In this 18th edition of the Not Dead Yet Newsletter, I explain my absence, wonder about romance in grimdark, share an update on Darkest Autumn, and talk about returning to YouTube.
Still not dead
There wasn't a newsletter on October 2nd because I was very sick with the flu. Given the name of this newsletter, I thought I should explain.
I'm mostly recovered, although fatigue is a battle I'm still fighting. It's frustrating to want to write and make things, then discover I've run out of energy. I'm getting back to it, just more slowly than I'd like.
Grimdark romance?
There's definitely chemistry between the three main characters in Iron Meridian. I didn't plan it. I put these people into a difficult situation together, and apparently they have feelings about more than the conflict around them.
Michael R. Fletcher does something interesting with love in his Obsidian Path books. It's a huge driver of what happens, including some terrible decisions. I wrote about the series in my review, and I've found myself thinking about that aspect again while working on my own story.