Tryfling Matters, Final Book in the There Goes the Galaxy Trilogy Goes LIVE!

Great news, folks! I'm so excited to formally announce that Tryfling Matters, the final installment of the There Goes the Galaxy book trilogy, is now available in paperback and ebook form through Amazon! If you enjoyed the humorous sci-fi of There Goes the Galaxy (book 1) and The Purloined Number (book 2), you won't want to miss this fun conclusion. I had a great time writing it and I think you might enjoy it a lot. The book summary is as follows:

They say you can't go home again, but some people never listen.

Earth— known to the rest of the universe as Tryfe.

No matter what you call it, the little blue planet’s had its share of hard knocks. It’s been bought and sold to alien developers. It’s been held for ransom. Now the universe’s most famous Tryflings—Bertram Ludlow and Rozz Mercer—have returned to clean up the mess.

And what a mess it is. Family is acting strange. An alien corporation is running the place. And corporate outreach has an unusually hungry vibe.

Of course, even alien overlords need quality staff, so Bertram and Rozz boldly dive into the belly of the beast. As corporate spies, they must navigate a dangerous trail of conspiracy theorists, assassins, energy beverages and boy bands—all while battling the darkest force of all: day jobs.

Can the Tryfling defenders save Life As We Know It, or have Bertram and Rozz bitten off more than they can chew?

• Paperback version: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0983804567

• Kindle version: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019CZV8X6

Draft one of Tryfling Matters, Done and Dusted!

Well, as of last evening, draft one of Tryfling Matters (There Goes the Galaxy book three) is done. 

To quote Captain Amazing from the movie Mystery Men: "Is it perfect? No. And that's what I like about it!" 

I admit to shedding a few joyful tears as I figured out my last scene and my last few words. A lot has happened since poor psychology grad student Bertram Ludlow was abducted by aliens from his basement apartment. A lot has happened for me, too, while putting these books out there. 

I would like to take the opportunity to once again thank everybody for being so supportive. The words of encouragement, the book in-jokes, the honest reviews and the word-of-mouth have all helped inspire me to continue rolling forward.

There's lots of work still ahead of me, of course, and I have a list of items I still want to integrate that's as long as my character Rollie's intergalactic rap sheet. But right now the draft is something tangible I can hold and reread-- and most of all, it's something to work from. I feel like it's on the right track.

So, today, I leave you with that stellar news and a little excerpt I'd had fun with in the first draft: 

Rolliam Tsmorlood had a limited experience with those newly-born to the planet Tryfe. But he was pretty sure Tryflings of the infant persuasion were more into Toe Discovery and Disproportionate Head Management than they were completely unnecessary combat rolls and ducking behind park benches.  

It was this last movement in the crowd that caught his eye. 

By the way, the image at the top of the page was something I doodled when I was struggling a little writing a chapter. It's my character Rollie in his personal library and print museum on the planet Ejellan. As a friend pointed out, his tastes in books are pretty diverse-- basically whatever he can get his hands on-- though he does tend to enjoy various philosophies and cultural texts.

Take care, good people of Tryfe!

It's No Fun Being An Illegal Alien: Tryfling Mattters Book Excerpt

I'm still working on Tryfling Matters (There Goes the Galaxy Book 3) and have reached 42,000 words, so it's been some good progress. I thought you all might enjoy a quick snippet of what I've been working on. (No plot spoilers, so don't worry!)

In a recent scene set on Earth (Tryfe), my character Bertram uses the excuse that Rollie, who is from the planet Hyphiz Delta, is from Holland. Rollie's still trying to get his arms around the idea:

“I’m from Holland,” Rollie grumbled as they walked from the bus stop on their way to the ship. He’d been unusually quiet the whole bus trip back to Shadyside. “I’m… Hollandaise… now.”

Bertram stifled a laugh. "Wherever you heard that word? Just: no."

“Well, I wouldn't know, would I? It's why I've always kept things vague with Tryfe people.”

"Dutch," said Bertram. "You'd be Dutch."

"Dutch?! How the frag do you get that from--"

Rozz patted his shoulder. “Chill out, Rollie. That’s why it’s perfect. This is the U.S. Not knowing anything about the rest of the world is a total badge of honor. You’ll be golden.”

Rollie seemed unsure. “Maybe I can find some books on it.”

“Look,” said Bertram, “tulips, windmills, wooden shoes, water, legalized drugs and prostitution. That’s all the average person here knows. It’s a non-issue.”

“So like Vos Laegos with impractical footwear and wind power?” Rollie smiled. “I should visit sometime; research.”

Why Heroes Rarely Save the World Using Mass Transit

For your Friday enjoyment, I thought I'd share a little excerpt from my Tryfling Matters that I'd been working on:

Bertram arrived at the school a half hour early.  

This, he thought as he stepped off the bus, is why movie heroes don’t choose mass transit.  

Based on the schedule, he could have arrived now or an hour from now. Being late for a mission was inexcusable; being early ruined the vibe. 

He noticed the weight of his overcoat and patted the right pocket, making sure his handlaser was still turned off. If there were anything he’d learned from Rollie, it was that timing and outward control were everything. And burning a hole through your only suit jacket was a sure-fire way to throw off both.  

Hope you all have a stellar weekend! I will be spending it writing. (A real surprise, I'm sure. :) ) --Jenn

Ninety-Nine Cent E-book Sale and a Little Excerpt from Tryfling Matters (TGTG3)

Greetings and salutations, fine peoples! 

Just wanted to let folks know, I've put The Purloined Number (TGTG2) on sale for $0.99. If you haven't picked it up and you like humorous scifi, you might just want to check it out. 

It's set up so you don't have to have read the first There Goes the Galaxy book to read this one, even though it is the second in the trilogy. The first book is also currently at $0.99, so it's a pretty wallet-frugal investment right now for some cosmic fun. You can access book two here:

http://www.amazon.com/Purloined-Number-There-Goes-Galaxy-ebook/dp/B00FLYGDWE/

And in other news, I've been hard at work on writing the third and final book in the TGTG story arc, Tryfling Matters. So I thought I'd start sharing some snippets here. Today we see Rozz's new day job is not without its mysteries.

Rozz knew nerds—hell, by all reasonable assessments, she was one. But these days, most people in the Nerd-American community had expectations for a certain level of comfort and amenities commensurate with their job skills. And very few of them would have been all, "Oh, well. Whatever" about working conditions where Cthulhu could have rocked the nine-to-five one cube over.

Lots going on in this book. I think you folks are going to enjoy it.

Stay warm and don't get eaten by polar bears! --Jenn

Beautiful Bounce from BoingBoing, Pirate Pugs and Progress

Greetings folks! Happy 2015! I hope the new year is treating you well so far. I have finally gotten over a case of the plague, and after 17 Penny Dreadful-level days of coughing and dreck have passed, the upside of being a living, breathing, non-sicky person has finally kicked in.

It hasn't hurt that Friday, a social media friend let me know that There Goes the Galaxy had been reviewed (and positively!) by BoingBoing. I do believe it's my first review by an online entity that actually has its own Wikipedia page! Anyway, you can check out the cosmic review here:

http://boingboing.net/2015/01/09/there-goes-the-galaxy-by-jenn.html

Otherwise, I have polished off the draft of chapter 16 of the third and final book in the TGTG trilogy, Tryfling Matters. I'm aiming to have the first draft done by spring. And I've had some fun doodling some pugs and other furry creatures doing things pugs and other furry creatures tend not to do. Like piracy and picnics.

It started because one of my Facebook friends, who loves bright colors and pugs, was feeling a bit down and I wanted to cheer her, if briefly. I came up with Captain Pugnatius Pugwash of the pirate ship Pugquatica... Y'know, as one does.

Then I had this need to see what the rest of his crew might look like. Thus, the mateys below.

The little doodle below is actually based on my two cats, Harry and Alice. I didn't like how the sky turned out, so I cut it out and replaced it with a French toile type scrapbook paper. Their costumes are loosely based on the famous paintings of Pinkie and Blue Boy.

Anyway, that's what's going on here in my part of the Greater Communicating Universe. I hope you all are doing well and that the various Victorian-era plagues going around have missed you and your families.

--Jenn