How Many Stages?

I've managed to get some writing done here and there this summer and before I knew it, I had another book ready. I've been sitting on a handful of short stories over the years so I figured I would clean up a few old ones, write some new ones, and compile it as one book.

What I've come up with is Stage Five, a collection of five short stories. Two of the stories involve cats and in only one of them is the cat speaking French. I've got a serial killer on dialysis, robots dissecting testicles, a prostitute getting shot in the back, and a dog tempted to eat fresh vomit. It's not all disgusting though. For example, I wrote about a gangster kicking a decapitated head across the room. Wait, that's pretty gross. How about a woman in a Reggie White t-shirt thinking about the dried puke on her bed sheets? Damn, that's nasty too.  And I already mentioned vomit earlier!

I guess maybe I've said too much and should just let the book speak for itself once it's finished. I'm still in the process of polishing it up before it's sent off to the editor but I plan on releasing it sometime in October or the first week or two in November at the latest. This time I'm planning on the paperback and Kindle version hitting the streets on the same day.

For those fans out there clamoring for Desolate 3, I've got good news and bad news. The good news is that there will definitely be a third and final installment to the Desolate series. The bad news is, I haven't written a word of it and I'm not even sure where the story is headed. I wrote myself into a corner and one of these days I'll have to sit down with Howard and figure out what his next adventure will be. No matter what, it will be ready in 2013.

In the meantime, I've started on another project I've called Code Name: Chick Book. Now that I've offended all the women readers out there, let me tell you remaining men I've got a book planned that ignorant pigs like myself would consider a "chick book." I'm actually pretty excited about it and I think it'll be a great way to expand my market and push me out of my comfort zone as a writer. I'll just have to try really, really, hard not to include any vomit in it. Unless I can figure out a way to make it romantic.

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