This week I’ve been doing an audio pass of Reign of Daggers (Dawn of Assassins, Book 4), listening through the full manuscript to make sure the story flows properly before putting it aside for a while.

I find hearing a story aloud is one of the best ways to catch pacing issues and awkward moments.

I’ve also started work on RAF Dragon Corps Book 3, mapping out the timeline before begininng the draft.

This instalment will take place during the Battle of Britain and the Blitz, which should make for a dramatic backdrop for dragons and aerial combat.

On a more personal note, I talk about beginning the process of being assessed for a new Guide Dog.

My current dog is retiring this year, so I’ve started the application and assessment process for my next guide.

As someone who relies on a Guide Dog to get around, it’s a big life transition.

This week I took a few days off for my birthday and ended up listening to the new Dungeon Crawler Carl book, A Parade of Horribles, over the space of just two days.

Safe to say, I absolutely loved it. The series continues to balance chaos, humour, and surprisingly emotional storytelling brilliantly.

I also continued working on Reign of Daggers (Dawn of Assassins, Book 4).

I initially thought I’d finished the draft, but realised the story needed a little more room to breathe, so I’m adding three extra scenes plus epilogues for each of the core characters.

That should bring the draft to a proper conclusion next week.

This week I hit the 60,000-word mark on Reign of Daggers (Dawn of Assassins, Book 4), and the story’s continuing to build momentum as I head toward the final stretch.

I also talk about the end of the Knowledge Fight podcast and my love of conspiracy debunking/deconstruction shows, including Some Dare Call it Conspiracy, Conspirituality, and QAA.

There’s something fascinating about pulling apart modern myths and misinformation.

On the viewing front, I’ve started watching the classic 1980s Poirot series, which I’m really enjoying, and revisited an early 1961 David Attenborough documentary on Madagascar. I love the slow pace and calm tone of those older documentaries.

Outside of writing, I reached 6k running, which feels like another solid milestone.

I’ve also been reading Heir to Atlantis by Chris Fox, an archaeological thriller drawing inspiration from pseudo-history, which has been a fun read so far.