I’m taking a quick lunch break from working on the FINAL story for The Doll Collection–“Trystan”. This is one that has been inspired by one of the Morris Museum’s (Guinness Collection) automatons that I discovered in their viewable storage department a week ago today. I’m still waiting on pictures to work from, but in the meantime, the story is moving right along. If I do not finish it by the end of the day, then tomorrow for sure. “Mephistophelissa” was finished a few days ago!

In regards to the length of this volume of The Doll Collection–Yes, you read that right: THIS VOLUME!–there are 13 stories, but as I need to move on to getting Darling Orphan finished before the end of June, I feel I need to cap this volume with the completion of “Trystan”. Otherwise, and as I already have 2 more stories of this nature in the queue, The Doll Collection could easily just go on forever. It’s terribly exciting to have more ideas for it coming in such rapid succession, but I have some clearing of the docket to do. Besides, I think another volume will be nice to have. These stories have been hard-hitting emotionally, and I need to be sensitive to the fact that they may be so for the readers as well. I do want people to actually finish reading these stories, so smaller doses may be easier to take.

One last point about this project before I grab food and get back to writing: I’ve commissioned out the first 3 illustrations of the 13 it will have. Felix Eddy (who did the beautiful cover art for Lord Spencer: The Case of Matthew Sterling) is picking up at least these three. It is my hope that she will want to do all 13, as I adore her art and it’s such an honor to be working with her again! My excitement to see what she does for these is almost too much to bear!

At the moment, and now that the completion of the first draft is coming to a close, I’m projecting an October release for the book. Stay tuned!