This is a short newsletter to update you on a fun project I was honored to contribute to; THE WRITER’S BLOCK, An Anthology of Horror. Here we have a collection of short stories written by twelve authors. Some of them are very accomplished full-time traditionally published authors, others are indie authors, and some are both. Some had or still have interesting careers in the music industry, finance, law enforcement, intelligence, the military, and more. For most of them, no matter what their paying gig is or was, they call themselves first and foremost, writers.
The introduction is by Dacre Stoker, himself a horror author, and if the name sounds familiar, yeah, he’s from the family of that Stoker. Bram. Of Dracula fame. He wrote Dracula the Un-Dead, the officially endorsed Stoker family sequel to Dracula.
I’ve read all these stories and I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did. A very cool aspect of this anthology is that while these are all stand alone stories, there is a theme that runs through them, with a reveal at the end I trust you’ll catch. I can’t say more because it would be a spoiler.
In my contribution, Southeast Heat, you will meet Ted Sage, a Washington, D.C. homicide detective his informants call ‘The Black Kojak.’ He’s got 271 homicide investigations in the rearview mirror and he’s trying to get to a retirement on the Otter Banks when number 272 comes calling. Another young female sex worker has washed up on the banks of the Anacostia River, and it looks like a pattern.
Sage is not everybody’s cup of tea, especially the brass and the mayor who are tired of picking up all the broken glass he leaves in his wake. But it’s hard to argue with his results. He’ll need everything he’s got to catch up with the sicko killer and solve these murders. And maybe prevent another one.
I enjoyed creating this Ted Sage short story which fits both the crime and horror genre so much that I’m working on more Sage stories to put into a collection. More on that as it comes together. You can pick up your eBook, paperback, or hardcopy of THE WRITER’S BLOCK here.
What I’m Working On:
Holy smokes, more than I can keep up with. My next thriller, GRAY GHOST, An Air America - CIA Thriller drops on September 1st. If you are a Beta reader, look for your copy in the next few weeks. You can pre-order the book it here.
I’m also working on a fictionalized novel of a major case I worked on for years in the FBI. You’ll know it when you see it. A very famous and somewhat topical story. I can’t disclose what it is yet for reasons that will become apparent when I do. I played a minor part in the overall investigation, but it was definitely a career highlight. This will have to go through FBI pre-publication review, so there’s that as well. More to come when I can say.
Many of you have seen the nine articles on the January 5th pipe bomb case I’ve written here on Substack. If you follow me on X (Twitter) you know I post frequently about ongoing developments, of which there are many. I have decided to write my first non-fiction book on this case which will take some time, especially if the criminal and civil cases currently underway go to trial. I have a lot of work to do pulling together primary documents, court transcripts, and timelines. I’ll keep you posted.
Later,
F.X.
Congratulations on your inclusion in this anthology!