What's Dan Writing?Today I am just finishing the post-formatting revisions for a cool secret project for Dragonsteel Nexus (the new name for the annual Dragonsteel convention). We still have some final proofing to do, but it is mostly out of my hands and with my amazing editor, Kristy Gilbert. Once that's done, I am back to my standard answer of "I'm working on the Dark One novel." That's what I say on every month, I know, but writing novels takes a long time.

What's Dan Reading?Honestly? These days I am mostly reading wargame rules and rpg manuals. Depression has been kicking my butt, and picking up a book to read is a daunting challenge. I worry that anything I read I will hate, so I don't want to read anything I care about until I'm capable of liking things again. That said, since my last newsletter I did read and love an advance copy of The Dollmakers by Lynn Buchanan. I'll be sure to remind you as soon as it's published so you can all read it too.

What Does Dan Recommend?It had a famously terrible launch when it came out a few years ago, but Cyberpunk 2077 has been lovingly patched and improved and expanded and today it is arguably the best video game I have every played. The world is unbelievably immersive, the characters are layered and compelling, the story is fascinating and deeply cyberpunk, and the combat is varied and fun and endlessly replayable. I'm on my fifth play-through, all with completely different builds. It takes a pretty hefty computer to run it, but if you have the opportunity I can't recommend this game enough.

What's Dan Writing?I have finished the frustratingly secret projects that I rudely refuse to tell you about, and am now working full steam on the Dark One novel. Plus a lot of detours into the worldbuilding of my Cosmere series, which really should wait until I'm done with Dark One but it's too exciting and I can't help myself :)

What's Dan Reading?I just started Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls, a middle grade fantasy by my friend Kaela Rivera. For some reason I thought it was going to be a modern fantasy about our world with some supernatural elements thrown in, but it's actually a full-blown fantasy world inspired by Mexican mythology. I'm absolutely loving it--perfect for kids and adults alike.

What Does Dan Recommend?While searching for some good RPG battle maps last month I discovered Loke, a company that publishes full art battle mats, printed on wipe-clean material and collected into spiral bound books. Each two-page spread is a full fantasy map on a one-inch grid, perfect for D&D and other RPGs; they lay flat, you can draw on them with dry-erase markers, and they're incredibly easy to transport and store. I got two of them for Christmas, and loved them so much I immediately bought two more.

What Is Dan Writing?
So: we haven't sent out a newsletter in months, and that's because I was diagnosed with a shiny new Depression and Panic Disorder! It's so fun, and I recommend it to everyone. So I haven't really written much at all, but I'm starting to climb back out of the hole, and the last few weeks I've been doing a ton of writing for Super Secret Project X. I can't tell you what this is literally until it is out in the world, but here are some hints: it's three things, and they're in the Cosmere, and you should really come to Dragonsteel '24.

What Is Dan Reading?
Reading was another thing that took a huge step backward over the summer. Right now I'm finishing Priory of the Orange Tree and starting Yumi and the Nightmare Painter. I recommend them both.

What Does Dan Recommend?
I've been on an RPG-buying kick lately, and my new obsession is Monster of the Week. It's a "Powered by the Apocalypse" game, which is not a system I love, but this particular implementation of it works really well. It's basically X-Files/Supernatural/Buffy, with all the tools you need to come up with your own premise for a horror or urban fantasy "show" and play through it with your friends. It's fun, it runs smoothly, and you get to investigate monsters. I love it.

Dark One: Forgotten--the very first Dan and Brandon collaboration--is out! This is audio only because it is presented as if you are listening to somebody's true crime podcast. It is such a fun listen! Look for it wherever you get your audiobooks.

I was on the TROI podcast where I shared advice for new writers and insights about writing careers.

You can see the interview on You Tube.
Or you can visit their podcast website to listen. 

I was recently on "The Write Approach" where we discussed How Your Worldview Affects Your Writing. You can listen to the episode on their website through this LINK.