Welcome, everyone, to the final newsletter of the year. It has been a roller coaster, hasn’t it? And now the holiday season is here with all its attendant stresses, like getting the kids together for the holiday photo:

This morning I got a temporary crown on the molar I chipped over Thanksgiving break. As I write this, it’s aching something fierce. Sigh. Maybe this felt chicken my kid and I made will help me find calm.

Or I should just get some Tylenol.

Submission stats and rejection chain

2025 has been a lot, and as a result, I didn’t make as many submissions as I aimed. Part of that is the frequent closing of publications (it’s like the colony collapse affecting bees) but the other part is a combo of good luck and bad; I got quite a few stories accepted last year, which dried up my supply, and I was having a hard time writing new stuff. The latter part’s getting better. So as a result my chain was shorter this year than in years past:
65 submissions,
59 form rejections,
3 personal rejections,
3 acceptances.

So I made a more complicated decoration out of it.

The year wasn’t all bad. I released my second book, which is pretty cool, along with a couple short stories I’m rather proud of. As is my wont and custom, I made an Eligibility Post, showing off everything I’ve had published in 2025. Click on the image below to be taken there, where you will find links! Now is the time to read those stories I linked to before time got away from you and which will now provide a little bit of escape. I hope.

Looking for gift ideas?

This is the month I celebrate both my birthday and Christmas. If you’re curious about what I want, I can tell you in one word: Attention! Seriously; no one writes and publishes because they don’t want someone to notice.

If you want more specifics, I’ve updated my annual author wish list on my blog. It’s full of ideas that cost nothing but time, and would mean a lot to me.

Chuck Wendig has a gift guide with exactly one item on it, which also costs nothing and makes writers happy, so you can go read about that here.

On to the new year!

2026 marks the 10-year anniversary of my fiction writing. There are some things coming up, and some dreams I have on a back burner.

February 2026 is going to be busy, as I have stories in two different anthologies releasing that month!*

*With allowances made for the vicissitudes of publishing, of course.

First, on February 14th, you can find my story, “Must Work for Scale,” in Encounters with Cryptids. So far this is only listed for the Kindle, but I hope there will be more options as the drop date nears.

Then on February 17th, Dark Matter Ink releases Little Red Flags, wherein you will find “Con and Consequences,” a little fantasy for all of us who can’t wait for “death of the author.” That one’s available for pre-order now.

I have one more short story (so far) set for publication in 2026, but I promised the market I wouldn’t talk about it until they made the official announcement. It’s a big one. Between this and Cast of Wonders, I’ve succeeded with two markets I’ve been trying for years. So that’s something to celebrate!

You know, with all these stories of mine floating around, I would really love to put together a collection of my short fiction. Those are a hard to pitch to land, so I flirt with the idea of self-publishing, but that seems really, really daunting. A lot of steps I don’t know how to do and am not sure I could learn. If anyone reading this has ideas, I’m open. For now, it’s just an idea.

Well, that’s what I’ve got for the year.

OK, I do have a picture of Luna helping me with the photoshoot for this newsletter. But that’s it.

I wish everyone a happy and safe holiday season and all the best in the new year. Take care of yourself. Support artists and writers and the freedom to read. Give AI nothing but your contempt. Stay alert. Be kind.