June Got Away From Me

I was supposed to put up a true update on what I'm doing at the end of June, but then I quit being a human. Shout out to my depression and feeling 100% like crap for that one. I'm trying to work through it with my therapist so I can get back to something that look like a functional person, but it currently remains to be elusive.

Onto what you actually came here for....author ramblings!

Fate Unseen....Fate Unseesn...FATE UNSEEN! It's like Bloody Mary. Say it three times and it'll pop out of nowhere, or so I wished. Still editing it. My editing has been reduced to fits of trying to get it done because I have lost all motivation for it, so I'm doing what I can. What does that mean for the book coming out this year? A miracle. That's it. If I manage to publish it before the end of this year it will definitely be a miracle and I'm gonna have me some peach Jim Beam and tea to celebrate.

My struggle with editing has nothing to do with the story itself because once I'm in it, I'm in it and I'm engaged. The story is still wonderful, but with me being off kilter mentally, it really messes with my ability to focus. So again, the story is not shit. Or I don't think it's shit.

I've been outlining my next book and working on Adventures of Swift when I haven't been editing. Both of these projects are fun and light so they're a form of escapism for me on top of the fanfiction that I've read a million times...anyways...

The new book's working title is called "The Plumber's Daughter." A cute small-town romance about a former investigative journalist by the name of Carolyn Knox who buys a house in a small country town in Virginia as an attempt to escape the evil clutches of Washington D.C. The house of course needs a little love, and when her side lawn gets a sudden toxic pond thanks to her septic tank; she calls the local plumber, Tyler Meade. However, the person who ends up knocking on Carolyn's door is his daughter, Tyshell a.ka. Ty.

This story is going to be nothing but cuteness with a low level of tension. I'm refuse to even call it angst because I'm trying to minimize the angst. If you want angst go read Pool of Lies or Reappearance of Summer.

As for Adventures of Swift, I finished episode five and I'm writing episode 6. I may do a surprise drop on Patreon and post episode 2 since I can't work on what I need to. I fleshed out episode five wonderfully though last week, and I'm in love with the lore I've created for it. This means I'm anxious to share it with the world Squee. I'm also enjoying the fact that I'm keeping to my 10k words or less for each episode.

Oh, I completely forgot! There is a sale happening on Smashwords, and all my books are 50% off until the end of the month, and each week one of them is going to be free. This week it is Avery Lawson: The Last Pureblood. You call can acquire that one while I beat myself over the head and try to finish editing Fate Unseen.

Last thing I have is, put a poll in my July newsletter asking my readers which of my books they would like to see on Kindle Unlimited beginning August. I really don't like the Kindle Unlimited program because it means Amazon gets exclusivity for 3 months, but I'm willing to compromise by enrolling one book at a time in the progam. If you've been anxious to read one of my books and are a part of the KU program, click here to vote. A new window will open, taking you to the July newsletter where you can cast your vote.

I'll count up all the votes on July 31st, so anything that comes in after 12:00AM (EST) on July 30th, will not be counted for. And the book that gets the most votes will be announced on 8/1.

Heyyy, I think this was a decent sized post. I'm going to wrestle my brain and get something done, don't know what, but something. Remember to review the books you've read especially those written by indie and self-published authors. Side note: If you're reviewing my books, please leave a review on Smashwords. No one reviews there, and yeah, sure, Amazon is king, but I prefer Smashwords over them.

Until next time....

-DJ Small

Whew! It has been a minute...

I live! I live! I know it has been a long time since I put up a blog post. I'm so delayed with this that I'm only doing one post this month. I know I put out the newsletter, but I feel like blogging is more intimate. I can ramble a bit, and don't feel like I'm being annoying. With the newsletter I feel like I am even though it comes out once a month.

But enough about me and my thoughts. I have the greatest news ever! I finished the first round of edits for Fate Unseen, which is book 2 of the Last Pureblood series. Next up for me is....more editing! Which is actually me typing up the edits from the first round since I do those by hand, but I also keep looking for ways to tweak the story, and make sure it's consistent and makes sense. But this second round of edits shouldn't be as strenuous as the first ones since I'm not taking a blob of story and turning it into something that you all would want to read.

Because I feel confident that the second round of edits should be quick, I'm hoping it won't take all of December to get through them. I've cleaned my desk off and everything, so I am ready to tackle this thing after turkey day. Once I'm through with the second round, I'll send it off to my editor so she can do her magic.

I'm going to be real with everyone, this second book kicked my ass. I've written series of stories before in fanfic world, but this one was messy, and you know what. It wasn't even regular messy. It was capital M.E.S.S.Y. There were details I had to cover, and when I missed something I had to go back and put it in. Seriously this book had me questioning my abilities as writer. I'm sure some of you know this if you follow me on Twitter.

Long story short, I have learned a valuable lesson with this second book, and I'm going to make sure I remember it for book three. Book three is going to be a late 2021 release. Avery and I need a break from each other before we can continue our journey.

With that said, book two will be done as soon as it is ready. I'm still banking on a release by the end of 2020's first quarter, but we shall see. In the mean time, I'm going to gear up my serials for 2020, and possibly a book release. I haven't decided yet. I was thinking about keeping it pretty low key for 2020, but I am coming up with this story and it has kept my attention, so it there is a chance it might find its way out in the world next year. It's not a story that is for the faint of heart, and it's not even romance. I'll toss it under thriller if I bump up the suspense and intrigue. A few months back I said that I wanted to write another dark and twisted story on Twitter, and guess what, here we are.

In other news, Reappearance of Summer is still on sale at Smashwords and Amazon. It will also be on sale during December along with Avery Lawson: The Last Pureblood, and Pool of Lies. Murderous Profession will see a price drop, so next month you'll be able to get all my books at ridiculously cheap prices.

That's all I have for this post, next month's newsletter will be out on 8th, and I'm kicking around an idea for newsletter subscribers, but I think I'm going to hold off on it. I'll see how I feel after turkey day. Speaking of my subscribers, did anyone check out the the teaser I put up for Fate Unseen a week or two ago? What did we think of it?

I've rambled long enough. Don't forget to review your books. Give an author the gift of reviewing their book this season.

Enjoy the rest of November!

-DJ Small

Aw, Snap! A Second Post For March

I must be doing things if there is a second blog post this month. Hello all, I hope we've had a great month so far. I'm enjoying this little break before I start editing Murderous Profession. Trying to do take care of some updates on the website and preparing it to take orders, so I took down the store while that is going on. It'll be back on April 1st, and it is live once again you'll be able to purchase signed copies of Reappearance of Summer and start reserving your signed copy of Murderous Profession.  By then the cover finalized. If you want to try you hand at winning a free, signed copy of Murderous Profession you can vote on which of the covers you like here and if your cover wins you'll be entered in a drawing with everyone else who voted for the same cover. Voting ends on the 31st and is open to those in the US.

In regards to book reservations, if you follow me on Twitter I said I was playing around with a new idea to have my books printed by a new company because I wanted better quality books. However, since this isn't like print on demand where you the reader can buy a book and Amazon prints it and ships it out to you, I have to buy stock.

I will only start with a low volume of books, and once that is gone that'll be it. Will physical copies be available on Amazon? No for US readers, but yes for international ones. This is because of shipping, and I'm still trying to find a way to ship internationally without going broke. I know I stated that once I'm out of books that will be it, but there is a caveat. There will be a book request form on the website and every few weeks I'll fulfill the requests received.

Why am I telling you this when I'm bringing up book reservations? Because if you are a US based reader, and would like a physical copy of Murderous Profession, you will need to fill out the reservation form to make sure you get one.

This new change will only be for new books. My current titles on Amazon will remain where they are. At some point I will update those books to the new printing company, but we'll see how that goes.

Another change I will be rolling out on the website is the ability to purchase digital copies of my books. They'll still be available on Amazon and Smashwords, but I want my website to essentially have everything someone visiting the site would be looking for.

Lastly, I'm setting up a page for my serials to be on, so I'm going to be quiet busy the next few days, but it's all for a good reason.

Okay, to recap changes are coming to the website. You should go vote on a cover for a chance to win a free copy of Murderous Profession, and lastly thank you for reading and the support. If you've read any of my books don't forget to review them. Or at least tell me what you thought on Twitter lol. Next time I should have some details on book 2 of the Last Pureblood seris.

Until next time...

-DJ Small

And Suddenly It Was December

For a year that went by slower than molasses, November went by pretty damn quick

Happy holiday season for those celebrating some sort of seasonal holiday this month, and for those of you that don't celebrate holidays, happy December.

Nothing special this entry just wanted to say thank you to all those who have purchased Reappearance of Summer. I hope everyone has enjoyed it thus far, and if you've finished reading it and want to show a little love you can leave a review on Goodreads or Amazon. For the next few months my books will be available on Kindle Unlimited so if you're enrolled in the program definitely give my books a read without the commitment. With them being in the program I'm going to be able to make the books free on certain days so be on the look out.

I'd like to take this time to allude to a new project that should be showing up in a month or two. It's not the second Last Pureblood book. It's actually something I have been working on for the last few months, and surprisingly, it was easy to write while working on Reappearance of Summer. I'll release the details about it when I'm ready for the world to know more, but it's going to be something that will only be offered on my website and you won't be able to find it anywhere else. Yeah, it's that elusive. This brings me to my newsletter subscribers. Once I'm ready to release it into the world, I'll send those of you who are subscribed to my website newsletter a link for early access to this new project. That's it for now on that, but if you want the early access link subscribe to my newsletter, which gets sent out as infrequently as I update my blog 😒

I've got some changes coming at the beginning of the year, but mostly updating the website and stuff. I'm going to introduce a new logo because I think it's time for a new one.


Last Pureblood book two. There we go. That was my obligatory mention, and you know what they say, no news is good news. Does that work in the writing world? It's being worked on. The beginning is slow, so I'm going to have to do some rewrites, but yeah it's coming along and still on track for 2019.

That is December's blog post. Fingers crossed I make another one. If not, I hope everyone has a good holiday and happy new year. Thank you for making 2018 a great one for me just by reading my books and buying them. I hope to bring you more in 2019.

-DJ Small

Ahhhh....November Is Upon Us

It has been awhile since I have done a blog post. Yikes! Between Reappearance of Summer and work I'm surprised I remember my name. I hope all those participating in NaNoWriMo are having productive and fun writing sessions, and I can't wait for the new books to come out. As for me, my writing life is dedicated to the next book in the Last Pureblood series, but before I get into that let's talk about my partially released book, Reappearance of Summer.

This book has taught me two things. One, I'm not doing pre-orders again. It just doesn't work out for a writer with a full-time job. You need to have more than four hours a day to be able to meet the deadlines. Second thing I learned is that I need to keep records of my ISBNs stored in several different locations. The one company in the US that sells ISBNs had a security breach and I couldn't access my ISBNs on the management site. I have them now and things with the physical copies of the book are moving along.

I just finished reading the proof to see what errors were in it, and that book is going to be my first magnum opus, at least to me. I feel it hits everything on the emotional scale without being too much or bogging down the story, and both main characters are likeable. Summer swears a lot, but I mean she's also been through a lot. Again, this is just my opinion. If you want to see if I'm wrong or right the book comes out on Smashwords and Amazon on 11/15, but if you truly can't wait, you can get on my Gumroad store where I released it on 10/29, the day it was supposed to come out, however, a pre-order snafu happened, and that ended with me having egg on my face.

Right, so with Reappearence of Summer under my belt I'm trying to get the momentum going on book two of the Last Pureblood series. I read a few of the reviews and everyone likes the story, but everyone hated the cliffhanger and I seem to repeat a lot of things. There is no cliffhanger in the second book—we got to get this thing going, and I'm being mindful of the repetition. I try to catch everything, but after four or five rounds of editing (1 of those done by my editor) it's hard to see the unnecessary filler. I'll recruit another editor if I need to.

What's exactly going to happen in book 2? Well we're two days out from Avery's first change and she's done killed a whole lot of people. Girl went from harmless park ranger to having a body count. So we got to address everything from the last book. We need to know what's going on with her and Rhea and if they make it official or if it's a dead fish in water. Also Avery isn't normal and we need to know why. There are a lot of things for me take hold of and run with them, and I'm going to, but I'm also going to be introducing elements to set us up for other parts of the series. We're still building this world, but I'm also going to give us some more action, feels, and murder. Maybe on the murder.

I have decided to switch up my book release strategy. Pre-orders are done, so I'm going to announce book releases the week before they come out, but only for Amazon and Smashwords. I don't know about physical copies. I've been thinking about not doing them, but I also know it's nice to have the actual book in your hand. I'm on the fence. Either way it goes I'm committed to releasing two books a year which is doable with my full time job.

This brings me to my standalone for 2019. I had everything planned out, but then I was hit with the mother of ideas and it will not go away. I was supposed to work on my first trans story, but this mother of ideas has me changing my schedule. But this idea has a title, plot points, a soundtrack, and a mother fricking ending. How can I ignore that? It's not to say my other story didn't have all of that, but this one is more captivating because it's going to be completely different for me.

Okay, so we have caught up on everything you missed in October. Oh, about the newsletter, I will be cancelling it. I don't have much to put in it, so yeah. If anything you can follow me on Goodreads and be notified of new blog posts since the blog is linked to it.

All right, this turned out to be a lot longer than I anticipated, but I'm glad it did. Again, Reappearance of Summer comes out on 11/15 on Amazon and Smashwords. So don't forget it to get and after you read it tell me what you think about it. Actually, if you've read any of my books you should review them or at least rate them on Goodreads. Look, I even provided a link 😏

I hope we've enjoyed the update and until next time...happy reading!

-DJ Small

Monday, Monday....

I hope everyone is excited because on Monday, Reappearance of Summer will be available digitally. I hope all those who have pre-ordered will tell me what they think once they finish it. For my folks who pre-ordered a physical copy of the book I have pushed that back due to my poor perception of time. I will send an e-mail about the particulars.

With another book under my belt, more or less, I'm looking to my next once which we all know will be the 2nd book in the Pureblood series. I am diligently working on it as we speak. I think it should be out late March or early April. I'll let everyone know once I'm ready. I'm going to change things a bit in regards to the release, but I'll say more once I have a better understanding of my plan. It may include using an actual calendar.

I've got some things coming in January, but again, I'll talk about them when it get closer. Right now, I'm going to decompress, jump into the Last Pureblood sphere and hopefully come up with a good book for you all.

Happy reading!

-DJ Small

Hello, hello!

I feel like it has been sometime since a blog post, but I haven't been doing anything except working. Kidding, I have been doing book and author things. A newsletter wasn't one of those things because I completely forgot, but October will have a newsletter.

Reappearance of Summer is still with the editor and I should have it back by the end of this week. Once I do my review I think I'll be two steps closer to being ready for the book's release at the end of October. If you haven't done so already you can pre-order the ebook on Amazon, my Gumroad store, and Barnes and Noble. Signed copies can also be pre-ordered through the Gumroad store. I'm only ordering enough to fill the pre-orders I recieve so if you want a signed paperback of Reappearance of Summer do it now because pre-orders end on October 15th.

For the last year or so I've been trying to figure out what to do with my serialized short stories. I was going to do Patreon, but honestly I couldn't justify charging people monthly and if I got caught up in something else then there would be a period of time where I wouldn't be putting out content. So, I nixed the idea in the bud, and kept thinking about what to do because offering the serials is a stepping stone for my graphic novel which isn't in the near future, but definitely in the next two years. I tried to go for Radish, but it seems I don't fit their platform. Fortunately, I rubbed my two brain cells together and have figured out how to offer my serials and will share the details at the beginning of 2019. I want to have the volume one of the first finished first. 

Book two of The Last Pureblood series is being written as we speak. It's sitting pretty at 15k word at the moment, but by the time my weekend is it should be at 20 or more. Things pick up right where we left off. I'm introducing some new characters, Avery meets Jon, and of course Avery's big change happens. There are also some exciting bits in this one. The second book is going to wrap up the groundwork book one started and we're going to start getting to the meat and potatoes of story line which is Avery dealing with her role in the supernatural community and the war among the werewolves. There is going to be excitement abound.

Lastly, my first book Pool of Lies turns two on September 26th, and to celebrate it's getting a face lift along with a nip and tuck. In book terms: new cover and I had to update the insides. The book will be on sale the entire week of the 26th for a dollar so make sure you get the story that drove me into self-publishing.

Okay, so this actually was an informative blog post. Proud of me. Main things to take away: pre-order Reappearance of Summer if you done so especially if you wanted a signed paperback; book 2 of The Pureblood Series is underway; and check out Pool of Lies new cover. Oh, and leave a review if you could on any of the books. They help the algorithms.

Be safe, be happy, and enjoy a good book.

-DJ Small

My Metadata Is Going To Be All Screwed Up

I can't seem to spell the word reappearance and spell check on my browser seems to only want to work 75% of the time. Thus, screwing up my metadata because I have to go back and change everything which takes like 24-48 hours to switch over. Anyway....rant over.

Pre-order your copy of Reappearance of Summer today! Physical copies can be reserved on my Gumroad page. Digital copies can be reserved on Amazon, Gumroad, and Barnes and Noble.

This is me putting my foot in my mouth. I said I wasn't going to do Amazon pre-orders because of how they do them. Well, I figured out if I schedule the book release for two weeks later than the release date then I can compensate for any incidents which may arise and cause me to delay the release. This being said, the release date on Amazon says 11/15/2018, but it is actually 10/29/2018 barring any complications. So, no one is getting jipped. This is me trying to get around Amazon's tight policy in regards to delaying pre-orders.

Any questions let me know. I have updated everything with the correct spelling of the word "reappearance" and you should see the update in like 3 days because everything is sooooo slow.

Oh, small announcement. I am beginning a serial and it will be available on my website. I have decided not to do Patreon because I couldn't justify it. I've deleted my page and if you were really stoked about it, I'm sorry. Maybe I'll work something out in regards to giveaways and what not.

All right, this was a quick update and don't forget to pre-order your copy of Reappearance of Summer especially if you are wanting a signed copy because I'm only ordering enough to fulfill pre-order numbers. Just an FYI for you all.

I'm off to go see where else I need to go correct the spelling of my book. Until next time...

-DJ Small

9/10/2018 Is The Day!

Good day one and all! I'm still recovering from Dragon Con and the rest of the work week, so bear with me. This was supposed to be a vlog, but then I realized I talk too damn much and have zero video editing skills. Also my face is ugly, but this is neither here nor there. Onto the purpose of this post.

Reappearance of Summer

I am aiming for October 29th for a release date, but it is a tentative one. Depends on what the editing process has for me. Pre-sales will start September 10th and end on October 15th. This will only be on Smashwords and Gumroad. I feel like a month and some change gives me enough time to order books, sign them, and ship them out to their new homes. If it looks like an October 29th release date isn't possible, I'll let everyone know, but fingers crossed for the 29th of October.

Amazon faithful, I mentioned in my last post why I wouldn't be doing pre-sales on there. You all will have to wait for the book to be released. Trust me, the pre-sale crowd isn't getting anything you aren't.

Patreon News

I talked about this in my last blog post and it will also go live on September 10th. This is where I'm going to post my short stories, commissioned artwork, and other stuff. I give stuff away also, but on a quarterly basis. So check it out and let me know what you think. The first few posts will be the intro post then I'm going to dive right in to my first short story series entitled The Trials of Swift and The Dark Queen. It's a superhero story. Excited for this one to get out.

Okay, those are the important points. I'm working on book 2 of the Pureblood Series and it is going swimmingly. If I don't run into any snags I should be on track to have it out in the first quarter of 2019. Anyways this was a quick update to let everyone know September 10th is a busy day for me, but you know what? I said eff it all and pulled the trigger on everything, so you all benefit.

Hope everyone is enjoying what's left of summer and can manage to enjoy a good book while doing so.

Until next time...

-DJ Small

Book Cover Reveal, Patreon, and Pre-Sales...Oh My!

Before I lock myself in my cave, to finish updating the digital copy of Reappearance of Summer, I've got a few thing to get out there.

To everyone who has read the teaser chapter of RoS, thank you so much! I'm just excited as you are to get to have you read the rest of the story. It is an intense one and you only got a taste of it. If you haven't read the teaser chapters got to my Wattpad and check them out.

Since I am on the subject of RoS, I also want to thank those who saw the many renditions of the cover and my newsletter subscribers for giving me input on it. I'm sorry you had to go through that, but it helped. Went back to the drawing board, stopped being a lazy git, and came back with a cover that does capture what I feel is the essence of the story. It's up on the Wattpad and on my Twitter header, but here it for you to see up close and personal. I feel like the font has a Law & Order feel, but I've come to appreciate it.

Next up, is pre-sales. Let me start by saying I honestly don't know when this book will be out. I'm aiming for late October, but being a realist mid-November will also be likely. There are too many variables involved, but it is what it is. Do know it will be out before December though. Okay, with that disclaimer out of the way pre-sales will go live September 15th. Pre-sales are going to be through my Gumroad store for EPUB, PDF, and physical copies. Pre-sales will also be taking place on Smashwords. Kindle pre-sales WILL NOT be happening. I only capitalized it to make sure it stood out. I've talked about my distaste for how Amazon does pre-sales, and I'm not going to get into it again. Pre-sales will go for probably a month, maybe later if it looks like the book is going to have a November release.

And lastly, and probably something that may intrigue you all, is my Patreon. I plan to launch it on September 1st. You're probably wondering what the hell is going to be on it and what I plan to give people. How about this, go to the preview site and check out the tiers. Some things may change prior to launch, but go look and get a feel of where I'm at. But this is where I'm going to be put my short stories and some of my other smaller projects. I can let you know the first thing I'm posting is episode one of my episodic story entitled The Trials of Swift and the Dark Queen. It's a superhero story. Anyway, I plan to link up with some great artists to get artwork done of my book characters so I can make posters part of the exclusive content. I've already got art of Avery from Avery Lawson: The Last Pureblood and I'm super stoked about it.


Okay, so I'm going to go lock myself in my cave to work on those edits and you all go click the links and have some fun. And before I go, here's the Avery Lawson artwork I was talking about. Done by the talented Nicole and you can find her on Twitter @tealideal. I am super geeked about it, and I do have a poster so I could see how it would look and it is frickin fantastic. I may give it away. Anyway here's the art and until next time....

-DJ Small

All Right, Let's Talk Reappearence of Summer

Last week I accomplished a feat bigger than man, I finished writing the story that will be my 3rd book entitled Reappearance of Summer. I begin editing next week after taking a two week breather from it. Trust me, that breather was spent working on other things, so it wasn't even a true breather. Anyways, I digress. Some housekeeping information. I should have a release date by mid-August along with an idea of when pre-orders will be. 

Due to my distaste for how Amazon handles pre-orders they will not be available there. You can pre-order on my website where it will take you to the various platforms you can pre-order from, which is just Smashwords and Gumroad. My distaste for Amazon is that they won't let you push back a pre-order date, and if you try to cancel a pre-order they pretty much penalize you for it. These other sites do not. They understand people are human. I'll put the links on social media and my website when everything goes down.

Okay, now that that is out of the way the true reason for this post, among other things, is I want to talk about the story. I know I've posted teasers on Twitter, and last week I posted the first chapter, but I want to discuss the themes of the story, so readers have a good understanding of it.

To start, Reappearance of Summer was an idea I came up with in ten minutes, in my car, after I had just gotten to work. I still don't know what sparked the idea originally, usually it's a song, but this one wasn't. Anyway, the story does take place 100 years in the future (for now), but there aren't too many futuristic elements because it isn't a major factor. The main character, Summer Hawkins, has lost her leg due to a plane crash she was involved in, but again, this isn't a challenging obstacle she deals with in the story. When it gets mentioned it's more because she has to do tasks differently because of it, but like her being a woman, it's not a big deal.

Summer's story is more about her finding her way. After her jet crashed and losing her leg, she lost her job which got rid of her sense of self, and coupled with the PTSD and depression she suffers from, Summer's having a hard time figuring her lot in life which causes a downward spiral. 

Before I can tie everything together I have to acknowledge Summer's ex-wife, Valarie "Val" Hawkins. Who is the first black female president of the United States (Holla!). When I created Val I said she was going to do all the things. Val harbors guilt over Summer's crash because she signed off on the mission that involved Summer's jet crash, and she also believes she failed her. After the crash Val didn't know what to do and she feels how she handled everything is what caused Summer to leave and eventually divorcing her. Did I mention this all happened during her first term as president? So you have to imagine the tremendous stress she was under.

Now everything with the crash and Summer leaving Val happened two years ago, so the story starts in "present day" with Val literally dragging Summer back to Washington D.C. Throughout the story the two of them confront the feelings and emotions they've kept locked up, and not with just each other, but also their friends and family. Summer finds herself at an impasse of either confronting her demons or going back to her life of running from them. While Val struggles with having Summer around again because their sudden divorce did a number on her and she didn't get the proper time to grieve it due to her being president.

There ups and downs, a subplot that seems cliche and it is, but Val is the president and I needed something that didn't result in multiple books; and perhaps maybe Val and Summer finding the light at the end of a long and angsty tunnel together. I tried to handle Summer's PTSD and depression with grace and tact. A lot of Google searches were done, so I hope it comes off as genuine as possible.

In a drawn-out nutshell this is Reappearance of Summer. Let me know how you feel about it in the comments.

Next up in this blog post, is the second book in the Avery Lawson series. I accidentally started outlining it, how that is possible, not sure, but it happened. We pick up right where we left off. As I've said before the 1st and 2nd books are one manuscript split in two. The thing was massive and horribly written, and by doing this I've come to realize some elements would do better in later books than they would now. Early 2019 is my anticipated release for that one, but only time will tell. I'm going to bust my ass to get out there though.

Okay, that is all I have. I'm anxious for you all to read Reappearance of Summer, so I will work hard to get out as soon as possible. Oh, one more thing. Cover reveal will happen after I finish this first round of edits. Might do some editing to it before letting it out.

Until next time....happy reading!

-DJ Small

Surprise Time!

I've taken a time out to edit the first chapter of Reappearance of Summer so you all can get a taste of what's coming in the fall. At some point the first three chapters will be up on my Wattpad account. All right without further ado, I give you chapter one of Reappearance of Summer.

The Finish Line Is In Sight

 Yep, that's right. Reappearence of Summer is eight scenes and an epilogue from being done. I should have it done by the end of next week. Which means I can finish reading The Last Pureblood and get started on outlining book two. I started reading it last week, but I'm focused on getting ROS done.

First chapter of ROS will be posted on the blog and Wattpad next week. This also means I'm going to do the cover reveal the same day. Next week will be a big week if you have been anxiously waiting to hear more about this book.

Other than that, Avery Lawson: The Last Pureblood is on sale at Smashwords until the end of July. It is 75% off. An Amazon sale will happen in August, but definitely check out the Smashwords sale.

Update on the super secret project, everything is in line for it being announced in September. There is this and that, and more of this. Okay, I'll be unveiling a new story which will be released in a serial format. There I have said enough. When we get closer to me announcing, I'll release the cover for it.

Oh, I know a newsletter didn't come out this Sunday. I didn't have much to update, so there won't be one for July, but I compensate with more blog posts this month. However, I don't think it'll be much.

Upcoming Sales And Some Rambling

While I'm busy plugging away at Reappearance of Summer, I wanted to let everyone know that Avery Lawson: The Last Pureblood will be be available for 3.99 on Smashwords during their July 1st - July 31st sale. I will hold a Kindle sale in August for it.

I want to have more traffic going to my Smashwords page because I am kicking around the idea that all future releases will be on it and my Gumroad store before heading to Kindle. They have a kinder pre-order program than Kindle does, and by kinder I mean it's flexible and offers more freedom. Plus it has this nice local business feel to it lol. But this decision also hinges on my ability to print physical books. I love Createspace, but, I want more options in regards to printing. This doesn't mean I'm going to go HAM, but I'm going to do some more research before making any final decisions.

All right so the Smashwords sale starts July 1st, and I will remind you all on Twitter when it gets closer.

The sale for Pool of Lies has ended, and it's now at the set price of $3.00 for now until I make it forever free.

Oh, I forgot! Who is excited for the super secret project? There isn't much I can tell at the moment. All I can let you know is that it's one of my Swan Queen fanfic ideas that I have turned into an original. There are other parts of this, but I'm keeping mum on it. But do know...

 Okay, that was a brief blog post. I'll hopefully will be coming back with another here shortly with some Reappearance of Summer news. I'm rounding the 3rd part of the book and I'm developing some immense feels for the characters which means they are suffering, so yeah enjoy that.


Until next time...


-DJ Small

End of Year Excitement

Oh my goodness....this week has been a trying time for me, and it has only just started. Not only am I about to get to the second half of Reappearance of Summer, but I had a mild crisis. The crisis involved the second book for 2019. I had no idea what I was going to do. I did have a story idea in mind, but I'm currently writing into a script and I'm not quite ready to turn it into a novel, so I found myself needing a second book for 2019.

Here's the thing I am a series writer. My ideas grow and expand on top of one another until I feel I have reached an adequate conclusion. It's very rare that I come up with a standalone story. It's because of this quirky writer trait that none of my current ideas work for 2019. I don't't want to tie myself up creatively with two series. But! I have circumvented that and have a standalone story for 2019. I just need to outline it and it will be gravy. I think it's going to be on the side of comedy/mystery/drama.

Now about my excitement for the end of the year. I have such amazing things planned, and I honestly wish I could talk about them, but I'm working on that thing where I try not to announce every idea in my head because it may or may not come to fruition. All I can say is if you want beforehand knowledge about what I'm cooking up for the end of the year sign-up for the newsletter because those that receive it will know what's up before blog readers.

All right, I'm going to reel in some of this excitement and work on ROS before bed.

Until next time...happy reading!

-DJ Small

Welcome!

We are on a new blogging platform, but it's still the same crazy nonsense from me. Why the change? The blog I had on my website had an issue with spam in the comments. I asked my website hosting service if they could possibly implement some extra security, and they said that's a no-go so I changed blogging services. The old one is still up in case anyone feels like going back in time.

You all have probably noticed all the other changes on the site, and let me tell you none of them were easy to make. I fcked up the template of the site, the red, and now it's the green. But I've also done some back end maintenance to make sure the site was 100% secure and safe to use. The reason for that, you will find out in due time.

Outside of that, I have reached the pivotal turning point in Reappearance of Summer. I need to re-write the most recent scene though because, you ever want something to take you by surprise and punch you in the gut with feels? That's why.

I have been scheming and plotting, and it's all for building up my readership, and really you know get myself out there. For all those who have read and reviewed Avery Lawson: The Last Pureblood, thank you! Once I am done with ROS I will be outlining the second book in the series so I can get out during the first quarter of 2019.

That wasn't too bad for a blog update. Until next time...

Happy Reading !



-DJ Small


ETA: Pool of Lies is free on Smashwords and Gumroad until 6/21!