Apprenticing in Albion
An overview of apprenticing (and training of various sorts) in Albion. Includes a guide to the demographics, different educational paths, and apprenticeship itself.
Cover design : Mysterious Arts
The cover design for the Mysterious Arts books (through Facets of the Bench).
In Character: Thomas Benton
Thomas Benton likes to be quietly in the background. Here’s a look at his life, from his early service in a country house, through the Great War, and his life after, entwined with the Carillons.
Neurodiversity in my books
A guide to neurodiverse characters in my books, as of 2024. (Check out the grid early in the post for the current complete list.)
Idea to Book: Bound for Perdition
Dive into the ideas that led to Bound for Perdition: Albion’s magical journals and bookbinding, Temple and Delphina Carillon, and the consequences of new technology.
A look back at 2023
It’s the time of year where a recap is called for. Check out the post for the books (and two extras) released in 2023, what I’ve written, and improvements to this website and my authorial wiki. Books that came out in 2023
Idea to Book: Ancient Trust
Ancient Trust is the novella you can get by signing up for my newsletter. (More below on why I did that). You can unsubscribe after, if my newsletter isn’t your thing, I won’t take it personally. Just please, don’t mark me as spam! It also is a story I wanted to tell since I had the opening scene in my head. Ancient Trust takes place in 1922, when Geoffrey Carillon inherits the land magic from his brother. Carillon and his valet Benton are in Kenya, as part of a longer expedition between points in Africa, seeking specific materia (plants, minerals, and other items with magical potential) to bring back to Albion. He does it responsibly, but this period is toward the tail end of a massive exploration of natural resources that was not, shall we say, often managed well or sensitively. The Carillons I knew I wanted to write something that was toward the beginning of the larger arc of the Carillon family in this generation. There are in fact a number of of beads on this particular necklace, running from Bound for Perdition in 1917 through the upcoming Three Graces in 1945 (out in December 2023) that will finally bring out some answers to the question of what actually happened to Temple. The Carillons are a longstanding family – Ytene, their landed estate, goes back to nearly the Norman Conquest in 1066. There’s a lot of complex history there. And of course, there are recent tragedies, beginning with the death
Happily ever after, no kids
One of my romance spaces was talking about romances that don’t presume a child is necessary for the happily-ever-after of the romance. If you’ve read my work, obviously I’ve got a mix in here. I thought it might be interesting to talk about the variations. (I obviously think people can find happiness in a whole bunch of different configurations and life choices. My characters make a wide range of choices, both in the immediate aftermath of a book and further down the road.)
Summer (any time) reading fun
It’s time for summer reading challenges where I am. Whatever time of year it is for you, I thought it might be fun to do a round up of some reading challenges. Some of these come from libraries, and some come from other groups. I’m still waiting on my local library’s challenge (out on June 17th), but I’m thinking about how I’d like to nudge my reading a little bit. (To be honest, a lot of it has been research reading, one way or another, and I would like to mix it up, and also just read more.) Here are some different challenges to check out. You can also check your local library systems (a lot of libraries put something together for adults, as well as for kids and teens.) If there’s nothing up yet, check back later in June, my local public library isn’t launching theirs until the 17th.
Bound for Perdition is here!
Get your copy of Bound For Perdition now! In 1917, Lynet has done what seemed impossible. A skilled bookbinder, she’s worked to create magical journals that can readily communicate with each other. When she returns from leave for the death of her father, she’s given a new challenge – make them faster and cheaper. She and Ellis, the papermaker on the project, struggle to figure out how to move forward. When Reggie is assigned to help them, Lynet isn’t sure what to do with him – or make of him. Recently invalided out of the front, he’s like all the Schola men downstairs who ignore or insult her. But he’s also willing to fetch the tea, take instruction from her, and share some good ideas. Reggie isn’t sure how much help he can be, but he’s soon swept up by the project’s potential and fascinated by Lynet’s skills and knowledge. When problem after problem crops up for the project, he’s willing to do what it takes to protect the work and keep moving forward. And for those of you who’ve read other books of Albion, a look at Temple Carillon and his wife Delphina, in 1917. Get your copy of Bound For Perdition now!
My plans for 2023
Now that I’ve talked about what I got up to in 2022, it’s time to look forward into 2023. I’m incredibly excited about my plans for 2023. There’s quite a lot to come! Publication dates may shift a little, but I expect them to be fairly close to the following. Coming out in 2023 This year, I’m alternating between a series of 1920s books (Mysterious Arts) and books dealing with the Second World War (the Land Mysteries series).
What I got up to in 2022
It is the time of year where a roundup of what I did seems useful for a variety of reasons. (Come back next week for what’s coming in 2023!) What came out in 2022 I put out four novels, two novellas, and a substantial extra in 2022. That’s a lot! Links here that aren’t the title (in the header) will take you to my public wiki. There you can see more details about people and places.