today is just three short months from the release of my queer cozy horror The Lord of the Wood! if you’d like a chance to read early, be sure to request the e-ARC on Netgalley (click here) or Edelweiss (click here).

you can also add this book on Goodreads (click here), StoryGraph (click here), or PageBound (click here). and of course you can preorder a signed print copy (click here), the e-book (click here), or the dual-narrator audiobook (click here).

it’s increasingly springy in my neck of the woods. strong possibility I cried a little bit over the first spring frogs croaking away at a park earlier this month. we’ll ignore what that might say about my mental state. I’ve been working hard to keep my 2026 birdlist updated, since it’s almost May, which means it’s almost the Biggest Week in American Birding, which means that between two separate bird walks I’m gonna have a lot of birds to add.

(click here to see this year’s birdlist: link to Birdlist2026 on Bluesky)

e-book sale

in case you missed it on my socials, The Keeper of Lonely Spirits e-book is on sale for just $2.99 all April across e-book retailers. so if you’ve been waiting to get your copy, now’s a good time!

my preference is Bookshop, so click here if you’d like to buy the e-book from them: link to Keeper on Bookshop

as a reminder, this queer cozy fantasy is about an old man cursed with immortality who hunts ghosts rather than making mortal friends who will die one day, until residents of an Ohio town beset by a vengeful spirit adopt him as their own. as the haunting grows increasingly dangerous, he must decide: leave to protect his heart, or stay to protect the lives of his new friends and the man he’s falling for?

upcoming events

somehow I’ve gone from having events only during launch week for The Lord of the Wood to having an event every month from now until September (except August)(so far). here are my events for April and May!

Saturday, April 25, 12:00p.m. - 2:00p.m. EST
Indie Bookstore Day at Little Gay Bookshop in Columbus, Ohio

come down to Little Gay Bookshop for two full days of authors and book signings! I’ll be at the store from noon to two on Saturday, so be sure to say hi (and buy a print copy of The Keeper of Lonely Spirits while you’re at it). I plan to bring my remaining Lord of the Wood teasers, plus postcards with the cover and description on them!

this event is free and open to the public. books will be available for sale.

Friday, May 15, 6:30p.m. - 9:30p.m. EST
Ohio Creates: Wine & Words with Ohio Authors at Benfield Wines in Swanton, Ohio

join me and authors Mindy McGinnis, Anastasia Ryan, Kristina Smith & Kevin Moore, and Kathryn Moon at Benfield Wines on May 15 for a night of wine and words! doors open at 6:30 for VIPs and 7:30 for General Admission. for more information and to buy tickets, click here: link to Eventbrite page

this is a paid, ticketed event. General Admission is $25 plus fees, and VIP tickets are $50 plus fees.

Saturday, May 30, 11:00a.m. - 12:00p.m. EST
Storytelling Sessions: Disability in Writing

the Weeknight Writers community is holding another free, virtual one-day conference! this session’s topic is Disability in Writing. I’ll be one of the panelists for “Avoiding Cure Narratives and Other Harmful Tropes.” join us online at 11a.m. for this panel!

while the conference is free, registration will be required. subscribe to the Weeknight Writers newsletter to be notified when tickets are available: link to subscribe

odds and ends

recent reads

• I’ve been working my way through my panelists’ books for the Big Ohio Book Con in June. most recently, I read And They Were Roommates by Page Powars, which was so hilarious but also deeply moving. 10/10 highly recommend if you enjoy romance but like some silliness and shenanigans (and maybe a Horse Girl teen boy) in between the romantically charged moments

  • click here for more information about the Big Ohio Book Con: link to event website. I’m moderating the panel “Beyond the Binary: Writing Authentic LGBTQIA+ Stories” on Saturday, June 6, at 11a.m. (more about that in next month’s newsletter)

recent watches

• I went to see You, Me & Tuscany (2026), which was my first time in theaters in a hot minute. I loved so many things about this film, from the importance of food to the MC’s best friend to the way the LI’s family welcomed the MC into the fold. I also cried several times* and learned an important lesson: if you’re going to have a romantic moment in a Tuscan vineyard, do it far away from the road lest passing tourists ruin it with inappropriate comments

  • if you see the film, stay for the credits to see outtakes and alternative jokes from said tourists, because those actresses were funny as hell

  • *this has nothing to do with my mental state and everything to do with the fact that my ratings scale for movies is like “did it make me cry? if yes, 10/10”

recent listens

• the Sinners soundtrack, obviously

• otherwise I’ve been sort of cycling through music without settling into one particular album or playlist, which happens sometimes. Hadestown has gotten a couple repeats, though

recent birds

• golden-crowned kinglets, double-crested cormorants, and Merlin caught the sounds of a yellow-rumped warbler on my walk the other day (but since I didn’t hear or see it myself—and am almost certain to see some when May hits—I haven’t added that one to my birdlist)

• a bufflehead, which I identified at a distance and without my binoculars even though I mostly see mallards and Canada geese

until next time!