Tag: stormblood

2025 in Review

What a year, huh?

Like most years, it certainly has had it’s ups and downs. The good and the bad and the goddamn ugly. I’m going to try and not focus on the latter two, because there’s enough of that in the world, but some of it will be mentioned.

So let’s get the bad and ugly over with:

As I mentioned a few newsletters ago, I have chronic pain from my nailgun wound, and combating it, doctor and clinic visits to fix it, is a daily struggle. I am hoping that 2026 will be the year that I kick it down for good, but you never know.

There is also the shooting/terrorist incident that occurred at Bondi Beach, less than 10 minutes from where I live, becoming the deadliest shooting in Australia since Port Arthur 30 years ago.

I have zero desire to sensationalize or monetize an act of such horror, or honour those who perpetuated it by naming them. I am mentioning it because I had at least five groups of family/friends/acquaintances who were there at the time – and there was a point where we didn’t know where everyone was – so it’s something that has affected me deeply. We are all okay, though. Thank you to everyone who wrote in to ask.

Now that unpleasant topic is over with, let’s move onto the good stuff.


Writing:


The first half of 2025 was spent working on various projects. I don’t want to talk about them in any great detail, because I feel like books should remain the author’s personal project until a first draft is down, or until it’s truly ready to be sent out. A lesson I had to learn the hard way.

Still, I will reveal there have been two major novels in the works, both very different beasts Note that these are not actually the titles, but only placeholders!

The first is what I will call Rage. It’s the thing I’m most interested in traditionally publishing next. It’s similar to what I’ve done before, but also not. Much more epic and widescreen. Prose that’s much more lyrical, theatrical, less rough and jagged.

I have a first draft down, but I’m looking at some major (and I do mean major) revisions before I start sending it out.

The second project is what I’ll call Redemption. Very, very different to my other work. It has a female protagonist, and is very much high fantasy, but that’s all I’ll say. It does have a romance element to it, like all my books have, but it is not romantasy.

That’s all I can say about them in any detail for now. I’ll continue to work on them into the new year, with the aims of having one, or both, on submission to publishers, where they will solicit shocked gasps of shock, amazement, shock, wonder and delight. Probably.

The latter half of the year was spent working on Wolfskin. The book clocks in at a hefty 197k (!!!), 9k longer than Blindspace and 42k longer than Stormblood. The original draft was. . . a great deal longer, and after it had been cut down, a lot of refining was required to truly make the book shine.

I do it for you, dear readers!

I actually put the finishing editorial touches on the book when I was in Tokyo and Sapporo a couple of months back. I love the idea of working on a piece of art in multiple locations, because it means you get to take a bit of that place with you.

Of course, the work is only truly complete when the proofs are finished, and I completed those the other day. While I am genuinely sad to see it go, I am very relieved that it is out of my hands and will soon be out in the world.


Publishing:

I had zero publications in 2025 – besides two stories that got translated into German and Estonian – but no new material. But that will change shortly, because…


Upcoming Publications:

Wolfskin will be coming out!

The final book in the Common Saga will be dropping on March 4 (all the best people pre-order books, so get those orders in!). This will make it four years and three months since the last installment, Blindspace, was published, although I did self-publish Scream in Blue in 2022, and my collection Broken Stars in 2024, so I suppose it hasn’t really been that long since I’ve had a release.

Wolfskin would have come out much sooner, even in mid-2025, but that’s up to the publisher, not me, and the decisions of the market can be obfuscating and baffling, to say the least. I can only control the writing and the delivery.

Of course, what matters is that the book itself is good. And, in my humble and totally unbiased opinion, Wolfskin is a damn good book. I expect it will garner some . . . strong reactions when it releases. Perhaps even some tears.

I would be lying if I said I didn’t shed a tears myself, when finishing off this book. Especially in the final chapter. But that’s a good thing – if it doesn’t move me, I cannot expect it to move anyone else.



Besides, I started writing Stormblood nine years ago, when I was only twenty-three years old. These books have stretched across a third of my life, and so they will always be a part of me. Writing them was not always easy, as you lot all know, but it’s a story I needed to tell, and I’m incredibly proud of what I’m managed to achieve with them.

I expect to be doing a slew of signings, events, and interviews, once the release date slides closer into view. More news when I have it.


In the Works:

This is going to sound frustratingly coy, but there’s a few exciting things coming up that I cannot talk about yet. Does this pertain to special hardback editions? Adaptations? Translations?

I’d love to tell you . . . but the Powers That Be would be very unhappy. Two of these exciting things have been confirmed, however, and I hope to announce them soon. Ooh, the suspense is killing me!


Conventions:

I’ve been lucky enough to attend three Worldcons in a row; Chengdu in 2023, Glasgow in 2024, and Seattle in 2025. All were excellent, for very different reasons, and no event I do is ever going to top being flown out to China by my Chinese publisher, but Seattle was a blast.

It was my first American con, first time seeing my books in a US bookstore. It was a joy and a pleasure, thanks to the wonderful cadre of people who made my time there special.

I’ll let the pictures do the talking.



The Barnes and Nobles signing!


Pictured: Evan Leikam, Jeremy Szal, Ryan Cahill, M.J. Kuhn, Shauna Lawless, Michael Michel, Zac Argyle, Andy Peloquin,



Pictured: way too many to name.

I left a trail of signed copies everywhere I went, so if you ask Barnes and Nobles Northgate or Bellevue, Arundel Books or Elliott Bay Book Company, they should still have copies left. Good if you’re in the States and want a defaced copy of one of my books, because due to the recent announcement about the mandatory submission of fingerprints and social media for travellers entering the US, I don’t know if I’ll be heading over there again in a hurry.



Like in 2023, Adrian Tchaikovsky gave me the honour of being his acceptor at the Hugo Awards, for Best Series and Best Novel (he did not win, but even being nominated is cool). That meant dressing up in formal wear, attending the Hugo gala, the pre-show and the after party.

Oh, and taking photos with all of your (his!) fellow nominees in the category.


Pictured: (L to R) Seanan McGuire, Rebecca Roanhorse, Jeremy Szal, and the little-known, up and coming author Brandon Sanderson.

aka, three beautiful people and one ugly bastard.


If you haven’t picked up any of Adrian’s books, you really, really should.

Japanese Learning:

I continue to sneak a day or two of learning Japanese when I can. It’s not easy. For English speakers, Japanese may be the most difficult language to learn. I’m not kidding.

But I’ve never let a little thing like that stop me, and I continue to go through the motions. I’m good enough that I can say pretty much anything basic, and I’ll understand most casual conversations (depending on the speed). I don’t use English when I travel to Japan, and I’m hoping to reach fluency within the next two years.

Best of 2025:

Because no yearly wrap up is complete without one of these, here’s the various bits of media that I enjoyed the most in 2025. As ever, I’ll try to stick with the good rather than the bad, especially in the book category, considering my profession.

Music:

I was lucky enough to attend three kickass concerts this year: Sigur Ros, Metallica, and Oasis. I’ve got pretty broad tastes. Sigur Ros was heavenly, Metallica was epic, but Oasis was otherworldly. The concert vibes were immaculate, the brothers performed at their peak, and hearing Champagne Supernova live made my soul transcend to another realm. All was good.

As you were.

Film:

One Battle After Another. A powerhouse of a film. A near-perfect bouquet of tension, character drama, humour and action, with some truly piercing commentary on top. This is PTA’s best film, and I hope it’s the one that gives him the recognition he so richly deserves.

The Long Walk. This one hurt. I read the novel, so I knew what I was getting into, but I wasn’t prepared for how gruelling and emotional it ended up being. Distressing film making at it’s finest. And, it must be said, it had some real solid pacing. I will see myself out.

Weapons. It’s impossible to discuss this without spoiling the experience. Just see it. With a packed audience.

Sinners: A Southern gothic vampire, horror-musical, action film. Only a madman or a genius can pull something like that off, and thankfully Ryan Coogler is both. It’s the sort of film you have to see to believe.



Mickey 17: I don’t think I loved this one as much as Bong Joon Ho’s previous offering: Parasite, but I don’t think we were meant to. It’s great to see directors of his calibre taking a dip in interstellar science-fiction, and I think he did a stand up job of bringing Edward’s book to the big screen.

Mad Max: Furiosa: I loved this one. It’s definitely more vile and nasty than the crowd-pleasing Fury Road, and this time you get a true sense of how dementedly unpleasant life is in the wasteland, at all times, for everyone. Still, I’m hardly one to shy away from the darker side of spec-fic, so I had a great time here. Plus, as an Australian, I’m obliged to sing its praises.

TV:

Andor, Season 2: Goddamn. This show, in it’s entirety, is on par with the original Star Wars trilogy. Blasphemous, perhaps, but I stand by it. Andor is one of the greatest TV shows of all time and it must be seen to be believed.



Daredevil: Born Again: Felt like the original season of Daredevil was back in it’s gory glory. There were some . . . interesting creative choices made, but the tension, storytelling, character work and brutally fun fight scenes are back in full force, and I can’t wait to see how things unfold.

Severance, Season 2: The pacing here unfolds at a glacial pace, but it hardly takes two episodes before that glacier becomes an embodiment of pure dread and isolation, striking with surgical precision. Worth a watch for the final episode alone.

Games:

Black WuKong: China’s answer to Dark Souls, with the rich texture of local mythology.

Hollow Knight: Silksong: Profoundly entertaining. I’m delighted to see a small Australian studio make its place on the world stage, gaming wise, especially when it deserves it. And this one does.

Baldur’s Gate 3: Yes, I know it came out in 2024. But I’m just starting to dig my teeth into it now. And what a feast it is. It’s hard to fathom the amount of painstaking effort that went into the writing and designing of this narrative. Ooh, just talking about it makes me want to do another playthrough!


Books:

The Devils by Joe Abercrombie. I technically read this one in 2024, since I blurbed the book (mic-drop), but it’s a 2025 release. I adored this one. Structurally, it’s very different from Joe’s usual fare, but the pages flow by and the story fires on all cylinders. There’s a single scene in here (you’ll know the one) that contains what is possibly my favourite character-introduction scene of all time. It’s that good.



The Bone Raiders by Jackson Ford. Loved this. A Mongolian-inspired fantasy, worked in with Jackson’s usual irreverent humour and sass. The combination shouldn’t work, but in his hands, it does. Gloriously.

Casthen Gain, by Essa Hassen: A feisty little novella that is both taut and deeply rich. No one does weird, alien, mind-bending space opera like Essa does, and this one ticked several boxes for me.

Anji Kills a King by Evan Liekam: A stellar debut. I saw the ending coming, but perhaps that only made it hurt even more.

The Strength of the Few by James Islington: A monumental, monster of a book, that still maintains its tension and emotion throughout. I haven’t finished it yet (no spoilers!), but I am loving/dreading where it is headed.


That’s all from me, folks. Thanks so much for letting me barge into your inboxes each week, and thank you for reading my work. I appreciate you all a lot. Yes, even you.

If you feel like being extra nice to me, you can always pick up one of my books (best to start with Stormblood). If you’re one of the awesome people who already has picked it up, then leaving a review would also be super helpful.


Have a wonderful holiday, drink tons of expensive booze, eat way too much good food, and have an awesome time, and I’ll see you in early to mid January.
Best,
Jeremy

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Wolfskin: pre-orders are open!

Website:

So. After about three thousand years, the Wolfskin finally has an official release date:

March 3, 2026.

And yes, it is available for pre-order.

(The copy description has massive spoilers in it, so unless you’ve finished Blindspace, I do not recommend reading it!)

I do not exaggerate when I say that Wolfskin is the best thing I’ve ever written. The character arcs, the storylines, the set-pieces, even the prose, just works. Never before have I written something so epic, so brutal, so heart-wrenching. It is, in my humble and totally unbiased opinion, a damn good book.

Yes, it’s taken a long time to come out. But that’s given me the time to make sure that what I’ve put down is my absolute best, and my exact vision for the story. Again, it is my best book.

However, because of various reasons, including things that are totally beyond my control, my career is not the best place at the moment. Wolfskin is still coming out, but after that? I don’t know. Things are unclear. I’ve suffered a lot of sleepless nights because of it, and there have been days where I’ve contemplated giving up this gig for good.

I’m not giving up. But that also means that I cannot afford to hold back, either.

So. I am going to ask you all to please pre-order Wolfskin.

Pre-orders are disproportionately helpful for authors. It helps the book trade to gauge the interest on a book, or a series. The more pre-orders there are, the more copies get printed. The more copies get printed, the more the publisher has to work to sell said copies, and the greater likelihood of those copies selling.

I kinda hate that I have to weigh all these things up instead of, you know, writing. But that’s the business we’re in.

So, any and all pre-orders and support is much, much appreciated.

Here’s a link to Wolfskin’s Books2Read page, where you can select the retailer of your choice.

Alternatively, you can also pre-order from Galaxy Bookshop, my local bookstore, and I can happily sign and personalise any copies ordered from there.

If you cannot pre-order it, then there’s a lot of other things you can do for Wolfskin and for the Common series. You can buy them. Ask your local library to purchase them. Tell others about them. Review them on Amazon and Goodreads. Sacrifice goats on an altar of black stone in their name.

Not sure about the last one, but you can always give it a go.

If you are a reviewer with a blog/review channel/BookTube/Instagram account, please get in touch with me and I’ll get my publisher to send out a review copy to you.

It’s been a hell of a long journey, for me and Vakov both. But we’re nearly at the end of his story. I hope that you’ll all stand by my side and see it through to the end.

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Event Announcement: Seattle Barnes and Nobles

I’ve never done an author event in the United States before. Next week, that changes!

I’ll be joining this group of mega talented folk at Barnes and Nobles (Ryan Cahill, Shauna Lawless, MJ Kuhn, Zack Argyle and others) to sign books and talk with readers and possibly drink copious amounts of beer. If you can’t make it, feel free to place an order with the store and I’ll happily sign a copy of one of my books over to you.

Hope to see some of you there!

WHERE: Barnes and Nobles Northgate, Seattle.
WHEN: Wednesday, August 13th at 6 pm PST
EVENT LINK: https://stores.barnesandnoble.com/event/9780062193345-0

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Scream in Blue for FREE on Amazon

So, for the first time, I’m giving away my novella “Scream in Blue” for free on Amazon for the next five days.

Which means it is about as cheap as it’s ever gonna be.

So if you like morally-grey heroes, gothic-cyberpunk and alien drugs (who doesn’t?), you can get it for….pretty much nothing!

The novella is set in the same world as the Common Saga (Stormblood, etc), but can be read as a standalone. So it’s a good entry point if you’re looking for a gateway drug.

Interested? Yeah. Of course you are.

You can check it out here, through Books2Read:

Or through Amazon directly.

I won’t lie, it doesn’t matter to me which way you get it, as long as you do! 😀

Please do check it out, and happy reading!

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Midyear Update, Future Books

Hey everyone.

It’s been a little while since I’ve done one of these so I thought I’d just provide a mid-year update.

I’ve been thinking a lot about my career and my brand as an author. I’ve published. 40 short stories over 10 years across all genres of speculative fiction. But I’m mostly known as a writer of science-fiction. More specifically, novels in the military SF/space opera region. And while I’ve enjoyed my time immensely in with the Common Saga, it is no accident that the books became progressively more space opera as they went along. I don’t particularly want to be known as the guy who writes science fiction. I want to be a Jack of all trades, someone who branches out, who is versatile, who’s able to write in a variety of styles and genres and voices, a la Adrian Tchaikovsky.

It is no secret that some publishers are generally wary of this. I have some strong feelings about that, but the point is that I feel that writers should be able to write whatever they like, at whatever stage they are in their careers, regardless of what’s “expected” of them.

My tastes have always been broad, and I want those tastes to reflect in the books that I write: science fantasy, epic fantasy, space opera, secondary world fantasy, whatever. Limiting myself to one genre limits my readership and my growth as a writer.  

So you are unlikely to see a book from me anytime soon that’s in the same style of Stormblood: straight SF, noirish, cyberpunk-adjacent, with a thriller/mystery element. I’m being beckoned to write things that are epic and sweeping and grandiose, and I feel like I’m much more comfortable in such a space.

Does that mean I’m leaving SF behind? No. Not at all. But I am expanding my horizons. And I’m excited about what’s to come.

So. Book updates.

First up, Wolfskin. I do not yet have a release date for the book. I delivered the full edited version to my publisher in mid January and I have since been waiting to receive my line edits. Publishing being what it is, things are moving at a glacial rate. I wish that I had news for you, but I don’t yet, since my publisher wants to hold off on pining anything down until they give me my line edits for Wolfskin. But the story is 99% locked-in, and I’m confident that once the edits do come in, it’ll be smooth sailing. By then I will hopefully be able to start sending out proof copies to reviewers – cue the mix of exhilaration and anxiety that comes from releasing a new baby out into the big wide world.

But I have not been idle. Oh no.

The past year I’ve been chipping away at my new book, tentatively entitled “Rage”. I got a first draft nailed down about a month and a half ago, but I’ve since run into, shall we say, some existential crisises about the book (see the first half of this post). Where it sits in the genre. What readership it will appeal to. I don’t really want to be more specific than that, but I will say that my comparisons to it include The Red Rising Saga, House of the Dragon, The First Law, and Sun Eater.

Why I love all my books equally. I do think that there’s something truly special about this one, and I’m hoping to make it the next book that I traditionally publish.

Here is the tiniest of sneak peeks:

Part 1

“The Wolves have no King”

– The Cinder Knight, before his execution

However this book comes out, I think it will mark a turning point in my career, and will hopefully be exciting for readers, both old and new.

But because there ain’t no rest for the wicked, that’s not all I’ve been working on.

I’ve been chipping away at a straig-up secondary world fantasy with a female protagonist. This book, I’d say, sits firmly at the intersection between Scott Lynch, Baldur’s Gate 3 and Adrian Tchaikovsky. I’m definitely playing a lot faster and loose with the structure, and the freedom of it is both exhilarating and a little scary, but I am enjoying the process of seeing this world unfurl before my eyes.

I don’t know what I’m gonna do with it when it is done, but I’m gravitating towards self-publishing it. We’ll see.

As I’ve already mentioned, in late 2023 I suffered a nailgun injury to my left hand. This, of course, is a big deal for a writer, especially as my career, and my life, has been greatly impacted as a result.

I’m not totally ready to discuss what’s transpire over the past 19 months. But I will say that I recently had several surgeries on my left hand. Things have been dark for a long time, and I’ve feared that my writing career has been in jeopardy. But things should be looking up for me soon. Hopefully.

And on that note, I would greatly appreciate it if you could grab one of my books. If you’ve already done so (and honestly, you’re unlikely to be reading this unless you’re already one of my readers!), then you can always convince one of your friends to buy my books, or spread the word in some other way.

And not just because it would cheer me up immensely after several surgeries. But also because May happens to be the month of my birth! So you’d be getting me a gift for me and you. How is that not a bargain?

Stormblood and Blindspace are available in all the usual places. If you like, you can grab Broken Stars from me directly, over on my website. If you prefer to get it on Amazon, you can also do that over here. Every bit helps.

Thanks again for everything, guys. I know it’s been a long gap since books, but I’ve been busy cooking and marinating, and soon there will be a literary feast!

In the meantime, take care of yourselves.

Till next time.

Best,

Jeremy

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Yearly wrap up: 2024 edition

2024 wasn’t the worst of years. Nor was it the best of years.

As many of you know, in late 2023 I impaled myself with a nailgun in my left hand, missing the bone by less than a millimeter. If it had connected, I’d have shattered the digit. It did not connect.

But that didn’t mean I got away scot free. Oh, no. The incident gave me complex pain regional syndrome, nerve damage and ulnar nerve damage, which led to a slew of pain management therapies, new medications, weekly doctor visits, constant appointments, required exercises, and dealing with the red tape of it all, which triggered further mental health issues and gave rise to other health issues that were simmering away beneath the surface.

I don’t like to talk about this much, because I live it every week, and I really don’t want to be one of those Professional Pain Sufferers, as my GP calls them, who can only talk about their own agonies. But it’s safe to say that 2024 was a very stop-start year for me, and no one wants to spend the last year of their 20s dealing with a critical hand injury, not knowing how much longer it’ll continue on for.

I’ve made no secret of the fact that I’ve been going through some rough patches, mentally, due to the stresses of publishing, and how the writing has suffered as a consequence. As you can imagine, the injury has not helped. I wasn’t able to publish Wolfskin in 2024 like I wanted, and so sometimes it’s felt like publishing has been moving on without me, like I’ve fallen overboard on a ship and I’m stuck floating in the water, watching the ship move further away from me, leaving me behind until it’s an inscrutable speck on the horizon.

To watch authors who debuted after you get proofs and cover art and special edition deals for their next series while you’re still stuck on the one feels extremely disheartening, especially when compounded with a whirlwind of other doubts and stresses (is anyone even reading my stuff? Does anyone care? What’s the point of this?). Doubly so when all of your peers keep talking about how much fun writing is and how another day at the keyboard is another day doing the best job ever, and you feel like setting your computer and your face on fire. There’s been times when I’ve seriously considered leaving publishing for good, unable to take the anxiety and pressure (and anger) that stems from the meatgrinder of the publishing industry and how it feels like it poisons the passion you have for your creative work.

This isn’t a “woe is me” post. But I do believe in honesty, both on a professional and personal level, and this is the narrative I’m telling.

But I won’t be quitting of course. Because I’m a writer. And this is what I do. And there isn’t a single person on earth or heaven that’ll stop me. (Where do you think Vakov gets his stubborn streak from?)

While those feelings have not always disappeared, 2024 has seen them become far less intense and overwhelming, especially towards the latter months. Things have been better. Much better. Sometimes, all you need to do is to take a step back, stay in the shade, reframe your thinking, and then step forward again. Attitude and positivity matters. A lot. Fighting off the Raging Demon Voices isn’t always easy, but the less space I give them, the smaller they get.

And because of all that, I’ve had a very, very productive year. Which brings us to….

Publishing

The only project I published in 2024 was independently publishing Broken Stars in Nov 2024. All these stories were previously published except two, but I still consider the entire collection to be an original publication. It’s picked up some really solid reviews, and has been stocked in a few local bookstores and libraries, which always makes me happy.

Interestingly, releasing a new book means that your previous titles get a fresh wave of attention. I’ve had a few people say that they wanted to check out my traditionally published books because of Broken Stars being released. I mainly put Broken Stars out so I could keep my name in the spotlight between major releases, and to dust off some of my older works and give them a bit of new life, so I’m pleased to see that it’s all going to plan.

The majority of my year has seen me work on a new project. I don’t want to say too much about it, only that it’s science-fantasy and is set some 20,000 years in the future. It’s somewhat similar to my other books, but it’s also . . . not. It’s more epic. More poetic, grandiose. But fear not, it’s still very much me, and I’m hoping that it’ll be the next thing that I publish. I’ve got about 140,000 words down, not including material that I’ve already cut or reworked. I hoped to have it finished, by the end of this year, but Wolfskin edits have derailed those plans.

And because I don’t have enough on my plate, I’m working on another project. A secondary world fantasy with a female protagonist and some very nonhuman characters, on an epic quest. I won’t say more than that.

As for Wolfskin, I’m doing another pass on it as we speak, with the goal of delivering it to my editor in January. It’s been interesting to see how I’ve evolved as a writer since I discovered this character and his voice all the way back in 2026, when I was only 22 years old. It’s been tempting to sometimes rewrite the odd paragraph or sentence to the way I would have written them now, but I’m making sure to hold true to my former self and to Vakov by keeping the voice consistent.

On this read, my goal is to fall in love with the book, to read it as a cohesive whole narrative. And so far, I’ve been really, really enjoying it. If you’ll allow me to flex a little bit: the narrative beats are working, the character dynamics are solid, the emotional moments feel earned and hit like a sledgehammer, and the action scenes crackle off the page. Why, it’s like someone wrote a book just for me!

Sure, it’s my own damn book I’m banging on about. But after being stuck in a cycle of disliking my own work, seeing the worst of it in the worst light, I’d rather build up what I know to be my novel’s strengths. It’s my baby, after all. And what a damn fine baby it’s turning out to be!

Travelling:

I went overseas three times this year. I went to Japan twice, a place that is easily my favourite in the world, and I have plans to go again sometime next year.

I also went to Europe for Glasgow Worldcon, which was a fantastic and inspiring event. It was my first time in Europe with my books published, and I was able to do a lot of signings and events, and meet a lot of readers, including one reader who brought his copy of Stormblood all the way from Brazil for me to sign.

People are best part of any Worldcon and I was really fortunate enough to hang out with a bunch of friends I haven’t seen in years, people that I’ve only met online and completely new writers. It really felt like I was part of the publishing community, a professional author who was respected by his peers and that is always lovely feeling because this gig involves a lot of time spent locked away in a small room, hunched over a keyboard, and it’s only when someone tells you in person how much they loved your book, does it actually feel real. I also got to see copies of my book in bookstores in both Scotland and Denmark, which was incredibly cool.

I don’t know when my next Worldcon will be. But I will certainly be endeavouring to attend one, or at least another major publishing convention, in the near future.

Reading:

The amount of books I read went down considerably in 2024. Both on account of the injury and the fact that I was learning Japanese. Spoiler alert, it’s an incredibly crushingly difficult language to learn. Relative to English, the grammar and sentence structures are both backwards and let’s not even get started on the polite versus impolite forms, or three different alphabets (I loathe Kanji with the fury of a thousand suns). But being able to speak Japanese is also incredibly rewarding, especially when you go to Japan and you’re actually able to communicate with people and order food in a restaurant and understand a good percentage of what you hear. I am by no means fluent, but I’m slowly getting there. Hopefully.

But the books that I did read this year I really enjoyed. Here’s the best of them:

The Will of the Many, by James Islington

The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff

Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio

Shards of Earth, by Adrian Tchaikovsky.

My goals is to read more in 2025. The size of my TBR is threatening to crush me, so I’m hoping to put a solid dent in it.

***

I want to close off my last post of the year by saying: thank you, dear reader.

For reading my books, for supporting me, and for letting me tell these wild, crazy stories. This is not an easy job, and there have been some very, very rough patches along the way. But I’m on the upswing and I do aim to be doing a lot of writing in the upcoming year and to be putting many, many books on the shelves in the coming few years.

See ya!　
Matane!/またね

-Jeremy

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Broken Stars has landed!

The day has come. BROKEN STARS, my debut short story collection and my first real self-publishing endeavour is now live in the wild!

In this collection. you’ll find bounty hunters and warriors, killers and kings. Good people doing the wrong thing for the right reasons, and bad people who desperately want to be better. Human monsters and monsters with humanity.

16 reprinted stories, 2 originals, all in one collection for the first time. I’m immensely happy to have it out in the world, especially as I haven’t had a release in a few years.

If you’re interested in it (and since you’re subscribed to my newsletter I assume that you are!), here are the appropriate links to. If you do want a print copy, you can either grab it off Amazon, or you can buy it directly from my website OR you can buy it from my local SFF bookstore. These last two options will mean that I’ll get to sign in for you, and I know some of you like that.

More importantly, algorithms work in a book’s favour on it’s release, especially if it’s being purchased. In other words, if you are going to pick it up, now is the time to do so. (I hate saying this, but artists have to eat!)

Links:

To buy from me directly

Amazon

Galaxy Bookshop 

Goodreads

And now . . . photos! Look how cool they are!

This book is somewhat of an experiment, but I do see myself becoming more of a hybrid author in the future, especially if the collection does well. 

I know that some of you are already reading and enjoying it, which is always great to know. Thank you very much for your continued support, and I hope you continue to enjoy the savage little worlds within.

Best,
Jeremy

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Broken Stars Cover Reveal

Remember when I told you that you’d be getting something from me soon?

Well . . . surprise!

“Broken Stars combines previously published short stories and novelettes with new and exciting tales, ranging from space opera to military SF to science-fantasy and everything in-between. Tales of broken heroes fighting for hope in dark worlds, full of aliens and outcasts, drug dealers and bounty hunters, mercenaries and soldiers. Tales of far-flung worlds where the lines between machine and human become blurred, the humanity of monsters is explored, and victory always comes with a heavy price. In these eighteen stories of far-flung worlds, violence explodes, betrayals abound, and no one is safe.

A smuggler for alien drugs is thrust into a high stakes of subterfuge and interstellar drug trades, only to find herself out of her depth.

Yharv, a mercenary, must escort the King through a besieged city and see him crowned. The only problem is, Yharv isn’t human, and neither is the king, and nonhumans usually end up dead in a gutter. And luck has never been on Yharv’s side.

An alien and a human fight to liberate a planet where aliens are treated as second-class citizens. But freedom comes at a steep price.

A kidnapped warrior discovers her memories may not be her own, and she may be on the wrong side of her war.

And many more . . .”

Broken Stars is my debut short story collection. I’ve published dozens of shorter works over the years, mostly before Stormblood was released, and I decided that it’s time to give them new life! So, sixteen of my best tales are being collected together for the first time, in addition to two brand new stories that are original to this collection. There’ll also be some story notes, detailing the writing process and origin of each story.

This means that you’ll be getting 100,000 words from me! Given that a number of these short stories are buried behind paywalls or published only in anthologies, many of you would not have read them yet, so I’m delighted for you all to get them into your hands.

Although the genre and voice for these stories varies, you should expect the same sort of approach and style that my novels are known for, but in a more condensed volume: battle sequences, gritty yet exuberant worlds, aliens, all written with an eye towards emotional and character-driven storytelling.

The release date is Friday, November 1. It will be released both as an ebook and as print-on-demand. This collection is being self-published, so you won’t find it in bookstores, (although it can certainly be ordered in, for anyone who wants one).

If you’re a newsletter subscriber, you’ll be able to get the first three stories for free, as a thank you for sticking around. I’ll send a download link out soon.

It’s been a little while since I’ve had a book out, and I’m really excited to have this project out in the wild. I’ve also got several other projects brewing away, so you’ll be getting a lot of content from me in the future!

If you’re a reviewer/blogger and would like a free copy to review, please get in touch and I’ll hook you up. You can find my contact form over here on my website.

And finally, this awesome cover was designed by the incredible Mike Shackle, who’s a great writer in his own right. Thanks a lot, Mike!

Pre-orders for Broken Stars are already available from Amazon.

You know what to do.

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