This post is also going out as an email to my ButtonDown mailing list (which you can sign up for here) so you can read it there if you wish.

Anyway, here’s what’s going on in my life and so on.

Writing:

I’m always talking about writing, it seems. And writing about writing. And thinking about writing. And dreaming about it, too. No kidding: I often have dreams wherein I’ve written THE PERFECT STORY only I can’t find it in any of my files or on my computer, and no one has a copy. Once, it was a screenplay that I couldn’t find, which is odd since I don’t write screenplays. The first time I had this dream a few years ago, my story could also heal people of any disease or injury. If only I could find it.

Weird, right?

Anyway, here’s what’s up:

• Padma. I finally finished the revision of this novel! Only I ended up cutting so many scenes and words (and even a character) that it became a novella. But that’s okay! There are markets for novellas. The next step is to send the revision to my writers’ group, and when they get back to me with their critiques in August, I’ll revise AGAIN and then start querying and sending it out.
• Witness to the Scourge. Still outlining. Still on track to start drafting this one in July. I’ve created a playlist for this one (not in Spotify; I avoid Spotify whenever possible), consisting of Dropkick Murphys, the Pogues, Ennio Morricone, Johnny Cash, and others. It helps inspire me to stay on track.
• Story of the Week. Still going strong.
• Submitting. Earlier this week I submitted a short story for the first time since last summer. I’d decided to take some time off to focus on drafting and revising new stories, and now I’ve got a bunch of them.

I also created a playlist for The X of Doom trilogy, even though I probably won’t start writing that one until mid-2026. It’s fun to plan in advance.

Employment:

Still working. Still job-hunting. Still revising that ol’ resume. The job market these days is saturated with laid-off tech workers, so it’s tough out there. I may switch to a new career field, but most jobs these days want you to have experience with generative AI in one form or another, and since I have such strong anti-GAI feelings, I may have a problem with that.

Politics:

Double ugh.

Health:

Relatively good health, save for the infected hangnail on my thumb and a touch of plantar fasciitis in my left foot. The asthma has left me alone.

Media I’m Consuming:

Reading: I finally finished One Hundred Years of Solitude, so I’ve started reading another Big Cultural Milestone Book: The Faerie Queene by poet Edmund Spenser. The edition I bought myself is a BEAST, full of annotations, history, a brief biography of Spenser, and so on.

I’m also reading a book called Freaky Folklore. It’s inspirational for Witness to the Scourge. Then a craft book on the writing of historical fiction, since The X of Doom counts for that (sigh). Finally, I’m reading Christopher Moore’s newest novel, Anima Rising. Christopher Moore is one of my favorite writers, since his humor is always tempered with sensitivity to his characters; he doesn’t go for the “low-hanging fruit” that so many humor writers do. Moore’s is intelligent and has heart.

Music: I saw the movie Sinners recently, and by God did I love the music in that. I’ve listened to the soundtrack multiple times. Haunting, exciting, and fun in spots and depressing in others. It’s a dark movie, with some dark music. I love it.

That’s all I’ve got for you right now. I don’t even have any cat photos. Here’s hoping everyone is doing well, and remember that I have an open email inbox policy. Feel free to get in touch with me at any time.

-Richard