Publishing gremlins. They’re vile little creatures that sneak up on unsuspecting authors while we sleep. They nibble and gnaw at our confidence with jagged sharp teeth. They laugh at us as they derail release dates with dastardly intent but complete stealth. These gremlins have no names except the curses we utter as we bang our heads against stone walls covered with briars…

Bloodied, bruised and freshly briared, I hang my head low in defeat today. The gremlins have bested me and Shafts of Torchlight today. Due to their machinations and ill-wills, the third book in the Hellesgate series will not be released until January 3.

Damn their slippery little hides!

Instead of shaking my white-knuckled fist at the tiny beasts any longer, however, I will end this apology with true regret for the delay, with gratitude for you hanging in there with me and with a vow that I will keep blogging until the publishing gremlins let my baby go!

January 3, 2012.

It’s got a nice ring to it… and I’m sure that Dudley my tattoo artist can rework the 12/27 on my hip bone into a 1/3 with a minimal amount of scarring.

*smirks*

Thankfully the foul little gremlins haven’t foiled me completely. I still have chapter previews in my back pocket. I still have mental anguish to share like bon-bon’s. I still have quirky humor to see us all through the long, hard week… which, of course, means nothing if I don’t have you on my six. I hope you hang in there with me. My six would miss you if you were gone.

So if there’s anyone still out there except the proverbial crickets, here is your next chapter preview…

 Chapter Eight: Letting the Bastards Do Their Deed

“Praying for midnight was the only way Cane was managing not praying for dawn. If he could get over the hump of one day to the next maybe the darkness of Eastern Colorado masking as Iraq wouldn’t seem so suffocating.” (page 100)

So the blogging will continue. And come hell or high water, Shafts of Torchlight will be freed from the gremlins. *winks*

Until tomorrow…

Chloe Stowe