a lark, I decided to get Midjourney to generate a wedding picture of Eleanor. It came out pretty good, I think.

    I also learned that wedding month and day had some folk rhymes around them.

    Monday for Wealth; Tuesday for Health; Wednesday the Best Day of All; Thursday for Losses; Friday for Crosses; and Saturday No Luck at All

    Marry when the year is new and he’ll be loving, kind and true,
    When February birds do mate, you wed not or dread your fate.
    If you wed when March winds blow, joy and sorrow you’ll both know.
    Marry in April when you can, and joy for maiden and for man.
    Marry in the month of May and you’ll live to rue the day.
    Marry when June roses grow and over land and sea you’ll go.
    Those in July who do wed must labor for their daily bread.
    Whoever wed in August be many a change is sure to see.
    Marry in September’s shrine your living will be rich and fine.
    If in October you do marry, love will come but riches tarry.
    If you wed in bleak November, only joys will come, remember.
    When December snow falls fast, marry and true love will last.

    Monday wedding in August can be seen as foreshadowing the rest of the book.

    Did Character bible entries for Walter, Eleanor, and Walter & Eleanor as a couple. Also got AI generated pictures of them. I also decided to get an image of them in adventurer clothes for Antarctic Honeymoon

    Antarctic Honeymoon is progressing. Chapters this week:
    Earth Wedding
    Southward Bound
    Lost Island – started

    Word count is 38,266. Aim is 71,000-78,000.

    Artemis Rising is #1,314 in Steampunk Fiction, #4,135 in Alternate History Science Fiction, and #7,570 in Exploration Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Five customer reviews now (thanks Rick). I still need more so other readers can find it, but I may start promoting with these five – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here, the kindle version here, or the audiobook version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Celestial Accord copy-edit is available now. The Audible AI audiobook is also available.

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Forging to Editor!

    Forging to Editor!

    Artemis Rising is #3,826 in Space Exploration Science Fiction ebooks, #3,785 in Alternate History Science Fiction, and #5,797 in First Contact Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. There is also an audiobook version here. Five customer reviews now (thanks Rick). I still need a more so other readers can find it, but I may start promoting with these five – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Sandra (my editor) had a slot open up early so Forging the Chain Breakers is now in her hands. Whoo Hoo!

    I used Audible AI to do a complete audio read of Artemis Rising. A number of minor fixes resulted and now I’m going through again. Hopefully after these minor fixes, I’ll be able to get a clean audio recording I’m happy enough with to publish as an audiobook. Went through another time, and got a new cover – Updated Artemis Rising with AI Audiobook is now live. If you listen to it, please leave me a review here.

    I’ve heard some complaints about how small the print in the current books are, so I increased the size of the print significantly. Artemis Rising will be the first book to be released with the new, larger print.

    Started the same process using AI to do a line-edit of Celestial Accord.

    I also got title pages for Forging the Chain Breakers and Selene Unchained.

    Antarctic Honeymoon is started. It is a stand-alone Walter & Eleanor story taking place the same time as the first chapters of Selene Unchained. Chapters this week:
    Preface
    Uncertainty and Change

  • Artemis, Forging, Selene, Reform War

    Artemis, Forging, Selene, Reform War

    Still can’t upload pictures – I’m going to see about changing web hosting companies because this is ridiculous.

    Artemis Rising is #2,103 in Space Exploration Science Fiction ebooks, #2,130 in Alternate History Science Fiction, and #3,283 in First Contact Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. Four customer reviews now, but I need a few more to get Audible to take notice – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far. If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    I’m recovering from surgery so no book signing this weekend

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    Worked some more on alternate history. The Mexican Reform war sure turns out differently. I’m still not sure what to do about King Kamehameha III’s request to become a US state…

    Selene Unchained has a cover, and I really like it. What do you think?

    I did an AI supported editing pass of Forging the Chain Breakers. We’ll see how that works.

    Did an AI Copyedit of Artemis Rising. I think ChatGPT has a tendency to go well beyond Copyedits and into Line Editing – and when it does, the line editing tends to drift into ChatGPTs voice instead of maintaining mine. I kept a tight rein on it, so drift wasn’t too bad. If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • AI, War College, and Artemis

    AI, War College, and Artemis

    Something is broken this week and I can’t post pictures. If I can get it fixed quickly, I’ll edit this.

    Artemis Rising is #4,155 in Space Exploration Science Fiction ebooks, #4,205 in Alternate History Science Fiction, and #7,536 in Exploration Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. Four customer reviews now, but I need a few more to get Audible to take notice – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far! If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    You can get autographed copies of both books at the Richardson Farmer’s Market Saturday.

    Mirim’s First Christmas is live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    I did make some edits on Mirim’s First Christmas, so it is better now.

    I spent a significant amount of time with ChatGPT fleshing out the alternate history of my setting. I have everything lined out from the deviation point of Sam Houston only receiving a minor wound at Horseshoe Bend, to the 1891 inauguration of Benjamin Harrison. As a bonus, I have a history book chapter and War College case study on the Euro-American War and a War College comparison of the Euro-American and Franco-Prussian Wars, both of which are pretty cool. They also very neatly set up the importance of decisive action and naval strength in US military thinking. That will be important by 1900…

    I’ve learned a lot more about AI, mostly how to use it to make really cool video. I also got AI to help me with outlining the rest of Selene Unchained. It did an OK job, but mostly I took only about half what ChatGPT put in the outline, did some rearranging, and a lot of editing to keep the book on track instead of going off in some sort of weird direction. I also asked ChatGPT to actually write a chapter. What it wrote fit the book about like a marine diesel engine would fit in a sports car – but it had a few neat ideas. I suspect it might not have saved me much time, but the additional ideas may have made the chapter better.

    ChatGPT does seem to do a good job of writing marketing copy. I’m much better at recognizing good copy than I am at writing it myself. With ChatGPT doing most of the heavy lifting and me doing the final edit and clean-up, I think I have really good blurbs for all four books and the series in Selene Reborn. I’m not sure changing the blurbs helped. My rankings are worse. But all four books show up as suggestions now. Check them out:
    Mirim’s First Christmas: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GC9XCR2Z
    Artemis Rising: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F3K149ZQ
    Celestial Accord: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FP72PX1G
    Forging the Chain Breakers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FXTFL9K8
    Selene Unchained: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FXTJ933V
    Selene Reborn: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F3NGXHYH

    The cover for Selene Unchained was started this week. That is the last cover required for the Selene Reborn Series. Once I have it, I’ll get the art for the boxed set.

    I also started a Fiverr project to get an actual illustration of Artemis. Isaac has done a great job of putting together a concept art level version, but I need something closer to photo-realistic for some of the other projects I have planned, including the boxed set graphics. That is proving to be a major headache.

    A new character added to the Dramatis Personae. Sgt Selkoryos – the second in command of the Troll troopers. He appeared first in Artemis Rising but has a little bigger part in Selene Unchained.

    Another productive week for Selene Unchained. At least some of the progress was made in chapters not listed since I put together a more detailed outline for the rest of the book.

    Selene Unchained chapters this week:
    Eldritch Summit
    A Dream of Import
    Manufactory Defense
    Bally Cluster
    Bloody Endymion
    Smelter Six

    Selene Unchained word count is 69,649, not counting Dramatis Personae (1,315 words).

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.

  • Papa Kòt-Nwa and the Baroness

    Papa Kòt-Nwa and the Baroness

    Artemis Rising is #1,923 in Alternative History, #3,046 in Space Exploration Science Fiction, and #3,092 in Alternative History Science Fiction. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. Four customer reviews now, but I need a few more to get Audible to take notice – if you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    Celestial Accord isn’t ranked yet. If you don’t have yours yet, you can get the paper version here or the kindle version here. One review so far, thanks Michele! If you’ve finished the book and haven’t left a review, please do so here.

    You can get autographed copies of both books at the Richardson Farmer’s Market Saturday.

    Mirim’s First Christmas just went live. You can find the paper version here or the kindle version here. I’m still working on getting free versions to be available on my website.

    I needed another Old Ones daemon. This is what I came up with:
    Papa Kòt-Nwa (fic) – An Old One daemon who grants power to partially possess and trap souls. Feeds off the power of ritual worship, especially rituals enacted out of fear or dread.

    There are three first worshipers of Papa Kòt-Nwa in the story. Baroness Bahah, Qutab’s mother, Sahiqa and Nigarish. I’m actually kind of proud of the description of their dance of devotion to Papa Kòt-Nwa.

    Cover for Forging the Chain Breakers is final. Now I need the cover for Selene Unchained.

    I got a lot done on Selene Unchained this week. Thank you to Deborah who did an excellent job of protecting my writing time.

    Selene Unchained chapters this week:
    Zafir Burns His Hand renamed Kepler Station – finished
    Laughing Meadows Revisited
    Tunnel 45 Fort
    The Lesson of Forge 27
    Changing Tactics
    The Siege of Kopff Castle
    Raid on Kopff Station
    Battle of the Cloister
    Eldritch Summit – started

    Selene Unchained word count is 57,104, not counting Dramatis Personae (1,301 words).

    I worked on training ChatGPT to be my line editor. I added the style sheet from Celestial Accord to its training and had it review Mirim’s First Christmas. This is ChatGPT’s analysis:

    1. Narrative Voice & POV

    Style Sheet

    • Past tense
    • Omniscient narrator with selective interiority
    • Authoritative but restrained
    • Moral and cultural confidence without polemic

    Mirim’s First Christmas

    ✔ Exact match

    How it manifests in the manuscript

    • The narrator moves freely between:
      • Mirim’s perceptions
      • Observed social behavior
      • Cultural explanation
    • Interior thoughts are infrequent and purposeful
    • Moral judgments are implied through tone and consequence, not stated

    Notable reinforcement

    • The narrator never apologizes for tradition, faith, hierarchy, or ceremony.
    • Cultural authority is assumed, not argued.

    Conclusion:
    Mirim’s First Christmas is a textbook execution of the style sheet’s POV doctrine.

    2. Sentence Structure & Cadence

    Style Sheet

    • Medium-to-long sentences preferred
    • Subordinate clauses encouraged
    • Rhythm valued over brevity
    • Fragments allowed for voice, not laziness

    Mirim’s First Christmas

    ✔ Perfect alignment, with added sophistication

    Observed patterns

    • Frequent use of:
      • Parallel lists (foods, customs, people)
      • Clarifying clauses (“which,” “that,” “since”)
      • Gentle temporal framing (“After,” “As,” “When”)
    • Sentences often accumulate meaning rather than rush to a point

    Manuscript adds

    • A slightly more Edwardian hospitality cadence than the style sheet explicitly calls out
    • A strong “host explaining traditions to a guest” rhythm that recurs scene after scene

    Conclusion:
    The manuscript doesn’t just follow the rule—it teaches the reader how the rule feels in motion.

    3. Dialogue Philosophy

    Style Sheet

    • Dialogue serves culture, not conflict
    • Polite speech default
    • Humor through understatement and social friction
    • Dialogue punctuation follows Chicago with voice exceptions

    Mirim’s First Christmas

    ✔ Exemplary execution

    Key observations

    • Almost no confrontational dialogue
    • Characters explain, reminisce, instruct, tease
    • Humor arises from:
      • Cross-cultural misunderstanding
      • Generational differences
      • Gentle irony (especially Dolores, Eleanor, Nikola)

    Important nuance

    • Dialogue often carries exposition that would normally be narration
    • Speakers are trusted to be intelligent and articulate

    Conclusion:
    The manuscript is a model for how to embed exposition into dialogue without didacticism.

    4. Exposition & Worldbuilding

    Style Sheet

    • Embedded exposition preferred
    • Lists acceptable if contextualized
    • Worldbuilding revealed through lived experience

    Mirim’s First Christmas

    ✔ Strong confirmation

    How the manuscript uses exposition

    • Food as cultural memory
    • Ritual as theology-in-action
    • Architecture as values made physical
    • History revealed conversationally

    Where the manuscript goes further

    • Uses ritual density as pacing rather than plot
    • Treats traditions as events worth dwelling on

    This is not just allowed by the style sheet—it is its natural consequence.

    Conclusion:
    The manuscript validates that your style sheet supports “ceremonial fiction,” not plot-driven minimalism.

    5. Capitalization, Religion, and Terminology

    Style Sheet

    • Capitalize divine pronouns
    • Respect doctrinal distinctions
    • Precise theological language
    • Period-appropriate usage

    Mirim’s First Christmas

    ✔ Exact compliance

    Notable strengths

    • Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant distinctions handled carefully
    • Theology explained respectfully but confidently
    • Religious language is normal, not exoticized

    Important note

    • The manuscript proves that faith language can be frequent without becoming preachy when handled through tradition and lived practice.

    Conclusion:
    Mirim’s First Christmas is a working proof that the style sheet’s religious rules are narratively sustainable.

    6. Tone Toward Progress, Tradition, and Family

    Style Sheet

    • Civilization is inherited, not reinvented
    • Family and clan matter
    • Progress is additive, not destructive

    Mirim’s First Christmas

    ✔ Thematic alignment

    Observed emphasis

    • Marriage as covenant
    • Multi-generational continuity
    • Hospitality as moral action
    • Technology coexisting with ritual

    The manuscript does not merely obey the style—it embodies its worldview.

    7. Where Mirim’s First Christmas Adds to the Style Sheet

    These are not conflicts—these are emergent refinements you may wish to treat as implicit addenda:

    1. Ceremonial Density Is Acceptable
      1. Long stretches with minimal plot advancement are stylistically valid
    2. Lists Can Be Luxurious
      1. Food, customs, and names may be lingered over
    3. Domestic Grandeur Is a Legitimate Setting
      1. Mansions, tables, kitchens, and halls are as important as battlefields

    If you want to get early access to Book 3 chapters, write a nice review for Artemis Rising or Celestial Accord on Amazon or Goodreads, and email me that you’ve done it.