Well, it’s Finally 2021 — Happy New Year and Some Publications Housekeeping

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I think we can universally agree that, no matter how good any of our individual 2020s were (and I do hope you were all as safe and well as able throughout the endless shitstorm that was last year), it’s bloody fantastic to be over and done with what was a fucking awful year for so many. And yes, the world continues chatoic, but it is so good to have the hope of better things that comes with this particular calendrical reset.

So on that note: Happy New Year to one and all!

Yes, it’s a day or two (or a few…) late when posting this, to be sure. But the celebratory spirit remains true and untarnished for some mild tardiness.

And, honestly, it took a couple days to come down from last year. Not least of all because it was, for me, a full one in work terms (as well as pretty much every other regard). So much so that there were things I meant to blog about last year and they all just went by the wayside while I was frantically trying to get things done.

Given that there is now time to blog about a few things, let’s do an announcement dump! A few things from last year, and one upcoming:

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A New Blue Rose Short Story

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Back in November of last year, Nisaba Press put out an original Blue Rose fiction anthology, Tales from the Mount — tied to the Envoys to the Mount adventure path. It features all-original content from a small but excellent host of names. Yours truly included.

My own piece follows Korre and Atla from “In That Fire, All the Voices of Your Dead,” that appeared in Nisaba Journal Vol. 1. “Whispers in Shadow and Bone” takes place about a year or so after that prior tale. This one told from Korre’s perspective and set in the Shadow Barrens, chasing a bounty of a different kind from her usual fare…

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A New (Giant, Showcase) Edition of Anathema

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December 2020’s edition of Anathema just released with a day or two to spare before year’s end. But this time round we created a Showcase Edition in place of a standard issue — a 400+ page eBook retrospective of our first four years, with 21 reprints and an original cover.

Why an alternate format and approach for this one? Andrew talks about it in their editorial, and I do likewise on Twitter here.

We’ll be back to our usual format come April. But in the meantime, come see what we’ve published that’s spoken to us most deeply these last four years. And, hey, if you’re new to the mag, this is an excellent way to acquaint yourself with what we publish. :)

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A New Mutants & Masterminds Novella on the Horizon

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Looking ahead to this year’s output, I have a new tie-in novella coming: Bardmaggedon, the sequel to Idol Pursuits, will be out this winter/spring. Like Idol Pursuits before it, Bardmaggedon follows the Agents of Mystery — my four queer, stabby, supernatural disaster babies.

Where Idol Pursuits drew heavily from The Maltese Falcon, Bardmaggedon is a love letter to both Gaudy Night and metal music across its many subgenres. Also maybe a little bit heavy metal horror movies… Look, there’s a lot going on with this one. And yes, I will be posting a playlist for the novella. Hell, I’ve already kind of done that work ahead of time because said playlist is also the novella’s chapter titles. :)

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More General Housekeeping (Writing, Freelancing)

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I’m considering putting together a year in writing post for 2020. It was a full year on that front, in various respects. And I enjoy doing them, even if it’s been a while since the last one. Though given my largely infrequent blogging as of late, we’ll see when that ends up happening.

On the freelancing front, I’ve got a lot of open slots these next few months, and could abolsutley do with more work. So if you’re looking for editing, critique/assessment, copywriting, or ghostwriting work from me, now is an excellent time to do so. Most questions relating to that answered here on the Matheson Freelancing website. Questions not answered by the info found there should be addressed to the Contact form on that site.

And here, friends, is where we temporarily part ways again until the next blog, whenever that finds us. Because 2021 is already shaping up to be … interesting.

For now, keep safe as you can. And may things go well with all of you.