I Told You The Story ... What's Next?
Update After A Year On Substack
Oh, hey, it’s been awhile and way past time for an update. Thanks for sticking around while I try to focus and produce content for this page. Don’t worry your patience will be rewarded.
1 Year on Substack
A little over a year ago, I started this page with one goal–sharing my novel Tales & Treasure, and I cannot be happier with how it went. The encouragement and support from this community helped me self-publish my novel that I thought was destined to stay scattered across a dozen different flash drives and cloud storage services.
I’m closing in on 500 subscribers, which is absolutely wild to me. I’m thrilled to be a part of such an awesome network of writers. This platform is unlike any other that I have been a part of, and I am incredibly lucky to have found it.
If you’re new here and like fantasy adventure stories that straddle the line between epic and cozy fantasy, consider purchasing a copy of my book.
Here’s a few reviews that sum it up pretty dang well.
Tales & Treasure is available in ebook and paperback from several online retailers. You can shop your favorite store from this link.
Alright, enough about the book, you’ve heard me drone on and on about one piece of content for over a year now.
What else you got?
Um, well, I added a few scenes that didn’t make it into the final draft of my novel. I really wanted to include the prologue and probably should have in retrospect, but at least now you can read it.
I also wrote a few short stories all set in the same world as Tales & Treasure.
I thought you said enough about the dang book.
Well, yeah, but this is different.
The Procurement Specialist was my favorite. It’s about a mysterious man who obtains magical items for witches, wizards, and other creatures throughout Emre. Ok. Ok. I’m done talking about it.
So, what’s new?
What’s Coming
The short answer is nothing soon.
I know that is disappointing to hear halfway through an update post, but its unfortunately the truth.
I tried my hand at a few different serial novels. Inheriting Rebellion and A Pact of Thieves, both are in various states of development. I jumped the gun in publishing them; I want to produce content for you, but upon review neither of those stories are up to my standard and ready to share.
I think they are both good stories, and I want to tell them one day, but with my limited writing schedule, I need to focus my time on the project that I’m the most passionate about–Bards & Bargains, the sequel to Tales & Treasure.
I thought you said that was enough about your silly bard book.
I did, well, I mean… this is different.
Tales & Treasure was always going to be the first book in a trilogy. I don’t know why I wanted to write other stories that weren’t part of Vatis and Vidmar’s journey, but the moment I started writing book two, I was hooked again. I felt the passion that was absent with Rebellion and Thieves. I’ve already written more in 2025 than I did in 2024 (over 30,000 words as of today). Each character was familiar, like talking to a friend you haven’t seen in a while. That might sound a little crazy, but yeah, it feels good to be passionate about a story again.
So, long story short, I need to finish this narrative before I tackle any other stories. Maybe I’ll post the occasional short story, if inspiration hits me at the right time, but for now, I can only commit to occasional rambling updates. I hope that’s ok with you.
As a thank you for your continued patience and support, here’s the beginning of Bards & Bargains. It’s pretty clean, and I don’t think it will change much before publication.
Bards & Bargains Chapter 1
Vatis expected the worst.
It was easier that way. He had lost hope a long time ago.
He had always preferred the easier route–it kept him alive. It's better than death, Vatis thought as he pulled down his hood and entered the tavern.
His guard, Tycar, followed behind him as if he were a dog on a leash. In some ways, he was. Vatis was no longer free to go where he liked. He was no longer free to search Emre for exciting characters and stories. He was a courier, a messenger, an errand boy, a liar.
For two months, Vatis had told heroic, honorable propaganda about his captor Alcin. He and Tycar had traveled from Haran to Ferrum and just about every town with a tavern or inn near the capital city of Barna.
Alcin's desperation to spread his message had worked in Vatis's favor. They didn't know he was cursed. Not yet. Fortunately, Tycar was not the most observant guard. He focused on Vatis's actions and nothing more. If he had been more astute, he would have noticed some irregularities at each stop.
Of course, there had been some close calls that even a guard as oblivious as Tycar couldn't miss. A dying child recovered miraculously from a disease that baffled the medics in Bridgeway. A father returned from war after he was presumed dead in Holm. They stayed in Malar for three days; luckily, the disaster that struck was one of the hail storms that frequented the region.
Tycar pushed Vatis toward an empty table. "Sit," he said.
Vatis sat at the round wooden table. Decades of spilled ale seeped into the wood, causing the timbers to split apart. There were no centerpieces, no table runners, no candles. This was not that kind of tavern. The Moth's Flame in Silvar was only a modest step above a stable in Haran. The smell of roasting chicken and freshly baked bread overcame the unpleasant orders of a room filled with miners and farmers. It was a simple bar with simple folk who were easily persuaded.
"Stay," Tycar said, gripping Vatis's shoulder with an unwelcome reminder of strength.
That is unnecessary, you overgrown shrub. Vatis thought. He wanted to retort, but his usual wit and banter had been dampened in the first few days of their journey. Instead, he sighed and rubbed his shoulder while he waited for Tycar to return. Vatis-of-the-Road did not like to be told what to do. His guard did not like anything, as far as Vatis could tell, especially not sarcastic replies.
So, Vatis had to play a new character. It had taken a few weeks to hone in on the inflection and mannerism, but when they returned to Haran the first time, Vatis introduced the crowd at Nere's Shadow to Captivar - or Cap for short. Tycar didn't understand why he changed his name or why he had to play a different character, but as long as he told the stories that Alcin demanded, it didn't matter.
Tycar pointed at Vatis from the bar. The woman behind the counter scowled with indifference and shrugged her rag-covered shoulders. He returned a moment later, carrying a single mug of frothy ale.
"Go ahead, Cap," Tycar said, taking a long drink. Vatis licked his lips. Gods, that looks good. Tycar barely fed Vatis enough to keep him alive, and he certainly didn't buy him ale.
Vatis stood, cleared his throat, and tried his best to get into character as he walked to a small stage between the tables. He cracked his knuckles. Cap had a habit of popping each knuckle before he performed. It wasn't a productive habit, but it was just enough to get him into character.
An old, orange-striped cat hissed as Vatis shooed it away from its napping spot on the stage. He stepped up. Whispers slid through the crowd like a snake. There couldn't have been more than twenty people in the tavern, but a bard had to work with what they were given.
Three men sitting at the table nearest the stage scowled in aggravated agreement as the fattest one rolled a cup full of dice. King, Calvary, & Army. Vatis nodded an apology that was met with a chorus of snorts and turned shoulders. Not the most attentive crowd tonight. Hopefully, they don't pay attention to these lies.
"Good evening," Vatis said, with the slightest hint of a Numerian accent. "I am Captivar, but you can call me Cap and I would like to tell you a story."
Chairs scooted, heads turned, conversation stopped, and instantly, a warmth filled Vatis's stomach better than any ale or food could provide. He bowed ornately, performing a minor illusion as his once-white cuffs turned emerald green. An audible "oh, my" escaped the lips of a young woman sweeping the floor. Vatis felt the corner of his lip turn upward as he flashed the barmaid a mischievous grin.
"Have you heard of the great Alcin?" Vatis asked the crowd.
A few heads nodded, but no one spoke up. Most of the patrons looked confused.
"His name is but a whisper on the wind, but soon it will ring in the hearts of every man, woman, and child. Alcin. The savior of Haran and soon all of Emre."
Thank you again for an amazing year and your continued support!