Operation Backlog Completion 2026

2018 Writing Goals and Site Navigation Improvements

 Writing  1 Response »  Tagged with:
Apr 252018
 

I got a request to share my writing goals ahead of time instead of just recapping them at the end of the year, so here are my goals for 2018 (in addition to my game backlog goals).

By 2019, I will:

  • Finish and revise A Prince’s Price.
  • Create an outline for the revisions of The Threshing Night.
  • If The Nightbringer has not been successful, turn it over to someone to critique.
  • Search for an agent for Agent of the Relari, Penteract of Blood, The Nightbringer, and The Time of Adversity.
  • Have at least 3 short stories either accepted or actively submitted to markets.
  • Join a new (paying) video game job.
  • Manage at least 2 side websites for passive income.
  • Participate in at least 3 book signing events.

Some of these goals I’m actively making progress toward already, while others are a bit further off.

At the end of the year, we’ll revisit this list to see how it went.

Moving on, I’ve made a few changes to try to improve navigation on the site. I’ve added more tags so that if I’ve blogged multiple times on the same subject, you’ll be able to click the tag to see them all.

I also removed the redundant “horror” tag and added two new subcategories to distinguish posts about “My Stories” and “My Games” from other posts.

Let me know what you think about these changes and other things that would help with navigation!

Cover and Contributor List for Darkling’s Beasts & Brews

 My Stories, Writing  4 Responses »  Tagged with: ,
Feb 262018
 

The cover has been revealed for Darkling’s Beasts & Brews — Poetry With a Drink on the Side, an upcoming poetry anthology I have a poem in.

Me and poetry? Well, last year I saw the call for submissions for this anthology from Lycan Valley Press, the same publisher behind Final Masquerade.

They were looking for poems about monsters, beasts, and creatures for an anthology that would pair each poem with a drink recipe. I turned to my love of yokai once again and wrote a poem based on the legend of the Noppera-bō.

Here is the full contributor list:

DARKLING’S BEASTS AND BREWS — POETRY WITH A DRINK ON THE SIDE

(Cover art by M Wayne Miller, Cover design by Kealan Patrick Burke)

SECTION 1 — COFFEE AND TEA (11 coffee/10 tea – alcohol and non-alcohol)

The Monster Mash by John C. Mannone
The Morning Named Apollo: A Chimeric Blood Song by Stephanie Wytovich
The Lycanthrope by Paula Berman
The Hunter by E.M. Eastick
The Eyes by Mark Mihalko
Fated to Die by Sarah Tantlinger
With Bared Teeth by Javier Gómez
In Our Past Mortality by Jay Rohr
Lust in the Full Moon by Khalil Goddard
Frontier Winter by Catherine Bult
Evolution of a Young Lover by Frank Heather
Nosferatu by Michael Hanson
Redcap by Kurt Newton
The Night Whispers by Sarah Cannavo
A Witch Reflects on Loss by Rie Sheridan Rose
Backwards Footprints by Donald Armfield
Secrets of the Loch by Louise Smith
A Siren’s Pursuer by Donald Armfield
Hunger by Candice Robinson
The Novealla of Vuowro (#) by Ron Riekki
Figment Fantastica by Taye Carrol

SECTION 2 — COCKTAILS AND MIXED DRINKS (alcohol)

The Seafloor God by Ethan Hedman
A Kelpie’s Promise by Trisha Wooldridge
Siren’s Song by L.S. Reinholt
Widow’s Weeds by Linda Lee Ruzicka
Skin Walking by M.F. Senger
Stolen by Jillian Bost
Bedtime by Lynne Sargent
The Witches Give Birth by Joshua Lupardus
The Rattling Tree by Rob E. Boley
The Confession by Timothy Tarkelly
An I’d Swally the Little Bairns by Kimberly Brannon
Plague Ship by Emerian Rich
Death by Breaths by Gerri Leen
Eternal Epitaph by Don Campbell

SECTION 3 – SMOOTHIES (non-alcohol)

And They Ride by S.L. Scott
Noppera-bō by Samantha Lienhard
Black Vampire by Lavel Wideman
The War Witch by S.L. Edwards
The Power of the Moon by Ashley Dioses
Fisherman’s Lure by Ken MacGregor
The Beast I Am by Jyothika Aaryan

SECTION 4 – MILKSHAKES (alcohol and non-alcohol)

The Scab That Oozes by Nick Manzolillo
Nightmare Upon Dissolution by Jason Ellis
Night On The Town by Andrew Dunlop
The Faerie Rules by MJ Mars
A Prank Too Far by Anne E. Johnson
Whitechapel Werewolf by Samantha Potts
An Vorvoren a Senar by Darren Lester
Frankenspider by Minerva Cerridwen
The Vampire Ogrencisi by Shalom Aranas
Moon in Purple by Morphine Epiphany
Antlered Avenger by Kimmy Alan
He, The Forest by Jay Outhier
Feetures by Shawn Chang
We Are Legion by Allison Shepherd

SECTION 5 — HAIKU SHOTS (alcohol)

Haiku by Darkling
Haiku by J.E. Mason
Haiku by Sarah Yasin
Haiku by Diane de Anda
Haiku by Vanessa Noel Graham
Haiku by Marjoleine Holsbeek
Haiku by Darkling

SECTION 6 — PARTY PUNCH (alcohol and non-alcohol)

Torture of a Pirate by Ethan Nahté
Food Shopping by Anne M. Gibson
Smoketown Zombies by James Quinn
Just Put Out Your Hand by Juleigh Howard-Hobson
Hunger for Life by Andrew Hudson
My Parents Don’t Like Kali ‘Cause She Drives A Mustang by Wolf Boy
Dinner with Jerry by Sally Max
Eventide by K.A. Opperman
Sodium-Vapor by Lisa Treece
When Monsters Share by Shawn Chang
Underneath the Red Moon by Linda M Crate
Siren of the Woods by Qurat Dar
Tommy’s Knocking by Patrick Winters
New Fur for Old Skin by Oliver Smith

SECTION 7 — KILLER CLOWN RECIPES (non-alcoholic)

Clown Night by L.S Reinholt
Within the Darkness of the Carnivále by Donald Armfield

I’m looking forward to the release of Darkling’s Beasts and Brews, and I’ll let you know once there is more information to share.

All My Romance Offerings for Valentine’s Day

 My Games, My Stories, Video games, Writing  8 Responses »  Tagged with: , , ,
Feb 142018
 

If you’re familiar with my writing, you might associate me with horror, but I do have work in the romance genre, too!

For Valentine’s Day, I’ve decided to give a general overview of my romance work, including a game we haven’t discussed before.

First, there’s the lone romance among my published stories. “A Special Present,” found in the Love Under the Mistletoe anthology, is a sweet romance about two of Santa’s elves who fall in love. However, I will point out that it’s one of my earliest published stories, so the writing may not be as polished as usual.

It might be my sole romance story for now, but I’ve been writing more romance lately, so that may change. (*anxiously watches the #KissPitch progress*)

Let’s move on to visual novels.

Ascendant Hearts came out last month, and it’s seen positive reviews so far. It’s a romantic comedy set in a fantasy world that parodies JRPG tropes, and there are three romance choices (as well as a non-romance ending).

Ascendant Hearts isn’t quite as “safe” as my elf story, although it’s still pretty tame unless you get the NSFW patch from the website. Even then, there are no H-scenes and the story remains the same.

Moving on, I wrote the script for a second galge/bishojo visual novel just released last week! My Strange Girlfriend lets you romance three girls afflicted by a strange curse that gives them animal characteristics. It’s a cute story, with some humorous moments as well as serious scenes.

I’m currently working on another visual novel with a similar style.

So there you have it: my current romance offerings for Valentine’s Day. Horror and romance by the same writer? It’s more likely than you think.

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