When I have to time away from writing, such as traveling for and attending conventions, I find I always come back hungry to hit the page, usually resulting in days where I go way over my word count quota. It's a nice reminder that I am definitely in the right line of work.

Roverpowered 5 has grabbed #1 in a category and earned a Best Seller banner! Thanks so much for continuing to come along on Wanda and Wumble’s journey. Hitting these kinds of ranks with a novella is no easy feat, and wouldn’t be possible without amazing readers like you all.

Roverpowered #5 is out today in all formats! Season Two of Wumble and Wanda's adventures kicks off with a bang, as the pair's outstanding exploits have finally begun attracting attention. See what's in store for the aspiring alchemist and her faithful familiar! www.amazon.com/Roverpowered...

Plotting Villains' Code Books: "Hmmm, do I really have enough to fill the next one up yet?" Writing Villains' Code Books: "Fuck fuck fuck why did I plot so much for one god-damned book fuck shit fuck."

On my way to the grocery store this morning, I had to swerve to avoid a rabbit in the road. Driving back along the same road later, I had to swerve to avoid a turtle. Pretty sure I know how this one is turning out. 🐢

Well, this was a good day for my proactive pre-order purchasers. 😅

It is shocking how many musical numbers my brain keeps wanting to plot into Villains’ Code series, which is a series of books about pragmatic super villains. Not exactly the ideal stage for that kind of feature... even if Book #4 does already have a couple written. 😅

Over the years, this has been far and away one of the most requested pieces of non-book merch from Super Powereds readers, and I am so happy that Youtooz gave me the chance to bring it to life! As Hexcellent herself would say: Hop Hop Mother F#*kers.

Next week, on May 5th, I get to announce a non-book project that I've been looking forward to for a while now! That's all I can say for now... but not all I can show. 😁

Con season approaches! My first one for 2026 will be Con Carolinas, held in Charlotte from May 29th - 31st. concarolinas.org

Buying some swag to have on hand at cons for this year and I am very excited for some of the ones I'll have on hand this year. I expect the koozies will be an especially big hit... at least among my readers. 😁

It’s a distinctly weird contrast to work on a novella and a 300k book at the same time.

It's downright criminal that a show as good as Stumble is apparently on the bubble for renewal. I feel like in five years we're going to be seeing it all over socials with tags about "how was this cancelled???"

The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins feels like a well-honed show hitting its third season stride more than one that just debuted. Confidence and chemistry in abundance.

I have started my coffee maker without a pot underneath too many times to ever take myself seriously.

I'm sure that right now there is a fevered goldrush in the tech sector as people are scrambling to capitalize on Discord's mistake and take their spot, but I'd bet whoever is the first imitator to get Patreon integrations setup will be the eventual front-runner.

As if writing didn’t keep me busy enough, apparently I need to find a replacement for Discord, since there’s obviously no way in hell I’m asking my Patreons to trust that company with their actual IDs If anyone has favorites similar but scrupulous platforms, recommendations are greatly appreciated.

I'm always so excited to get new glasses, each time somehow forgetting the two-week period where putting them on makes me feel immediately motion sick. 😵‍💫

Fred the Vampire Accountant #9: All Accounts Settled, is officially out today in audiobook and we've already cracked the Audible top 1000! amzn.to/45czj2F

The Fred the Vampire Accountant finale: All Accounts Settled, is available in audiobook as of today! www.audible.com/pd/All-Accou... A huge shout out to @tantoraudio.bsky.social and Kirby Heyborne, who have been instrumental in bringing Fred’s voice to life over 9 books.

After over a decade of doing it full time, damn do I still love this job. More with every passing year.

I think I've largely weathered hitting middle-age well, aside from getting really into backpacks and slings for no explicable reason, but I do find myself a lot more cognizant of how long it takes me to write books versus how many years I've got left under fair-to-good circumstances.

I’m rewatching Jingle All the Way and realizing that Arnold was so damn charming you sort of miss how long they go without giving his character Any redeeming moments.

I feel a bit bad for anyone who runs an actual book group and finds themselves wondering why every email is suddenly being blocked or ignored. Sadly, the scammers have found a new hook to imitate over and over, so the Spam filters have gotten an update.

As much as I know alerting folks to a release is important because some readers do want that information, there's always the shadow of this feeling every time a new book drops. 😵‍💫 Anyway, the final Fred book is out on Kindle and Print! Audio arrives on 1/12/2026, when we get to do this dance again.

With the Fred finale on the horizon tomorrow, I've realized it's been nearly a decade since I've wrapped a series. There's always a sense of pressure with any book, but the last one weighs heaviest. Thankfully, I really like how the Fred books wrap up. Hopefully you all will too. We'll see soon 😅

Two more days until the final Fred book releases on print and ebook! And my audio folks, I have happy to announce that Tantor has given the date of 1/13/26 for the audiobook version, so not too long of wait to hear Kirby Heyborne's always amazing performance

There’s still a long journey of rewrites, edits, and other preparations, but NPCs #6’s rough draft is officially finished! And only 48k words over what is planned. Which, compared the 60k I went over in #5, is sadly still progress 😅

One week left until the Fred finale releases on ebook and print. I'd nearly forgotten the mix of excitement and terror when a series is about to end.

It's been so long since I wrote Holly's Jolly Christmas, I nearly forgot how much fun her stories are. Last time it was a slasher/romcom fusion set at Christmas, this time we're going full slasher/Christmas movie combination.

I try not to post too much about my Patreon cause I know we all get enough ads already, but I do make an exception when a new story kicks off. Especially because this is the first time I've done a sequel! Today the first chapter of The Holly Claus went live: www.patreon.com/c/drewhayesn...

The new writer scam hotness is the email that purports to be from a book club that meets on Zoom, who invites you to discuss [title of yours plucked from an AI database], and who needs you to pay a "small reservation fee" to participate. Gotten three just today. Fuck that noise, plonk it into spam.

This Halloween, confront something truly scary: Finality. Fred the Vampire Accountant #9: All Accounts Settled is the last entry in the series and will coming out in print and ebook (I'll add audio dates once they're known) on October 31st. amzn.to/475voWv

The longer I do this job, the more I realized that, at least for me, writer's block is actually my brain flagging that something isn't working and I need to address it before moving on.

Nothing like getting spam from shifty AI audiobook companies trying to sell me on using them for a book that already has an audiobook out. Granted, I'd tell them to fuck off with that regardless, but extra layer of laziness really makes hitting the block button all the more satisfying.

Adventure, Alchemy, and Adorable familiars! Join Wumble and Wanda for Roverpowered #4, out today in ebook, print, and audio: amzn.to/4me2lVf

Wanda and Wumble are back! Since this story is designed somewhat episodically, I wrote Roverpowered #4 to act as a sort of season (not series!) finale which means it's both a bit bigger and more bombastic. I hope you enjoy the duo's most action-packed adventure yet: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...

Another year, another amazing Dragon Con! Big thanks to everyone who came out to say hello, see a panel, or grab a signature. It’s awesome getting to come to this event and meet readers, along with seeing all the amazing costumes and events. See y’all again in 2026!

Heads up to my Dragon Con folks! I have signed all the remaining stock for Roverpowered (Books 1-4) at the Aethon booth. Happy to personalize it you see me around, but wanted folks to know that what they have remaining is all signed.

On my way to Dragon Con! For the signing Friday, while I’ll have some stock of books on hand, if you want any specific titles signed it’s highly recommended you bring them. If you’re interested in sitting with me and talking about writing, signups for 15 Minute Mentor are at the Writing Track.

Hot holy hell, you folks have really turned out for Villains' Vignettes: Volume II. We are sitting around the #150 rank for all of Audible! For anyone who missed the news yesterday, Villain's Vignettes: Volume II (Villains' Code #3.5) has released on audiobook. www.audible.com/pd/Villains-...

Villains Vignettes: Volume II (Villains’ Code #3.5) is now officially out on audio! www.audible.com/pd/B0FH5S65NF

The horror movie trope that bumps me most often is someone seeing a bulb burn out and going over to investigate. If I see a bulb pop, my first thought is not “Demon!”, it’s knowing I have drag the giant god damn ladder out to fix it. Which is a more a creeping, anxious horror than a jump scare.

In all the excitement of preparing for Dragon Con, I nearly forgot I've got an audiobook coming out on Tuesday! Villains' Vignettes: Volume II (Villains' Code Book #3.5) will be out on 8/26, once again narrated by the outstanding Amy Landon. www.audible.com/pd/Villains-...

Dragon Con is next week, and here is where you can find me! I've also got some special badge ribbons for folks who say hello when I'm out and about, so keep your eyes peeled for a tall man in a garish hat!

On my way back to Denver for another con, this time I’ll be at Convergence 27! If you’re in the area, hope you can stop by and say hello.

Heads up to all my Denver readers, I'll be at Convergence 27 this weekend! They've got me on a few panels and have even dedicated some time for a signings, so please stop by and say hello! convergence27denver.com

With any long-running series, when there's a new entry, people wonder how close that moves us to the final book. Typically, I tend not to say what the final book is until we're there, like with Fred #9 That said, for anyone wondering, we haven't even hit the halfway point of Villains' Code yet. 😎

At the airport waiting for my Denver flight to LitRPG Con! I’ve got some fun freebies if you find me wandering around and say hi, so keep your eyes peeled for the giant in a ridiculous hat!

Villains' Vignettes: Volume II officially has an audiobook launch date, and I am happy to announce it will very much Not be over a year away! The audiobook is narrated (as always) by Amy Landon and releasing on August 26th, meaning we're only a few months away. www.audible.com/pd/Villains-...