For those considering using AI/LLMs for their books or book covers. I was just about to mark a book as one I was interested in reading as part of a judging allotment, then didn't due to the use of AI in its cover. You're genuinely missing out on readers (& reviews) when you use this shite

I wasn't expecting all of this to arrive *today.* I have a lovely amount of reading ahead of me, courtesy of @newedgeswordmag.bsky.social , @miltonmvmedia.bsky.social and more.

Got my table assignment for my demo game of Perilous Tales at Running GAGG and I will be right out front in the student union lobby. Better bust out the real eye-catchers - the doughnut shop, the "store closing" inflatable gorilla, and the LED dumpster fire.

Got to play some Dracula's America today. I lost again (I think that's 3 losses in 3 games), but only by a single VP, and my posse did pretty well at taking out their opponents.

Submitted my first short story in four years. Faint hearts never won fair ladies or a place in a table of contents.

For the "Empire" themed bonus round, I painted up the spectacular figures of King Shield Jaguar and his aunt/wife Lady Xoc that @leadasbestos.bsky.social was kind enough to gift to me. analogue-hobbies-theme-rounds.blogspot.com/2026/01/empi...

I picked up Preston & Child's 1995 novel "Relic" at the library yesterday, because I really like the 1997 movie it inspired, and it happened to be one shelf down from books Gina was looking for. I read half the novel in a single sitting. A brain-eating monster loose in a museum is a great premise.

Boosting this - Duck Prints Press does good work, and this is a great opportunity for fanfiction authors to expand their repertoires.

Gina and I have decided that this year we're pushing back, ditching streaming and YouTube and prioritizing physical media as exclusively as possible. Today we went to our local library and a local used records store where we went a bit feral buying CDs. We might not have a CD *player* yet.

And a little #selfpromosaturday action: THE TWIN HEADS OF AVARICE is a system-neutral tabletop #RPG scenario, cowritten by myself and @forgeofice.bsky.social , set in his Lost World of Azor. An Ocean's 11-style heist in a sword-and-sorcery milieu. reverse-ettin-games.itch.io/the-twin-hea...

He's waiting for me to do the right thing and refill his food bowl. #caturday

"The CEOs of AI companies should receive the melted-down circuit boards of their water-poisoning plagiarism machines as an enema." Or is that too subtle?

Issues 5 thru 7 of @newedgeswordmag.bsky.social are now available in the Bodega! ⚔️ If you're longing for the scifi/fantasy anthologies of yore, with a heavy emphasis on Queer perspectives: this is your magazine⚔️

Reading submission guidelines for various indie publishers, and I just want to say how much I appreciate the humor some of them insert. "No stories of young people at wizard school. No orcs. No young orcs at wizard school - they don't cancel out and make it acceptable." Paraphrased, but barely so.

I remember when a writing teacher asked us to raise our hand if we've made more than $5 from our writing. Three of us did. We were told that's enough to put us in the top 1% of most successful writers through history. A little hyperbole, but not far off. I still think about it.

I've had a lot of issues with how Chaosium has chosen to do business over the last several years, and in 2021 committed myself to not creating further works using the Call of Cthulhu RPG, switching to @cthulhureborn.bsky.social 's Cthulhu Eternal engine.

I've read a bit of Saunders, but I'm definitely making sure I read more Sword & Soul this year.

I finished "A Book of Blades" from the Rogues in the House podcast last night. Overall, a really good read - all the stories are strong and enjoyable, though I think a couple stray farther afield from what I would consider "sword and sorcery" into realms of magic-as-science type tales.

We used a laser pointer with Poppy for the first time tonight, and, um. I think he's having an existential crisis over not being able to locate the red dot. He keeps pacing the room it was last in with a concerned look on his face.

We thought we were adopting a cat, but got a hybrid potato/air raid siren instead.

Some brightly colored figures from Lucid Eye and Gringo40s in my post for the AHPC today: thepaintingchallenge.blogspot.com/2026/01/from...

*childish grabby hands* My plans for "low-buy January" may be slipping away from me.

The downside of participating in the painting challenge I'm in is that I can't post miniatures as I finish them; I get one day per week I can post to the challenge blog, and then there's a 24 hour moratorium between my post going live and me being able to reshare the photos separately elsewhere.

Let myself have a little skim-through of the first draft, as a treat. Cleaned up two sentences that weren't as clear as they could have been, and fixed a couple word choices where, for example, I'd used "darkness" in two consecutive sentences. NOW I'll stop touching it for a day.

I really need to get me some of the Celtos models - I've only been ogling them for 20 years!

Oops finished the first draft. This is a shorter one. 3,120 words at first blush. And, a rarity - a good title came to me immediately! "A Very Good Dog" takes place early in Tarskia's adventuring career, and involves a winter storm, a haunted shrine and a cute dog with a secret.

Many years ago, I sat on the other side of a cubicle wall from a coworker who played music at her desk without headphones. She'd found the perfect volume where no one would complain to management. She had a playlist of six songs; two of them were Toto's "Africa."

My books are my survival. I don’t have any other job, safety net, family to fall back on. This is it, my best effort poured into my writing, and often what comes back is just enough to keep me moving to the next thing. When you buy my books, tell a friend, as for them at a library, it keeps me going

Cold and winter seem to be recurring themes in my writing. Not sure how much of that stems from growing up in Buffalo; but three published Call of Cthulhu scenarios set in icy climes (including Saturn's moon Titan) and it's showing up in my short fiction now too.

Got inspired, laid down 1100 words on a new story while I wait for my beta readers to get back to my on the previous one. Now to take Gina to her annual MRI and get some reading done in the waiting room.

I finished reading Issue 0 of @newedgeswordmag.bsky.social this morning, having taken my time to drink in and savor every word. Long story short, I'm in love. And I'm so glad I've already got issues 1 and 2 winging their way towards me. I suspect issues 3-7 won't be far behind.

When I ran Perilous Tales at Wargames Among the Warplanes back in September, one of the players commented that the hit point tracker-dials I had were hard to read (pink numerals on clear red acrylic). So I ordered some MDF ones and assembled them today. Hopefully easier on the eyes!

Robert E Howard's house is in serious need of repair, or it may fall apart. #Help save #RobertEHoward 's home, where he created #Conan , #SolomonKane , #Belit , #Kull , #Valeria & so many more. #Donate at rehfoundation.org/save-the-reh... Please spread the word.

I think I want to try and return to "the internet is a place that you visit" instead of it being a parallel life that I carry in my pocket. Deleting social media apps off my phone and putting strict time limits on usage for everything else on it.

Some new reading material arrived today! Playing catch-up and exploring the sword and sorcery fiction released since like... 1996. I think the previous newest S&S material I'd read was some of Leonard Carpenter's Conan novels. Excited for some new blood 'n thunder prose.

This is why I won’t do commission painting. Painting toy soldiers is done strictly to nourish my soul.

From everything I’m hearing about the last season of Stranger Things, I feel like I made the right choice by not continuing with it past the first season.

Helped someone track down a line of miniatures they’d seen pictures of, but didn’t know the name of the line or the manufacturer, and didn’t have pictures to show, just a description. Feels good.

Back at work for the Mondayest Friday since… last week.

Gina is winding yarn to knit from, and someone is *interested*

What was the last movie or tv show you watched in 2025? I liked Plus-Sized Misadventures in Love quite a bit right up until the last episode of the season.

Trying to “turn the cube” of perspective. 2025 was the worst year I’ve had for TTRPGs since 2010, and I had a major crisis of confidence. But I still put myself out there and tried, despite the state of the world and being a caregiver for a chronically ill spouse, and that’s worth something.

“You’re so nice and helpful. Are you on some kind of psych med to make that happen?” Or “You look like you’d be popular with Wisconsin housewives.”

Out of everything I accomplished hobby-wise this year, I think building up my terrain collection - especially with a number of modern, urban buildings - has been my favorite. #scenery #wargamesterrain

And I think that’s a first draft finished! 5,100 words on the dot. Now to resist staring at it and poking for a day.

Received our annual jar of homemade Chex Mix from my aunt and uncle today. I will having this jar empty by the end of the day on the 1st (I’ve already eaten some)

I’m an Atlantean-born king of Valusia, bedeviled by serpent-men.

I think this is going to be next on my "to pick up" list. Rekindling my love for sword and sorcery and playing catch-up on the new wave of S&S fiction with an eye towards always having a paperback to read in the evenings. I love what @newedgeswordmag.bsky.social is doing and happy to support!

Another 571 words added to what I'm tentatively calling "The Shadow Over Khasten Hall." I've always sucked at titles but I'll workshop something snappier. It's my first go writing sword and sorcery instead of just reading it; I'm just doing it for the joy of writing right now, but who knows?

Got a high-five from Gary Busey.