My Book is Coming This Month! Agggggh.
My Book is Coming This Month! Agggggh.
Newsletter 03: October
Are You Ready for the Dark?
It’s a pretty momentous month for me. In addition to being the spookiest month of the year this is the month that Gurt Dog Press publishes my book, In the Dark of the Grove! It’s strange to think how long it’s been since they picked up my book for publishing. In some ways, it’s been excruciating waiting for it to get here. In other ways, it’s flown by. There is no exact date yet for the release. Hopefully I’ll have that soon. You can be sure I’ll be talking about the release date plenty once it’s finalized. Also, the plan is to have the prologue and first chapter as this month’s short fiction burst. The full novel will be available as an e-book, in paperback, and hardcover. I’m really excited to get a copy in my hands. It might finally feel real at that point.
The release of this book means a lot to me. Not just for the fact that it’s happening, which is a huge moment for me as an author. But the book means a lot to me, too. At the end of the day, its main goal is to be creepy, give you some characters you enjoy reading about, and set it down going “I enjoyed that.” Although the story and people are completely fictional, some of the details are very true. It draws a lot on my own childhood. And it captures where my head has been the last couple years. In that way, it feels like a little time capsule in that way. Which is all my way of saying, I’m working some shit out in this book along the way too.
Things I’ve Greatly Enjoyed
Ah, another month - another group of things. I feel like this last month has brought me some especially fantastic things to enjoy.
Department of Truth Vol. 1: The End of the World by James Tynion IV and Martin Simmonds
So, I subscribe to Tynion’s Substack. He’s been talking a little about Department of Truth, and it’s been getting insane amounts of accolades, including the Eisner Award for Best Ongoing Series and Best Writer. So, I was intrigued. Then Scott Snyder (whose class on comics writing I’m taking through his Substack) mentioned he was going to use the comic as an example. So I thought it was a good time to give it a look-in.
I honestly don’t want to tell you much of anything about the book. Go discover the story for yourself, ahead of it’s adaptation by the same production company (SISTER) that produced Chernobyl—aka, one of the best TV things to ever be made. It’s a spiritual successor of the X-Files that our crazy, harrowing times needed. And the art… oh the art… Martin Simmonds produces work that could easily hang in a gallery, here. It’s moody and obscure when needed, and precise as a bullet hitting a target when needed. His ability to create mood matches the book perfectly. The first volume collects issues 1-5. Issues 6 and 7 are (excellent) issues featuring other artists that explores the world of the book a bit more. My understanding is that they will be collected later. The next volume collects issues 8-13. I just read the last issue of that arc and let me tell you… just as excellent. I really can’t wait for a nice deluxe version of it to come out.
The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman
This is one of those books that just took me by surprise with how good it is. It’s almost achingly, annoyingly good to me, as a writer. The characters are just so well done. Kinch Na Shannack is one of the best-hewn creations I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know in ages. He’s the perfect narrator. I’d be glad to get a pint of ale and listen to him for hours. I know, because I did listen to him for hours! Or, I should say, I listened to Buehlman AS Kinch read his own book. His performance is extraordinary. I’m sure this is a great book to read, but this is one of those books that I’d 100% recommend listening to the audiobook for.
I usually have one audiobook and one e-book or physical book going at a time. This is one of those books I plan on buying the hardcover as well because I just want to flip to certain passages. By the end, I cared so much for Kinch, Galva, and the rest. Everyone feels like they had a story before this. And it’s just so freaking entertaining. I gave this one a fairly rare (for me) 5 stars on Goodreads. I will be buying the sequel book the day it comes out.
Midnight Mass
Okay, if I’m honest, I really wanted to write a full journal post about this. I even started writing one. But I felt like I had too much to say. Or, what I had to say seemed trite or unfocused as I was writing. I gave up on that endeavor. But I do have to note how much I loved this. It is not, by any means, perfect. But who cares? There are some production aspects that don’t quite work, and after the powerful (shattering!) episode 5, I don’t think the show ever quite achieves that same level. That being said, what it’s saying, how the story is structured, and the characters are so, so good. If you enjoyed The Haunting of Hill House or The Haunting of Bly Manor, and especially if you enjoy some Stephen King tropes, you’re in for a treat. I hope Netflix keeps giving Mike Flanagan money to keep making these beautiful long-form horror shows.
Cheat(er) Code by S.A. Fox and Daz
I’ve been wanting to read this for a while, since I chanced upon a tweet about it. Our protagonist, Kennedy, is trying to get over the (pretty brutal!) breakup with his boyfriend Seth. He turns to video games for comfort, and before you can say “Jumani: Welcome to the Jungle!” Kennedy is sucked into the video game. Where, uh, sucking continues to play a role. This is an erotic comic. It’s heartfelt, and incredibly well illustrated, but also very erotic! The fact that Simon & Shuster published an erotic gay comic book—it makes my heart sing! But, there is a lot of actual story here. It’s why it feels so great. It’s not about the sex, but it doesn’t hide the gay sex away either. This won’t be for everyone, and it definitely earns its mature rating. But I enjoyed the hell out of it.
After the Sun by Jonas Eika (translated by Sherilyn Nicolette Hellberg)
I found out about this book thanks to the new internet consumption diet I talked about the last newsletter, because it was featured in The New York Times. I was intrigued, and although I have mountains of unread books I bought it. Note: having a mountain of unread books has never, ever stopped me before nor is it likely to in the future. In any case, I totally fell for Eika’s writing. It’s witty, smart, surreal, sexy, and strange by turns. It feels like vital, alive writing that is capturing the feel of what it’s like to be alive here and now, even if the worlds within these short stories stray from our understanding of reality. All while laying aspects of our reality we might not want to look at bare. Again, this will not be for everyone. But if you’re feeling adventurous, give it a go.
Montero by Lil Nas X
If the last few years have felt crushing in some (many) ways, sometimes something comes along and gives you hope for the future. The idea that Lil Nas X is out there doing what he does makes me happy. Just the idea of him–I’d support him no matter what. I like the way he swats away the fools and does what he does. And, yes, he’s sexy as hell. But all that being said… this album is just so freaking good. I have listened to the album straight through so many times. I don’t even know how many times. But it’s fantastic from beginning to end. I just need to find out when I can get it on vinyl, damn it!
Finally, Sandman
Just a couple days ago, Netflix released the trailer for their adaptation of Sandman. If, somehow, you didn’t see it, I’ll post it below. But here’s where I make a confession. I am a huge Neil Gaiman fan. In fact, I’d say he’s my favorite author. I’m pretty sure I’ve read all of his books and short story collections. But, I have not read all of Sandman. I have all of it (and Death!) in Absolute Editions, and I’ve read the first volume. But I have not read it all. I’ve read enough that I know I love the series, and I’m insanely excited for this adaptation, but now I’m annoyed at myself more than ever for not having finished it. So, this October, that’s what I’m doing! I’m reading all the Sandman comics, Death, and then I am definitely reading The Dreaming and The Dreaming: Waking Hours, the recent “Sandman Universe” book DC put out. I’ve read a little of both, and am excited to read them in full, but I felt like I should finish the original series first.
Scenes from Gay Domesticity
True snippets of my life with my partner.
Pegasus / September 29, 2021:
Watching Jeopardy!, the “Final Jeopardy”question is: “The Hippocrene Spring, sacred to the Muses, was so named because this offspring of Medusa brought it into being”
Me: I think that’d be… Pegasus?
Paul (jokingly): No, Jon. That’s silly. Pegasus is a horse.
Me: …
We return from the commercial break. The current champion is the only one to answer correctly… Pegasus.
Me (smugly): You’ll notice I didn’t argue. I just let Jeopardy prove me correct.
Paul (laughing): It still makes no sense!
Me (also laughing): Medusa’s severed head dripped blood into sea foam. Although I wasn’t totally sure because I don’t know if I’d consider that “offspring” but, well, I guess the Greeks decided that. And yes, it doesn’t make sense.
Your Monthly Memorable Internet Image
A not-by-me image I stumbled upon.
I don’t know who to credit this to, and usually I put some creepy image here. But this time, this made me laugh so much. I laughed and laughed and re-read it and laughed again. I never know if these “made by AI” things are real or just someone having fun. But the absurdity here got to me either way.
Holding Out For A Hero
Hildegard von Blingin’ hath brought me a great deal of merriment lo this past year. Ahem. Sorry, it’s hard not to get too into the spirit of things when it comes to bardcore. von Blingin’ has been producing bardcore covers of songs that stand out from the crowd in terms of their quality (they are fun, novel, but also genuinely catchy) and their cleverness. The reinterpretation of the lyrics to the time period are shockingly good. Her latest is a collab with Whitney Avalon, and it has some fun animation to boot.
Housekeeping!
Wait, I hear you say. Jon, didn’t we have newsletter number 3 back in August? Why yes, I say, because I was counting posts instead of newsletter, and somehow mucked that up despite it only being the second newsletter. It’s fixed on the site, now, but those lucky few who subscribed get an exclusive, exceedingly rare email that reads “Newsletter 03: September.” Maybe one day that will become collectible as an NFT or something. Enjoy.