The Fictional Newsletter 1/12/2025
Sometimes, I wonder if I do too much, and then I decide that I don’t care. You see writers on social media talking about having multiple WIPs, and I always nod because I totally get that. Multiple WIPs, multiple social media sites, multiple Substacks and websites even. It’s taken me some time to get all the chaos sorted, but I think I have it all pretty much worked out. The question is how I get to all of it. And I should add another question: how do I let anyone interested know how to navigate it all.
And so, the newsletter is here. I’m going to try and knock this out weekly. Updates are important for readers, but this will keep me organized, too. So, here we go.
Dorothy: Locked & Loaded is back!
In May 2010, five writer friends and I sat down and went on a writing adventure. Write a sequel to Wizard of Oz. Simple, right? And who can’t wrangle five other authors, each writing a different character with no script and only the idea that in this future Oz, things are as bright and shiny as it was when Dorothy Gale clicked her heels together three times and said, “There’s no place like home.”
Two years and about 150 episodes later, Dorothy Gale’s granddaughter, Dot, a former Marine and non-believer in her grandma’s stories, had run through her own adventure in Oz, survived a dark, twisted Emerald City, the return of the Wicked Witch, and an open rebellion against Glinda the Good, who had stolen the throne from the Scarecrow and was ruling Oz with an iron fist and an army of clockwork soldiers.
To their credit, my friends really stuck with it. Two years of episodes is a feat worthy of praise at any level. And working without a net (script) was a continual challenge as each author had to navigate their story and keep an eye on the progress of every other character, all of whom had significant flaws — the Scarecrow was a drunk, the Tin Man a murderer, the Lion a narcissistic music mogul, and Glinda herself a vengeful, dark-hearted monster. And of course, there was Dot, a young woman used to dealing with adversity, but hardly prepared for waking up in a fantasy land that was very real.
Toss in a variety of other characters, newsflashes, and the sudden and unexpected (I just added this on a whim halfway through the story) return of the Wicked Witch, well, it was a fun, exciting challenge, that you’ll be able to read the rest of this year on my website, where I’ve already added the first fifteen episodes.
You can read more about this new/old story in posts on Substack to get a taste of the storytelling. The first episode, starring Dot herself, and the third episode, introducing the Scarecrow, are on Substack right now. Stay tuned for more episodes in full, updates on new posts on my website, or head over there right now and start reading.
Just Right
If you haven’t gotten enough of serial fiction, well, there’s more! Not a year or two after my friends and I released over 100 episodes of the return to Oz above, we tried our hand at another adventure. This time, we went dark with a neo-noir murder mystery told by four characters. Just Right was the name I settled on because I wanted to tell a new story with some old-fashioned fairy tale characters by turning them into living, breathing New Yorkers starring in this new twisted tale.
We started in 2013, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, we stopped this project with about 16 episodes done. It took almost ten years, but I finished the tale myself in 2023, and now I’m rolling it out in chapter teasers on Substack, or you can read it all on my website for free. The first 20 episodes are available right now, and I’ll add the last 15 in the next few weeks.
In the depths of Manhattan’s Lower East Side, four people coexist in a cesspool of lust and betrayal — Wolfe, a broken cop with a history of questionable behavior; Goldi — a young woman trying to survive her dreams and the death of her lover; Gretel — an undercover agent struggling to remain true to her oath; Ivan — a horror of a man who will do anything to get what he wants.
I published the first chapter on Substack. It introduces the plot and the main character, Wolfe: Devil in the Pale Moonlight. Or you can read a bit more about the story itself and the individual authors here: Writing A Serialized Murder. Or check out this gorgeous graphic that I absolutely loved making: Reading Just Right.
Site Updates + Substack
I’ve got two Substacks and two websites, and I’ve got them all pretty much worked out and wrangled, although it took some time to sort it all out. When you’re a little all over the place in your writing like I am, you need to have a plan. So, I’ve got one now, and a big part of that plan is that I’ve got a ton of writing going on, and most of it is going to be free. All you have to do is show up, find something you like, and start reading.
SJ Stone, Author — this is my primary website, where you’ll find Dorothy: Locked & Loaded and Just Right. There’s a blog there, too, but most of that content will come from this Substack and be focused primarily on writing, snippets or outtakes from stories I’m writing or updates for the novels I’m writing. There’s also a new gallery section, which I use to display all the images I create for my stories. Some I curate, but most of them I create myself.
When authors talk about having multiple WIPs, I’m one of those authors. I’m writing several serialized fiction tales, including some seen below. Drift and Star Struck are science fiction adventures, and In Place of Honour blurs the fantasy-science fiction line. Instructions for Strange Desires is a collection of diverse short stories that tells a single, overarching tale. And then there’s the erotica I’m writing, which I’ll talk about next.
You’ll find a lot of content from these stories, updates, and all that jazz on this publication, the first of my two Substacks — The Fictional. The erotica piece is located on my other Substack — The Fictional: After Dark. Stay tuned for titles like Little Black Dress, What She Wanted, and The Too True Tale of Taylor’s Tawdry Tumble, along with more romantic titles like The River, Wanderlust and Adventures of a Wedding Crasher. There are so many stories coming, and I’m having a blast writing them.
Sesame Swallow
NoMysteryInc is my other website, the home for Sesame Swallow, Private Investigator, the main character in the novel series I’m writing. Sesame is a mid-20s woman stuck in a tedious job working for the Baltimore City courts. She dreams of being a private investigator, going on adventures, and solving crimes. And her moment comes in her debut novel, which I’m rewriting.
I have ten novels planned, and I’ve written three of them so far, but there’s still work to do before I publish. I’ve even written the first few chapters of book four, Sesame Swallow and the Case of the Missing Fucks. Think Nancy Drew all grown up, living in a modern city, having fun, chasing leads and having a roaring, sometimes raunchy, good time.
Look for excerpts and outtakes, scenes and even whole chapters that were left on the cutting room floor. There’ll be audio, video and images, too — all the Sesame I can muster. She’s a fabulously fun character, and I’m giving her everything I’ve got.
If that’s not enough, I’m fervently writing serialized mini-mysteries for Sesame. The first one is Sesame Swallow and the Xmas Caper, but there are others coming. I’m halfway through one for Halloween, planning a Valentine’s Day caper, and there are even erotic mysteries on the books. Stay tuned!
2025 is going to be a very big year for The Fictional, so stay tuned. Find the things that itch your scratch, and hang around for more. There will always be more.
And thanks for reading!