Week 44 of 2026
Greetings all!
I went treasure hunting today, which I’ll tell you all about today, as well as why I thought I might have earned it.
But first, a cover reveal! Here’s the cover of The Shattering of Spears, coming out on November 13th!
What a great cover by Jack Wylder! Also, note the series title. This is Book I of the Youngest Thegn Saga.
But wait, there’s more news! I finished a full draft of Book II, which I’m currently calling The Breaking of Oaths, on Tuesday. I’m making progress with editing and hope to have the manuscript ready to go next week so I can get going on Book III.
This was actually an extremely productive week. Not only did I get all that done, I also made at least one post every day. I’m making progress on the Italy photos, though as I’ve mentioned, I played hooky today and didn’t put up the photos from the castle in Milan. I’ll do that tomorrow.
The Italy trip was apparently something I needed. I expected to come home and need a vacation from my vacation, which is normal for me. Maybe it’s the time differential. Maybe it was the regular schedule we had over there. I don’t know why it’s happening, but that trip dramatically charged me up.
I’m taking full advantage of that, too, what with word count, social media work, completing projects around the house. It’s been great!
Now why did I play hooky? I was suckered in by an estate sale that had a ton of gaming stuff up in KC. I had two specific targets when I went and I was sure I wouldn’t get either given that there was a huge flock of geeky vultures.
But I got them!
I’ve wanted a copy of MERP for a long time. MERP is Middle Earth Role-Playing, a derivative of Rolemaster that came out in the 80s. I had a copy once, but that disappeared somewhere along the way. That was target 2.
My prime target is another game I played in the 80s—twice. It’s been so long that I’ve totally forgotten the rules. It’s the old Avalon Hill Starship Troopers game. I’ve been looking for that for even longer.
One was cheaper than expected, the other more expensive. I broke even, plus I got 3 Dragon magazines I didn’t already have. Go me!
Then I went to Korma Sutra, my favorite Indian restaurant ever and probably the thing I most miss about not living the KC area.
On the way home, I did the normal sort of shopping we needed from Costco and the Spice Merchant, so while it was playing hooky and I spent more than I should’ve when I count gas and all, it was a nice reward for typing “The End.”
Now to the polishing phase, but a really fun podcast coming on Tuesday.
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This Week’s Show
I had Claire Merrick on for a horror/Halloween-filled episode. She’s a fairly new author and here’s her first book, The Screaming Trees: https://www.amazon.com/Screaming-Tree-Claire-Merrick/dp/1969374322.
We had a lot of fun! Check out the show.
Next Week’s Show
I am so excited about next week’s show! Actually, I’m excited about November’s shows, but especially next week.
I get to speak with the amazing Orson Scott Card. You won’t want to miss this.
Here’s the link: https://open.substack.com/live-stream/419562.
See you there!
Upcoming Schedule
November 3rd: Orson Scott Card.
November 10th: The Shattering of Spears episode. I’ll talk to a couple of people involved in producing the book. I may even have a gift or too here.
November 17th: Mark Amundsen, and up-and-coming author.
November 24th: Thanksgiving Food! Cedar Sanderson, Scott “Hillbilly” Tackett, and I are gonna make you hungry. Soooo hungry.
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Thanks for reading!
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Have a great week, everyone.
Rob Howell
Creator of the Firehall Sagas Universe
Founder of the Queen Elizabeth’s Own Foresters
My Weight Today: 310.6lbs
Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/-/e/B00X95LBB0
Website: robhowell.org
Blog: robhowell.org/blog
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Twitter: twitter.com/Rhodri2112
Have fun with Starship Troopers! That's a great game. I found a couple of friends willing to try it in MN. We've played through scenario three.