It’s been a long minute since I actually put a few good words down on this page. Between Virtual LibertyCon and getting the Starflight Anthology ready for publication, I’ve been a wee bit on the busy side.
A little while back I was asked to jump on the Chats From the Blog Cabin podcast to talk about writing and publishing. It was a fun hour of randomness.
The regular stuff
Beyond that, I’ve been doing as much as I can in the garden and Finishing up the Chicken coop/run area so we can get our hens over here and established before it’s too late.
Lots of good grub coming in from the garden, including our first apples and the figs won’t be far behind. Looks like we lost the larger of the plum trees after the move. I’ll wait until next spring to see what it does. If it doesn’t bud out then I’ll get cut down for kindling.
The Corner Scribblers
My little local writer’s group, the Corner Scribblers, have resumed our in-person meetings for the first time in around a year and a half. It was damned good to see everyone again for real instead of just on Discord. Plus, we’ve found ourselves a wonderful new home for meetings, Caffeine Addicts in Ringold Georgia. Anyone looking for a great coffee shop in the area, check them out. 7819 Nashville St, Ringgold, GA 30736
On to the writing stuff!
Latest release
Anyone who follows this page or the Three Ravens Publishing page should know by now that the latest release that I’m part of is Starflight: Tales from the Starport Lounge. A collection of short stories based in the Video game universe of Starflight. A game that I played way too many hours of back in the day. Getting the opportunity to not only write in the universe but to be the one to publish the title is still so surreal. Then toss the fact that I managed to score a story from Robert Silverberg for the antho, granted it is a reprint, but still!
Seventeen incredible authors. Seventeen amazing stories. One fantastic sci-fi universe, where the only limit is one’s imagination. Welcome to Starflight.
Based on the exploration-based Starflight video game series created by Greg Johnson and the Binary Systems team, the stories in Tales From the Starport Lounge flesh out and shine a light into the darkest corners of the known universe. Join the last vestiges of Humanity and their alien allies (the reptilian Thrynn, the insectoid Velox, and the plant-based Elowan) as they attempt to carve out their own territory in a sector of space filled with wondrous opportunity and deadly threats. Brave explorers seek out new worlds to colonize while merchants cruise from starport to starport, their holds laden with exotic goods.
Not all in this futuristic setting have noble intent. For every prospector and trader attempting to make a difference, a dozen pirates, smugglers, and mobsters engage in all manner of criminal enterprise. Gangs fill the underbellies of every major city and raid the trade routes between the stars, pushing the outnumbered and outgunned Interstel Police to their limit and forcing civilians to take matters into their own hands. It’s a rough and tumble universe, where one wrong move could spell doom for an expedition, or grant enough wealth to buy a planet.
Board your ship and set course for stars unknown! The universe awaits.
Now that the chaos of LibertyCon and Starflight are over, I’ve managed to knock out my short story titled, “Shoot From The Hip” for the “It Come from the Trailer Park” Anthology. The story follows my character, Braxton Hicks, on a side tangent when the guy just wanted to relax and take a break from life for a bit. I had a lot of fun writing the story and expanding Braxton’s universe.
Coming up in the next two months, I’m working on my Salvage Universe submission, featuring Vann Hagar, my character from the co-written novel Smuggler’s Run.
I have another short due to Bill Webb next month for the Last Brigade universe followed by my a fLUX Runners submission for the next “Give me LibertyCon” anthology.
As soon as I can finish out these shorts I’ll be able to start cranking on my next novel, Ceres Falling, a Mil/Scifi Spaceopera, which is something I never thought I’d really want to write,. But hey, when the squirrels are screaming, ya know. It’ll be interesting to see where it goes.
Other than that, I’ve managed to set myself up with a TikTok for shits and giggles. Figured it might be a little fun to play with. Check it out and give me a follow if you’re over that way.
So until next time, Keep your heads up and your Pens sharp
~WJR~