Step into the world of urban fantasy as we welcome award-winning author Shami Stovall!
Shami’s novel Time-Marked Warlock—a thrilling blend of mystery, magic, and time-bending adventure—took home the 2024 Chanticleer Shelley Grand Prize for its imaginative storytelling and unforgettable characters. In this insightful conversation, she shares her journey from tabletop games to award-winning author, her creative process, and the inspirations behind her storytelling. Get ready to discover how life, gaming, and magic collide on the page.
From AI-assisted editing tools to shifting reader expectations and new paths to discovery, the publishing industry is entering a bold new chapter. These ten trends reveal where the market is headed—and what today’s authors and publishers need to know to stay competitive in 2026 and beyond.
The publishing world is evolving faster than ever, and 2026 promises to be a landmark year of transformation for authors, editors, and readers alike. In this post, we break down the top ten publishing trends to watch, from artificial intelligence reshaping workflows to immersive digital experiences, personalized content, and sustainable practices that are redefining what it means to bring a book to life.
Whether you’re navigating the traditional industry or building your indie author journey, understanding these trends will help you stay ahead of the curve and make strategic decisions in a rapidly changing landscape.
Every writer knows the power of a great chapter ending—it’s the moment that turns casual readers into page-turners. In the Chanticleer article “Breaking Down the End-of-Chapter Hook,” I explore what makes these moments truly compelling and how you can craft chapter endings that keep readers desperate for what comes next.
Rather than relying on gimmicks, the article reveals the underlying mechanics of tension and conflict that fuel reader curiosity and propel your story forward. Whether you’re drafting your first novel or polishing your tenth, this piece offers practical insights to sharpen your craft and transform ordinary chapter breaks into irresistible hooks.
Author Interview with Ruth Amanda, the CIBA Grand Prize Winning Author in the
Little Peeps Division!
Get to know the creative force behind the beautifully illustrated childrens books by author and illustrator Ruth Amanda!
I recently had the opportunity to interview the award-winning author and illustrator Ruth Amanda, whose picture book Island Moon won the 2024 CIBA Grand Prize in the Little Peeps Division for its evocative storytelling and stunning art.
From her early inspirations to her imaginative creative process, Ruth shares insights into how she crafts stories that delight young readers and celebrate the beauty of everyday wonder. Whether you’re a fan of children’s literature, a fellow author, or just curious about her journey, you’ll enjoy this fun and lively conversation with Ruth Amanda.
When writers and illustrators collaborate, ideas gain texture, emotion, and visual rhythm that readers instantly feel. From picture books to graphic essays, these partnerships turn imagination into something you can see as well as read.
I recently wrote about writers working with illustrators in a blog post for work. In it I offer six tips writers can use to create a collaborative, productive working relationship with their illustrator. It encourages writers to focus on good communication, a clear vision of the art that doesn’t stifle creativity, and how building a collaboration that is rooted in trust is your best bet to get a great result for your next book.
Whether you’re a novelist, poet, or content creator, understanding this relationship can elevate your work. Dive deeper into the process, challenges, and rewards by reading the full article here, and start collaborating with confidence.
Istanbul; a city seething with mystery and intrigue. It’s a place where each shadow has a story to tell and every man is a killer or a king.
Istanbul; a city seething with mystery and intrigue. It’s a place where each shadow has a story to tell and every man is a killer or a king.
It’s 1922 and I’m sitting on the roof of my hotel sipping strong Turkish coffee and watching the sun rise over Central Anatolia. Off in the distance the black dome of Hagia Sopiha is stark against the pre dawn sky. As shadow gives way to light, its stucco walls seem to glow red with the passion of worshippers from centuries ago.
The Blue Mosque, with its seven domes and six minarets, is a solemn counterpart to the cathedral across the street. Built on the foundation of the Byzantine Grand Palace, it’s exterior is a balance of geometric shapes that hint to the magical world inside. Light and color reflecting from every corner puts you into a kaleidoscope of circles, triangles, rectangles and squares. Together they form patterns that are repeated a thousand times across the ceiling, walls, columns and floors, and the dizzying effect will leave you spinning like one of Rumi’s dervishes.
The Whirling Dervishes—that puts me in mind of one of the most memorable experiences I’ve had traveling in Turkey. It was a moonless night in Cappadocia when we visited their temple to witness their sacred dance. Its simple ceremony was a mystical, transformative experience that I continue to study with a passionate eye to this day. The consistent whirling brought the energy of the heavens down to earth and for the first time in my life I felt physically connected to something larger and more encompassing than I’d ever known. Was it God? The Universe? I don’t know, but whatever happened in that cone-shaped room was the type of experience that you can only find when you step away from the world you live in and into unfamiliar territory.
The docks at the foot of the Golden Horn are beginning to show signs of life now. The fog has lifted and people are finding their way through the twisted streets of the Old City. A few sailing ships are tied up along the dock and every now and then the sounds of engines from the steamships echo up to my rooftop perch.
Across the strait, the Dolmabahce Palace looks out over the city from it’s stately position on the Asian shore. The balance and scale of the building hint at influences from the West but the sultans’ Asian heritage is on display as well. Pronounced rooflines and fluid, floral aesthetics allude to Eastern cultures. It’s East meets West on the building that once ruled both.
The wind shifted and the scent of the hotel chef’s fire shifted with it. It reminded me of the destructive blaze at the Pasha’s palace last night. It’s grand facade backlit by orange flames and its brittle windows bursting every so often like fragile bubbles. The black plume of smoke escaped like a dying man’s last breath. It was a sight that was becoming more common these days as the last rulers of the Ottoman Empire abandon their homes to wander off in search of new fortunes. It was the sight, sound, and smell of a decomposing empire.
I met Marijke McCandless, author of Naked in the Now: Juicy Practices for Getting Present through my work at Chanticleer Book Reviews. She is a mindfulness coach and is one of the joyful people I’ve met. Her book, Naked in the Now, is about joyfulness and finding our way back to what brings us joy after years of focusing on everything but the things that bring us joy.
McCandless won the Mind & Spirit CIBA award from Chanticleer Book Reviews and you can check out the interview I conducted with her by clicking—
The stories we tell ourselves help us understand ourselves and each other. To take away those stories is to deny the truth of who we are as a society. It’s a damaging philosophy of silencing the voices and denying people the right to speak their truth. But the truth is the truth, whether or not you see it reflected in art—and anyone’s attempt to hide goes against what the forefathers saw as a very necessary piece of a democracy.
Most of us have read a banned or challenged book. Here are a few of the ones I’ve read—
Think back to the books you’ve read that have been banned. What did you experience when you read them? Did reading them make you a worse citizen? None of these did that to me. What I got out of them was entertainment, explanations to social questions, and warnings about what happens when our freedoms are taken away, as in 1984, and what a book ban can lead to, as in Fahrenheit 451.
I do have to wonder why Adolph Hitler’s Mein Kampf is overlooked by the folks who want to ban books in the name of protecting society. It seems to me that one should be at the top of anyone’s list of books that are bad for society. So, who is making up these lists? People who desire to control your thoughts and what information you can receive, that’s who. And, that’s always bad for society.
The Freedom of Expression and the right to read is protected under the very first amendment of the U.S. Constitution. I’ve written about why our forefathers decided it was the most important part of the foundation of “a government by the people and for the people” in an article I wrote for Chanticleer Book Reviews. You can read it by clicking on the button—
Discover your true self with ‘Naked in the Now’. Embrace mindfulness and self-compassion to reconnect with what matters most.
Naked in the Now invites readers to journey inward to find or redefine yourself after a life dedicated to others.
With simple, doable practices you’ll experience a more grounded and feel more alive. Whether you’re short on time, craving more presence, or just curious about how to feel better without overhauling your life, this book will meet you exactly where you are.
Author Marijke McCandless shares practices meant to spark insight and self-compassion, quite the inner critic, encourage connection and joy, and reconnect you with what really matters in your life.
Mary Shelley’s horror story, Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus, is a classic examination of the ‘science vs. religion’ debate. Written during the Industrial Revolution, Doctor Victor Frankenstein is so taken by the technological achievements of the time he forgets the soul of his creation; his Monster, and ultimately loses all he loves as a result.
Scientists conducting electrical experiments at the time certainly provided much of the inspiration for Shelley’s maniacal doctor, but one man is cited as a possible model for the theme of her novel.
Johann Conrad Dippel (August 10, 1673 – April 25, 1734) was born in Castle Frankenstein in south central Germany in the region of Hesse. As was the custom of the day, he acquired Franckensteine or Frankensteina- Strataemontanus as a surname and became forever linked to the place of his birth. He received a Master in Theology in 1693 at the University of Giessen where he also studied philosophy and alchemy and gained a prominent position among Europe’s intellectual elite.
Influenced by the Age of Reason while remaining a fervently religious man, Dippel authored several controversal theological papers under his nom de guerre; Christianus Democritus, a name that represented the duality of his views. In his writing he called for the demise of the traditional church organization and a rejection of the Bible as the literal word of God in favor of a more personal approach to faith. They were widely circulated throughout Europe and earned him both praise and criticism. One enthusiastic follower, Emanuel Swedenborg, later criticized him as a cultish opportunist who was “bound to no principles, but was in general opposed to all, whoever they may be, of whatever principle or faith…becoming angry with anyone for contradicting him.” Swedenborg also accused Dippel of being the ‘most vile devil…who attempted wicked things.’ This opinion was surely based upon his suspected experiments in alchemy. In his Maladies and Remedies of the Life of the Flesh, Dippel announced his discovery of the ‘Elixir of Life’, as well as, a method to exorcise demons through potions produced from the boiled bones and flesh of animals. Even more alarming to the public were rumors of his attempts at ‘soul-tranference’ on human cadavers, where he was viewed as playing God on desecrated corpses.
In the end, it was reported by his contemporaries that after having been thoroughly trashed by the religious leaders of the day Dippel gave up his faith altogether, directing all his energy to his experiments in alchemy. He never backed down from his arguments or the experiments that he felt supported them and may have even actively encouraged rumors that he was in league with the Devil, having sold his soul to become a dark sorcerer.
So, in the end, Mary Shelley may have used this real-life ‘mad scientist’ as inspiration, but the moral lesson she provided her Doctor Frankenstein was lost on Johann Conrad Dippel.
