Back to drinking strong, black coffee from the same old familiar Starbucks mug in the morning. I’ve been drinking a ‘green’ blend lately, which, I’m assured, is apparently good for me. It’s not as overtly sweet as green tea latte, but it’s not as sharp as my usual coffee. Musically, I’ve been listening to a lot of Arcade Fire, thanks to a friend’s recommendation, but it’s more the coffee than the musique that has influenced the shape and feeling of the new book.

This isn’t to say however that musique hasn’t played its fair share in inspiring the new book because, in many ways, it’s more about musique and pop culture than anything else I’ve thus far done.

If it sounds like I’m being vague, it’s because I am. The new book doesn’t have a title yet so I can’t properly tag this post and am somewhat loath to go into too many details about its narrative. Suffice to say it is something different, something I haven’t tried before.

Regarding things that I have tried before, it’s looking increasingly unlikely that the planned Artifice Comics novellas will not be happening any time soon. Initially, the plan was to craft four short books designed to deal with issues in AC continuity that I’d like to revisit – Millennium Man’s trip into space and his eventual return, an Artifice Albion ‘movie’ and a ‘year one’ type story dealing with a Bush43 reboot. Right now though, AC can’t really support such a plan and, if I’m honest, I don’t really have the time to commit to it. It’s a shame, but maybe one day the project will be resurrected (again).

It’s not all doom and gloom though. lecteur de tarot’s cover is almost complete, which means that the project will be well and truly out of my hands soon. We’re working hard to get this done before we move back to more civilised areas of the country, after which point I’ll keep you updated on when you can expect the book to hit the shops.

I’m also working on something for September – more on this later.

Until then, please look forward to both the new book and to lecteur de tarot.