When I left my job at FedEx one of my friends asked me, “But what will you do? You’ll be so bored.”

I appreciated her compassionate concern but I’ve been anything but bored. The truth is that there is more work to do in the world, both to make the world a better place and to make art and stories than any one corporate job could encompass. I could drive myself incessantly and still not have enough time in my life to do everything I want to do.

This month has been particularly filled. I am working on two gaming projects, a short story, and the Argosy novel. In addition, we are buying a second house so that we can live part-time in Memphis and part-time in New Mexico. That has been breathless excitement as well.

We visited to stake out some neighborhoods last week, intending to settle on a house by September. Unexpectedly, we found a house we liked, in a neighborhood we loved, and we put a bid down. If nothing goes wrong, the next two months will go by in a blur and we’ll have a house at the end of it.

When my father became sick and frail I did my best to put enough money by to be able to leave my job and take a place near my family, so that I could be there for him.

I failed.

He died all too quickly and that left me with both grief and an impossible tearing guilt that still wakes me at night like a beast ripping through my ribcage. I mourn that I hadn’t managed to be closer, to be more available, to be better than I was. He died five years ago this month. It is still a source of deep pain.

After he died, there just wasn’t the urgency to move. But we continued to save money, intending to take a second house last summer to be closer to family. Like everyone else, our plans for 2020 had to be put on hold until we were vaccinated.

It will be a busy couple of months for us, so my updates here may be intermittent, but I’ll still be making them. In addition, I will be setting up an author newsletter for those who want news and little interesting tidbits from me about every six months or so.

I know that this probably catches people by surprise, but I’ll still be around in Memphis, just not all the time. And I’ll be able to visit family more often than once every couple of years and will be closer in case of emergencies. Plus we will be closer to Superstars Writing Seminars. It’s all good.

Publishing Update

In other news I received another Honorable Mention from the Writers of the Future contest for my Argosy story “The Case of the Missing Silk Divers.” It’s a great honor. This makes seven Honorable Mentions, which is a great track record for this very competitive contest.

I’m working on a special edition of Lightning Scarred and Other Stories for Micronomicon backers that adds color art and a game scenario set in Thule to the book. I’m also working to get the paperback version available and several other projects. So it’s a busy period and I’m glad of it.

I hope all is going well in your life! Be well, friends.