Update and Roadmap 2020

Well, well, well, look at me, getting all organized and stuff … providing a ‘roadmap’ for 2020. Honestly, I have organized myself a little differently about writing now, but more about that in another post. This one is an update and a roadmap for the next year (with a few hints for 2021, too).

First for the roadmap, which is mostly about a book just released and books coming up.

John Stanton Vol. 2 (including “The Case of the Horrid Hellhound”, “The Case of the Goddess’s Assassin”, and “The Case of the Deadly Documents”) has been released at the end of November and is now available in a variety of places.

For 2020, the following releases are coming up:

• Alex Dorsey, February 2020
• The Cases of Benjamin Farrens, May 2020
• Theoretical Necromancy Vol. 1, August 2020
• The Eye Vol. 1, November 2020

By the time this post is released, I will be in the middle of writing the third novella for “Theoretical Necromancy Vol. 1” and I have the second novella for “The Eye Vol. 1” plotted out already. I’m sure I can come up with a third story by the time it’s going to be released.

This brings us to the little peek for 2021 as well. As you might have realized already, there’s no Knight Agency or Black Knight Agency story lined up for next year and also no new adventure for the Magpies, but all of them will come eventually. I have plotted out another stand-alone novel (as “Alex Dorsey” is), currently named “The Jar and the Nail”. This will be out in 2021. The same goes for the first collection of stories about D.I. Colin Rook. I will catch up with the series I’m writing already, too, and I already have plotted one story for the eventual third volume of John Stanton.

With this said, an update on my series makes sense, I think, given that I have just given you three new ones to look at - “Theoretical Necromancy”, “The Eye”, and “D.I. Colin Rook”. Let’s have a look at them, then.

Currently, I’m working on “The Death Mark”, the third story about Gabrielle Munson who practices theoretical and, quite often, practical necromancy in a Steampunk world where it’s an offence punishable by death. Gabrielle is living under the guise of a man (Victorian-age Steampunk) and getting into trouble with scaring regularity. Honestly, I’ve given her a lot of trouble already, but then, I list ‘improvisation’ as a skill on her character sheet, so she can take it.

Madison ‘Maddie’ Dempsey is the main character of the stories about the Eye, a vigilante in a 1930s pulp setting. Maddie works as a reporter, but sneaks out at night in the guise of the male vigilante the Eye to deliver criminals to the police and solve cases which leave the police stumped. Not only does she have to stay out of the way of the criminals who don’t like snitches, she also needs to keep her distance from the police because certain detectives would like to snatch her as well.

Colin Rook, finally, is an over-ambitious detective inspector of Scotland Yard who finds himself dumped into the one department nobody ever gets out of again and learns that supernatural entities and monsters exist. To a degree, he’s my homage to John Sinclair, a Scotland-Yard-based demon hunter who’s been a part of German pulp publications for longer than I’ve been alive (or almost as long, which really isn’t any better).

John Stanton will continue to be around, of course. A first story for the third volume is plotted already and I will get around to writing it soon enough, I hope. More will come and John will also have new help (introduced in “The Case of the Goddess’s Assassin”).

Jane Browne and Jane Doe will continue their adventures as well, but I need to figure out the full plot for both “Ignition Rites” (Knight Agency) and “Grey Eminence” (Black Knight Agency) first. I might also have to rewrite some of “Grey Eminence”.

The second adventure of Inez and Tom has a title, but little more, although I have an idea about what the big heist will be. The Magpies will return eventually in “Two for Joy”.

Anything more? Well, I’m still going for a third Swenson & Carter novella which will complete a full book about them (adding to “Vengeful Ghost” and “Raging Blood”). Apart from that, I’m not sure what will pop up in my mind, so there might be more to come. After all, half a year ago, I had no idea that Gabrielle, Maddie, and Colin would come into existence (or that I’d finally finish Benjamin Farrens’ cases, the concept of which has been on my mind for more than 15 years).

That’s the update and the roadmap. Next year’s releases are certain (which I wasn’t sure about at the beginning of this year, believe you me) and I have more stored for the year afterwards and, perhaps, even the year after that. Jane, Jane, and Inez are taking a little break, but after the mass of stories I’ve written about two of them, I think that is okay. I need a change in my stories and a lot of what I write is less realistic and more peppered with pulp and suspense (starting with the next release, “Alex Dorsey”). I will also probably start adding some kind of afterword to the books, starting with the new ones and, perhaps, getting back to the old ones to a degree as well, talking about my ideas which led to the stories.

Keep tuned for a regular post next Saturday. Remember that I do have quite some books out already or just enjoy reading what you like most!