Over the past few years I've engaged in a practice of letting my patrons on Patreon decide what story I should update following the Brightly Lit update in the month, and I've noticed a bit of a pattern. Mainly that anytime "How Twilight Learned" comes up in the voting it easily wins. So recently I asked my patrons if they would like me to just concentrate on Brightly Lit and HTL until one of them was done.

And they said, "Yes"

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It's been 10 days since my brother died and 6 since we laid him to rest at the foot of a willow tree near a shady stream. I find myself both functional and numb. I can act, react, and do things, but anything beyond the basics is like trying to push fog with your hands. Something happens but not much. I find myself staring at a computer screen and feeling... nothing.

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One of my older brothers died last night. His health hadn't been the greatest, but he wasn't super fragile either. His death is a complete shock to everyone.

Writing anything is obviously on hold for now, but I wanted you all to know why.

I am functional, I'm dealing with things as best I can. The emotional part hasn't really sunk in yet. I do have supports. All I'm really asking for is understanding about delays in stories and perhaps some sympathy.

Thanks for being here.

I'll keep this short because my energy is low.

I have Covid, again.

This time, the symptoms are much worse and include some of the rarer ones.

I'm going to live, but I have to get through this first before I can do other htings. See you all on the flip side. Hopefully in a few days.

So, as you may have noticed, Twilight Learned is late. That's because I answered a call for help that ate up the last days of the month I had set aside for writing time. It was an epic journey across a 30 mile wide stretch of water, an international border, six discreet biomes, and three major geologic features of the continent, while going past landslides, deer, and a trio of kamikaze raccoons. I will now use the words of my editor to describe why and what happened, with her permission, of

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One of the ways to describe music is as sonic emotion. The emotions of joy, anger, fear, sadness and so forth, expressed as musical notes in chords and harmony. Various genres of music are often associated with various emotions. Country and Western is often associated with determination and melancholy. Classical music is associated with elegant manners. Rap with outrage and defiance, and so forth and so on.

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Apologies for the lack of updates lately in the reading corner series - with my full time new job and my health I haven't had the time nor the energy. so today's work is hijacked written with love by my long suffering much adored editor.

Hidden gem.

The phrase conjures up all kinds of things, doesn't it? Does it make you think of a story in particular? Link it down below as your recommendation!

Write on,
Coyote

Lost on a desert island.

The idea brings up images of coconuts, palm fronds, and for some of us older folks; Gilligan's Island. In story and myth being stranded on a tropical desert island is usually written of as idyllic isolation, but the harsh reality is that it is anything but.

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Potatoes and Space Travel. Two things that very few people would associate with each other. At least that is until a few years ago when published an interesting book about a marooned astronaut that wound up becoming a best seller and later, a highly popular film.

I speak, of course, about The Martian starring Matt Damon with the story written by Andy Weir.

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Bolo

For many of you that word means an odd South American weapon, or a type of western tie. But to some of us who are in the know, that word brings to mind a weapon. A weapon not just of power and might, but of duty and honor, pledged to be humanity's ultimate knights among the stars.

I speak of the members of The Dinochrome Brigage, the Bolo AI super tanks.

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