My big non-writing news: I clicked on the "I'll go ahead and take the Early Retirement, thanks!" button at work. That means I have one more month at Intel, and then I'm off to do something different. For new folks, I have three teenage daughters, so I'm not in a place to stop working. I want to be able to help pay for college, post bail, hide the bodies of presumptuous boyfriends (I assume that takes money to do well).

Intel lets you put a nickname in their system. As a big Calvin & Hobbes fan, I picked Rejkavic. When I lost my badge 15 years ago, they reprinted it with my nickname. I’ve spent 15 years saying “It’s a silent Rejkavic,” and “It’s pronounced Steve.” In some weird twist of fate, my laniard broke the day after I clicked the button to leave Intel. Someone please tell me they get the Calvin & Hobbes reference.

To be blunt: it’s scary. Twenty-seven years at Intel and now I’m going to reset. Prove myself all over again. With a family that depends on me for money (and insurance… and hugs… daughters like hugs). Aaand, it probably destroys my writing time. On the flip side, I like learning new things. I took one wild chance and applied for a Creative Director role at a game company, the same one I was in the process of signing a contract with for a litRPG that takes place in their game world—it turns out the communication fell apart because their Creative Director left.

"You're right, Gruxthor. Crypt O' Currency rocks!"

If you’ve been reading my newsletter for a while, you know I use my phone to write, often while waiting in parking lots for my kids. These days I’m writing in hospital waiting rooms. Life doesn’t let up, does it. Then it does, and you miss it.

[Since I know my editor reads this, I feel obliged to point out that the next to last sentence was rhetorical, and a question mark at the end of it wouldn’t convey that. I am asserting my writers’ license.]

Since the last newsletter, I released the updated cover to Mother of Trees. You’ve all seen the previews, but here’s the final version. The cover designers are working on the cover for Book 2 now. (I’m very happy with the company, Deranged Doctor Design.)

I received my structural edits for Book Two, and I’ve read through them all. I think, even if I can’t manage all the suggestions, the book will be better, and my writing for this book and the future will be stronger. So I’m going to call that a good investment. I’ve tackled about a fifth of the suggestions, so this may take a while. But life has also smacked me around a little more than normal, so my pace has been slow. If the gods of writing decide I don’t need so many life-lessons to grow, maybe I’ll get more time to write.

At a guess, I will request ARC readers for Book Two, Bones of Cenaedth, mid-October.

All books by Steven J. Morris

Indie Author Showcase

I went heavy on the collections of short stories this newsletter. There's a good deal of overlap in the giveaways, but there's a few unique ones in each. Go find some new favorites.