Witch-o-Rama Update

Witch-o-Rama is happening tomorrow, March 10! Unfortunately, I will not be there. I’ve finally caught the ‘Rona. HOWEVER, the fantastic lineup in the second image will be there, including my business partner Brooke of the Figuratively Speaking Tarot. I’m giving her a box of signed books in case anyone is interested while I’m gone.

If you’re in the Chicago area tomorrow, you should go, so I can live vicariously through you!

P.S. I’m fine, I’ve had all my shots, I’m just miserable and contagious. I should be better in a few days.

No newsletter this month

I am working on getting the newsletter back on track, but for now, I’m unable to send it. Google and Yahoo have changed their policies, making it more likely that emails sent from free accounts (Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc.) will end up in a spam trap. MailerLite has made the decision to ban free email accounts from sending emails with their service. I thought I had managed a workaround by using the account the university gave me back in the day, but that is no longer viable. I have to 1) purchase a domain, 2) use that domain to get a new email address, and 3) register and verify all this with MailerLite. At this point, I’m reluctant to add another recurring charge to my budget, but it looks like I’m being forced to do so in order to keep the newsletter running. Prevailing wisdom says that authors need to have a newsletter. Who am I to argue?

In any case, I’m not going to be able to get this sorted out before the month ends in…fifteen hours? So I’ll skip this month and hopefully have a newsletter to send at the end of March. Thank you so much for your patience! In the meantime, MailerLite is maintaining the subscriber list, so you won’t need to sign up again.

If you’d like to help out with operational costs, and are able to do so, I have a Patreon and a Ko-fi. You can also buy one or more of my books! In any case, I appreciate you.

I’m joining the Global Strike for Gaza

Red and white text on a black background:
Global strike for Gaza Jan. 21-28
I am joining the Global Strike for Gaza
bit.ly/StopGazaGenocide
#StrikeforGaza

No song this week! I’m participating in the Global Strike for Gaza in the small way that I can: buying nothing, posting only about ending the genocide, and cutting back on my scrolling (a habit I need to break anyway) to avoid contributing to the ad revenue social media platforms get.

Here’s the URL in the image above in a clickable form for more information.

So, no chapters this week. I’ll put all the petitions I have to share in this post, so as not to bombard your inboxes/notifications. I’ll be back to my regular nonsense next week.

Via Amnesty International: Regarding Palestinian journalists forcibly disappeared
Via the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights: Call on Congress to stop arming Israel
Via Roots Action: Urge your local government to support a ceasefire in Gaza
Via Rep. Rashida Tlaib: No forced displacement
Via Democracy for America: Tell the Biden administration to support a permanent ceasefire and the release of all hostages now
Via Win Without War: Tell President Biden to de-escalate and negotiate a ceasefire NOW
Via Just Foreign Policy: Stop bombing Yemen

The Book of the New Moon Door: Book Club Discussion Questions

I hope these will help any book club, reading groups, or other nerdy conversations! They are spoiler-free. If you have any other suggestions, or questions you’d like to ask me directly, please leave a comment and I’d be happy to answer them or add to the list.


  1. The story is told from two perspectives: Berend and Isabel. Which point of view did you prefer? Which gave you more insight into the world and the story? Would you have liked to see another character’s perspective?
  2. Which scene stuck with you the most and why?
  3. What do you think happens after the end? Was the ending satisfying, or did you want to see something different?
  4. What are the book’s main themes? Does the author take a stance on any of them(e.g., the value of religious devotion)? Do you agree with that stance?
  5. Are there any unanswered questions or unresolved issues that you wish the author had addressed?

Here’s a PDF version with space for notes:


Some groups like to have themed food and drinks, so here are a couple of harvest squash soup recipes I rounded up:

Butternut Squash Soup by Love & Lemons (vegan)
Copycat Panera Squash Soup by Rachel Cooks (vegetarian)

And here are some cocktails. I don’t drink, so one of you is going to have to volunteer to try them and report back!

Apple Cinnamon Whiskey Smash by Hunger Thirst Play
Smoking Blackberry Sage Margarita by Wicked Spatula


Happy reading!

Today’s the Day! The Book of the New Moon Door is now available!

Amazon (paperback & ebook)

Barnes & Noble (paperback & ebook)

Kobo (ebook only)

Apple Books (ebook only)

A very special thanks to everyone who preordered, and to everyone who reads it now! I’m so excited for you to finally get your hands on this book.

If you haven’t read the back-of-the-book blurb, it’s right here for you below the cut:

Continue reading “Today’s the Day! The Book of the New Moon Door is now available!”

New Patreon Post/ The Book of the New Moon Door: Part Three, Chapter Fourteen

She closes her eyes, takes one last breath of dust and damp paper, and waits for the thing beyond the wall to devour her.

The Book of the New Moon Door

What’s left of the world is crumbling, and all Isabel has is a library. You can read this chapter right now on Patreon.

New Patreon Post/ Journey to the Water Chapter XXXIX

I wanted to hate this girl, who had sentenced me to die upon the sacrificial stone at the whim of her false god, but I found I could not. Some of it was the exhaustion of the day, but the rest was a begrudging respect. She had been willing to give her life for her people. If the serpent appeared again, she would tie herself to the sacrificial stone to appease him and save the city. 

The serpent would never reappear. I had seen to that. 

Chapter XXXIX: Across the Sea of Dust

Just a short chapter this week, as we’re concluding the Svilsara arc and getting started on the next one. You can read it on Patreon.

Growing Things

As promised, garden pictures! Here are some things growing in our garden this fine May day.

A bright yellow marigold, photographed from above.

Marigolds

A rose bud and a fully bloomed miniature rose, surrounded by green leaves and covered in dandelion seeds.

Roses

The wide, heart-shaped green leaves of a pumpkin plant, photographed from above.

Pumpkins

A tiny, fuzzy peach growing on a small branch, surrounded by leaves.

A peach?

A fluffy black cat lying on his side on the sidewalk, with fluffy belly on display.

And of course, Max the neighbor cat.

What the Hex Witches’ Market: May 6, 2023

What: A witchy craft fair with workshops, Tarot readings, vendors, food, free entry AND a free gift!

Where: Falcon Bowl, 801 E Clarke St., Milwaukee, WI

When: Saturday, May 6, 12pm-6pm

Who: Brooke Miller (the artist behind the Figuratively Speaking Tarot), me, and a whole bunch of other fantastic creators, including hosts Tres Ojos and Bee Batty Studios and sponsors Materia Magicka and Ritual Floral

Here’s a link to the Facebook event

Here’s a link to the Instagram page

I’m packing up a box of books and bookmarks, including a BRAND NEW ONE Brooke painted in honor of The Book of the New Moon Door‘s upcoming publication. This is the original:

A watercolor painting of Isabel Rainier, a light-skinned woman with long brown hair, dressed in a black Victorian dress and holding a bell in one hand and a book in the other. A black candle and a corpse covered in a sheet sit on the table in front of her, with one of the corpse's hands visible.

Brooke also has fancy new packaging for her cards as well as new paintings for your perusal and divination enjoyment.

Black paper envelopes big enough for individual Tarot cards, blazoned with an embossed silver letter C and sealed with stickers featuring a watercolor rose.

We hope to see you there!

New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 9

Things are moving forward with or without our intrepid investigators. Iskandar confronts conspiracy theorist and gentleman occultist Nigel Blackthorne, Ernest delivers his findings to Kurt and Ellie, and an arrest is finally made in the case of the death of Professor Ragnarsson. 

This episode’s annotated PDF is downloadable here for Patreon subscribers, and you can see a free preview below the cut. I think we’re one or two more episodes from the end of Chapter One of the module by the same name, which you can read under the Modules tab above (inside the Menu if you’re on mobile) if you’re not concerned about spoilers.

Continue reading “New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 9”