April showers and all that.

I will say that we’ve had an absolutely gorgeous spring in the usually blistering southwest this year. We are entering our first weeks of encroaching on that dreaded triple-digit temperature, and it’s coming much later this year than in years past.

But enough about the weather.

This month I finally finished combing through my proof copy of Cloaking Fate with a mental magnifying glass, and it feels SO GOOD to be done! Guys, I found so many errors. Like, embarrassingly way more than I thought I would, considering this thing was self-edited multiple times, professionally edited, put through a professional editing software, and reread again. I found extra spaces, missing hyphens, missing letters, improper capitalizations, formatting incongruities, you name it. There is something about the physical copy of a book that makes errors scream at its reader and say, “Hey! Look at me! Notice me! JUDGE MY CREATOR!” 🙄

The upside? They’ve all been lovingly corrected well in advance of publication. So, there. 😌 

Regarding the aforementioned errors: There are more. I know there are more. And I won’t be the one to find them. You will. Just know I tried, okay?

Last month, I promised that I’d provide another sneak peek into Cloaking Fate, and I’ve been ceaselessly wracking my brain since then, trying to decide which scene to share. What would be equally enticing and enigmatic? Enough to pull you in and have you craving more, but still maintain some ambiguity? For those who may not know, I’m terribly indecisive. So, instead of giving you a scene. I’m giving you the whole dang prologue. May as well start at the beginning, eh?

Also, it’s been some time since I highlighted another author. Admittedly, I haven’t had much time to read while working on CF, and, to be honest, nothing has really grabbed my attention. Until The Poppy War, by R. F. Kuang. Holy moly, friends. This book was excellent. Witty, compelling, heartbreaking, horrifying, and exquisitely complex without being confusing. This was an underdog story amidst 20th-century Chinese wartime with gods, shamans, assassins, an academy setting, and fantastically flawed characters. I devoured it. Give it a go.

One final thing! Next month, I plan on hosting a giveaway for all of my subscribers for two free physical copies of Cloaking Fate! I’ll be doing one hardcover and one paperback. They’ll be signed by yours truly and include a few fun little freebies. Keep an eye on your inboxes for the sign-up the first week of May. 😉