Space Opera With a Twist

Month: May 2019

May Flowers

Finally, we’re seeing a bit of normal spring warmth, and yes, the flowers are blooming in our part of the Great White North. Ashes of Empire: Imperial Twilight is also in full bloom on my editor’s desk as of this week, and since she likes what she’s seen so far, a June publication date is more and more certain.

If you’re wondering about my next project, then I’ll have to disappoint. No, it’s not the next Siobhan Dunmoore. I’m not quite ready to start work on book #6. Instead, it’s another idea that’s been germinating in the back of my mind for a long time, and now that I wrapped up the Decker’s War series with Hard Strike, I can finally slot it into the work plan. But I’ll keep the details to myself for now, if you don’t mind. I wrote the first 10% several weeks ago, when I took a break from Imperial Twilight because of creative issues and will plunge back in later today. I’ll only mention that it’s not military scifi and doesn’t take place in Decker’s Commonwealth or Jonas Morane’s empire. In fact, it plays out a little closer to our time than Dunmoore’s. I’ve titled it Third Eye. Perhaps it will be a standalone, or perhaps it will spawn a series. I don’t know just yet. But if you read Imperial Twilight when it comes out, you may get a tiny hint as to what the title means.

If you’ve joined my mailing list, expect an email sometime next month informing you that Imperial Twilight is out.

Splashing into Spring

Mrs. Thomson and I just returned from our annual spring scuba diving trip to an undisclosed location featuring some of the best coral reefs in the western hemisphere.  As in previous years, we traveled with good friends, enjoyed good times, and dined on good food.  The fish were pretty neat too.  Here is a yellow-headed jawfish with a mouthful of eggs.  No, he’s not eating them.  That’s how the species carries its offspring until they hatch.  This specimen is about 10 centimeters long, and yes, I took the picture.

But now, we’re back to reality.  I’ve begun the process of revising Ashes of Empire: Imperial Twilight while Mrs. Thomson returned to her day job.  At least the weather did a quick turnaround while we were away.  We went from jacket and sweatshirt temperatures to t-shirt season in the space of a week.  Last night, I even fired up the Big Green Egg for the first time in 2019 and grilled some chicken souvlaki skewers while enjoying a cold beer on the patio. Life is good!