Hey everybody, M. here,

It was a big week for news over here last week, with DMR Books announcing the official release date for Kingdoms Trembling (scheduled to be published on June 8) and the accompanying big reveal of the incredible cover illustrated by Matthew M. Skillern. With all of that going on, I had some news that I was able to get up on here and there on social media, but am a little late in posting here on the blog, namely that I received my contributor copy of Walpurgis Witcheries in the mail towards the end of last week.

The seasonal scorcher of a cover by Adam Burke on this one (done in the same style as his work found on the cover of Walpurgis Witcheries’ companion volume, 2022’s Samhain Sorceries) is a beauty to behold and the stories found therein are already getting a lot of kind words, so pick one up and get into it!

It’s available on Amazon in paperback and for Kindle, and DMR Books mentioned last week that it is now in-stock and available via the DMR Books website.

The anthology contains my short story The Wandering One and the Witchdance, and eight other new sword & sorcery tales set around the Walpurgisnacht festival in the Harz mountain range of medieval Germany, from some of the most vibrant imaginations writing sword & sorcery and dark fantasy today.

My story contains the first appearance of the character Vodoberex, the story’s titular Wandering One (you can get a taste of what you’re getting into with the teaser from the first page that I’ve posted here).

I had considered it a little bit back when I was writing the story, but the more I think about it the more I would like to bring Vodoberex back for more action and adventure. Where, when, and how? Only time will tell. But if you dig The Wandering One and the Witchdance and would like to see its cryptic hero appear on the page once again, give the anthology a review and mention it, let me know (here, on Facebook, or on Substack), and/or spread the word about the book and the story to anyone who might enjoy the story!

Horror and science fiction on the way
With so much happening on the sword & sorcery side of things lately, I don’t want to neglect to mention that I’ve got quite a bit on the way in terms of my horror and science fiction stories as well!

In the next couple of weeks you should be hearing more about the upcoming issue of Chthonic Matter Quarterly, in which you will find my tale of urban living and all those things that infest one’s apartment and one’s heart, What’s Behind The Walls, a thematic followup to my story Sticky which appeared in the Winter 2024 issue.

In August you can look forward to my story Sherman Dismantled and Afloat which is slated to appear in the Nyctalocos: A Collection of Night Terrors anthology, and in September get ready to jump into the squared circle and go toe-to-toe with my science fiction comedy Kayfabe in the Strange Tales of Space and Time anthology from Burial Books.

I think that should get me up to date for the moment, at least here on this author blog. Should have lots more on the way in the coming weeks, so stay tuned!
-M.

Hey everybody, M. here,

I’m excited to share that DMR Books announced the official release date of Kingdoms Trembling earlier today, as well as some information about the book that you can check out on the DMR blog.

Mark June 8 on your calendar, fans of the fantastical, the weird, the wild, the bizarre, and the bloody, because that is the day that my collection Kingdoms Trembling hits the shelves!

Along with the announcement of the release date came the reveal of the absolutely amazing cover illustration by indie comic artist Matthew M. Skillern, who did the illustration for the Die By The Sword Vol. II anthology (which you can see below) and whose work has appeared in all sorts of other incredible places as of late, including on sketch cards in a few recent Star Wars trading card sets.

The cover beautifully captures the mind-bending energy and intense action you will find within the pages, so get ready for early June! And if you want to read more about what Matthew M. Skillern has done and what he’s up to at the moment, you can check out his webpage or follow him on Facebook.

And as the DMR blog mentions, Kingdoms Trembling takes place in the same world that I debuted in two stories in the Die By The Sword anthologies. So if you have not yet checked out The Tears of Blood and The Eye Within The Eye, two tales of Ulxedomus, the exiled Crown Prince of K’Zal, you can still pick them up in those two anthologies to get yourself in the zone.

Or if you want to read the first story, The Tears of Blood, for free, you can download the new DMR Books digital sampler, The Battle Rages On which contains my story and a selection of other sword & sorcery tales new and old that DMR has recently released, to give those readers curious a feel for what the publishing house is about.

I’ve got a lot more coming up in these next few weeks so stay tuned here, follow me on Facebook, or check me out on Substack. Over on Substack I have been mostly posting short fiction/publishing-related updates after getting quickly sidetracked from writing about other stuff, but I might get back to writing Substack-exclusive content one of these days.

Take care everyone, and get ready for June 8!
-M.