R.J. Blain's Blog, page 33

Patreon Read Along of the main Witch & Wolf Series Starts Today.

Greetings, folks.

I just wanted to drop you a note that my patreon is getting a facelift. I’ve been discussing the changes with my patrons, and now that I have a better idea of what I’m going to be doing, all of the tiers will be getting some adjustments and shuffling.

I’m going to be adding a few new tiers. They is a $100 tier for those after signed paperbacks (they will NOT be receiving digital format copies of the books, and will receive their print versions after all final checks a...

Spoiler Alert: I am a human.

Hey, fellow humanoids, cats in disguise, or whatever you might be.

Some of you have expressed varying degrees of disappointment that I am a human with feelings. That I shouldn’t rant because someone (who isn’t me) might have their feelings hurt, or that I am behaved badly for having feelings and daring to express them.

Don’t feel you have to reply to this. It’s not really a rant, per se, but it is a reminder of reality.

I often get thank you letters from those who are appreciative that ...

Author Behaving Badly: Am I Allowed to Quit Now?

Nothing says “I love you” quite as much as readers bullying authors using one of Amazon’s shitty tools to do it.

I am exhausted.

A few times a week, as of late, I get this lovely notice. “One or more of your books has quality items that need to be addressed.”

Ignoring the twitch-inducing grammatical structure of the notice’s statement, let’s go into what happens when you see this warning.

Anxiety. It begins with a chill for me, one that starts in the spine and spreads elsewhere. ...

Updated Bernadette Franklin Covers!

Greetings, folks!

The Bernadette Franklin books have gotten a facelift! (And any queued typos that were addressed without being uploaded have finally been uploaded. Don’t ask us which books or how many, we don’t know. We know nothing anymore.)

The prices of the books were also standardized based on length, meaning they’re now priced at either $4.99 or $5.99. (If a novel but below 70k or so words, it is $4.99. If a novel but above 70k or so words, it is $5.99.)

We hope you enjoy these co...

Kickstarter Progress: the Extended Edition

Dear humans,

Did you hear that screamy sound? That was the female. Apparently, her sanity is gone. Just gone. This picture of the female’s BOOX is an excellent representation of the situation.

So. Kickstarter. What is it? Why is it? When is it?

The kickstarter happened last year. Why? Female wanted to do the trade version, didn’t want to foot the bill by herself.

Rather than the like 26-something books anticipated, her entire catalogue funded.

There is a great deal of work inv...

Upcoming Books

Dear humans,

We have been asked about upcoming books. While we posted about this in the State of the Blain post in February, we are posting again. We’re in a mood, so please expect plenty of snark. And frankly, we get rude at one stage. We’re really not sorry for being blunt to the point of rudeness, but we really do not want any misunderstandings on this.

So, here we go.

Silent Stalker releases March 17, 2022.

Plaidypus releases May 17, 2022. (*Correction: We put 15. We don’t kn...

On today’s episode of “Adventures with Armchair Editors…”

Dear humans,

We understand this kitty well. The sadness, the grief, the exasperation. All of these things we share as Supreme Feline Beings.

The female can’t come to the computer right now. In fact, she fled, leaving the keyboard completely unattended. Of course we needed to take over and get to work regaling you about the female’s Adventure with the Armchair Editors.

Buckle up, our not-furry friends. (And get ready to purr or bark your laughter, our furry companions!) You are in fo...

Some Serious Talk.

Initially, I posted this on my personal facebook page to get it out of my system. This has been bothering me for a while. The blogger who came onto my blog to complain at me because I dare to have a ‘to be continued’ in the middle of a series just helped hammer at things a bit.

This isn’t a pleasant talk. It’s not a pleasant post at all, really. It’s honest. There are spelling errors. (I do not care there are spelling errors. It was posted on my PERSONAL facebook page, so if you are the kind ...

State of the Blain Address: February 2022 Edition.

Hey, folks.

The cats are sleeping. Or playing. Possibly threatening to take over the world. As such, you get the general creator today. I’m going to start off with a warning that this includes a rant. Frankly, it’s starting with the rant.

Last night, someone decided to come onto the blog and lectured me about how I could “do better” about “cliffhangers” and that I am doing all of my readers a disservice through daring to use a plot mechanism type that all writers should forever ban fro...

Inquisitor is on sale for $0.99.

As the armchair editors successfully got Beginnings suppressed, I have decided to offer one book at $0.99 once a month for essentially the rest of eternity. The first book up for grabs is Inquisitor, the first Witch & Wolf novel. Some readers have noticed that the book is actually second in chronological order, but I highly recommend you read it first, as it was my introduction into the world and how the Witch & Wolf world came to be.

This is a semi-dark urban fantasy splashed with little bit...