No Blog Post In June and No Newsletter In July

I guess I could arrange to have a small newsletter sent out this month, but I still don't have much to put in it. So, blog post it is. I needed to do one anyways.

Got the edits back for Outside The Game, so I'm off to do some rewrites to address the issues my editor pointed out. Not sure how long it will take, but I'm going for it. This means the edits for Grisly Politics have been placed on hold for the moment. I also started another course for school, so my plate is looking a little full. But I'm going to manage by golly!

Lats weekend, I went to the Golden Crown Literary Society's conference, which was held in Downtown St. Paul, MN. The hotel was right next to the Mississippi River, which was nice and my friend and I had a great view of it from our room. The conference, like last year's, was fun. My friend and I actually went to the awards banquet this year. We went exploring in the mountains of Colorado last year and missed it. It was a good time and definitely not a sprint of an event. It was my first time going to an in-person awards for author like things, so definitely a lesson learned situation. I mean, I'll go to the ceremony again next year, but I'll probably take the occasional break from it because I don't have the attention span for that lol.

I was also on a panel at the conference. My friend asked, and I said, "Sure, why not?" Lol. That's my response to a lot of things these days. The panel was about trans and nonbinary authors in Sapphic fiction. It was a great panel, and definitely opened the door for a much needed discussion because it exposed the lack of recognition for trans and nonbinary authors in queer spaces. It also posed a question of how writers in the trans community should be recognized? Like a book is fine. You can nominate it for the category/genre it fits in and go for it, but what about those books that don't fit the realm of Sapphic fiction and the author themselves? Like for myself I'm a transmasculine genderqueer individual, who has written Sapphic fiction, but I also have a book where my main character's love interest is a trans man. What if I want to nominate that book? What category would it go in? None of my work is considered straight, but definitely nuanced. Like Dax isn't straight and Eliza is definitely not straight. So I wouldn't want to nominate Murderous Profession and it's subsequent books for something that would fall under that label, but it's an interesting thing to think about. Even more so for books with nonbinary characters.

I'm not sure if any of that made sense, and I edited this post to the best of my ability before posting, but this is something the panel and the trans and nonbinary meetup that happened at the conference triggered in my head. I've also got some other GCLS related news, but I'm waiting for the ball to get rolling on that one. I'm finding myself getting more involved with this organization, and it is all happening inadvertently, but I like the org and it's a welcoming community, which is something I was worried about when I went to my first conference last year. I'm a pretty masculine looking individual and get perceived as cis male consistently, so I had my reservations, but they were for naught and now I'm an enthusiastic supporter.

Anyways, moving on, made new friends at the conference and I might be at Charlottesville Pride selling my books with the Sapphic Lit Pop Up gang. Depends on how it all shakes out. While I feel like I don't have enough books to peddle, I've also realized I need to find alternatives in building up my readership since the old way of tweeting and just letting those posts do the work for me is no longer viable. Oh! I am now on Instagram. Apparently I've actually be on there since at least 2018. I completely forgot I had the account, but you can follow me on there now. It might be my new favorite way to interact with readers and fellow authors.

Let's see, I know I said I was going to have a reader magnet out, but I haven't been able to get it edited. Editing is such a fucking pain in my ass, but it needs to be done. I'm going try and do it in-between things, but we shall see. If worse comes to worse, I'll offer up one of my existing books for free and people can choose which one they want when they sign-up for my newsletter. Might go that route until I have this magnet finished.

Any who, hope we're all having an enjoyable summer and are staying cool. Be on the look out for a newsletter in August.

Until next time....

-DJ Small

Going All In On The Newsletter

Greetings to one and all! We have made it to the end of January, and into February. Here in VA we had a wicked bad cold snap a couple weeks ago, and other than causing my electric bill to jump, I tried not to leave the house, but that thing I call a day job (insert depressed groan here) made me. Granted, there was one day where I had to work from home because the roads weren't the best. Looking forward to some warmer weather. Not Summer, but just mild weather. The kind of weather where you can open the house windows during the day, and burn a nice fire in the pit at night. That kind of weather.

January also saw the return of my monthly newsletter. If you received it, what'd you think? It wasn't anything special, but I think it was a good way to re-introduce myself to my readers. If you haven't read it yet, you can head over to the archive on my website and read it. Do note, any freebies or coupon codes in archived newsletters have expired, so there's no point in clicking on them or trying to use them.

February's newsletter will be a lot more entertaining. As the title of this blog post implies, I'm going to be going all in on my newsletter because social media is a nightmare, and I'm leaning more towards it being my primary mode of interacting with readers and supporters of my work. I think it'll create some interesting interactions. So, to roll out this interactive newsletter I'm going to be accepting questions from people, and will be publishing my favorite questions in my March newsletter. If you have a question, you can send it to me via email or you can use the contact page on my website. I plan to publish all selected questions without names, but if you really want me to shout you out for the question just let me know.

Another thing, and you'll want to click on this link the moment you read this, but I'll be distributing a teaser of my next book Outside The Game in February's newsletter. If you don't want to miss out on this opportunity, go head and click that link I mentioned at the beginning of this paragraph so you don't miss out. I'm almost done with the second pass through of the manuscript, so I feel really good about releasing this teaser.

The next newsletter is going to be released on February 15th just an FYI for those interested in getting that sneak peek of Outside The Game.

So, I've been reading Reappearance of Summer because I found myself wanting to revist it. And, to be quiet frank, while the story is good, there are some issues with it. I mean love the book, the characters, and the world I created within it, but one thing that annoys the piss out of me, are all the minor errors that I'm coming across while reading it. A lot of it is my fault because I didn't have a good grasp of stylistic choices vs. grammar rules, and clearly I have learned since then. I've actually taken time to study The Chicago Manual of Style on top of re-learning grammar rules, and so during my re-read of Reappearance of Summer, I've come to realize a lot of my mistakes could have been prevented by having a copy editor. This is probably true for most of my books, and I do plan to hire one for Outside The Game, but I'm going to need help getting one. 

I've set up a goal on my Ko-Fi page. It's a lofty one of 250 USD, but I'm curious to see how it goes. It'll probably be up for a while. If I don't make goal, I'll keep it up but change it to where I get a copy editor for one of my older books. Yep, that's right, I'm finally going to go through my backlist and re-do the editing on them, update the formatting, and possibly get new covers for them. I haven't decided on the cover thing yet. I want to commission someone to make art for them, but I also just want to refresh it on a basic level. Plus, I'm super finicky about my art. We'll see which way I land on that one.

Anywho, this blog post got away from me. Remember newsletter subscribers will be getting a sneak peek into Outside The Game, I've got a goal on my Ko-Fi page, and if you want to have a question featured in next month's newsletter, you can email me or do it on my contact page.

Don't forget to leave reviews of the books you read, especially the ones by indie publishers and self-published authors.

Until next time...

-DJ Small

Short September Update

Welp folx we are in that time of year where the next few months either blow by really fast or they go really slow, and you end up spiraling. No? Not you? Hmm. Maybe just me then. At least we're easing into my favorite season of the year. Anyway, on to why I'm here.

Edits for the first book of my novella series are going fantastically. Fingers crossed that I will have them completed by the end of next month. After that, they'll be heading to my editor. Hopefully it will be a quick turnaround time frame from them. Doesn't look like it'll be ready in time for publishing this year, but I feel as long as I'm on the right path to publishing at the beginning of next year then I'm not going to sweat it.

I've been enjoying editing this story and writing the next book for it, so I can't wait until I'm in a good place to finally talk about it.

September is when people start looking to the dreaded holiday season, and I think this year, I will be doing sales on my Ko-Fi page and Smashwords. Depending on where I am, I might even set up pre-orders for my novella. Mostly doing the sales to really get back into being in author mode when I'm not having an off day and not working my day job.

Other than that, I do have any further updates for the month. Just been editing and writing, which is all I can do. Once I'm done with my novella, I'll be hopping back into Fate Unseen, so expect me to start whining about it in a month or so.

Until next time...

-DJ Small

I Live!

It's been 9 months since I've posted anything, and my goodness am I sorry. I've been in such a hole and have been trying so hard to dig myself out of it that I've completely let everything slip away from me. Which, in all honesty is a disservice to the people who are out there waiting for me to come out with something new or pick up on one of my series. While I know I have no obligation to put out stories and what not, it does make me feel shitty. At least from a reader's standpoint. As a writer, I know I can keep writing for myself because I've been doing that for decades now, but as a reader to get invested in an author and have them just vanish is a little upsetting. So, I want to apologize for the vanishing act and I will try to get better at it.

Let's talk about a huge thing though. I didn't realize how many people followed my author pages on Goodreads, Amazon, and Smashwords. It's not a big number or anything, but there are a number of people following me, which is good to know because I am no longer on Twitter. I can't condone whatever the hell is going on over there, so I left. I did join Mastodon, but not everyone is on there, so if you're looking for me, your best bet is on Facebook. Another tech cesspool, but everyone is there. Just click the link and you'll be taken to my page so like it! I also recommend that you sign up for my newsletter. Yes, it's still around. I'll probably send out a e-mail to current mailing list suscribers go check and see if people still want to receive it. If not, they can unsubscribe from it. I'm going to bring the newsletter back from the dead, and hopefully I'll have some friends with me to keep it going. Possibly. We'll see.

Work wise the world is imploding. Nothing has been edited. Nothing has been sent to my editor or any editor. I mean, I'm writing all the time, but editing is where everything comes to a grinding halt. I'm trying to overcome this mental block with it, but it's hard. I guess the big question is will there be anything coming out in 2023? What do Magic 8 Balls say? Unclear? Or unable to determine or something like that lol. I'm going to try, but we'll see what the fates have in hand for me.

In other news, I went to this year's GCLS conference in Denver, and had an amazing time. Like seeing the multitude of people who write Sapphic fiction sort of alleviated some of my apprehensions about being more involved in the community. It was such a fun and friendly environment to be in, and talking with other authors or hearing them talk about their journeys and experiences on panels was just insightful. I would go back and possibly do a panel or two, especially if it's a fun one like a fanficion one or something. One of the things that crossed my mind while I was there, was that as nice and welcoming the GCLS conference was, there needs to be space for trans and gender non-conforming individuals. Because Sapphic and Achillean fiction isn't strictly for those with binary gender identities, and sometimes those of us who write within those spaces in fiction don't have binary identities. Like the conference did well with giving trans and GNC authors aforum to speak about their works and process, but I think having a panel on what's like to be trans and writing such fiction would be an interesting subject, but that's me.

Either way, if you ever get the chance to head to the GCLS conference, I say go for it no matter if you're a writer, reader, or just a fan of Sapphic fiction.

I want to say that is all I have, and next time I will have some more exciting for you all.

Until next time...

DJ Small

P.S. - Don't forget to rate and review the books you read, especially the ones written by indie and self-published authors.

Mid-March Upate

Whew, child! It is mid-March and I feel like I have nothing to show for it, which is so far from the truth, but I'm sure some of y'all know how it is. It looks like we might get a quote, un-quote, "normal" spring and summer this year, but we shall see. I'm headed to my first con since September 2019. It's just for a day. I want to see how everything is being handled by the coordinator of these events. If me and my apprehension feel okay with it, I might be headed to Tampa for QFX in May. I hate how everything is contingent on what this virus is going to do, but I'm going to do everything to protect myself, and try to enjoy life as best as I can.

3rd Time Is A Charm

Oh, man, trying to write a blog post has been a challenging thing for me this month. Hopefully this round will stick. I hope we're all doing okay and keeping safe out there. I know some states are opening up, and I hope those of you that are affected by that are doing the best you can to keep yourselves and your inner circle healthy and minimize your exposure. I'm not going to say anything further because if I do, it's not going to be nice and next thing I know the NSA is coming to me saying, "We just wanna talk to you."

In the last iteration of this post, I had no updates. That all changed on Monday. Fate Unseen was returned to me after being in my editor's very capable hands. Let's give a shout out to my editor who has worked tirelessly to get this back to me in a timely fashion despite everything going on personally and pandemically. She is a wonderful lady.

Now the ball is back in my court. Normally when my editor sends a manuscript back to me, I'm anxious to read her notes and comments, but lately I have been dreading getting Fate Unseen back, so when I got the email that she was done with it, I groaned a little. I still need to go through the doc and read her comments and notes. With that being said, May 4th begins the marathon sessions of me trying to get this thing knocked out. I've got my notes from my beta readers and editor, and I'm ready to clean this story up a bit more.

Fate Unseen will be hitting your eReaders/Kindles/tablets/phones this year, but when that will be exactly is up in the air. In fact, it's so up in the air that it's in the stratosphere. I honestly thought about shelving this project because of my feelings towards it, but I'm going to push through because it's not like I'm writing a whole new story. It's just editing, and I'm always whining about editing. So look forward to that.

I also have another piece of news. I've edited the first episode of Adventures of Swift, and by the time this posts, it'll probably be up. I'm taking a fanfic approach with this, which is edit it and post. The edits are a one time, maybe twice, edit by me. Depending on how the first episode is received, I'll see how I feel about posting the second episode. This is going to be posted on my Patreon, so the first episode will be free, but the ones after that, you'll have to subscribe to access. $1 gets you access to everything because I'm still working on things for the Patreon.

I had a Smashwords sale in April, and I thought all my books were on sale for 99¢, but that wasn't the case. Murderous Profession wasn't on sale, so during the month of May I'll be giving it way via BookFunnel promo. I'm trying to engage my readers more and I figured a giveaway would be the best way to do that. I'm also working on getting a paperback version of this book up. Should have happened a while ago, but man was motivation shit.

All right, I think that's all I have for an update. Thank you to everyone that has supported indie and self-published authors as well as independent bookstores during these "uncertain times" (I put that in quotes because it has become nothing but a marketing ploy). You're supporting a lot of people who are struggling right now and it means a lot. Even more so when you review books because it gets me and others authors exposed to other readers. Especially us queer writers who don't have a big readership. So thank you for that.

All right, I'm going to go open this Fate Unseen doc and see what mysteries await me. Stay safe, be vigilant, and I'm sending nothing but positive vibes to each and every one of you.

Until next time....

-DJ Small

Whew....May just flew by didn't it?

I guess that's what happens when you're having fun editing. I just wanted to get in a minor update before the month is out. I hope we're all ready for Summer vacation and the heat! I am not, and I wish I was in the Arctic, but even that is getting a little balmy these days. Moving on....

Who is excited for Murderous Profession?!?!?! I know I am super excited for you guys to read it. My second round of edits will be done this weekend, and then I'll send it off to my editor. The story sort of achieves what I set out to do, which was write a romantic-comedy. But when you're dealing with murder, there is only so much room for humor, however, there are funny bits along with some angst, and a touch of romance. It has a happy for now ending. Will this be then end for Eliza? The answer is no. This is going to be an ongoing series, which will not have a set schedule. Unlike The Last Pureblood series, this one could end next year, it could end five years from now. It's just something to diversify my writing, I guess.

I know last blog post I talked about bringing back the newsletter, which I am going to do, probably in June. Maybe. I'm trying to figure out what direction to take with it. I have some smaller projects I want to get out, but I'm not sure how to deliver them, and I was thinking about using the newsletter, but meh. I've got a lot of thoughts about this newsletter, but it is coming back. I just need to get my shit together.

I vaguely mentioned it, but  I will be jumping into the next Avery Lawson book as soon as I'm done editing Murderous Profession. Am I still feeling ambitious and aiming for a December release? You bet your sweet ass I am. Will that work out in my favor? Experience says no, but pride says it fcking will. Fingers crossed.

I know there are questions, especially after how the first book ended, and to give some relief, I'll divulge a little. The first thing I feel comfortable revealing, is that Avery will have her first change. This is what the first book was leading up to, and I'd be an ass to put it off just for kicks. I'm an asshole, but not that big of a one.

Next thing I'm willing to share, is if Rhea and Avery will finally give into their desire for one another. The answer to that one is no. Sorry kids, but this is a major plot point, and it has explosions. Literal explosions. Also, if you're a fan of werewolf books, and have read a lot of them, I think you can read the writing on the wall about what will happen between Avery and Rhea once they do give into their passion.

Lastly, will we learn more about the war between the Order and the Mongrels? Abso-fcking-lutely. However this will be a challenge for me because a lot of history needs to told before I can just dive into it. Avery is also being a pain in the ass, so it complicates things. But yeah, you're going to learn more about the Mongrels, and we're going to also dive a little deeper into their world.

So there you have it. Murderous Profession edits are almost done, you learned a little more about the second Avery Lawson book, and I'm still insane for doing this, but I enjoy it. Comment or tweet me your thoughts. I enjoy talking to my readers.

Another thing, if anyone would like to beta read Murderous Profession comment on this post or contact me on Twitter.

One more thing before I leave, review, review, review. People can't discover my books, and other indie authors' books, if we don't get enough reviews. I think all you need is five and the algorithm does something weird to bump up a book's exposure. Either way please review, and not just mine, but other indie authors that you read. Takes a minute.

All right, I'm done. Enjoy your weekend, and happy Summer!

-DJ Small

Hey, you wanna read something?

All right, since I haven't finished editing chapter one of Murderous Profession like I wanted to (there was a massive scene rewrite, and this is after my handwritten edits), I'm going to treat you all to the first two scenes of chapter one. I should have chapter one fully edited on Monday or Tuesday. I'm not going to build it up. I'm just gonna give it to you. FYI this is after two rounds of editing, and it still needs to go to my editor, so it's still a little rough, but I couldn't wait to give you guys something.


Content Warnings: Adult themes, sexual references, murdered sex workers, bad and crude language.

The Store Is Live!

The store is back up on my website. A couple of call outs; if you're an EU based reader, sorry, but VAT gave me a headache and you can't purchase from the site. However, you can still order through Amazon and Smashwords, and when I start up the serials, you can purchase those through my Gumroad store. Any tangible items, like signed copies, are only shipped to US readers, and if you try to purchase a signed copy, Paypal will say, "Sorry, but this seller doesn't ship outside the US." This may change, but the landscape of selling things online is changing, so who knows. I have thoughts on it, but they have nothing to do with this.

We have a cover for Murderous Profession, and it is below. For those who voted for Cover B, a winner has been chosen and has been contacted. If they want me to announce their win publicly I will, but they will remain anonymous. The winner is getting a signed copy of the book that will be printed by the new book printing company I'm going to go with. That's exciting because I plan to do fancy things with this book.

Oh! Reservations for Murderous Profession are also live. Fill out the form and your information will be retained, and once the book is released and I get it out to you, I'm destroying it. Read the blurb above the form so you know how reservations work. I'm working on a better synopsis for the book, but as of right now, it's a bit flat (terrible). Reservations will probably run until the end of June. If that changes I'll make an announcement.

I'm super anxious to see how selling through the site goes. If you have any problems contact me and I'll get squared away as quickly as possible.

Who wants an update on Avery Lawson book two? Yeah, me too lol. Just kidding. Okay, I've read what I have so far for it, and I think I have an idea where I'm going to go. This is my summer project, so I'm gonna take my time with it. There are a few more points that I think I need to accomplish so we can get carried into book 3 and the next arc of the story. You're probably wondering how many books are in this series. When this began, it was supposed to be five. At this point, it's probably going to be six or seven . It depends on what my imagination does, but sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride because I think it's going to be a fun and intense one.

Okay, so go to the store and check out things. Any comments or suggestions anyone has, you can fill out the contact form on the website, comment on this blog post, or hit me up on Twitter. I want this to be as easy as possible for everyone. You can also contact me through the store front as well.


That is it this round, and I bid you adieu. Keep on reading and reviewing. Not just me, but other authors too.


-DJ Small

March Is Halfway Over

I blinked, and next thing I knew it was March 16th. Decided it would be a great time to do an update. I think the main reason why March flew by is because I was busy trying to obliterate the first draft of my next book, which as of 10:15pm of March 12th, is finished.

I'm intrigued to see how this book will be received because this will be my first book where my main characters won't be two women who love women. This time I've got a cis, female, bisexual main character, and a trans, sexually fluid, main character who is a person of color. It'll be different, but I hope people will have an open mind about it. I mean you really need to because it's set in a world where sex work is legal, and Dax is a sex worker who loves his job. But all seriousness aside it's a fun book, and there are some serious moments, but overall it is a light read. My goal for it is to be a quick, fun read that also gives you some feels. I'll have more information about the release of Detective Miller after the editing process. Hoping for July, but things happen. The book was originally titled, Detective Miller Meet The Callboy, but I didn't like the feel of it, so it's just Detective Miller at the moment.

During this breather between finishing the first draft and editing, I'm reading what I have thus far for the second Last Pureblood book, and as soon as I finish that I'm going to actually outline that damn story. I thought I could dive into it and get it done, but there are too many moving parts, and I want to make sure I cover all the loose ends from the first book while also closing out this part of the story. Then there is introducing the next arc of the series, and my goodness! There are a lot of parts. I can handle it.

In other news, I'm trying to get my serial out this year. Where it will be posted is still TBD. I want to do it through my site, but at the same time I can't seem to figure out how to do the delivery, so I may just post it through my Ko-Fi. Make the first chapter free, and if you donate you get subsequent chapters. It's a thought. I'm still trying to figure it all out. The serials will be setup where each season will be 10 episodes, and each episode is 10k words, give or take a few hundred. I have the first one written, but I am Sir Does Too Much, and haven't gotten around to getting it edited. So if I have some time near the end of the year I'm going to jump on that.

Before I end things, if you're interested in beta reading Detective Miller after I edit it, please let me know. I only need 2 people, maybe 3, but the more the merrier. I'm thinking of compensation, probably in the form of a signed copy of the book, but it will be greatly appreciated. Just a content warning here, but Detective Miller does have adult content and mentions the deaths of sex workers.

Okay, that was a March update, and I probably won't have another one until April. Until then enjoy whatever books you're reading and make sure you review them. It's not about money, but visibility.

-DJ Small

January Has Been Unkind To Me

Sigh. Let's rap good people. It has been a craptacular January for me, but I think things are getting back on track, especially after that bout of the food poisoning. I'm waiting to receive my survey on it, would not recommend.

Last Pureblood Book Two

I honestly have been plugging away at it and there is a nice chunk of it done, but I'm finding myself at a point where I feel like the pacing is sluggish and there are some elements I am truly struggling with. I find myself growing frustrated with it, but at the same time I also haven't been able to give it the proper attention it needs. Between the holidays, work, and life in general it barely got my full attention. I'm getting a new work schedule, and life is becoming less intense, so hopefully I can focus on the story and give you all the proper book you deserve considering the first one.

I think my lack of patience is the cause of my frustration because book two is like the second part of laying the foundation, and it requires more exposition and more explanation around Avery's change. So there are no opportunities for me to make it as dark and twisted as I would like, which make me want get to the other books because they'll be more action driven and dark. It becomes a meatier story. But the foundation is important.

At this point, still expect book two in 2019, but I can't give you firm answer of when because of my issues with it.

Other Projects

As we all know I have revamped the site, which included a bit of code learning so I can do what I want do on it. At some point this year, I will be rolling out serialized stories as website exclusives. You'll be able to purchase them of the site and download them directly to your device. I just need to get the first few episodes written out and through a couple of rounds of editing. The first serialized story is written, but I hand wrote it so it's not quite ready yet. I would say expect itaround summer time because it's more or less a side project. Something to give me a break from The Last Pureblood.

Depending on where I am for the Last Pureblood my standalone book for the year is up in the air. I was leaning toward one idea, but then I came up with this whole other idea which is pretty cool too, so I'm probably going to throw a dart to help me decide. What also helps is one is actually outlined while the other one just has loose plot points. Welcome to my insanity. I'm still determined to put out two books out this year, so fingers crossed.

Other than that only other thing I want to add is that I'm going to work on getting the newsletter up and running again, but it may be awhile. Until then I'll try to make two blog posts a month, but don't hold me to it lol.

That was an update kids, and I'll see you all in February!

-DJ Small

P.S. If you have read any of my books, don't forget to leave a review on Amazon or on Goodreads. Help a struggling author out.

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

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.