I’m back! Though I was never really gone.

Salvete, everyone!

How are you doing? Hope you’re all okay in these strange times.

I thought it was time to update my poor neglected blog, which has suffered since May 2019. The last post is a rather dispiriting note about my health, which was very poor at the time. Well, good news, things are much better now!

It ended up taking about six months for me to fully recover from the respiratory infection which knocked me around last year, as there were complications and my immune system took a long time to bounce back. Then early this year I was hit by cluster headaches which made it pretty much impossible to write for a few months. Honestly, I have broken bones and had boiling water poured over my hand, but this pain was worse– like having a wrecking ball through my brain. However, the pain is much more manageable now and I’m back in full swing!

My second Ashes of Olympus novel, The Ivory Gate, was released late last year. I also released the paperback of the Tooth and Blade omnibus, which both got great reviews. Also, I worked with amazing audiobook narrator Jean Mahoney to produce the audiobook, which is now available on all major platforms. Jean’s voice is absolutely perfect as the protagonist Dóta . Sales have been strong and steady, particularly through public libraries.

What’s next? Well, I’m hard at work on the third Ashes of Olympus, which will launch next year. It’s going well. My publisher will be taking the series to the online Frankfurt, London and Vienna Book Fairs to sell the translation rights. After that, in 2022 I have a contract for a brand new Middle Grade series, which is quite exciting. I’ve also started planning a new series which I intend to publish independently.

And– this is really cool– I’ve started writing for television. I can’t say too much right now, but I hope to have some news for you in the future.

Look out for some updates to my blog and my newsletter coming soon!

Basically, things are looking well and truly up. I know things are terribly uncertain all over the world right now… But I can’t help but feel hope that things will get better.

Until next time,

Julian

Tooth and Blade: Chapter 1

Salvete!

Guess what? The first Tooth and Blade novella is now live world-wide on Kindle! To celebrate, I thought I would share the first chapter… More than that, I wanted to share an amazing illustration inspired by the story. It was created by my friend and former colleague, Dr Yvette Hunt. Enjoy!

Chapter 1: Teeth

“They aren’t like our kind, Dóta. They are beasts.”

My mother’s warning echoed through my head, but it would not stop me. I tiptoed through our cave, my path lit by glowing mushrooms which clung to the walls. Módor’s wrath would be great if she caught me near her treasure hoard. She was afraid of what I would find there, the truth of what I was. I pressed my lips together and shook off my fear. No matter the risk, I had to know.

Points of rock jutted from the floor like razors as I edged along the passage. Icy droplets fell from the ceiling and ran down the back of my neck. I shuddered as they crawled down my spine and pulled my sheepskin tighter.

I’m not sure how old I was when I figured out I wasn’t like Módor. Perhaps it was the day I stumbled and cut my palm on a rock. My blood had run hot and dripped to the ground. Módor had stroked my face to comfort me and for the first time I realized her touch gave me shivers. Then she traced her long nail over the wound and licked it. For an instant her eyes glowed like coals. “There now,” she had said. “Nothing to fear, my girl.” And Módor had smiled with pointed teeth.

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I pressed my way through the jagged gap in the wall which led to Módor’s treasure chamber. Módor had chosen a special chamber for her spoils, lit by a spear-shaft of sunlight from a hole in the ceiling far overhead. The light stabbed at my eyes and I squeezed them shut for a moment. When they had grown used to the light, I blinked and looked about. The piled gold shone bright and the gems winked like stars. I ignored the silver cauldrons, coins and fire-stones, for glittering trinkets could tell me nothing. In the corner of the chamber I spied what I was after. A pile of tarnished chain mail and bones, all that was left of the man foolish enough to challenge my mother. Time had picked the skeleton clean long ago; only a few slivers of decayed flesh remained. The dead warrior still clutched a great sword. A rusted helm protected his skull.

Hands trembling, I picked up the skull and held it up to the light. Flakes of rust fell away from the helmet to show boar-shapes etched into the metal. The head. It was the head I needed to see, not some rusted bit of iron. I pulled the helmet off and threw it aside. A thrill of fear passed through me as it clanked to the ground. My brother’s ears were delicate. Even the smallest noise would make Grethor bawl for Módor.

Moments passed, but nothing happened. Telling myself it was safe, I peered closer at the skull. The empty sockets stared back at me. I traced my thumb over the teeth and ran my tongue over my own. The warrior’s teeth were rounded.

Like mine.

My fears became truth. A beast, that’s what I was. A child of men.

I set the skull down upon the floor, bent to study the body. To judge by the length of the man’s leg-bones, he was taller than most, though he was a dwarf compared to Módor and Grethor. Would I grow to that height? At sixteen, I sensed my growing was done but couldn’t be sure. Another reason to learn more about my kind. The warrior’s mail was crusted with brown and rotted tatters of linen still clung to the skeleton. Clothing, I knew. Grethor had told me once how the creatures of the world above wore a kind of second hide as I wore my sheepskin.

The sunlight caught on something shiny beside the corpse. Without thinking I reached for it and held it up to the light. It was a small disc of polished amber hanging from a rotted leather cord, some kind of amulet. No mere trinket, this. Men must have crafted it in another age, so the gods would protect them. Some of the grime fell away as I rubbed the amulet between my fingers and light shot through veins of yellow in the amber. It was as though the amulet held the sun, waiting to escape. A pretty thing. Perhaps I should put it back? Some instinct told me no; it belonged to me. I slipped it inside my sheepskin. The amulet lay warm against my chest. The feeling was delicious in the coldness of the cave. It had lain hidden under the corpse so long, nobody would miss it. I hoped.

“Well. Hello, Dóta.”

I whirled to find Grethor’s yellow-green eyes staring down at me. His mottled skin flushed dark and his bitter smell filled the cavern. Under his arm Grethor carried his old leather sack. He hissed. “What are you up to?”

“Nothing.” The guilt pressed down upon my shoulders, but I forced myself to stand tall. Had he seen me take the amulet?

“Nothing, eh?” Big Brother’s forked tongue flicked from the corner of his mouth. “Thought you’d peek at Módor’s hoard, I guess. Ought to be more careful. You know how fiercely Módor guards her gold.” He pointed at the scars on his cheek and smirked.

My eyes flicked to the skeleton. “Humans like it too.” The words spilled from my mouth without thought.

His pointed ears pricked up. “And what do you know of humans?”

I tried not to cringe, held my shoulders square. My brother could be cruel as Loki and rough as Thor when the mood took him, but I would not quake. “Nothing,” I said.

Smugness filled his face. “Tell Módor, I should. Not right to go poking through her things. One shout from me and she’ll peel the hide from your bones.” Grethor rasped with laughter. “She could sew me a new bag from it.” He thrust the sack at me.

I caught it. “No. Don’t tell her.”

“And what’ll you give me if I keep my tongue still?”

My hands curled into fists. “What do I have to give, Grethor?” The only thing I owned was my sheepskin—and now the amulet. And my brother wasn’t getting them.

He scratched his chin with one of his claws. “A song, sweet sister.”

I released a slow breath. “A song.”

“Just like when we were little.”

“You were never little.”

He shrugged. “Young, then. The bad dreams plague me now as they did then.”

I blinked. “Still?”

Grethor flinched. “Dreams of fire and flashing swords and the man who grips like iron. He comes to rip and tear. One of his kind.” He glanced at the warrior’s skeleton and shuddered. “Every night he comes, since you stopped singing me to sleep. Remember how we’d cuddle?”

I did remember. The earliest thing I could recall was Grethor curled up next to me in the night. It had been nice, when we were children. But as he grew and his muscles thickened, Grethor would squeeze me like a toy until my bones would crack. I would wake to find bruises and that was not so nice. “I can’t, Grethor. Not anymore. You need to learn to sleep on your own.”

Grethor lowered his head. “Such a pretty voice you have. Soft. And I don’t want you to get into trouble with Módor…”

Breath caught in my chest. It was hard to say no to Grethor. “All right. If you want.”

Grethor’s face split into a grin and his teeth were like needles. “Good. Walk with me, Dóta. My belly’s gurgling. I’m going above to get me some meat.” He pulled the sack from my hands. As we left the chamber, I glanced at the corpse one last time. The dead man’s smile was not so fearsome now.

In silence we wound through the passageways. Grethor twisted left and right to squeeze through the narrow gaps in the rock. He was massive as a frost giant, but could press himself through fine cracks. We made our way down to the chamber where he could enter the underground river. Big Brother leapt over the rocks while I stumbled. His eyes were made for the gloom.

The sound of rushing water filled my ears and the rock floor grew slick under my feet. Beneath the river’s surface I could just see the entrance to the underwater tunnel which would take Grethor to the world above.

He laid his clawed hands on my shoulders and they were clammy. “Be good to old Módor and I might bring you back a nice new hide to warm you. And more than that. I’ll bring you back more tales of the world above. Of the sky, trees, animals.” He leaned close, murmured in my ear. “Of humans, even.”

My heartbeat grew faster. “When will you be back?”

He shrugged. “When I’m back.” Grethor drew me to him and sniffed my hair. It was something he’d done ever since he was a child, though I’d never felt the urge to mimic him. Was it because we were not the same kind? Grethor slid into the river, treaded water for a moment. He opened his eyes wide and green fire kindled in them. The light on the water cast shimmers upon the roof of the hollow and then he dived and took the light with him.

***

Foundling, the first Tooth and Blade novella, is now available world-wide on Kindle!

$0.99 USD or free on Kindle Unlimited.

Step into a world of haunted meres, iron and magic.

 

Tooth and Blade: The Adventure Begins!

Salvete, everybody!

As I’ve mentioned previously, this year I will release three short novellas in a fantasy series based on Norse mythology. I’m thrilled about this series, which is very different from anything I’ve written before. Three short, sharp novellas released in quick succession as a serial. It’s an idea I’ve toyed with for a long time, and it feels amazing to follow through with it.

Part One, Foundling, is now available to pre-order on Kindle for a mere $0.99 USD! It will be available April 17, 2019.

Here’s the cover and blurb!

ragnarok is coming

They call me Peace-weaver. Warmaker. Beast.

My name is Dóta, and I am alone among my clan. The blood runs hot through my veins, though my mother’s touch gives me shivers. The gods of Asgard whisper to me in the night. I am a child of men, a monster unto monsters.

Sixteen years I have dwelled in the shadows beneath the earth. To discover my heritage, I must take up my bone knife and step into the light above. Secrets await me there—beauty, terror, the truth of who I am. Soon I must make an impossible choice, or the nine worlds will be devoured in fire and war.

A monster sheds no tears.

Norse mythology meets historical fantasy in the first novella of the TOOTH AND BLADE series. Step into a realm of haunted meres, iron and magic.

I hope you’ll join me for the journey. 

Until next time,

Valete

2019: The Adventure Unfolds

Salvete, readers!

A belated happy new year!

It has been a little while since my last update, hasn’t it? I’ve been hard at work to reach a deadline. I had to provide a complete draft of The Ivory Gate, the sequel to The Way Home, by the end of January. Good news, I made it! It’s still a bit rough at this point, but helps assure my publisher that the book can be scheduled for 2019. So I’m glad to say I’ve already met my first goal for 2019!

But guess what? That’s not all I’m publishing this year.

Starting from April, I am going to publish my first serial, Tooth and Blade. It’s three short, punchy novellas which together form an epic. I’m really excited about this story. It is historical fantasy based on Norse mythology. Here’s the elevator pitch:

A young woman raised by trolls must find her place in human society. Caught between worlds, Dóta must bridge the gap between man and beast.

The first short instalment, Foundling, will be available for pre-order soon on Kindle.

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After that it’ll be time to get ready for the release of The Ivory Gate in August!  I had been working toward a publication date of October 2019, but due to some shifts in the schedule the book has been moved up. There is much to be done—edits, illustrations, cover design, the whole shebang.

Squeezed between these projects I will contribute to an interactive fiction project, Magic in the Mail, edited by the fantastic Felicity Banks. Remember me telling you last year about Murder in the Mail? This is a similar concept in that it’s a mystery told through letters and art which you receive in the post, only it’s a fantasy and aimed at kids. I get to write in character as a dragon. How cool is that? I’m also thrilled that Murder in the Mail will be published as an illustrated book—it’ll be slightly surreal to see my handwriting in a published book!

That’s the first half of the year pretty much taken care of. After that, I’m going to shift my focus to some academic research, the translation of the early sources related to St Nicholas. This will hopefully be submitted to an academic publisher by the end of the year. 

Throughout 2019 I will continue searching for the right agent for my Middle Grade fantasy. It would be wonderful to see it in print.

I’ve also been invited to be a panelist at a couple of cons, which I’ll update you on soon.

That’s… a lot. However, The Ivory Gate is largely done, and I’ve got the first Tooth and Blade finalised, and I’ve made a very good start on St Nicholas. So it’s achievable, so long as I can keep my focus.

It’s good to have a lot of irons in the fire! That’s what having a creative career is all about. There’s no such thing as a ‘big break.’ It’s about doing a lot of little things until they lead to big things.

Until next time,

Valete

PS. I’m offering a free short story exclusively to followers of my newsletter. Sign up here for your copy! Fear not, I won’t give away your email address and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Coming 2019: Tooth and Blade

Salvete, readers!

I am thrilled to announce that in addition to the second Ashes of Olympus, next year I will release three novellas in a series based on Norse mythology. The title of the series is TOOTH AND BLADE.

For now, here are the cover and the blurb!

ragnarok is coming.png

 

They call me Peace-weaver. Warmaker. Beast.

My name is Dóta, and I am alone among my clan. The blood runs hot through my veins, though my mother’s touch gives me shivers. The gods of Asgard whisper to me in the night. I am a child of men, a monster unto monsters.

Sixteen years I have dwelled in the shadows beneath the earth. To discover my heritage, I must take up my bone knife and step into the light above. Secrets await me there—beauty, terror, the truth of who I am. Soon I must make an impossible choice, or the nine worlds will be devoured in fire and war.

A monster sheds no tears.

Norse mythology meets historical fantasy in the first novella of the TOOTH AND BLADE series. Step into a realm of haunted meres, iron and magic.

I hope you’ll join me for the journey. Part One of the series will land on Kindle in April 2019. I will eventually have a wider release for the box set of the series later in the year.
Edit: Foundling is now available to pre-order via Kindle!
Until next time,
Valete