Final Finalities and the ETL Project

The end of Q1 2026 is almost here, meaning I will release my enemies-to-lovers romance novel, Crown of the Orphic Queen—based on the Orphic Hymns version of Persephone—this month.

My philosophy has shifted away from posting works in progress, because I don’t like people seeing my first drafts (sometimes second or third) of things anymore. But this is the last time I post a sample before releasing the full novel. This novel will be available as an eBook, paperback, and hardcover, and it is the first book where I will do an audiobook version (tentatively, not set yet) later down the road.

This novel is a fun take on a classic myth, set in modern times against the Orphic traditions versus typical versions of the story.

The previews I previously posted have been substantially altered, so the story took a bit of a different turn and I expanded the descriptions and settings because I felt there wasn’t enough recognition when I read it.

I want the reader to feel as though they are at Elysia Academia right there with the characters.

The ages have gone up, due to the sometimes-explicit nature of this story.

This novel has had an extensive rewrite, because I want the sensory details and metaphors to pop.

I think of this as the HDR version of my SDR romance story (media nerds and video creators know what I mean).

I’m a sucker for femme fatale characters, so there is a bit of play from both sides of the relationship dynamic here.

Hadrian Hiltfire has been rewritten to be sassy, yet mysterious, and brooding against Seph Flammeguarde.

They hate each other to the point of it being charming, but not overly cliché.

This type of story follows certain beats, though it is underneath the veneer of a kishotenketsu story structure, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t conflict.

One way I separate my writing from other authors is to use this story structure versus the three-act type most are familiar with in the West.

It can be difficult to do, but I think the best way to make things work is to make them work. I’m not saying 2+2=5 here, but you bet your behind I made it add up to 4.

Seeing as this is my first romance story (though the Orchestrylus Odyssey will have this in the upcoming novel in an inkling of first love) I want to make sure I do this right.

I had originally intended to release this last month during Valentine’s Day week, but the symbolic nature of that is too far into cliché territory and I want this story to soar aloft on elegant wings of prose, without the wings being purple.

My writing philosophy is now about releasing books when they are truly ready—not a particular date.

Some of the people I follow also have this thought process, and many prominent authors forgo a release date altogether, since books will always be there.

I’m also working on freelance projects and even freelance short fiction—so my hands are tied while juggling. How does that work?!

Best way to describe it.

Anyway, here is a more-or-less-final incarnation of the novel’s opening salvo.