Yes, it’s finally here! And so is the heat! What the hell? That’s what it feels like, anyway. But we can’t complain. I’m just gonna make sure the spa is okay tomorrow and maybe laze in it on Tuesday arvo. Oh, wait, Tuesday’s supposed to be cooler – 32°C, so maybe not.
I don’t have a lot of news to share apart from the heat and that it’s 2026! Although I do wonder where 2025 went. I feel like one minute we were in Awaba (September 2025) and the next it was 2026!
Anyway, that’s life!
Updates
Clans in Conflict
For those who don’t know much about it, this is a series about a clan that is lost travelling through dimensions due to a scientific experiment gone horribly wrong and about the city-state Part 2 concludes in.
Dark Dimensions Part 1 and 2 is recounting that journey to Torkandisch. Dark Reign is the next book in the series and covers the next 12 months in the city-state.
The Dark Road is back with the beta readers. This story takes place about 16 years later. Lots in Torkandish has changed and there is lots of intrigue and heartache throughout this book. Some funny instances, too.
But Dark Beginnings will take us back to where it all started in Tordun, covering Vlad’s rise to power and, perhaps, that fateful experiment, along with the first 15 years of dimension-hopping. Dark Beginnings is still on the backburner. I have started this and I will return to it.
So, that’s what’s in store for anyone who wishes to immerse themselves in this world.
There are also going to be other stories, along with a special edition of Dark Dimensions where the two parts are combined. That will be in the future.
Speaking of other stories, Deadly Convergence is centred on Torkandisch 5 years before the Clan lands in the city-state and follows a crime that twists into something else. This is available only on Kindle and on Kindle Unlimited.
The Ryan Locke story has gone through two more edits and I’ll be having a read of it and possibly applying the Emotion Thesaurus to it in a week or two. Then it’ll go for editing, cover art and publishing!
Consequences
This series follows the rise of Marek from a mastermind thief to the saviour of a nation.
Heart of Deception is now available through Amazon and Draft2Digital. And an update on that is that the 10 copies ordered came through early, so there will be a copy donated to Midland Library, as well.
Legacy of Risks will follow in the next few months, once cover art is finalised for it. The reason why it will take a few months is because I’m applying The Emotion Thesaurus options to it.
Dangerous Heart will then go to beta readers.
Watch this space.
There will be some short stories come out and, possibly, a fourth book that covers events much later after Dangerous Heart. Definitely a “watch this space” moment.
Other Universes
Strefinobhan
With Heart of Deception released and my work on the Otherworldly Emergence series coming to a conclusion, I should be able to get back into editing the first book of this series and sending it to beta readers. I am still unable to say when this will happen, but hopefully sooner rather than later.
Paranormal
Again, this will have to wait until work on the Otherworldly Emergence series is completed. One of my paranormal pieces, however, is in the Emergence series, so stay tuned for updates there.
Speaking of which, you can find the Otherworldly Emergence information at the website below.
Bushland Castle Productions
I have finished editing one novella, Not your Normal Heroes. I am still editing the other and will have that editing finished by the end of the week.
Both stories have gone through beta readers and I am awaiting the feedback from one. Once that comes in, I’ll study the feedback and make what changes I can, then it will go to copy editing.
Pitches for this novella series has now closed and we are working hard on our manuscripts to bring them to you in a timely manner.
All of the information regarding the novella series is at the website:
https://www.bushlandcastleproductions.com/emergence
BCP is planning its next series, which will build on the Otherworldly Emergence but this time will be Otherworldly Origins. Stay tuned for further information regarding that (along with a link).
While you’re on the website, is information about their nonfiction series Australia: Living in the 70s. If you have a life story about living in the 70s in Australia, check the website for more details on that series. I know if I were to submit, it would all be about CountDown, Sandman vans and learning about Unionism through school (and other things, of course).
Also check out their podcast – Finding Elara. Learn about Mindfulness from other creatives – not just writers, but other creative persons, as well as worldbuilding and other information. BCP are about to start on their 3rd season of the podcast, so stay tuned for updates on that.
At the end of each segment, there’s a prize drawn. Go in to win books and other goodies!
Not only that, but Finding Elara has just made it onto YouTube. There is a Halloween special up that features one of my short ghost stories being read out live. So, just search for Finding Elara and have a listen. I’m the one in the blue hat.
Grow Write
Once every fortnight, Grow Write meets at the Midland Library in Midland, Perth, Western Australia. We are very excited to announce that our very first anthology is now going through the finalisation of publishing and we expect copies to be available later in January. Watch this space!
Reviews/constructive feedback/critiques
This is a pet project of mine – to remind writers and authors that reviews, feedback and critiquing can be a writer’s best aid in their craft.
I am of the opinion – and this is my opinion only – that we should do everything we can to improve our writing as we go. This means learning from the best people and learning from mistakes we make.
This is where beta readers come in handy. They help find plot holes, inconsistencies, parts in the work that needs more attention and characters/settings that just don’t work. They also find the opposite, those characters that work really well, the settings and plots that do and what they love and what they hate.
This can help the final product become the shining piece of art you, as a writer or author, longs for it to be.
The same goes for reviews. These can consist of constructive feedback. It is up to us to dissect that feedback and see what can improve the story to get that high level of perfection.
Another point of assistance is critiquing. This can happen with an online group or an in‑person writing group. In Grow Write, we do this at every meeting and I know it greatly assists my writing – because having someone read your work out gives a totally different viewpoint and it helps a writer/author in understanding what their reader gets from reading our book.
So, take those not-so-positive reviews and beta reads and put them to good use in perfecting your work and refining your writing prowess. I am very grateful to these types of feedbacks and reviews and critiquing because they help me grow my talent in writing.
This is something I feel strongly about and hope others can see what I have learnt in my own books.
J A Duxbury's World 