Saturday, August 1, 2026

August 2026 Update: Maradaine, WorldCon, ArmadilloCon and beyond

Once again, I find myself more than halfway through the year and wondering where the time went.  But that is because a lot of things are happening, even if that's not translating to new stuff for y'all to read.

MARADAINE NEWS

So first let's address that!  I had hoped to have An Unkindness of Uncircled Mages out in the world in September, but that's not going to happen.  Now, for why, it's more to do with production logistics than anything else.  The text of the book, the creative part of the work, is done, and I am very pleased with it.  But the elements of turning that into a finished book-- things like copyediting and cover design-- have been taking longer than I had originally planned.  And that's fine, I'd rather those things take a little more time and be right than be rushed.  

Honestly, I did rush in putting out the original Artemisia versions with the terrible covers and in retrospect I wish I hadn't.  So I'm not going to make that mistake again.  When I have a locked down release date (and it'll surely be late 2026, early 2027 at the latest), I will let you know.  

And following that, I will be putting out a couple more Maradaine things in the relatively near future.  One will be a collection of all the Saga Shorts, including the yet-to-be-released A Proper Lady of Society, which is a story focusing on Lady Melania from the Streets of Maradaine series.  All five of those shorts will be in one volume.  Following that, I hope to have the fourth Maradaine Elite novel, City of the Truth, finished and in your hands by early 2028.

In other Maradaine news, right now the ebook prices for all the first books of the four Maradaine series is just $1.99!  If you've got a friend who you want to get hooked into Maradaine (or said friend is you), this is a great time to pick up those first books!

THORN OF DENTONHILL
A MURDER OF MAGES
HOLVER ALLEY CREW
WAY OF THE SHIELD

I'm working on more things not set in Maradaine as well, but we'll hold off on talking about those just yet.  

UPCOMING APPEARANCES

I've got two things on the schedule in the next couple months!  First, I'll be at WorldCon in Anaheim, August 27-31.  I'll be doing a few things there, including two Table Talks: One by myself, and one with the whole Worldbuilding for Masochists team!

I'll also be there for the Hugo Awards, where we're nominated for the sixth time.  Did you know there's still time to vote, if you are eligible to vote and so inclined?  You could even still get a supporting membership to vote.  

A couple weeks after that, I'll be at the local and dear-to-my-heart ArmadilloCon.  We've got some great guests this time around, and I've got a strong feeling that it's going to be an excellent show.  And I plan to do a reading from one of the not-Maradaine pieces I've been working on, so that'll be a fun sneak peak at what's going on.  

And that's the story here for now.  More updates to come as the year continues.