Are You Ready for This?

Can you believe it’s July already? I’m still having to remind myself that it’s 2026.

My writing tends to slow down during the summer due to the heat. My brain just won’t work properly when the temperature is hot. Unfortunately, my writing space is the hottest in the house.

However, I’ve got some exciting things coming. It’s finally time to announce:

This is a book of 130 brand-new fantasy drabbles, most of which were written in 2025 as part of The Diurnal Drabble Dare. What does a writer do with hundreds of 100-word stories? Why, they bundle them into collections, of course! I’ll be testing the waters with this one, seeing if there’s a market for this sort of thing. If there is, I’ve got plenty of science fiction and horror drabbles to work with…

I had lots of fun designing the print versions of this book. It will be available in both hardcover (with a dust jacket) and paperback. It’ll also available as an e-book, though that version isn’t quite as pretty.

A Trove of Smallish Things will be released on August 11, 2026! Pre-order links are coming soon…

Project #1:

I’m making progress on my metafiction urban fantasy book. After finishing the edits, I formatted it and created a cover. This will be one of the longer novels I’ve published, at around 117,000 words. I’m kind of excited to be putting something longer out there; all of my other published novels are under 90,000 words.

If all goes well, I’m hoping to get this book released before the end of 2026. November would be nice, but we’ll see…

Project #2:

I’m working on a science fiction mystery with characters who are older than the ones I usually write. So… that’s different. Also, why is writing someone in their 30s so much harder for me (in her 40s) than writing someone in their teens or early 20s? I’m sure there’s some complicated psychological reason why.

Anyway, I’m just working on this one at a leisurely pace, trying to recapture my love of writing longer-form fiction.

Since I last updated, I’ve had a few more stories published.

“His Lucky Day” appeared in Rat Bag Lit’s Lucky Penny mini anthology.

“We All Have to Play” was published by Quotidian Bagatelle as their story for June 12, 2026.

“A Colourful End” was published by Rat Bag Lit on June 26, 2026.

All of my short fiction that’s available to read is linked on my All My Stories… page here on Substack.

A bunch of deals, actually. Smashwords is having their big twice-yearly sale, and all of my published books are included! Grab some great bargains with the coupon codes! The sale runs until July 31, so be sure to pick up any titles you really want to read while they’re discounted (or free). I’ve linked the titles to their pages on Smashwords.

My two series starters, Brainstorm and Nothing Close to Home are both FREE! Use the code SS100 at checkout to get your free books!

The rest of the individual installments in both the Elements of Mind and Generation Rift series are all 75% off! Use the code SSW75 at checkout to get the discount!

Two Between Worlds, The Last Minute, No Such Thing, That Pesky Third Wish, and Elements of Mind: The Complete Quartet are all 50% off! Use the code SSW50 at checkout to get the discount!

Well, that’s what’s new! I’ll keep writing, editing, and publishing, and I’ll be sure to keep you up to date on any major announcements. Smaller updates can be found in my Notes on Substack.

Talk to you soon!

Nissa