Thanks, @Timothy S Carter . And good luck to you on the job front!

Dear friends and followers,

The one thing I’ve learned about deadlines is that they are always closer than they appear. Looking at my calendar, it feels as though all of my time for the rest of the year has been claimed and eaten up by this, that, or the other. Are we on track for the finish and the magical 750? You’ve been generous and you’ve gotten me this far already, but the future is a mystery. I can only hope and pray that any efforts made now will bear fruit in time.

It often feels like an impossibility, but I believe in miracles. And speaking of impossibilities, here’s a look at another one of the characters you’ll meet in "Murder at the Veterans’ Club": Mortimer Wolfe.

It’s Thanksgiving weekend for those of us in Canada, and I plan to be stuffing myself with turkey. I will be remembering in gratitude the support I’ve been given so far. And until we meet again: have fun, and keep reading.

Thanks!

It’s been a very long time since I’ve read a mystery story, but I enjoyed what I read. It’s well-written and well-paced. It’s not easy to write a good and intriguing mystery novel, but I think you’ve nailed it! 

Dear friends and followers,

I don’t like to send these out more than once a week. However, I do have an announcement, which I would rather not keep for the weekend:

The third Peterkin Investigates game is out! In "Labour’s Letters Lost", a packet of letters--highly sensitive information, apparently, and potential for scandal--has been lifted from a private safe during a dinner party. Eric Peterkin is called in by his club’s secretary, Jacob Bradshaw, to deal with the matter as discreetly as possible, and you get to investigate the mystery in Eric’s shoes.

Enjoy!

@T. Darren Love Glad you liked it! It’s not finalised yet, either, so expect to see more in the future.

Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to present the ground floor plan for the Veterans’ Club.

Not shown: fireplaces. Yes, there are multiple fireplaces, because this place was built in a time before proper central heating. Possibly it has been renovated since, but there are still fireplaces. And if you’re wondering why a gentlemen’s club has what is clearly a ladies’ restroom: the gentlemen members do bring ladies in to dine from time to time, and may God have mercy on their souls if a lady has no place to powder her nose.

(I do invite comments and criticism on this plan. I confess that I have not actually made an in-depth study of the club building layouts around St James Place.)

Meanwhile! How are we doing? The third Peterkin Investigates game is still in production. I hope to have it out before Friday ... some of you may be aware that IFcomp 2016 begins on 01 October, and everyone who plays these things will be playing and judging the competition games. So I’d like to get my game out before that flood begins. I may have to make a rare mid-week update just to announce the game.

Watch this space, folks!

I’m not dead yet.

Dear friends and followers, I have been getting back into the groove of active campaigning. I try to keep accurate records, in case things should happen to go wrong ... it also helps to alert me to friends who have promised an order but who may have forgotten. Do not worry: I shall hunt you down.... Er. I mean, I shall send you a gentle reminder. Yes.

(Seriously though. I really appreciate everything I’ve gotten from you guys so far. Some of you have been hugely encouraging and enormously helpful. In many ways, this will be as much your victory as mine.)

Meanwhile! I’ve finally managed (after many, many takes) to record a video for the project page. Go take a look!

What to expect from me in the near future:

1. A third Peterkin Investigates IF game.
2. A floor plan for the Veterans’ Club.
3. A gentle reminder.

Now, let’s talk about a couple of works around here that I would really like to see getting further on their campaigns.

1) "Upload", Mark Meredith. I’ve spoken about this before, but it bears repeating: this is some quality noir happening here, for all it’s classed "science fiction". The Thriller Night Syndicate seems to agree, since they’ve named it this month’s pick. It tells the story of Detective Qin (look, an Asian hero! Not that I’m biased or anything!) in a world where people habitually clone themselves to guard against unexpected death. Well, here’s Qin in a newly cloned body, and the story opens in gritty, noir fashion on a crime scene where it’s discovered that the vic is ... Qin’s previous body. Seriously, if you love mysteries (and if you’re following "Murder at the Veterans’ Club", then chances are that you do) you’re going to love this one.

2) "The Fairy Stepmother, Inc.", Maggie Hoyt. This is a very different flavour, but delicious all the same. It’s Cinderella told from the stepmother’s point of view ... though I suspect there will be a number of twists thrown in. Evelyn, the stepmother in question, is introduced as an intelligent, independent woman, who has to deal with some rather rigid societal expectations; and it’s all told with some delightfully wry humour. Check it out: I promise you the prose will just race along like a drive through the countryside.

Until next week, friends! In the meantime ... don’t forget!

Dear friends and followers,

It has been a while since my last update. August has been quiet; I admit to having distanced myself somewhat from the campaign. And now I’m just back from spending the last two weeks out west visiting mom.

This is my mom’s dog, Ernie. Ernie is sad because "Murder at the Veterans’ Club" has not yet hit the magic 750 mark. Poor Ernie.

So, we’ll be ramping up again over the course of the week and be back in full gear by week’s end. I hope I can count on your support.

In the meantime, I’d like to draw everybody’s attention to the following projects:

1) "Tantalus Depths" by Evan Graham. I’ve mentioned this book before, and I’d like to reiterate my support. It’s got horror, intrigue, mysterious outside forces, a feel for the ensemble, and solid prose. Every so often, there’s a book that will please readers who normally dislike the genre, and I think this might be it.

2) "The Darkest Places" by Byron Gillan. Here’s a book I’ve been excited about for a long time. It’s a classic cosmic horror as Lovecraft did it, and is set in the 1920s to boot. And yet, not derivative: Gillan promises a more thoughtful examination of the concept of "the Other", and that has me excited all over again.

3) "The Seventh Age: Dystopia" by Richard Heinz. Heinz has been around much longer than I have, and his first book, "The Seventh Age: Dawn", is slated to hit the bookstores in January. "Dawn" dealt with the return of magic to the modern world; "Dystopia" explores the ramifications some years down the road. I’ve worked with Heinz in "Too Many Controllers", and I can tell you he knows how to craft a story and how to tell it. With "Dawn" and "Dystopia", I promise you won’t be disappointed.

And now, I’d like to leave you with this video of me reading Siegfried Sassoon’s "Aftermath". How do I sound? Not too awful? One day ... one day! ... I shall finally get a book trailer up on my project page. Until then ... have fun! Keep reading!