Nick Showalter

Crazines

There is a lot going on in my life, unfortunately. 14 hour work nights with overtime days. Kids. Family. I won't go into the details. I am not able to live up to my obligations for the story and Pa...

Ch. 42 - Mage Training

"Damn it!"

Joe felt he was getting better at reading Diana's mood, so he was pretty sure she wasn't happy with the skill offerings in the pillar. At least she didn't try to kick the thing. Wh...

POV - 2

"Joe's a fucking idiot," Nik thought to himself as he sat around the kitchen table. 

The man had done well for himself and the group he'd adopted. Nik wryly included himself a...

Cover Concept Art

someone else used part of their midjourney trial to make this cover concept. It looks good so I thought I'd show it off. 

I will pick back up writing. This won't suddenly turn into an ar...

Joeish

I used up most of my midjourney trial on Diana. This isn't that close and the neck is all wonky but it was worth posting. 

Once again a patreon only thing. 

2022-09-13 22:59:02 +0000 UTC View Post

Diana

I'm sick again. Hooray for children going back to school. I find it difficult to write while taking cold medicine. Instead, I used some of the time to get on Midjourneys trial. I'm out of trial poi...

CH.41 - Working it out

The early afternoon sunlight blinded Joe slightly, but he was used to it. A faint breeze tickled his nose, bringing with it the scents of fresh grass tinged with a whiff of hot asphalt. Of course, ...

CH.40 - Theory Testing

The fox was the same old same old. Joe knew that he could win the fight in seconds if he chose. He wasn't playing around, knowing that a poisoned bite would take more resources than he could afford...

Ch.39 - New Partner, New Dance

Joe had entered the rift early in the day. It had been a long run, but four hours left their exit around noon. Both men blinked at the brighter light and tensed themselves for sudden movement. Ther...

Character Poll

What character do we need to see more of?

CH.38 - Three Darts is Too Much

Poison sucked. It's not like Joe hadn't been very aware of that before today. Over the last week, Joe had taken a crash course in just how awful it was to be poisoned. He was hard-pressed to decide...

Ch.37 - Out of Time

It was Joe's shift on the night watch when it happened. In the northwest, towards the rift and the carwash, a roar echoed over the suddenly still night air. It was deep and gravelly, like the T-Rex...

Ch.36 - Restraint

"What?"

Joe's manic grin and sudden request had caught her completely flat-footed. Joe didn't try to grab the crystal away, though he was sorely tempted. Instead, Joe took a deep breath and r...

CH.35 - New Monsters, Same Rift

Gnolls are just gnolls, Joe thought to himself while shaking the acrid blood from his glaive. The monsters had fought with a speed and intensity surpassing the others they'd faced so far, but in th...

Ch.34 - Physical Therapy

Joe woke early to a rainy day. Ohio wasn't a desert, so that was perfectly normal, but it had been sunny every day since the System was forced into their lives. Joe drank some of the remaining clea...

Small break

I'm going to the beach on an extended family vacation next week. I tried to post on the short trip to see family earlier in the summer and it did not go well. I'm going to try and write during this...

Ch.33 - Heart Break

After Carl and Mike woke up, things got into full swing. Carl and Diana worked in the garden. Carl made things grow while Diana did most of the grunt work and stared at him intently while he used h...

CH.32 - R&R

When the triumphant party returned, it was to a big bag of mixed emotions. Everyone with Joe was happy to be back, and everyone who stayed behind was thrilled that five people had returned. The peo...

The State of Joe Address - very minor long term spoilers

This chapter was the end of arc 1. Arc as in the rough third of a standard book, not arc as in the whole book the way the prolific authors do. Man do some of those guys churn out the chapters. That...

Ch.31 - Heartburn (Finished) (mostly)

In high school biology, Joe had read that some vultures can digest bone. When it comes to digestion, almost nothing is better than a scavenger. Their bodies are designed to get every scrap of energ...

Ch.30 - Go Time

Joe's face felt so tight it would crack as he gazed upon the ruin in front of him. The front entrance of the typical suburban house had been completely demolished. The door was lying on the ground ...

Ch.29 - All Good Things...

Usually, Joe enjoyed being right about anything. It was a very human thing that's common in most people. But man, Joe hated being right about how much it sucked to pick those damn red berries. By t...

Ch.28 - Chair of the Gods

The day was boring in the best possible way. Joe dug a boy scout standard latrine with lashed cross branches for a seat. He used the tops of the two small trees he dropped to make a privacy barrier...

Ch.27 - Trust

It took about an hour to get everyone comfortable. It was warm outside, so no one needed blankets, just somewhere to sleep. The kids were the toughest to settle, bouncing off the walls after their ...

Ch.26 - Jail Break

Joe peeked around the corner in surprise. He wasn't the only one. There were sounds of movement in the barn near him, and he thought he heard the sound of the only door creaking open slightly. What...

Ch. 25 - Friendly Visit

Everyone woke up before dawn without being prompted. The nervous energy was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Joe divvied up the berries evenly, and everyone ate one in preparation. Chatter w...

very slight delay

Hey everybody thanks for being here. I'm traveling with family. I'm using a tablet with a keyboard to keep writing during the trip. Unfortunately the tablet and patreon do not like each other curre...

Ch.24 - Christmas Morning

Joe had been checking the pillar just to look. It was the post System equivalent to spending twenty minutes flipping through shows on Netflix before giving up and doing something else. The thought ...

Reworking the beginning

The first 5-10 chapters aren't great. I've got a friend who is an editor compiling some notes for me. I will redo them at some point but if you're reading this I want your feedback. What would you ...

Ch.23 - One for the Road

Joe didn't lose consciousness this time. The berries mana entered his system and drew towards the poison like a lodestone, the different forms of mana annihilating each other when they came into co...