Good morning and happy 4th of July. I’m not sure what plans many of you have to celebrate today. As for me, I plan on enjoying a day off and at home. The fourth has never been one of my favorite holidays as I am not a huge fan of fireworks. The only plus side for me is that it is a summer holiday.
Well, as the title of this post suggests, Dryad’s Treasure, the second installment in the Magical Usage Council Misadventures series is now available in e-book format. I’m waiting for the paperback proofs to arrive (should be today) and if all looks well there, then that should be available within the next few days as well.
I hope you enjoy the second installment in the series. I enjoyed writing Grayson’s character and exploring the concept of the meaning of treasure. Hikaru and Warlock Holland make several appearances in Dryad’s Treasure and we meet some new friends as well. I have to say, one of my favorite secondary characters pops up in this book. Henry was an absolute joy to write.
I am currently working on the third installment in the series which will either be called, Gryphon’s Fire or Gryphon’s Inferno. I’m still waffling. I like each title for different reasons. I’m only about 35,000 words into it so it will be a few months yet (most likely late fall to early winter). There will be a total of 4 books in this series.
Originally, I planned on trying to dedicate most of my writing time to a different project, but I need to do a bit more research on that one so it is on hold. Therefore, the third book is currently getting more attention.
Summer finally seems to be in full swing . . . ahhh . . . the heat is on and the humidity is up, but I’d soooooo much rather this than winter. I’m going to post a picture of my garden below as it is looking nice and relaxing. Along with the summer heat comes summer storms. We had a pop up one at work last evening that brought hail as well. Thankfully I don’t see much damage to my car.
Veterinary work is going okay. Some days we are busier than others. I believe most clinics have gone back to what we term, “pre-COVID” levels. This means we aren’t typically as busy. It is a very unpredictable profession. That doesn’t always go well with my type A personality but I guess I’ve been making it work for a couple of decades now.
Newton and Fen are doing okay-ish. Fen’s been limping badly on a front leg and I recently discovered that Newton’s heart isn’t as healthy as I’d like. Both issues worry me. They are stable and I’ve started Fen on a new medication that seems to be helping his leg. I “jokingly” say that I can’t retire from vet med because my pets’ medications are too expensive to allow me to quit. Unfortunately, that hits a little closer to home than I’d like.
Back to the writing front, I’ve had some inquiries regarding if Warlock’s Menace will be coming out on audio and if so, when. The short answer is I’m not certain and if it does, then not for a while. I’ve reached out to Podium to see if they would like this series as well and am waiting for a response. I will let everyone know when I have a better idea. If they don’t want to take on the project, I’ll look into other avenues.
My trip to southeastern Georgia went well this past spring and I’m planning another trip to another part of Georgia for late summer/early fall. I’m still on the hunt for where I’d like to move when I do finally hang up my full time veterinary hat. Chances are, the move won’t happen for a few more years but as I always say, plans are great, but they are subject to change at any moment in time 🙂
I will leave you with some pictures of a very festive looking FenFen along with a picture of my garden and a deer that I came upon while walking through a local wooded park recently. As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I really, really, really tried to check for typos and mistakes with Dryad’s Treasure but I’m certain some things still managed to wiggle their way through. Apologies ahead of time.
Please take care and try and stay cool if you’re somewhere hot and toasty. As an aside and possible PSA–please be mindful of setting off fireworks. While it’s great to celebrate and enjoy the holiday, remember that the sound is very disturbing to not only our four-legged kiddos, but members of the military suffering from PTSD.
Happy cookouts everyone!
MJ May
veterinarian and fiction writer 