Meet the Winged Scruff
Our grass is very confused. After no rain for over a month and winter coming, the meadow had gone brown and dormant. Now, after three days of rain, grass is turning green again, unaware that snow isn’t too far away.
Looking out over our grassy field is a great inspiration for Conall’s journey through the Meadows in Mech and Magic (coming December 2025). He encounters some interesting creatures in his travels, including the winged scruff. Here’s a snippet that introduces these critters that are equal parts cute and nasty.
A small white creature emerged from the rock pile and cocked its head, studying the intruder in its terrain. Winged scruffs inhabited the northern reaches of the Meadows. Small and round, its fur was fluffy and white except for where it bled to brown like a mask around its eyes and on its strangely hand-like paws. Long rounded ears protruded through the fluff, pointing straight up, and these were framed by its most distinctive feature, tufts of white fur that mimicked feathers. These “wings” were purely ornamental and though the scruffs could leap great distances they didn’t actually fly. Mostly, they scrounged for bugs in the dirt. They’d also been known to invade camps. Their tiny hands were amazingly agile and strong, and if they couldn’t open a trash container, they would chew through it.
The scruff stared right at Conall and chirped.
Terrific. Where there was one scruff, there were more, and sure enough, another white head poked from the rubble, then another.
Garou grunted in disgust.
All fur and no meat.
Conall agreed. That’s their best defense against predators. Nothing wants to eat them.
The lead scruff chirped again. The effort made his whole body jerk. More banded faces appeared.
Saints’ sinner. There had to be dozens of the vermin. Conall slowly reached into his pack for his air knives. The scruff’s cute chirp turned into a growl and it bared wicked little teeth. They could smell the food in his pack and they weren’t going to be deterred by one measly human.
What do you think of the winged scruff? Cute critter or vermin?
MORE BOOK NEWS
Black Annis Year is available everywhere!
The relaunch was a success! Thank you to everyone who participated. You can now find the ebook, paperback, hardcover or audiobook at your favorite retailer.SHOP BLACK ANNIS YEAR
A Knack for Metal and Bone Audiobook now available
Find it at Audible. It has three voice actors and I think they’re all brilliant.
SHOP A KNACK FOR METAL AND BONE
Mech and Magic is now pre-ordering
I just sent finished my final proofread of Mech and Magic. I do this by having Scrivener read it to me in that droning AI voice. It’s a boring process that took me over 30 hours of listening, but I couple that with a massive font onscreen and it’s the best way to catch all the little error such as “an” instead of “and.” I still send it for one more proofread with my editor, but I’m on schedule to have it go out to the ARC team by mid November.
During this very labor-intensive proofing process, it occurred to me, this is why people use AI. I don’t. The process would be much faster if I simply ran the manuscript through ChatGPT, but then my book would be available to AI as a training tool.
I’d rather keep my book for you. I’m still old-school for the really important stuff. I don’t use generative AI for my books at all. And I don’t use AI for editing. I believe that a human voice still has value, even if it takes extra time to write and proofread.
That’s not to say that AI doesn’t have its place. It’s a great tool for creating sales copy like book blurbs—something that authors are notoriously bad at. I can also be fun for bouncing ideas off, but in the end, the writing and editing comes from me, and I like it that way. I hope you do too.
Mech and Magic is coming in December and I’m super excited for you to catch up with Rowan and Conall and Squad 54. The eBook is now available for pre-order.
PRE-ORDER MECH AND MAGIC
Grimalkins Don't Purr Audiobook Sale
Save 50% off Grimalkins Don't Purr, only at Audiobooks.com, and only until November 2nd.
GET GRIMALKINS DON'T PURR AUDIOBOOK DEAL
BOOK FAIRS
We're ramping up to the busiest book buying season and it shows with the current book fairs. If you're looking for free books, check out the last 2 banners in this selection as well as J.C. Yeamans' Spotlight Book.
The Scary Free Books includes my collection of horror tales Black Bet's Home for Toothless Vampires. These tales are not for the faint of heart, but perfect for the season.
Happy haunting book season!
SPOTLIGHT BOOKS
Fastening the Grave
A Kali James Novel: Book 1
by L.A. McBride
Two things are impossible to walk away from: death and vintage clothing. Trust me. I've tried.
Moving across the country and opening a costume shop was supposed to be my chance for a normal life. What I wanted was a fresh start, one where the biggest danger would be a carelessly wielded sewing needle.
What I got was the ghost of a murdered reporter demanding justice, a power I can’t control, and a new goat shifter BFF hell-bent on trouble.
Now, my hunt for the killer threatens to expose a supernatural community determined to safeguard its secrecy at any cost. My only chance to survive is to embrace the legacy I’ve spent my life running from.
Fastening the Grave is the first book in the completed Kali James series, featuring a reluctant necromancer who finds herself in a world of werewolves, vampires, and ghosts. If you like your urban fantasy with quirky characters, a side of supernatural mystery, and a dose of slow-burn romance, this is the book for you.
SHOP FASTENING THE GRAVE
A Trinity of Witches
by J.C. Yeamans
A backstory to the Bearsden Witch Series, an Urban Fantasy with a Gen X heroine. In the 1960s, three young witches from different backgrounds come together to perform a fertility spell. What could go wrong?
Get your FREE copy of A Trinity of Three Witches, A Backstory to The Bearsden Witch Series, an Urban Fantasy with a Gen X heroine. Secrets of a Midlife Witch is Book One.
