I felt I needed to write a whole new post about what I currently have planned for 2020. I first want to apologize for all of those fans of my Elementals series. I know, some of you started reading those books when you were teenagers and are probably now college graduates with families, 10 kids and 4 grandkids. I don't know what to tell you. I have had that novel about a third finished for well over a year and go back to it every time I finish a draft of a novel, then proceed to write a few dozen pages before something else takes hold and forces me to write something else. I am unsure why the third in the series is such a challenge for me, but it is proving to be very difficult. Also - apologies to you fans of the Rotate the Earth series and the Sin-Eater series.
That being said, I already have a new book lined up and plan to publish in spring 2020. My guess is it will come out April or May with pre-sales likely end of January or beginning of February. That novel is called Black River. I teased it on social last week, here's the full cover reveal.
Black River is a bit of a departure for me. It's a crime novel more than a horror thriller. I have dabbled in this with my Deklan Falls detective series, but dove into the genre with this one. Then, of course, because I am me, I had to create a massive twist at the end which throws it all off and out of that genre. This is probably why I couldn't get a publisher or agent to grab onto this one. So, I am publishing it myself and I think you'll love it. More details to come and stay tuned for the pre-order link. Thanks to my wife Melanie for helping me create the plot for this one by saying - well, if you've always wanted to write a story about that, how about you come t it from this angle?
I have finished a draft of a novella-length story currently titled The Cut-Through. I loved, loved, loved writing it. I think it is one of my best works in about a year or so. It is a mystery. It has a supernatural bent, and the ending is one of the scariest I have ever written (in my opinion). Not sure when this one will come out, because I sent it to a publisher I REALLY have always wanted to work with when the were willing to consider a novella-length story just for me. I hope I will be working with them, in which case the title may change and I'll let you know the publication date when I can. I can't wait for you t read this.
I have now written at least half-a-dozen novella-length stories. It's a format I have become increasingly fond of lately and will likely continue (again, sorry Elementals and series fans). My plan right now (and I have already started working on this ), is to release my first collection of novellas. I am thinking this could be my 2020 Halloween release, but we shall see. Currently, the collection is titled At Dawn, Before the Cold, which those of you who have read Hellhound might recognize.
What else? Well, I have a draft of a novel currently entitled Reunion which I wrote in 2018, but have let sit ever since. I wrote this right after my dad died and put a lot of negative stuff into it. Thus, there are scenes I no longer think work and the ending, I feel, is a total mess. It was not as scary as I hoped it would be. So, my plan is to completely rewrite the second half of this book and change the focus entirely. I think my ideas for how to change this make the book much scarier and creepier. Stay tuned for that. Whether it will make into 2020 release or get pushed into 2021 remains to be seen.
I started writing a psychological thriller with the working title of Lydia right around Christmas. This one is fun to write and is set in my favorite fictional town - Knorr. So, look for Warren & Tabitha to show up again.
I am also still collaborating with people on a stage play! That's been going on for a while. I am mostly writing the overall story and concept and people more adept at writing dialogue and lays are creating the script. Plus, it's a musical! So, a musician is working on that. We shall see when or if this sees the light of day.
Last year I had hoped to have a podcast for you. Various circumstances prevented that, but I am still hoping to venture into this. I am always in contact with my voice talent friend Allie James and whether it ends up being an anthology as planned or we adapt a novel to an audio play or create something new - we don't know. We go around and around, but both of us are busy. I'd love to turn The Cut-Through into a podcast, for example, or turn The Man From Taured into an audio play.
As for The Man From Taured, I still want to throw it out into the universe for 2020 that someone else reaches out to me to turn it into a series, movie or podcast. There are many outlets and I would at least consider offers from any streaming services, movie studio or podcast network. I also think the fictional inter-dimensional police force I created in that novel (IDEA) would make a great spin-off series.
I also want to revisit the world of Deklan Falls and now have TWO ideas for books set in his world - one outside of Oldtowne and one set back in that troubled city. Those would likely not be ready until 2021, but you never know... Hey, Deklan would also be a great series for TV, streaming, or podcast...just sayin' universe!
Stay tuned...lots to come. Hoping for bigger and better in 2020 and I thank you all again for reading my work so far and for helping turn The Man From Taured into a bestseller.