I hope this finds everyone well. 

• A quick update: Inkshares has frozen their publication during the COVID shut down, so KINGDOM OF DREAMS is on hold for the moment. I have been creating illustrations that I’m generally happy with and will continue to progress. The book will be illustrated by me. Publication is likely not to happen this year. However...
• I need test readers, likely by the end of the month. The release of a show on HBO in August has encouraged me to get one of my shorter novels going sooner than later so I won’t be accused of being a copycat or lose confidence in getting it out there. (The Zeitgeist tends to kick me across the room sometimes.) My story is about a young man that finds he has a knack for hunting Lovecraftian monsters with the help of a mysterious mentor. If interested in reading and openly giving me your thoughts, let me know. It is a shorter middle grade novel; probably about 25,000 words or less, so not a tough read. I look forward to hearing from potential interested readers.

Regardless, stay safe and be kind to each other--especially those of us staying in place!

Warm Regards,

Kevin

Hi everyone!  

I hope this message finds you safe and healthy in these odd times.  I know that things are very out of sorts on my end, but my family and I are doing well, and making the best of a bad situation.

A lot has happened in the past year with the book.  In February of 2019 I set about overhauling the original manuscript to make the overall plot and timeline more exciting from the get go.  I finished that version in February of this year and sent it on back to Inkshares for review.  I must say, I’m very happy with the changes.  The book as a whole feels more complete and polished.  

Now, that doesn’t mean it is done.  Far from it. 

The manuscript is in line to get reviewed by Inkshares and I’m expecting a lot of notes.  Every time I go back through the book I find more ways to tighten things up.  The story, in my opinion, is fun and exciting, but there is always room for improvement.  This is, after all, my first novel and I’m learning how to better my writing every day.

But, with that being said, I just wanted everyone to know that we are still working hard to get this book into your hands, and into bookstores!

I also wanted to pass along a few notes for anyone who is interested.  First, I updated Tainted’s page on Inkshares to include a new "back cover" description of the book.  Second, I took down the old prologue, as it no longer appears that way in the new manuscript.  With its removal, I included the updated introduction to the book.  Not quite prologue, more of an introduction to the narrator/world.  Take a moment to pop over and give it a once over, I would love to hear what you think!

Thank you for your patience and sticking with me through all of this.  I really appreciate it.  And I can’t wait for you to dive into Tainted!

PJ

Dear Readers:

Thanks to you and your support for our project over these past years, we are now so close to sharing  A Friend for Otter with you that we can almost taste it! (Stories taste better than you might expect, actually.)

We have very recently completed a painstaking line-by-line edit of the entire manuscript, and although we want to be modest, we love it! Now we have sent the manuscript out to a diverse group of advance readers to get their feedback on every aspect of the story, from the occasional type (although we hope we’ve gotten them all) to the insight and perspective that can be had only from people who have not spent years steeped in these characters and their stories. Now we must eagerly await that feedback, which is the final step before publication. We are very grateful to our advance readers, and we hope their input will help us further refine Otter’s story before we deliver it to you.

Otter is not the only kid in our lives, and a lot has happened in the Medlong-McCarthy family in the years since we began telling this story. All of us are a little older (although we can’t claim to be any wiser), Jesse is still trying to figure out how to make time for projects like this while working and helping to homeschool five kids, and Sylvia now answers to Ván (their middle name). In other words, life has gone on without regard to our progress on this project. And we expect it to keep going on afterward, even as we close this chapter on our work with Otter.

This process has taken us about five years, which is a lot longer than we expected. But you have stood by us and supported us at every step of the way. So once again, from the bottom of our hearts and inkwells, thank you for all of your patience, encouragement, and support as we have worked to make sure Otter’s story is the best we could craft. 

Happy reading!

Jesse and Ván (Sylvia) Medlong

Greetings my wonderful followers, 

With the current state of things lately, alot of you have been forced to self isolate in order to help flatten the curve of COVID-19. Filling the long hours can be difficult but, you know what helps, entertainment. So I’m doing my part to help you all fill those hours. I am now offering the ebook of Beyond the Code for free on Amazon! Follow the links before for Amazon.ca and Amazon.com and pick up Beyond the Code for absolutely nothing. And remember in the trying times to stay calm, stay informed, and stay kind. We are all in this together. 

 https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Code-Kelsey-Rae-Barthel-ebook/dp/B078V4LC48/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

https://www.amazon.ca/Beyond-Code-Kelsey-Rae-Barthel-ebook/dp/B078V4LC48/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=XM7CDRKXPV82SK8QQXQA

“Where’s my book?”

I still hear the question frequently, though less than last year, which was less than the year before. Will own the fact that I held a mistaken belief that my earlier drafts had more potential for publishing than they did. Also, I can write copious amounts but figuring that minimum 75% of that is drivel, it’s going to take a lot more copious drivel to get the job done. The good news is as an amateur writer, I can see my writing muscle getting…wait for it…stronger. Ha! what did you think I was going to say?

Saw a comment on FB from a friend, another writer, which I found interesting. We seem to have the opposite challenge about writing. I need to write everyday, obsessively, even just a little if possible, but have a demanding day job and other obligations that get in my way. I’ve been writing and rewriting this one project for close to 20 years now (along with a few others) and believe I’m finally learning how to tell the story. We’ll see how that works out for me—and for you my patient supporters—but I don’t think I’ll stop writing until I’m dead. It’s my drug.

I admit the quiet isolation of sheltering in place and social distancing is heavenly for an introverted extrovert who’s re-writing a novel for the umpteenth time. Good news is a solid draft for the 1st Act has been written and compiled. Now engaged in outlining Act 2. The end is a moving target which makes it fun. The process feels like yoga. Surrender, breath and wherever you are is where you are. I promise there will be a book at the end of this process, death be damned.

Here’s some more good news: Ozark Season 3 starts next Friday, March 27th. Stay safe and mind your manners. Coronageddon is upon us. If you’re a writer, make the most of it. Just effing write. And remember to always cough into your elbow. *hack, hack*

Happy Friday the 13th! THE DARK MOUNTAIN releases today!!