Michael C. Bailey's Blog, page 2

Weekly Update – October 14, 2025

On the writing front, I wrapped over the long weekend — belated Happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day, by the way — the first draft of a new project I’m keeping hush-hush for the moment, but it’s one I’ve had tucked in the back of my head for quite a while now, so I’m happy to finally be putting it to (metaphorical) paper.

When I wasn’t writing, my wife and I were breaking in our new board game, Horrified – Dungeons & Dragons. This is the latest in Ravensburger’s Horrified series, an all-time favorite in our home. We love the fairly simple setup, the easy-to-learn mechanics, and we can get a full game in in about an hour, so I highly recommend any of the versions. You can get Universal Monsters, American Monsters (cryptid themed), Greek Monsters, the World of Monsters (it has Cthulhu!), or the new D&D edition. Or, if you’re like me, all of them.

WRITING PROJECTS

Action Figures – Legacies 2 – Finished, waiting on cover art. Tentative release date: early 2026.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – A Wanton Criminal: Edited, awaiting cover art. Tentatively set for late 2025 release.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – untitled book nine: First draft underway.

APPEARANCES & EVENTS

Nothing currently scheduled.

MISC.

I am having issues with my newsletter service provider, so if you want to keep tabs on my projects, your best bet is to simply follow this blog and have its posts delivered directly to your inbox.

Action Figures – A Series Overview

What’s it About?

The series focuses on Carrie Hauser, a 15-year-old girl who one summer experiences two life-changing events: her parents announce they’re getting divorced, and she gains superhuman abilities after encountering a dying extraterrestrial after he falls to Earth.

Her adventure begins after Carrie and her mother Christina move back to Christina’s childhood home town of Kingsport, Massachusetts, and Carrie meets four teens with powers of their own: superhero fanboy Matt Steiger, who owns a pair of magic gloves that can produce any object he can envision out of thin air, like a living cartoon character; Sara Danvers, a telepath and telekinetic who is afraid of her own abilities; the easygoing Stuart Lumley, who possesses superhuman strength; and Missy Hamill, an adorable motormouth with enhanced strength and reflexes.

The teens form a superhero team almost on a whim, but soon find themselves fighting for their lives against very real super-villains – much to the dismay of Kingsport’s hometown hero Concorde, leader of the super-team The Protectorate.

Who is this Series For?

Fans of superhero comics, TV shows, and movies in general, but particularly of titles featuring teen heroes such as Young Justice, Teen Titans, Young Avengers, and Champions.

The tone is generally lighter than a lot of YA books out there now. While there is drama and conflict, and some later stories deal with darker issues, I try to keep the series fun, upbeat, and optimistic.

Is it Suitable for Young Readers?

Action Figures is a PG-13 series that contains mild to moderate profanity, non-graphic violence, some mature themes, and later on in the series mild sexual content.

An added word about the violent content: while the violence is not graphic, the consequences are not downplayed. This isn’t sanitized Hollywood violence. People get hurt just as they would in real life and do not easily shrug off injuries, and in some cases the characters have to deal with the emotional trauma of their experiences.

What are the Books in the Series?

Action Figures – Issue One: Secret Origins – Carrie and her new friends in the Hero Squad (yes, they know their team name is awful) find themselves caught in the crossfire as the deadly mercenary Manticore comes to Kingsport, on the hunt for the rogue artificial intelligence known as Archimedes. Soon to be available through Audible!

Action Figures – Issue Two: Black Magic Women – The sorceress Black Betty threatens to raise hell – maybe literally – as she pursues her vendetta against the Protectorate’s resident paranormal expert Dr. Enigma.

Action Figures – Issue Three: Pasts Imperfect – Missy’s life is turned upside-down when she learns the truth about the source of her powers, and her connection to the bloodthirsty killer Buzzkill Joy.

Action Figures – Issue Four: Cruel Summer – Sara finds herself in the crosshairs of the mysterious hero killer the King of Pain, but to save herself, she might have to sacrifice everything she holds dear.

Action Figures – Issue Five: Team-Ups – The Hero Squad, still reeling from their devastating encounter with the King of Pain, get a little help picking up the pieces from their friends in the Protectorate and the Quantum Quintet.

Action Figures – Issue Six: Power Play – The Squad finds itself outnumbered and under-powered after one of their members goes missing – and at the worst possible time as foes from their past reappear, more dangerous than ever and ready to exact revenge.

Action Figures – Issue Seven: The Black End War – On Earth, Carrie Hauser is a hero, but on the far side of the galaxy, she’s just another soldier on the front lines of an interplanetary war against the terrorists in the Black End.

Action Figures – Issue Eight: Crawling from the Wreckage – Carrie returns to Earth to reclaim her life, but life has moved on without her. Does she have a place with her team, her friends, or her family anymore?

Action Figures – Issue Nine: Hell Hath No Fury – Black Betty is back, and ready to unleash Hell — literally, but can the Hero Squad trust Dr. Enigma to have their backs? Or does she have her own dark agenda?

Action Figures – Issue Ten: Unintended Consequences – The Hero Squad learns that hard way that no good deed goes unpunished and the sins of their past have not been forgotten.

Action Figures – Issue Eleven: Zero Day – It’s the final showdown between the Hero Squad and ShadoWorks, in this, the epic conclusion to the Action Figures core series.

Action Figures: Legacies – In the wake of Zero Day, Aja Pershing, daughter of the murderous Manticore, finds herself on a collision course with the latest young woman to adopt the mantle of the vigilante known as the Silhouette. The first sequel to the core Action Figures series.

Art by Patricia Lupien

The Action Figures Omnibus – Volume One: Stepping Up – Collects the first three books in the series (Secret Origins, Black Magic Women, Pasts Imperfect) and features a new foreward by Patrick Hodges and a new introduction by the author.

Beneath the Mask: A Superhero Romance Anthology – Features the superhero noir tale Like a Knife in the Heart featuring the Sapphire Silhouette. Set in the Action Figures universe. Currently out of print.

How Long Will the Series Run?

The core series has finished its run, ending with issue eleven. The first spinoff/sequel book, Legacies, was released in 2025.

Where Can I Learn More?

Read can read sample chapters from Secret Origins, short stories set in the Action Figures world, buy signed copies, connect with me through social media, and get regular updates at my website: innsmouthlook.com

Weekly Update – October 7, 2025

Now that it’s Halloween season, I’m in the early stages of my annual tradition of re-watching favorite classic horror movies instead of the cheesy low-budget jobs I normally run in the background while I work.

It’s admittedly a little ironic that I’m starting off with the Friday the 13th franchise, which is among the most iconic horror movies out there, but make no mistake, they are not good movies. The series was probably at its best with the first two films, which were more straight-forward slashers with a slight grindhouse edge to them. After that, the cheesiness intensified with each entry. Jason in 3-D! Fake Jason! Undead Jason! Jason Goes to New York But Only For A Little While Because They Didn’t Have the Budget to Film in NYC! Jason the Body-Jumping Demon! Jason the Cyborg!

No, they are not good movies.

WRITING PROJECTS

Action Figures – Legacies 2 – Finished, waiting on cover art. Tentative release date: early 2026.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – A Wanton Criminal: Edited, awaiting cover art. Tentatively set for late 2025 release.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – untitled book nine: First draft underway.

APPEARANCES & EVENTS

Nothing currently scheduled.

MISC.

I am having issues with my newsletter service provider, so if you want to keep tabs on my projects, your best bet is to simply follow this blog and have its posts delivered directly to your inbox.

Weekly Update – September 30, 2025

A quick thing to report on the work front, in that my editor has done a quick beta-read on the second Action Figures – Legacies book, so after I do one more pass myself, it’ll be ready for editing. I don’t plan to release it until sometime next year, so you have plenty of time to read the first Legacies to prepare.

Onto something more of interest to the aspiring/new authors out there, and Legacies plays a small role in the anecdote I’m about to share. Long story short, there’s a new scam/cash grab out there hitting authors, involving an email that sounds a lot like the sender read the target’s book, analyzed it, checked out its performance on Amazon, lamented its lack of traction in the market, and is now generously offering to share the book with a huge group of avid readers who will be happy to review it.

I’ve received three of these emails. They all had identical tones and approaches, but another giveaway that something was off was: one of them spoke of a book I didn’t write. When I replied to one to see what happened, I was informed that the sender had indeed read my book. I asked if they would leave a review on Amazon themselves to show their good faith. They said they’d be happy to do so.

Guess what I haven’t seen yet?

Victoria Strauss did a deep dive into this scam on Writer Beware, and I encourage authors to check it out, but the long and short of it is, the scammer wants the target to download a PDF of their book for distribution to the “book club,” and to pay a fee for the privilege. There are red flags abound, so if you get one of these emails, delete it and block the sender immediately.

WRITING PROJECTS

Action Figures – Legacies 2 – Finished, waiting on cover art. Tentative release date: early 2026.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – A Wanton Criminal: Edited, awaiting cover art. Tentatively set for late 2025 release.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – untitled book nine: First draft underway.

APPEARANCES & EVENTS

Nothing currently scheduled.

MISC.

I am having issues with my newsletter service provider, so if you want to keep tabs on my projects, your best bet is to simply follow this blog and have its posts delivered directly to your inbox.

Well-Behaved Women – A Series Overview

What’s it About?

Rose Booker remembers how she died. Both times.

Rose’s pursuit of the truth behind those memories leads her to discover that she was in a past life the legendary pirate queen Mary Read — and that she’s not the only infamous historical figure who has returned from the dead.

Who is this Series For?

Well-Behaved Women is an urban fantasy trilogy featuring a predominantly female cast. I wrote it for everyone looking for an action-packed adventure tale driven by complex heroic (and villainous, and somewhere in-between) LGBTQ women.

Is it Suitable for Young Readers?

No. The series contains violence, language, and sexual content that make it inappropriate for younger readers.

What are the Books in the Series?

Awakening: Nearly a year after being shot and left for dead, Sergeant Rose Booker returns to active duty with the Worcester Police Department, hoping to put the past behind her — except she’s not sure it’s her past that’s haunting her.

When hard-drinking hellraiser Julie d’Aubigny enters Rose’s life, she promises to reveal the truth behind Rose’s nightmares — or are they memories? — of her death at the end of a hangman’s noose.

But first Rose must stop the mysterious madman waging a bloody campaign of vengeance that threatens to turn the city’s streets red. All she has to do is uncover his identity — and his own dark secret.

Transition: The adventure continues as Rose and her friends deal with the aftermath of the events in Awakening and face off against a new, deadlier enemy hellbent on revenge.

Endtimes: Rose, Anna, and Julie face the fight of their lives in the conclusion of the Well-Behaved Women trilogy.

All three titles are available to read for free through Kindle Unlimited, and are available as audiobooks on Audible, narrated by Darci Cole (Target) and Heather Auden.

Where Can I Learn More?

Read can read sample chapters from Awakening, buy signed copies, connect with me through social media, and get regular updates at my website: innsmouthlook.com

Weekly Update – September 23, 2025

Nothing much to report on the writing front, so I’m going to speak briefly about a topical issue — which I know some people don’t care for, so if you’re one of those, might as well tune out now.

I’m sure you’ve all heard about the censorship of Jimmy Kimmel by this point — and yes, it absolutely was authoritarian censorship. A corporate entertainment company bowed to the whims of a president with the most fragile ego in the world and infringed upon a citizen’s First Amendment rights in the process.

So my wife and I made the decision to no longer support said corporate entity, Disney, and cancelled our Hulu and Disney Plus subscriptions. We also cancelled our Paramount Plus subscription, a delayed decision we should have made when CBS cancelled The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, if not sooner. We simply can’t in good conscience contribute to these companies’ bottom lines when they’re so eager to kowtow to a wannabe dictator.

Instead, we’re going to direct that money to entertainment we feel good about supporting. We’ve purchased a subscription to Dropout, which has some fantastic original comedy programming on top of an ethical business model that shares profits with its employees, and we’ve signed up for a ton of newsletters from local theater companies so we can support the live theater scene in our area.

I’m frankly not interested in entertaining a debate here, so if you post comments giving me shit for getting on my soapbox, or playing the whataboutism card, or chastising me for not protesting the way you think I should, I’m just going to delete those without response — which is not a violation of your First Amendment rights, so don’t even attempt that lame-ass gotcha. Legal precedent is not on your side.

I’m putting this out there in the hope others will take similar action and redirect their entertainment spending away from corporations that are not inclined to do the right thing by defending their artists, and instead invest in small, independent creators. Individually it’s not much, but collectively, it can make impacts on several fronts.

WRITING PROJECTS

Action Figures – Legacies 2 – Finished, waiting on cover art. Tentative release date: early 2026.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – A Wanton Criminal: Edited, awaiting cover art. Tentatively set for late 2025 release.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – untitled book nine: First draft underway.

APPEARANCES & EVENTS

Nothing currently scheduled.

MISC.

I am having issues with my newsletter service provider, so if you want to keep tabs on my projects, your best bet is to simply follow this blog and have its posts delivered directly to your inbox.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – A Series Overview

What’s it About?

Derek Strongarm and Felix Lightfoot are a pair of hard-luck adventurers for hire with an unfortunate knack for landing jobs that pay too little and threaten their lives too much. Erika Racewind is a hardened elven warrior who doesn’t like people, except maybe when she’s killing them. Winifred Graceword is a kindhearted elven priestess skilled in the healing arts. David is a young sorcerer on a path to discover who he really is — and whether that person has a last name, because going by just “David” is getting old fast.

Together these companions travel across the land of Asaches looking for adventure and the glory and riches that come with it. Mostly the riches, though, because you can’t buy food and beer with glory.

Who is this Series For?

Sword-and-sorcery fantasy fans looking for something a little lighter than most of the fare currently on the shelves. If you want heavy, dark, serious stories with lots of death, destruction, torture, rape, and political intrigue, go read something else because you won’t find it here.

What you will find is a fast-paced adventure filled with colorful characters, rip-roaring action, humor, and gentle jabs at the classic elements of fantasy fiction.

Which is not to say this series is a comedy or parody. There is still drama aplenty, but as a rule I don’t take things too seriously. You can read these books and not feel like you need a hug and a room full of puppies afterward.

Basically, if you like fare like The Legend of Vox Machina and Dungeons and Dragons – Honor Among Thieves, this is the series for you.

Is it Suitable for Young Readers?

Not really. The series is a hard PG-13/light R for violence, language, and sexual content. It is suitable for older teens, but not for the YA crowd.

What are the Books in the Series?

Scratching a Lich: Derek and Felix find themselves entangled in an urgent quest to slay a legendary lich before he can trigger a world-ending apocalypse – as insane undead sorcerers are wont to do. Together with Erika Racewind, bodyguard for a mysterious young wizard named David, and Winifred Graceword, they head out to discover lost cities, recover long lost magical artifacts, and slay great evils in order to fulfill curiously specific prophecies – as mismatched, ragtag groups of adventurers are wont to do.

Assassins Brawl: The companions are hired to safeguard a spoiled brat of a princess targeted for death by the assassin Ruined Isys, but as is often the case, there’s more going on here than meets the eye. Now all they have to do is determine who is behind the plot before they get caught in the crossfire.

Blades of Glory: Derek, Felix, and company are up for a job that seems a little too simple for a payday that seems a little too generous – but unfortunately, so are the famed adventurers of fortune known as the Noble Blades. Which of them will be the first to find a stolen ceremonial mask that is absolutely positively completely normal and not at all some lost artifact possessed of dark power?

Sworded Affairs: The company takes a job to dispose of a potentially dangerous magical artifact only to become snowbound in an isolated city besieged by flesh-hungry beasts — and under assault from within by a dark conspiracy.

Elfish Motives: Winifred Graceword is called home under mysterious circumstances, which lead to the company revisiting the lost even city of Wihend. But what do the four clans want with their long-abandoned ancestral home?

Twins and Losses: The company finally returns home to Ambride, only to become immediately embroiled in a scandal threatening to consume the Ambride Academy of Magic.

Draconian Measures: David is charged with a diplomatic mission that could unite Asaches’s fractured magical academies, but first he has to contend with a maniacal warden, political upheaval, and an enormous dragon terrorizing the coastal city of Atebo.

A Wanton Criminal: The companions find themselves in the middle of a power struggle that threatens to tear apart their adopted home of Ambride. Tentatively set for a 2025 release.

The Final Summons – An Anthology of the New England Speculative Writers: Featuring The Going Rate For Penance, a short story set in the Strongarm & Lightfoot world. Mercenaries Jessica and Samantha Summerland receive an assignment from their least favorite client, and one way or another, this will be their last job.

How Long Will the Series Run?

Unknown, but tentatively ten books.

Are They Available As Audiobooks?

The first five books, narrated by Heather S. Auden, are currently available on Audible.

Where Can I Learn More?

Read can read sample chapters from Scratching a Lich, buy signed copies, connect with me through social media, and get regular updates at my website: innsmouthlook.com

Weekly Update – September 16, 2025

Not much to say on the writing front, but I am going to boast about my latest project as a fight director.

Got to see “The Minutes” from Studio Theatre Worcester in full form Saturday night, and it was a great show beginning to end. Relevant story, so many funny lines delivered with perfect timing and tone, and — speaking as the FD — I couldn’t be happier with the actors. They were game for anything I threw at them, worked hard, were absolutely committed to working safely, and rewarded me by providing the show with this golden moment, which has so far gotten great audience reactions according to the stage manager.

Actor credits, from L to R: John Brownie, Thomas Mshooshian, Elijah Lidonde. Photo credit to Emma Purple Photography.

Anyway, there’s three performances this coming weekend (hit the link above for details). Go see this show and support a local theater company!

WRITING PROJECTS

Action Figures – Legacies 2 – Finished, waiting on cover art. Tentative release date: early 2026.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – A Wanton Criminal: Edited, awaiting cover art. Tentatively set for late 2025 release.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – untitled book nine: First draft underway.

APPEARANCES & EVENTS

Nothing currently scheduled.

MISC.

I am having issues with my newsletter service provider, so if you want to keep tabs on my projects, your best bet is to simply follow this blog and have its posts delivered directly to your inbox.

Action Figures – A Series Overview

What’s it About?

The series focuses on Carrie Hauser, a 15-year-old girl who one summer experiences two life-changing events: her parents announce they’re getting divorced, and she gains superhuman abilities after encountering a dying extraterrestrial after he falls to Earth.

Her adventure begins after Carrie and her mother Christina move back to Christina’s childhood home town of Kingsport, Massachusetts, and Carrie meets four teens with powers of their own: superhero fanboy Matt Steiger, who owns a pair of magic gloves that can produce any object he can envision out of thin air, like a living cartoon character; Sara Danvers, a telepath and telekinetic who is afraid of her own abilities; the easygoing Stuart Lumley, who possesses superhuman strength; and Missy Hamill, an adorable motormouth with enhanced strength and reflexes.

The teens form a superhero team almost on a whim, but soon find themselves fighting for their lives against very real super-villains – much to the dismay of Kingsport’s hometown hero Concorde, leader of the super-team The Protectorate.

Who is this Series For?

Fans of superhero comics, TV shows, and movies in general, but particularly of titles featuring teen heroes such as Young Justice, Teen Titans, Young Avengers, and Champions.

The tone is generally lighter than a lot of YA books out there now. While there is drama and conflict, and some later stories deal with darker issues, I try to keep the series fun, upbeat, and optimistic.

Is it Suitable for Young Readers?

Action Figures is a PG-13 series that contains mild to moderate profanity, non-graphic violence, some mature themes, and later on in the series mild sexual content.

An added word about the violent content: while the violence is not graphic, the consequences are not downplayed. This isn’t sanitized Hollywood violence. People get hurt just as they would in real life and do not easily shrug off injuries, and in some cases the characters have to deal with the emotional trauma of their experiences.

What are the Books in the Series?

Action Figures – Issue One: Secret Origins – Carrie and her new friends in the Hero Squad (yes, they know their team name is awful) find themselves caught in the crossfire as the deadly mercenary Manticore comes to Kingsport, on the hunt for the rogue artificial intelligence known as Archimedes. Soon to be available through Audible!

Action Figures – Issue Two: Black Magic Women – The sorceress Black Betty threatens to raise hell – maybe literally – as she pursues her vendetta against the Protectorate’s resident paranormal expert Dr. Enigma.

Action Figures – Issue Three: Pasts Imperfect – Missy’s life is turned upside-down when she learns the truth about the source of her powers, and her connection to the bloodthirsty killer Buzzkill Joy.

Action Figures – Issue Four: Cruel Summer – Sara finds herself in the crosshairs of the mysterious hero killer the King of Pain, but to save herself, she might have to sacrifice everything she holds dear.

Action Figures – Issue Five: Team-Ups – The Hero Squad, still reeling from their devastating encounter with the King of Pain, get a little help picking up the pieces from their friends in the Protectorate and the Quantum Quintet.

Action Figures – Issue Six: Power Play – The Squad finds itself outnumbered and under-powered after one of their members goes missing – and at the worst possible time as foes from their past reappear, more dangerous than ever and ready to exact revenge.

Action Figures – Issue Seven: The Black End War – On Earth, Carrie Hauser is a hero, but on the far side of the galaxy, she’s just another soldier on the front lines of an interplanetary war against the terrorists in the Black End.

Action Figures – Issue Eight: Crawling from the Wreckage – Carrie returns to Earth to reclaim her life, but life has moved on without her. Does she have a place with her team, her friends, or her family anymore?

Action Figures – Issue Nine: Hell Hath No Fury – Black Betty is back, and ready to unleash Hell — literally, but can the Hero Squad trust Dr. Enigma to have their backs? Or does she have her own dark agenda?

Action Figures – Issue Ten: Unintended Consequences – The Hero Squad learns that hard way that no good deed goes unpunished and the sins of their past have not been forgotten.

Action Figures – Issue Eleven: Zero Day – It’s the final showdown between the Hero Squad and ShadoWorks, in this, the epic conclusion to the Action Figures core series.

Action Figures: Legacies – In the wake of Zero Day, Aja Pershing, daughter of the murderous Manticore, finds herself on a collision course with the latest young woman to adopt the mantle of the vigilante known as the Silhouette. The first sequel to the core Action Figures series.

Art by Patricia Lupien

The Action Figures Omnibus – Volume One: Stepping Up – Collects the first three books in the series (Secret Origins, Black Magic Women, Pasts Imperfect) and features a new foreward by Patrick Hodges and a new introduction by the author.

Beneath the Mask: A Superhero Romance Anthology – Features the superhero noir tale Like a Knife in the Heart featuring the Sapphire Silhouette. Set in the Action Figures universe. Currently out of print.

How Long Will the Series Run?

The core series has finished its run, ending with issue eleven. Two spinoff titles are currently in the early planning stages, with the first of those books, Legacies, set for a 2025 release.

Where Can I Learn More?

Read can read sample chapters from Secret Origins, short stories set in the Action Figures world, buy signed copies, connect with me through social media, and get regular updates at my website: innsmouthlook.com

Weekly Update – September 9, 2025

It’s been an active few weeks between new releases and sales, but now, alas, it’s back to a kind of boring week. I have the day off today, so aside from running out to get my updated COVID and flu vaccines — which you should all do, assuming you’re in a state that is saying “fuck you” to the federal government and doing what it can to make the COVID booster available — I’m inside, working on a new project. It’s something I’ve had in mind for a while now and am finally putting down on metaphorical paper, but it’ll be some time before it is ready to chat up.

WRITING PROJECTS

Action Figures – Legacies 2 – Finished, waiting on cover art. Tentative release date: early 2026.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – A Wanton Criminal: Edited, awaiting cover art. Tentatively set for late 2025 release.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – untitled book nine: First draft underway.

APPEARANCES & EVENTS

Nothing currently scheduled.

MISC.

I am having issues with my newsletter service provider, so if you want to keep tabs on my projects, your best bet is to simply follow this blog and have its posts delivered directly to your inbox.