So, the latest right now is that I'm still in foundations mode, trying to figure out what direction this new phase of my life is taken. As much as I would like to continue the old structure I had, sharing my short fiction and things here, that's no longer feasible for me. 

I want to really make a true stab at creating primarily. I know it's going to be hard, trying, and not particularly lucrative. 

More than anything, I want to stop regretting how my writing hasn't gone as far as I hoped. So much of that is because I was playing things too safe. 

No more.

I've started a Patreon (patreon.com/afgrappin) for my fiction, one that might in the long run also contain D&D content, but that's one of many things to be determined.

For now, the Patreon is up with two possible support tiers, a $5 and $25 monthly option. These will definitely evolve as my content and interaction proceed. I've got to start somewhere, and this is where.

Some of the Patreon ideas I'm considering, at least for building content now:

• Post stories that I haven't previously posted.
  • These will be older stories, exercises and such. There isn't a lot of backlog that I haven't already made public, but there are some. The first of these is already up on Patreon.
• Some sort of weekly writing exercise/prompt/challenge.
  • Eventually, I hope to have this be guided by patrons, with some sort of a poll/comment collection of suggestions on what to work up for the next week.
• Current project updates- this one's pretty obvious. It makes sense to post chapters of current WIPs (works in progress) for my patrons. 

So that's where you'll want to keep your eyes. I'll likely try to copy blog posts to the Patreon feed for free members, so you can get it all in a one-stop shop. If you have the means and desire to support, thank you. I can't wait to see what all this grows into.

And if there's something you want to see me write/post about, let me know!

It's pretty easy to see where a lot of my writing upkeep fell off my own radar. I've mentioned before that finishing The Deadly Studies project turned out to be a blessing and a curse. I set myself goals and accomplished them, despite the project turning out about 33% bigger than I originally planned. It ended up taking an extra year and a half of concentrated effort I hadn't initially planned on.

I think that is what burned me out so bad once it was finished. I strained for quite a while to plan, write, edit, and release the series. Mostly just didn't want it to be like so many other projects of mine: 80% finished and then abandoned. So I pushed, I completed, I burned out. When 2021 came around and I hadn't done more than a tiny bit of token writing, I was mostly okay with it. I knew I needed to recover from the Studies. When 2022 hit and I still hadn't written, I got scared. Most of 2023 was me reconciling with maybe not ever being able to write again.

In early 2024, an idea hit me hard. The juices started flowing again, but like a long-closed faucet, it was rusty and slow to really gain any pressure. I did begin to plan a new novel... which is currently in that 80% completed and now abandoned maybe status. 

I digress. Current thoughts is to make first blog post of the month the current project status report. Partly to remind me of all the juggling balls I have in the air. So without further ado:

CURRENT PROJECTS MARCH 3 2025

• Dungeons & Dragons campaign 1: Bard Campaign - Session #6 fully planned. I have 2 options for Session #7 fully planned, depending on how #6 ends, with the possibility of a 3rd option if needed (not likely). Loads of worldbuilding done, and I have a good general sense of where this campaign is going for the short term.​
• D&D campaign 2: Tootskies Campaign - This one's new and very experimental. This campaign is really one of my big excuses to learn D&D 5e and familiarize myself with DMing virtually. I know what the planned endgame for the campaign is, but getting from here to there will be interesting. Currently working on session 0.5.
• Criminal from Birth sequel - This is my biggest personal project right now. Criminal came out in 2018. I actually wrote the sequel's first draft in, I believe, 2019, WHILE WORKING ON DEADLY STUDIES. What the hell was wrong with me? Anyway, I did finish the draft, but it got set aside to finish the Studies, and then fell by the wayside when the burnout hit. It was only when talking to my best friend a few weeks ago about writing that I remembered it. Found the files, dusted them off, and, well, it's really coming along. And wow do I see the changes in my maturity and writing ability this long break gave. Second Draft Status: 8 of 37 chapters edited.
• Magic Items book - This is the project idea that came barreling into my head early last year. Still outlining this book, but my outlines are pretty detailed, to the point I consider them more like a .5 draft. Haven't worked on it for a while, not sure if it's viable at the point I have it. Not sure if I'm happy with the first 2/3 of what I have. Outline Status: Roughly 60-65% through with planning, maybe?

It's been a long time. Five and a half years since my last post here. The world has changed dramatically since I updated this website, and along with it, I have changed drastically. So much for the better.

Confession
Since the last of the Deadly Studies books released in late 2019, and the second collection in early 2020, I have been extremely burned out on a creative front. While I felt accomplished and continue to hold a lot of price in the written works I produced in the 2010s, looking back on that decade has been very bittersweet to me. For more than a couple years since then, I've been overcome with a sense of loss and grief for what I couldn't manage to do anymore. Putting down words grew hard, then impossible. 

Simply put, I burned myself out pretty hard on putting out the Deadly Studies. What was originally planned as a 7-novella plot turned into 10, and my desire to complete the series with books releasing every 6 months until it was finished was a tall order. While I did meet that criteria, and I remain pleased with the work I put out, it was a massive bite to chew, and it took a long time to digest afterwards.

So I honestly spent most of 2022 and 2022 finally forgiving myself. I made peace with the fact that the words might not ever return. 

Imagine my surprise when they came back.

The Future
I turned 40 last summer. To my surprise, I don't feel that age. Months of introspection, more than a little pain, and more sunshine than I deserve had put me in the mindset to make a new Act 3 for my life. And writing is coming back into it. 

I couldn't be more pleased by that. Despite the current horrific political climate we find ourselves in, the future is so bright that I can't look at it head on. And if even in some small way, I can contribute to that light, then goddammit, I am more than willing to throw my candle into the blaze of humanity.

However, I do know my own tendency to bite off more than I can chew (see that confession) so I'm taking things slow. For now, I hope to add more to this website. My initial plan is weekly updates. Might be a simple observation, might be a bit of prose. Probably, things will include a monthly project update. Because I am writing again. Expect to see projects come onto and fall off the radar as they're explored and cast aside as needed.

Expect to see more than just novels. I'm trying to refine and upgrade my skills as a Game/Dungeon Master in ttrpgs, particularly Dungeons & Dragons. Some of my writing work these days is in homebrewing campaigns... but I have mid-to-long-term hopes of eventually developing and releasing my own one-off adventure content. 

In short, I'm trying to stop letting life get in the way of my truest passion: creating. Thanks for coming along for the ride and for being here now that I'm back!

I did it again, and I apologize. This summer has been insane. In short, I was unemployed for all of July and started a new job in August. Between adjusting to a new job and schedule, I've added some new activities to my life, mainly I am now a Twitch Affiliate. You can catch me starting at 6:30pm CST on Tuesdays (casual gaming) and Thursdays (making chainmail) at twitch.tv/thechainnerd.

DEADLY STUDIES SERIES
Lesson 7, Assassin's Tool, is now available on Amazon!
Lesson 7 is ready for the editing phase!
I started the first draft of Lesson 8 this week, and I'm already into the second chapter!

STARSIGNS
I am working on an audio version! No ETA as of now...still.

CRIMINAL FROM BIRTH
Criminal is available through Amazon! I ended up self-publishing, withdrawing it from Stitched Smile for personal reasons. My relationship with the fine staff at SSP is fine. 
The first draft of the sequel for CfB is complete. It is going to need a lot of work, but my alpha reader assures me she is ready to tear it to pieces so it can be rebuilt.

VAMPIRE NEEDED
An audio dramedy I co-wrote with the astounding Michael Corley is currently in its editing. The lead actress recently underwent surgery, so the final pieces of audio needed to complete its production have been on hold. Couple that with some career uncertainty on my end, and that doesn't help, either. I am optimistic that it will be released before the end of 2018!

Where on earth did October, November, December, and the first couple months of 2018 go? My apologies for disappearing like that. Still, there are things going on.

DEADLY STUDIES SERIES
Lesson 6, Assassin's Mentor, is now available on Amazon!
Lesson 7 is ready for the editing phase!
I started the first draft of Lesson 8 this week, and I'm already into the second chapter!

STARSIGNS
I am working on an audio version! No ETA as of now...still.

CRIMINAL FROM BIRTH
Criminal is available through Amazon! I ended up self-publishing, withdrawing it from Stitched Smile for personal reasons. My relationship with the fine staff at SSP is fine. 
The first draft of the sequel for CfB is complete. It is going to need a lot of work, but my alpha reader assures me she is ready to tear it to pieces so it can be rebuilt.

VAMPIRE NEEDED
An audio dramedy I co-wrote with the astounding Michael Corley is currently in its editing. The lead actress recently underwent surgery, so the final pieces of audio needed to complete its production have been on hold. Couple that with some career uncertainty on my end, and that doesn't help, either. I am optimistic that it will be released before the end of 2018!

Where on earth did October, November, December, and the first couple months of 2018 go? My apologies for disappearing like that. Still, there are things going on.

DEADLY STUDIES SERIES
​Lesson 5 was published in January in ebook.
Not only that, but the PAPERBACK version of Studies 1-5 (Luc Bertand: European Assassin) was released on February 15!
Lessons 6 and 7 are both ready for the editing phase!
Lesson 8 is ready for me to tackle the first draft!

STARSIGNS
I am working on an audio version! No ETA as of now...still.

CRIMINAL FROM BIRTH
Criminal is a fantasy courtroom drama, a project I wrote back in 2010 and finally found a publisher for. Stitched Smile Publications will be releasing in the next few months. More info as it comes.
Also, I am currently working on a sequel for it. I'm thirty-two chapters in. The first draft is nearing completion. It will need a LOT of work.

VAMPIRE NEEDED
An audio dramedy I co-wrote with the astounding Michael Corley is currently in its editing.

I don't update nearly as often as I should, but I hope to remedy that going forward. I'm working on figuring out a way to get project progress bars on the side of my homepage, but for now, here's what's been going on lately:

DEADLY STUDIES SERIES
Lesson 4, Assassin's Lover, is currently available for preorder and will be released officially on September 4, 2017.
​Lesson 5 is currently at the editor awaiting notes. Once that's done and back in my hands, I'll make changes. It should release in January 2018
Lesson 6 is undergoing first draft writing. One chapter written so far.

So far, the Deadly Studies series have been released only in ebook form. However, once Lesson 5 is released next year, I plan to release a paper version of Lessons 1-5, so keep your eyes out for that!

STARSIGNS
I am working on an audio version! No ETA as of now.

CRIMINAL FROM BIRTH
Criminal is a fantasy courtroom drama, a project I wrote back in 2010 and finally found a publisher for. Stitched Smile Publications will be releasing it within the next year. More info as it comes.
Also, I am currently working on a sequel for it. I'm one chapter in.

TEGG
I am currently working on several projects for The Ed Greenwood Group that I cannot talk about yet.

COLD READS LIVE
I will be submitting a short story to Cold Reads LIVE, a youtube live show that I've had the honor to be a voice actor on several times. More info as it arises.

VAMPIRE NEEDED
An audio dramedy I co-wrote with the astounding Michael Corley is currently in its recording phase!

OTHER
I finished the outline of a sci-fi horror novel. No ETA on when I'll begin writing it, but it's waiting for me.
I'll be on the ARCHIVOS Brainstorms sometime soon to workshop another novel (Faithful) I've been wanting to write for a few years.

It's time for Deadly Studies, Lesson 4, the next installment in the Luc Bertrand books. The title for this novella is

LUC BERTRAND: ASSASSIN'S LOVER!

Below is the blurb from the back of the book. Preorders are in the works, but the book will launch live on Amazon on September 4, 2017!

Luc Bertrand has survived assassin school, fulfilled his first contract, and now been shipped off to Vienna, Austria, to work in a guildhall. Surrounded by other assassins, he is far from the place the Knights Templar destroyed his life. With a whole country between them, perhaps he can settle down and live a normal life.

Normal for an assassin, anyway.

Before long, Luc finds himself in a relationship, tormented by all new problems. What does he buy as a Christmas present? How can he justify keeping his secrets? 

Now that he has let someone into his heart, what if the Templars come back?