Tag: The Well Below the Valley

New Patreon Post/The Well Below the Valley, Episode 2

The Deep has claimed him. 

Mark my words: it will soon be revealed that his death was closely tied to the sea and its foul inhabitants. 

I’ve done a bit of cleanup over on Patreon, and now everything is organized into collections. Collections and individual posts can be accessed for a nominal fee ($3 or $6), or you can subscribe for $3/month. Subscribers will get early access to new episodes of The Well Below the Valley before they show up for free reading here, as well as new pages of the comic (pretty soon), and exclusive unpublished concept art and sketches. I’ll be working on some more rewards, also.

I mostly spend the money on acquiring inventory for markets, but with some upcoming collaborative projects (don’t tell anyone, but the audiobook of The Book of the New Moon Door is or will shortly be under way), it will also help me pay fellow creatives for their work.

You may notice that all the previously published episodes of The Well are gone. You also may not have noticed that, because I think one person ever opened them. This new version is better in almost all regards (pacing, editing, characterization). I still have copies of all the old annotated PDFs, and when the script is completely done, I’m looking forward to re-adding all the marginalia for the print version. In addition to the eventual audio production, I want the script book to be a bit of an art piece in itself.

Formatting is a NIGHTMARE on Patreon, but I have done it for both the first episode and this new episode to make them available for you because I love you. If you’re interested, or just want to take a look around, here’s the link again.

If you can’t spare the $3, fear not: this episode will be up here to read for free sometime next week.

A few quick updates + The Tarot of the Gates

First: I’ve cracked 100 pages and 75,000 words in my new draft of Journey to the Water! I just finished the Svilsara arc, which was roughly chapters XXIX-XXXVIII in the serial version. For now, I’m keeping it where it is (after Nagara and before meeting the sorcerer).

Second: the Figuratively Speaking Mermaid Tarot Kickstarter has met its fundraising goal! It’s on its way to its first stretch goal. If you haven’t supported it yet, now’s a good a time as any, and with the project funded you’ll be guaranteed to get all your rewards. There’s still time to decide, though; the Kickstarter runs until the end of the month.

Third: I wanted to write you something new for today, but I ended up not having time, so here is a good place to send you way back in the blog to check out Chapter One of The Tarot of the Gates, an Arcana-themed space opera. This and The Well Below the Valley will be among your choices for my next serial project.

That’s all for today! Take care and enjoy your weekend.

The Well Below the Valley, Episode 1: The Books of the Dead

Table of Contents

Dramatis Personae
(in order of appearance)

Professor Emundr RAGNARSSON, Oxford professor of archaeology. Male, late 50s, Icelandic accent.

Professor Josef DIETRICH, Ragnarsson’s colleague. Male, mid 40s, German accent.

Frederick MATTHEWS, anxious hotel owner. Male, late 40s, London accent.

Eloise “ELLIE” Westmont, lady detective. Female, mid 20s, posh English accent.

KURT Cross, American expatriate actor and private detective. Male, early 30s, New York accent.

William “WILL” Grey, bartender and owner of the Cross and Coin. Male, late 20s, London accent. 

NIGEL Blackthorne, gentleman occultist. Male, early 30s, posh British accent.

Eli ROSENFELD and James BIRCH, local students and involuntary debate participants. Both male, early 20s, London accents. 

Constable ANTONY St. John, London beat cop. Male, early 30s, London (specifically Estuary) accent.

Inspector ISKANDAR Meshkia, detective for the Metropolitan Police. Male, late 30s, strong Turkish accent.

EMILIA Niyazova, Iskandar’s personal assistant. Female, early 20s, slight Russian (actually Kazakh) accent. 

Chief Superintendent Winston PEMBROKE, Sr., Superintendent at Scotland Yard. Male, early 60s, English accent with audible mustache.

Constable John TAYLOR, Metropolitan Police officer. Male, early 20s, London accent.

ESTRILDA de Westemond, 13th-century witch and stand-in for a number of women lost to history. Female, early 20s, North English accent.

Howard COMPTON, coroner for the Metropolitan Police. Male, mid 50s, London accent.

Scene 1: Int. Oxford University, Faculty of History – Day

Continue reading “The Well Below the Valley, Episode 1: The Books of the Dead” →

Song of the Week

Juanes, “A Dios le Pido”

This song is brought to you by my AP Spanish class, circa 2008. It contains several different kinds of pronouns, the subjunctive case, and transitive and reflexive verbs! It’s also a banger, as the kids say.

Anyway, hi, I’m back. I’ll have a new chapter of Journey to the Water on Patreon tomorrow, and the previous chapter will be free to read here on the blog on Wednesday. I also have the first of twenty-ish episodes of a new draft of The Well Below the Valley finished. Would that be something you would want to read? I’d be happy to post one episode as a teaser while I work on the rest. It’s something like 45 pages long, which will hopefully translate into 45 minutes or so of audio. Let me know in the comments if you’re interested.

If you’ve finished either of my books, this is your semi-regular reminder to post a review on whatever platform you like best! It really helps get the word out, and even if you didn’t like it, a negative review can help the right reader find what they’re looking for.

Please keep pressure on the Biden administration and your Senators and Representatives to support a ceasefire in Gaza. Here’s another petition. Also, if you’re in Chicago, you can go to City Hall this Wednesday (January 31) starting at 9 AM to support the city’s ceasefire resolution.

I think that’s it for today. Take care, I love you, thank you for being here.

Song of the Week

Queens of the Stone Age, “My God Is the Sun”

Happy New Year!

I’ll have a new chapter of Journey to the Water on Patreon tomorrow, and last week’s chapter will be up here on Wednesday. This will be the posting schedule until further notice. Right now, I’m writing them only slightly ahead of when I’m making them available, but I hope to build up a backlog over the next couple of months.

I’ll also be working on The Well Below the Valley a bit this week. In case you’ve missed it, this is a historical, Lovecraftian horror audio drama based on my module for the Call of Cthulhu role-playing game system (you can find the tabletop version under the Modules tab above/under the Menu). Let me know in the comments if you are interested in reading the script or would prefer to listen to the eventual audio version without spoilers.

Over on Instagram, I’m doing at-least-weekly, casual one-card readings with a gigantic, mixed-up monster Tarot deck, if that’s something that interests you.

If you have a minute, I’d appreciate you signing this petition: no US weapons for war crimes

New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 11

In this episode, the stakeout of Milton’s Rare Books goes immediately awry, and our investigators have their first taste of real magic (and it’s not great for them). You can download the annotated PDF on Patreon, and you can check out a free preview below the cut.

The Well Below the Valley is the script for an audio drama based on my module of the same name for the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game system. If you’re not worried about spoilers, you can check out the module here.

Continue reading “New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 11” →

New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 10

In this episode, Iskandar runs into some trouble for his extracurricular investigations, Kurt and Ellie prepare for a road trip, and Ernest walks into a trap. Thanks for being patient while I worked on getting this episode out! If you’re a subscriber, you can download the annotated PDF on Patreon, and if you’re still making up your mind, you can check out the free preview below the cut. Next month will be the conclusion of the murder mystery portion (Chapter One of the module), and we’ll get going on the cosmic horror. 

Continue reading “New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 10” →

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” →

New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 8

We rejoin our investigators as they find themselves at a dead end. Ernest’s research grows more complicated as his specimens break out of containment, the professor’s daughter searches for answers, and Kurt tries out some noir monologues. 

We are coming to the end of Chapter One of the original module. The annotated PDF is downloadable here for Patreon subscribers, but you can see a free preview below the cut. I hope you enjoy this episode and come back next month for an arrest and a revelation!

Continue reading “New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 8” →

New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 7

The newest chapter of my Lovecraftian audio drama is now available on Patreon! This is a project that’s only available to subscribers, but you can see a free preview below the cut:

Continue reading “New Patreon Post/ The Well Below the Valley, Episode 7” →