Hey, this week, Ran is busy with the events currently happening in Curse Breaker Jousts. So this week, you get me, your scribe, Melinda!

I don’t often come out of the writing cave and talk directly to you but sometimes I have to. Since I started writing the Curse Breaker series first, it anchors the timeline. New books in the series advance the timeline for all the characters who star in it, and that includes Ran.

If you have read any of the 11 published books in the Curse Breaker series, then you know the characters try to pack as much story as they possibly can into each book. So that’s what Ran’s doing right now even though he doesn’t have to do that.

What’s in the Writing Queue:

The next books I plan to write after Curse Breaker Jousts are:

1. Chaos Reigns (Riders of the Apocalypse #2) ← takes place concurrently with Curse Breaker Jousts
2. Chaos in Chains (Riders of the Apocalypse #3) ← when this is done, I plan to launch Chaos Reigns, Curse Breaker Jousts and Chaos in Chains, and I pray that will complete the Riders of the Apocalypse story arc
3. Curse Breaker books #13-15 ← new story arc – the Rise of the Curse Breaker – more details about this soon

So Ran really doesn’t need to scheme unless he wants force me to split Curse Breaker Jousts into two books. I hope that’s not what Ran is plotting… On to my favorite kind of news because I don’t want to think about that right now. It would ruin my plans for book 13.

Book News!

The Kickstarter for Tales of the Curse Breaker in NY and the Curse Breaker’s Companion series has officially ended—and it’s fully funded! A massive, heartfelt thank you to everyone who supported this campaign. Your belief in Sarn’s world makes these books possible.

⚠️ Action Required: Check Your Pledges

Kickstarter sometimes has trouble processing payments. Currently, we have a few pledges in danger of being dropped. Kickstarter gives you a 7-day window to fix payment issues before they cancel the pledge.

If you backed the campaign, please double-check your email or Kickstarter account to ensure your pledge went through so you don’t miss out on your rewards!

What’s Next?

• Surveys: I’m currently building the post-campaign surveys. Kickstarter changed the interface, so it’s taking a little longer to find what I need. Once those are ready, I’ll send them out so I can find out where to send the books.
• Missed the Campaign? Late pledges are still open for a few more days! So you can still pledge and get your books with backers.
• Retail Editions: If you prefer shopping via my website, these editions will hit my shop in April. By summer, the five new books will be available at major retailers including Bookshop.org!

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Love Bookshop.org?

Now you can get my books both in ebook or paperback format from Bookshop.org! You can find all my books on my author page on Bookshop.org. I’m working to add the links to my website for each book, and I should have them all up by friday.

Amazon Drama Update

There’s till no word about my publisher account on Amazon. It’s been over a month since the Alliance of Independent Authors asked them to review my case and reinstate my account and my books, but the silence continues.

Thank you for your patience while I deal with this issue. I hope I can get it resolved eventually.

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Update on Curse Breaker Jousts

Since the middle of December, I’ve been writing Curse Breaker Jousts and trying to make it as epic as it is in my head.

Jousts is the 12th book in the series. The first half has all the cozy vibes and slice of life quieter moments that have come to define the series while Sarn recuperates. His son, Ran, has a lot of opinions about how his father should fill his time while he heals up, and he’s not shy about it. You’ll have to read the book to find out if Sarn takes any of his suggestions.

The second half of Jousts gets very epic with magic, monsters, a rider of the apocalypse, and more, putting Sarn and his friends in deep trouble.

Read along as I write:

• Free: Read Chapter 1 on Substack or Patreon.
• Paid Tiers: Get access to the first 28 chapters right now on Substack or Patreon, plus a digital copy of the book when it’s finished.

When will I finish Curse Breaker Jousts?

I have no idea. I never know how many chapters it will take to tell a book in the Curse Breaker Series. There’s a point I want them to reach before the end of the book to set up for #13. Hopefully, I can get them to go there.

Looking Ahead:

I’m aiming to wrap up the Riders of the Apocalypse story arc in four books. (The first one, Chaos Rises, is already published and is available everywhere except Amazon.) The next Kickstarter will launch Curse Breaker Jousts alongside Chaos Reigns and Chaos in Chains. I won’t launch that until all three are finished, so look for that probably this autumn.

Follow the next Kickstarter here.

That’s it for this week. Thank you for being part of the journey! Now I must get back to Ran and his family. I’ll leave you with this teaser image for the next Kickstarter.

These are close to the final version of the covers. I won’t know until I write Chaos Reigns if the currently shown reading order is correct. But this is my best guess as of right now. The characters could do things that change that order.

Follow the campaign to get notified when it launches:

New Books, Special Editions, & More!