Talestack News - ISSUE 41
[January 20th - February 3rd]
✒ Editor’s Note
Welcome back, Talestack Readers!
[New around here? Check out our FAQ page!]
February is the month of love…and around here, we have an ongoing love affair with fiction!
Our first issue of February is heavy on the new serial projects, which is always exciting! But we’ve also got fun books on the shelf, milestones to celebrate, and even some resources to boost your creative inspiration!
As always, please hype each other up in the comments. Go visit, explore, give virtual high-fives, and let your colleagues know that you’re with them.
Have a lovely week, and happy writing!
S.E. Reid
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📣 Announcements!
Finished Projects:
- ’s latest Edison City serial, And When Two Villains Woo, has just concluded. From Michael: “With 17 episodes and an epilogue, it's the
supervillain romcomdramatic adventure of loyal henchwoman Candystriper as she explores the origins of her mad relationship with the Malevolent Med-Student and must decide whether to stay with him as he faces a threat even more malevolent than he is! Will she stay? Will she go? Will she end up with someone else? Only Candystriper knows!” Jump into Chapter One here! - has just concluded his serialized small-town mystery thriller novel, Juniper Falls. Synopsis: “This small mountain town features a diverse community of creatives and misfits, drug addicts and do-gooders, hard workers and layabouts, and everybody knows each other’s business. When a young drifter—one of many drawn to the town—overdoses on a dangerous new street drug, his death shakes the town to its core, and forces its residents to rethink everything they thought they knew about Juniper Falls.” Also available as an ebook or paperback (see Bookshelf section below).
New Projects:
- will be launching a new project soon called The Foreigner of Fawn: The Tale of Emanuel Antonio. Synopsis: “In a time when men sail vast oceans in search of new beginnings, Emanuel Antonio arrives in the shadowy town of Fawn, seeking to escape a past he dares not share. But the unwelcoming streets of Fawn hold secrets as dark as Emanuel’s own—whispers of a beast that stalks the night and a mysterious figure who knows more about Emanuel than he should. As Emanuel tries to find solace, he becomes entangled in the town’s fear and paranoia, drawing the suspicion of the towering, menacing sheriff and the watchful eyes of its desperate citizens. But beneath the surface lies a more sinister truth, one that will force Emanuel to confront his deepest guilt and darkest nature.”
- ’s hiatus is coming to an end, and he will be launching a new three-part science fiction miniseries called The Trials of the Hearken, which will post over successive weeks beginning Friday, February 7th. Synopsis: “The colony ship Hearken was supposed to be the Jovian Union’s first colonial effort into space. The launch went wrong, and the ship was lost in space. Aboard the ship: a captain cracking under the weight of responsibility, a couple who want only freedom, a crewman torn between two worlds, and a question on the minds of 500 lost souls: What are we going to do now?” Subscribe so you don’t miss a thing!
- is releasing her sci-fi novel as a long-form serial, called Station 2-14. Synopsis: “Determined to save her dying mother, Ley must test her special abilities and become the best fighter in the Games of Station 2-14. Only she soon discovers that she’s not the only one with something to lose.” Jump into Chapter One here!
- has just begun to share chapters of her serial novel, FLUX. Synopsis: “The asthmatic climate scientist Grace Evans is a closet inventor who approaches her work (and her life) as puzzle to solve, a machine to repair. A rising academic star, she documents the harms caused by the fracking industry. She’s determined to expose the methane-leaking cracks in gas wells while hiding her own widening cracks—in her integrity, her relationships, her health, and her control over any of it.” Jump into Chapter One here!
Milestones & Wins:
After starting her short-story-writing journey in October 2024,
’s fantasy-horror story Fifteen Men will be published in the upcoming Issue 17 of Indie Bites magazine on the 18th of February! Katharine says: “The theme of the issue is ‘Pirates and Prophecies’ and Fifteen Men is the story of an RPG gamer, an ancient curse and a pirate queen.” Congratulations, Katharine!- (Kim Hayes) has had another story accepted for publication! Adelaide Literary Magazine is printing her story The House That Nobody Loved at the end of February. From Kim: “While I had been submitting it as fiction, the events actually happened to my and my then boyfriend/now husband 25 years ago. It had been rejected 26 times. I legit burst into tears when I got the acceptance email.” Congratulations, Kim!
📚 The Bookshelf
(Titles listed in order of release date.)
- ’s collection of short stories, Well Water and Other Odd Tales, is now available for purchase as an ebook (with a paperback to follow soon)! Release Date: 1/16/25
- ’s small-town mystery thriller and debut novel, Juniper Falls, is now available in ebook and paperback on Amazon! Release Date: 1/20/25
🫱🏻🫲🏾 Connection Corner
- has written two recent articles geared toward fiction writers that she thought the Talestack News community might appreciate:
how to find an agent during trying times - a guide to submitting your manuscript for traditional publishing when the world has gone insane
on writing believable fiction characters - “Authors must dive into the characters' mindsets, whether they are protagonists, antagonists, or supporting characters, and unearth the marrow of their personalities. They must be able to understand the intricacies behind what drives each character to further the plot.”
Got something you want us to publish? Have any questions, comments, or feedback? Send it all to:
talestack.editor@gmail.com
Love Lyndsey Resnick's anthology, I bought it, highly recommend!
Thanks, S.E, for helping out a new author!