January Thoughts
What a month. January should be a time of new beginnings, but until the Kickstarter is safely shipped, I'm still thinking like 2025. Events are moving however. The books are being printed, the warehouse is ready to receive them, shipping details have gone to GameQuest and everything should be wrapped up soon-ish.
In the meantime, I've been thinking about politics and fantasy worldbuilding. And that resulted in me creating a model for politics and identities. It's still in early days for the model, but it's got real potential.
On my projects front, I'm about 66% through Shadows of Rebellion, the first book in Sangwheel Tales. I've finished Thief's Magic (remember to collect yours, if you haven't already) and I'm 30K words into Worldbuilding Blueprints Volume II! Let’s dig into all of it together.
Table of Contents
Worldbuilding Blueprints
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Worldbuilding Blueprints
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Worldbuilding Blueprints Volume I is officially published. If you backed the Kickstarter, you can download the digital versions from my shop (check your mail for a code a to do so, or reach out to me if you missed the code). If you're expecting the physical copy, they should start shipping in early February, the printer is hard at work right now printing the books. If you didn't back the Kickstarter and want a copy, you can buy the digital copies on my website right now, and a in a month or two, the physical copies as well.
Okay, but what's next? Well, the Kickstarter backers voted for City Worldbuilding to be next! Season 2 of Worldbuilding Blueprints (the podcast) thus deals with creating a city. One of the most interesting parts of writing this book (and podcast), has been designing reusable models. City histories nearly had me stumped, but then I came up with this. ​​
This model really helped me think about cities in a new way. Instead of thinking of the city as a monolith, I now think of a city as a series of "cores", which are different parts of the city that serve different purposes and could have risen and declined at different periods of the city history.
If you want to listen to me explore this concept more, here is the episode of Worldbuilding Blueprints Season 2 where I talk about this aspect of creating a city, especially it's history.
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Writing Projects
I'm still writing fiction of course! In the world of Sangwheel, I completed the novella, Thief's Magic:
A thief with magic is dangerous. A thief who rewrites the law is revolutionary.
In the aftermath of Blood Gate Night, the Empire of Lumiaron is cracking at its seams. Magic—once the sacred privilege of nobles—now stirs in common hands, and the old laws were never written for this.
Gilliam knows that better than anyone.
Once a street thief, now one of the Empire’s few unsashed dusang mages, Gilliam rules Somfaux’s criminal underworld with wit, leverage, and just enough magic to keep his enemies afraid. But when a powerful duke sends a chevalier to kill him under the guise of a “lawful” noble duel, Gilliam is forced into a deadly corner. If he fights, he legitimizes a system that was never meant to protect him. If he runs, he loses everything he’s built.
As emperors, priests, guilds, and nobles converge on Somfaux, Gilliam becomes the fault line in a brewing political earthquake—one that could redefine what power, justice, and class mean in a world where magic no longer obeys bloodlines.
Thief’s Magic is a sharp, character-driven fantasy novella about law versus legitimacy, power reclaimed from tradition, and what happens when the people the system was never meant to protect refuse to disappear quietly.
Perfect for readers who love political fantasy, morally gray protagonists, and revolutions that begin in back alleys rather than battlefields.
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This novella is free for all newsletter subscribers! Check the newsletter in your inbox for the code to claim yours. If you're an audiobook fan, there is an audio book of thief's magic narrated by yours truly and you can get that for free as well.
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In the main saga, work continues on Sangwheel Tales. The first book is about 70% done and building toward its climax, but as with all first books, it's going to need a lot of editing as I spent most of the book getting to know the characters and exploring new corners of the world.
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I'm also finalizing my urban fantasy, Blood and Blood in Las Vegas. I think that's going to be a fun book!
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And that's it. Quite a short update to kick off the year, but hopefully there will be more fun news come March!
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