The Newsletter Failure

Yesterday I sent you a newsletter using my Mailchimp account because I wanted to create one more before I cancelled their service. The $600.00+US per year subscription wasn’t worth paying for anymore. Sadly, when I cancelled it, Mailchimp deactivated every link and image in my newsletters. They probably tried to warn me during the cancellation process, but I obviously missed it, so I apologize for sending you a lengthy chunk of text with dead links.

To make up for it, I’m happy to make a couple of books free for the next week. The audiobook version of Spinward Fringe: Origins narrated by Adam Verner, and the first book in the Rogue Element series: Rogue Assembly. This isn’t just a good will gesture, it’s a bribe meant to entice you to stay on my mailing list.

Here’s what you can expect if you stay subscribed to me.

First of all, your subscription to my blog is free. It always has been and always will be. Most of you originally signed up on my old site, and I’ll be returning to the blog format. I’ve experimented with Patreon, Wix, newsletters, and considered smoke signals, but I think blogging is the best fit for me. So, I’ll post at least once a month. I got a very good response to my latest article about writing pivotal scenes, so there will be more behind the curtain stuff coming. There will be announcements about new projects, release dates, and other things about my world. Finally, you can expect the return of regular question and answer posts.

I’ve been flirting with doing something on Youtube or going back to podcasting, but I can’t guarantee anything there because I may not have time. Most of my life is dedicated to writing these days, and I’d like to finish two more books this year so everything else is being pushed into the little spare time I have left at the end of the day.

If you’re unsubscribing, there’s no hard feelings on my end. Thank you for following my work for so long.

If you’re sticking around, I won’t post more than four times a month since I don’t want to abuse the privilege of having your email address. Thank you for being here. Self publishing is my only source of income, so you help keep a roof over my head and sight saving drops in my eyes when you subscribe to Ream Stories or buy one of my books. You also satisfy another cardinal desire held by all writers – we love it when someone reads our work.

Now here’s the free stuff I promised followed by the newsletter with working images and links! Thanks again!

Free Stuff! (a.k.a. bribes)

Spinward Fringe Broadcast 0: Origins [Audiobook]
Written by Randolph Lalonde
Narrated by Adam Verner
18 hr 19 min | Unabridged

Free until April 21st, 2025

On the Google Play Store

Rogue Assembly [eBook]
Written by Randolph Lalonde
238 Pages / 67,000 Words

Free until April 21, 2025 from my personal bookstore.

Here’s the Newsletter with working images and links! A Personal Update

Thanks to my Ream Stories subscribers, I’ve been able to cover a few bills and my medication. On the health front, I’ve been able to get off two thirds of my meds because I’m doing well, and I’ve lost a total of one hundred forty pounds through nothing but diet and some excecise since 2021. I haven’t been this healthy in almost two decades.

I’ve been working a lot since the last newsletter went out, so things haven’t been amazing on the social side of things, but that’ll most likely change as I start attending writing and artistic events in my area. I’m looking forward to seeing how much that scene has changed over the last fifteen or so years and to meeting some new people. Now, on to adventure!

On Ream Stories

Ream Stories is a Patreon like subscription site made for writers and their readers. There you can find some rare stuff in the Library and you’ll see articles weeks, even months before they appear on the blog if they go public at all.

There are other Ream Stories exclusives as well, such as the first draft of Rogue Cause, the second book in the Rogue Element Quartet. The second draft was almost completely different so the first draft is mostly for people who are curious about what goes into writing a good book, the first draft is not canon, but complete. The second draft is the final version that was released to retailers.

You’ll also find the Atlantean Decision – a short story about the last of Eve’s forces, and a rough Treatment for a Spinward Fringe Series. A treatment is a short description of what a series might look like, the story, a description of the setting, along with suggestions for scenes and outlines of the first few episodes. I wrote that after the TV rights for Spinward Fringe reverted back to me. I will probably polish and expand it when another producer or studio makes a serious offer, but you can take a look at it first.

Presenting the Rogue Element Series

These books are directly connected to the Spinward Fringe Main Series, but you don’t have to read anything outside of the Rogue Element Series to enjoy the adventure. Timeline wise, they occur during the Samurai Squadron Trilogy but in different places so we get to explore other parts of the galaxy.

Technology, humanity and the power structure of the galaxy are changing quickly, and Rogue is caught in the middle. Instead of leaning on people from her past, she has remains independant, taking on a small crew as she pursues bounty hunting and even more ambitious careers. Here are the books so far, which you can find on Ream Stories or from ebook retailers. The most recent is still being serialized on Ream Stories.

Rogue Assembly
Rogue Cause
Rogue Chase

I Was On The News!

My local news station – CTV Northern Ontario – invited me on as a local author. The interviewer, Tony Ryma was very professional and helpful which is a really good thing since I had only been on camera once since 2004. I was so nervous that I flipped an important word and got a little lost while describing my latest book at the end, but the feedback is good. Check it out on the blog!.

That’s all for now. This will be the last newsletter. In the future you’ll get individual blog posts 1-4 times per month. It’s like we’re back in 2008, right? Thank you for reading to the bottom. I’m grateful to everyone who buys my books or subscribes. I hope you enjoy my work.