t’s the end of 2024 and, as tends to happen at the end of every year, I’m left reflecting on and considering the future and the question of “What comes next?”

Despite a rather rough November in many regards, this year has managed to be a modestly good year for me personally. Principle among the things I have been thankful for is the support I’ve gotten from friends and family for The Wilderlands as well as the long lasting help of the people who helped make it.

Now that the book is out, I have a little bit more time to talk about what goes into self-publishing.

Here, I want to jump a little bit into the specific financial costs.

Today is Oct. 29 and you can, at long last, check out my newest book, a lyrically written grimdark fantasy novel titled The Wilderlands!

The Wilderlands, isn’t my first book, but it’s the first book I’m trying to go all-out with from the jump. I’m putting the ebook up at the same time as I’m launching a print version with an audiobook planned to come quickly on the heels of the physical/ebook release date of Oct. 29, 2024.

I’m writing this shortly after it was announced that Game Informer magazine will cease publication.

As much as I love physical media, the nature of my day job working in (largely) print news has complicated my relationship with short form, article-based issues of news papers in magazines.

I think I first ran into Philip Labes through is song “Jeff Found a Genie” and from there I’ve kept following him and pretty consistently loved his output.

How do you convince someone that they want to buy something they’ve lived their lives perfectly happy without? How do you convince them to buy it when the item is question will take 5-7 hours for them to absorb?

Epic is a musical retelling of The Odyssey conceived of by Jorge Rivera-Herrans, he’s been assembling these songs over the past few years and gaining traction online by posting clips on TikTok and Youtube.

A book, a movie, a video game, and a show — if you like one of these, there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy The Wilderlands.

The first chapter of my next book, ‘The Wilderlands’ releasing later in 2024.

I’m really excited about this one.

My latest book — an adult fantasy novel called The Wilderlands — I think is the first piece of writing I’ve published where I really get to flex.

Four of the pieces of media that most influenced my next book, releasing later this year.

As I prep for diving into the second book in the Light Keeper Chronicles series this November, I’m sharing three different versions of what the book has looked like over the years.

On the evening of Sept. 23, I was honored to be invited to Des Moines’ Storyhouse Bookpub for an event called The Event of Delights to present a work inspired by the essays of Ross Gay.

When I decided to self-publish my book I ended up going about it in what may have been the strangest way possible: an espresso machine.

One year after the release of “The Light Keeper Chronicles” R.E. reflects on the year so far and breaks down the cost of how the indie book has done financially.

By the time you’re reading this, Willow may be gone, but before I can morn the 2022 sequel to the oft-forgotten 1988 film, I need to talk about the single most valuable media franchise in the world.

We’ve all been young and foolish and published a young adult/middle-grade fantasy novel in high school.

Maybe not literally. But in my case, yeah, literally.

What are my goals in 2023? To live deliberately (rather than on accident, which is how this whole mess got started).