The Dripping Springs Community Library invited me to be featured in their Author Spotlight.

Date: Wednesday, Feb. 11th
Time: 5:45-6:45 PM
Website
Instagram
Facebook

Okay, admittedly, it was because they had a sudden cancellation, and they were clearly desperate, but I'll take it!

I know most of you are not local to Austin, but a few are, so I wanted to send this out. I thought I might talk about what I included in my last email: learnings about marketing from being hacked and losing FB Ads. At least for those taking the self-publishing route, I think they would find it interesting. Oh, the audience is authors/writers. I shoulda said that. But the handful of non-writers who live nearby might find it fun too.

I haven't nailed down a topic with the coordinator, so it might yet change. If ya'll have something you'd like to hear more about, shout it out.

Shepherds of Truth

Progress continues on book 4. I've marched through all the suggestions from the editor; sometimes a suggestion can take a lot of work. I had a couple of Hell's Bells! moments as I marched through changes, and I won't be surprised to hit a few more. I've gone through my own list of changes, and Feb 1st, I sent it on to my well-known first reader (my mum).

The next morning, I thought of something I wanted to add. 😂

Technically, I thought of two things I wanted to add, but I'm talking myself out of one of them.

Shoot, now 3 things.

I pinged the couple of structural editors I use, and our schedules are not easily compatible for another pass of editing. To be honest, I think another pass of structural editing is more of a security blanket or a "please don't let me say anything stupid" validation. I should be okay without another pass. But I'm not. I have a nagging feeling I messed up something in the timeline that I can't see b/c my eyes are so far from fresh at this point.

Regardless, it's getting closer. I had the cover done long ago, so once I'm ready, it just needs line editing and it can go out. One of my readers, Brianna Briggs, took me up on the offer from the last email to help with the book launch. I just scrolled through our old Instagram texts, and we first talked in April of 2021, with my first book launch. She's been with me, writing reviews around launch day, for 7 books! Send her some love & thanks.

All books by Steven J. Morris

Indie Author Showcase

I know, I stopped doing these indie author showcases. I don't really plan to pick it back up again, but I know these authors personally (phone calls & emails... Minu lives in the down-under-verse, so very distant). I love the opportunity to push friends' books. If any of you played Myste or similar games, Minu's books have a written feel of those "unlocking a world" games.

Descartes' Demon

Ross Hightower & Deb Heim

When cybersecurity wiz Nik breathes life into Nicola—a deepfake AI sculpted in the image of Alix, his favorite person in the world – it was just a little cyber experiment. When one of his contractors is found dead and intern Kate goes missing, the stakes turn deadly. Descartes Demon - a comic romp of a techno mystery with a supernatural twist.

The House

Minu Freitag

Dystopian futures. Ancient magic. Arcane technology.

The story begins with a girl returning to a world that has forgotten her, for a friend who is already dead…

Eass struggles to connect to her old life in the Protectorate. Too much has changed and not enough. Gwyston’s grip on power is absolute, Niuen tells her nothing, and Max is haunting her dreams. And then there’s the raven’s shadow following her around.

Meanwhile, Tayl finds himself at the House—a place that couldn’t be more different from the Fragments, and not in a good way. In the midst of political intrigues and brewing conflicts, people hold their secrets close. Tayl is grasping in the dark to discover a truth buried so deep in the past that when he finally uncovers it, it’s almost too late.

And Reesa? Reesa is so full of grief and hate she’s going to burn down everything close to her—and then the world.