š The Solstice Approaches
A little look ahead and a free e-book
Greetings from Newcastleā¦
where the days have become strangely mild. The weather lurches from sunshine to rain almost by the hour. And even though Iād planned to have a chilled one this Christmas, the fates have decided otherwise, and sent my personal life into overdrive. I have to play it close to my chest for the moment, as some close to me are unaware and are in for a real surprise. Iāll tell you more once we get into 2026 and all has settled.
Sticking with the theme of looking ahead, Iām still chipping away at the work in progress and Iām down to the penultimate chapter of the current story. Like In Quiet Courts, thereāll likely be multiple stories in the next book, all interlocking to develop the overarching narrative of The Victorian Vampire Chronicles. An early draft of the first chapter has been shared with paid and founding members and I received some lovely comments by email. If you use the Substack app, I believe you can unlock a paid post for free, so you could do that to see if the chapter intrigues you. Chapters will follow weekly.
With the Kickstart campaigns for the back catalogue all caught up, and with In Quiet Courts successfully launched, the runway is clear for 2026. Iāll be pushing on with the next book, and without the distraction of multiple Kickstarters in a year, I predict and hope Iāll be able to continue at a decent pace.
Now, back to this Christmas. I have now cracked open the port. Two bottles in fact: one at my place, and one at my other halfās after she surprised me with a bottle. And as I mentioned before, things have become much busier than expected this year, but Iāve made a commitment to ensuring I unwind at least on Christmas Eve, and enjoy a break up to the turn of the year. Iāll send a couple more over the festive period, though, to share offers and my best wishes, of course.
šŖ Sacrifices
As the season of Mammon is in full swing, I have prepared sacrifices on the great Amazonian altar, hoping to draw favour from the all-seeing algorithm in the weeks preceding the solstice.
Tread Gently Amidst the Barrows - FREE. Just tap here.
šŖ Offerings
Newton Webb has assembled your December reading list, full of Tales of Terror. Check it outā¦
Miranda Kate has rounded up a sack full of Free Books to Feed Your Horror Habit, and you can find themā¦
š Vibrations from Beyond
š§āāļø - Chapter 2 of The Blood Caller coming to Paid soon.
Sending best wishes and bad dreams,
Jack