Thanks to the enthusiasm of several parties, including my dear wife and a fey little man named Brandon Sheffield, the writing is underway.

I have had three false starts over the last year or so; this one is for real. As of this post I have completed one chapter, begun a second, and roughly mapped out the book’s structure. It gets hazier the further back it goes, but that just leaves room for improvisation. Proximity brings clarity, and as long as you know where you’re going you know what signs to watch for.

The big question at present, now that I have begun this support project, is what to call the darned thing. My wife and I, she in the role of editor, have been rolling around several big, tawdry B-movie titles. Brain Freeze! Jumped! Cooler!

Right now I’m working with The Under-Kings. I think this may be the one. We’ll see if the writing presents me anything better. It’s usually a mistake to pretend that one is in control of a creative project. Anything of value is in total control of you.

As for you, dear reader: if I am to complete this book in any reasonable time, I will need your help. I work freelance; I get paid when I get published — or more probably, several months later. If I’m going to support my family, I need to keep working. If I’m going to write this book, I need to focus on it to the exclusion of all other work. So I prevail upon you, the enthusiastic.

I am going to set up various donation schemes, associated with some wild thank-you gifts. I want you all to feel a part of the process. This novel is going to be funny, scary, confusing, and quite probably good. I can say this because I have read it — both on paper and in my own head.

For now, there’s a PayPal button over to the left. Have at it, if you are inclined! With our next update, we will outline a greater scheme for you all.

You can read more about this project on the about page.