If 2020 was a year of insane word counts and amazing challenges (it was) and 2021 was a year of reflection and consideration, along with a lot of words and freelance work (it was) what is happening in 2022? Well, that’s simple. All that work has led to lots of material, and all of it needs a home on your bookshelves.
The Year in Review
I’m not going to lie. 2021 was a hard one financially. A lot of freelance work, some projects that went nowhere when they should have gone viral, and some challenging lessons learned left a financial mark that, well, hurt. And it affected many areas of my life. But the second half of the year, things started to turn around.
At the same time, I got to be a part of a bunch of great projects, finish some things that needed finishing and more. Some of those I’ll share with you in some upcoming blog posts, some I will just keep to myself. However, all of that work, both personal and actual, means next year will be filled with book releases. Lots of them.
Teaching Moments: Long-Awaited Sequel to Harvested
First, we’ll start with the January 18th release of Teaching Moments, the sequel to Harvested. Max Boucher has been engaged to find a stolen horse, but his first night in town, he encounters a local murder. In a small town in Idaho, the two must be connected, right?
But the deeper he digs, the less things make sense. There’s something more going on, someone wants him off the case, but suddenly he finds himself in the center of two mysteries. The solution is close, but he just can’t seem to put his finger on it until help comes from an unexpected direction.
Check out the book trailer below.
The Tao of Trek: The Philosophy of Star Trek Through the Ages
Gene Roddenberry submitted his 16-page treatment for Wagon Train to the Stars to the Writer’s Guild of America in March of 1964. There were exactly three copies. That is when Star Trek was born. But so much has happened since then.
Star Trek has influenced society and become a part of our culture not just in the United States, but around the world. At the same time, society has impacted Star Trek with modern continuations and adaptations going beyond the vision Roddenberry once had.
What have those effects been? What impact has Trek had on society and the way we live? Can we learn more from the underlying philosophy of the series? Our answer is that yes, we can. We are not just fans. Not just watchers. We are followers of the Tao of Trek, and we think others can and should be, too. We’ll outline the philosophy of Trek as it was, as it has evolved over the years, and as we think it will be in years to come.
Stay tuned to learn more about the coming Tao of Trek. For even more information, visit https://tao-of-trek.org and sign up for our newsletter.
The Demon House: A True Story of Haunting and Possession
Hardship after hardship seemed behind them as Julie Evans and her daughter were finally offered a council house. It was a real house, not an apartment in a high rise, and it seemed too good to be true. When Julie saw the house, she wondered what she was getting into.
Filthy floors were just the start. Walls covered in symbols and words she didn’t fully understand written in nail varnish, the garden filled with used needles, and a former resident institutionalized should have provided some clues. But grateful for a place to live and call their own, Julie and her then-husband started the cleanup. But right away weird stuff started to happen.
Cold spots, misplaced keys that turned up again right where they’d been left, and things that went bump in the night were only the start. They went from inconvenient to annoying, annoying to scary, and scary to terrifying.
Out of options, Julie turned to the church. Some things helped for a while. A demonologist acknowledged an unknown, inhuman presence, but was unable to remove it. Things went from bad to worse, and from worse to unspeakable. Desperate, Julie turned to the only ones who seemed to even understand her position.
The final option seemed to be Chris Fleming and the team from Help, My House is Haunted. A battle ensued, and there could only be one victor. Because darkness and light can’t occupy the same space…
Come along for this true tale of haunting and possession, and a battle that’s as real as it is unbelievable. You’ll learn what warning signs to look out for, what to do and not to do if you feel you are under attack, and where to find the help you really need. You’ll laugh, you’ll scream, and you may even cry. Check out https://thedemonhouse.com to join the mailing list and for more information.
Check out episode 8 of Season 2 of Help, My House is Haunted on Discovery+ streaming service.
More Capital City Murders
What’s happening with Capital City Murders? Well, they are still rolling along, but there will be changes. From now on there will be only a few of these a year, and they will be full-length novels. That’s right, Nick’s adventures will be even deeper as he travels the country taking photos and solving mysteries.
Check out the next in the series, Terminated in Topeka, coming this spring. This time, things go to a whole new level, and Nick finds himself facing the most difficult choice of his journey yet. Stay tuned. At least three new novels will come this year!
Need to catch up on the series? Check out the prequel to the series, Fast Break, for FREE if you join the Capital City Murders email list. You can get Overdoses in Olympia, first in the series, for just .99!
And all the novellas are now available in audio, we have print compilations, and soon we will have the individual novellas in limited edition print as well! Check them out today!
Solitaire Revisited
In 2020, I wrote well over a million words, and part of that was a little series of stories called The Solitaire Series. Well, those stories are being turned into a trilogy of novels, and they will be released in fall of 2022.
Jack Bardlow, Jr. learned who his father was after his death, and discovered what he had really inherited. Now, he’s become a target of the very organization his father helped found. And he isn’t the only one. He has only two choices: fight and take over his place at the head of the organization.
Or destroy it entirely. Set in Las Vegas, the story is filled with crime, intrigue, thrills, and the most difficult choice Jack will ever have to make.
Stay tuned for Jack of Spades, The Queen of Hearts, and the Ace of Spades, coming late 2022.
That’s not all. There will be more from Max Boucher, a re-release of an old series, a collection of short stories and poetry, and even more. It’s going to be a wild ride! You in?
Join our email list, get a FREE copy of Typewriter Repair Shop, and buckle up. Here’s to an amazing year to come!
Troy is an editor, book coach, author of over 32 novels and several works of non-fiction, and the education lead for Plottr. He lives, works, and plays in Boise, Idaho.
Passionate about writing dark psychological thrillers, he is an avid cyclist, skier, hiker, all-around outdoorsman, and a terrible beginning golfer.
