September 2026: It’s celebration time!

On August 14th, David sent Angie a simple, short text:

Done

Yup, that's it! After 4 looong years of writing, we've completed the first draft of Wolfe's Blood.

Let's tell you about it.

What a great summer! Angie celebrated every moment because there's no better way to be than living in the moment. She went to Greece (as per usual) and enjoyed the amazingness of the Mediterranean heat.

Meanwhile, David stayed back in Canada, travelling to Banff and working diligently on the back end of Wolfe's Blood.

It wasn't all smooth sailing. On the long ride out to the mountains, David was still working out how to wrap up the story, texting Angie along the way. Even the killer's motivation and how some characters' stories would end were still being redrafted until the last moment.

Then, when we were both happy, he'd craft the scenes on his phone whenever he could: a restaurant, a lobby, a picnic table at the campsite.

Done...

Every ending is an accomplishment, and Angie's especially proud of this one—keeping the storyline, characters, and timeline consistent across five books, especially with everything else life threw at us along the way.

David's not so sure we pulled that off quite as cleanly. He knows of at least a few plot holes or hiccups. No one's ever commented on them, but if those slipped through, he imagines a few others must have too.

But the first draft is done, and that's worth celebrating.

...of course, not really

But the work isn't over—it's just changed shape. Now comes rereading pages we haven't touched in four years with fresh eyes, catching what needs catching, tying loose ends together, and finally making the changes we've wanted to make in the back half. It's about pulling four years of voice and tone into one book that reads like it was written in one sitting.

The good news: we've got time. Our editor's schedule doesn't open up until the new year, which gives us a few months to get our own pass done before hers even starts.

We know we said that we hoped to have this one in your hands by Christmas. Now we're looking at Spring 2027 instead. But that extra time means we get to give Tony and Charlie as good a send-off as we can.

Transition time

Angie isn't quite ready to let summer go—she wrote her draft of this newsletter from a campfire, and refuses to admit that fall (and the classroom) is close behind. Can you blame her?

David's not any more ready for summer to end than Angie is—but after a demanding year of change and holding the book back, he's eager to dig into the edit.

But summer ends, and drafts get edited and become books. Spring 2027 might feel far off from here, but we'll get there—and when we do, holding Wolfe's Blood in our hands will be a celebration worth waiting for.

Thank you for everything,
Angie and David