Good morning!
I have just five stories to share with you today, but more stories will post over the weekend, So be sure to check back on The Herald-News site: shawlocal.com/the-herald-news.
Why so light on stories this week? A couple of reasons.
One, I do have four days off (including the weekend) for birthday festivities, so I had to cover those deadlines. And I spent twelve hours in the emergency room on Monday night into Tuesday afternoon for an exploding headache that came out of nowhere.
Initial tests showed nothing wrong, although I do have a mild, somewhat persistent headache. So I will let my providers (and not anxiety) guide the next steps.
Currently, I am also writing two more stories just for print. One is called "Eye on Enterprise" and it runs on Wednesdays. The other is a print version of "5 Things to do," which is slightly different from the online version.
"Eye on Enterprise" is a roundup of local business development, as wells as businesses that are opening or closing.
People outside our coverage area and those who don't subscribe to a physical newspaper should know The Herald-News also has an e-edition. This is an online version of the print publication with virtual pages that actually turn.
You can access The Herald-News e-edition here: shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/enewspaper.
In the BryonySeries world:
BryonySeries was one of the sponsors for Bicentennial Park's Independence Celebration on July 3 and we had a fantastic night! I will recap the details for next week (for sure). Wound up in the ER for twelve hours on Monday night into Tuesday afternoon. So needless to say, I'm a little behindQ
But the short summary is that we gave away sixty-five BryonySeries books, ran four games, and sold twenty-two WriteOn Joliet anthologies. We are definitely looking forward to next year.
We also have a special BryonySeries Summer Book Sale at The Book Market. So if you live in the area, do check it out.
Finally, here is an update on my BryonySeries book projects:
House on Top of the Hill: Third book in the BryonySeries Limbo trilogy. I now have a good working draft of the entire book, with nearly two-thirds that are ready for final edits. I've done some minor editing since the at-home writing retreat, but June was a super packed month, which I anticipated. July (so far) has also been packed, but I did get a little editing done yesterday. We are estimating a late 2024 release date for this book.
The Adventures of Cornell Dyer: No updates here in a very long time, mostly because Timothy and Daniel are super busy with school on top of work (and plenty of work-related traveling). However, I outlined a "bonus" book that is intended for distribution at Bicentennial's "Ye Olde Mayfest" event in 2025. Here is a recap of the 2024 event.
Timothy said his concept for the next book in the actual series will be slightly dark ("slightly" because it's for kids, too) and will involve an old toy store. We are also working on the last book in the series (but it's not the final book, if that makes sense). Timothy is actually writing that one. In order to make progress on any of this, Timothy is hoping to schedule a "Cornell breakfast." But Timothy and Daniel are very busy with work and school right now. We've scheduled and broke several Cornell breakfasts in 2023 and 2024. Our last one was July 2022. So we are LONG, LONG, LONG overdue.
Brainy Ann: The fifth book in The Girls of the BryonySeries is outlined and the first chapter is written, hurray! Jennifer Wainwright, who welcomed her first child into the world in April, has already started working on the cover portrait. I've neglected this book for a few months and hope to revisit it soon. We'd like to release it in late 2024.
Jennifer designed the cover portraits for "Julie and the Too-Hard Homework," "Katie and the Big Fear," "Summer Sisters." and "Karla Joins In," as well as the frontispiece for Lycanthropic Summer.
Rebekah is also slowly (very, very slowly) updating the BryonySeries YouTube and Pinterest accounts. And she' catching up with Kindles for some of the BryonySeries books. So do watch for those.
And finally...
Ed Calkins, Steward of Tara, has sent me twenty-one chapters to edit for his third book in his Ruthless trilogy. His first book is "Ruthless," his second is "The Fifth," and he is also the author of "Denise Unland's Irish Genealogy."
Now back to The Herald-News stories stories. Simply click on the link of the story that looks interesting to you. Happy scrolling!
But before the stories, I have a list of additional resources and information. Please check them out, too.
Finally, if you'd like to find more kindness in your life, consider this book.
And have a great Friday!
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Sue's Diner is a fictional restaurant in the fictional Munsonville that only exists in the BryonySeries.
Each Wednesday, we post a new recipe. The recipe is either featured in one of our cookbooks, will be featured in an upcoming cookbook, or is just an "extra" we want to share with you.
Check out the recipe here.
WRITERS
If you'd like to officially join WriteOn Joliet, we have two tiers of dues and two ways to attend meetings. We also have a marketing arm that's getting longer every year. Check us out at writeonjoliet.com.
Daily updates: I haven't posted anything on Twitter/X (except a daily Bible verse) since September I can no longer schedule posts in advance. I'm not sure yet how to manage the account without that option. But you're welcome to follow me at @Denise_Unland61.
BryonySeries stuff: I used to curated content relating to the BryonySeries on Twitter/X at @BryonySeries and still post assorted related content at facebook.com/BryonySeries, youtube.com/user/BryonySeries, and themes of each book in the BryonySeries at pinterest.com/bryonyseries.
Again, not sure yet about the direction of the BryonySeries Twitter/X account. Still mulling that over.
And of course, please follow the adventures of Bertrand the Mouse on Instagram at bertrand_bryonyseries.
BRYONYSERIES BOOKS
For books and more information about the series, visit bryonyseries.com.
BRYONYSERIES EVENTS
A full month of virtual events can be found at bryonyseries.com/calendar-of-events.
QUESTIONS
Email me at bryonyseries@gmail.com.Thank you for reading The Herald-News. And for reading this blog. And if you've read (or plan to read) any of my books. Your support is greatly appreciated.
FEATURES
Joliet church to host Greek food festival Saturday and
Sunday
The festival is All Saints Greek Orthodox Church’s main
fundraiser
Lincoln-Way Area Business Women’s Organization awards 26
scholarships
Shorewood reconstruction, water main replacement project
begins in mid-July
Will County Pets of the Week: July 8, 2024
Will County rescues have dogs and cats for adoption
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2024/07/08/will-county-pets-of-the-week-july-8-2024/
5 Things to Do in Will County: Live music at Joliet record
store
Illustration by Matt Coundiff for "Visage"
