Utah: A Divided States of America RPG Supplement

by J Alan Erwine

From the Nomadic Delirium Press Blog:

A new setting supplement for the Divided States of America RPG is now available. Step inside Utah…

Utah is a small country dominated by religion, and slowly falling into chaos.

This Divided States of America RPG supplement will introduce you to the cities of Utah, some of the important people, places, and groups that your characters could encounter. Will your characters enter this small country hoping to help save it, or will they hope to bring about the chaos that may be inevitable?

Download it today at https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/590028/

Gumroad stories

by J Alan Erwine

I’ve created a new collection that is only available through my Gumroad store at https://jalanerwine.gumroad.com/

The collection features 11 of my stories, covering much of my career, and hopefully showing some of my diversity as a writer.

Check it out, and consider subscribing to get monthly e-books.

Divided States of America sale

by J Alan Erwine

From the Nomadic Delirium Press Blog:

It’s election time again, which means it’s time for our Divided States of America sale. You can download the RPG or fiction titles for 33% off at https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/publisher/2805/

Play the game, read the stories, but make sure you don’t let this future become a reality!

Furry Friends

by J Alan Erwine

My new short story, “Echoes of Evolution” appears in the new issue of Boundary Shock Quarterly, which is themed around Furry Friends. This story is a prequel to my novel Echoes from the Deep. Of course, I’ve never been very good at coloring in the lines, so my “furry” characters are dolphins.

The animals have become intelligent and—dare we say—human-like.

Was it a mad experiment? Mutation from a nuclear war? Genetic engineering? New future workers? Are we humans still around or have we gone the way of the dodo? Are the animals aware of whom we are or do they see us as some distant legendary gods?

Download it at https://www.boundaryshockquarterly.com/book/furry-friends/

Bestseller for September 2026

by J Alan Erwine

My bestseller for September 2026 was my latest novel, Slave to the Stars. Download it at https://books2read.com/u/3Gg068

Tilmath was born a slave, but she was no ordinary slave. Unlike most humans, she was an Espari, a human capable of sensing the emotions of other beings.

Now, having escaped from her slave masters, the teenager finds herself on the run and about to meet some of the most interesting creatures she could ever imagine, and go on an adventure that she could never dream of. Using her poorly trained empathic senses, she tries to do everything she can to survive, but quickly learns that survival isn’t the most important thing for a slave girl escaping to the stars.

Fall sales at Nomadic Delirium Press

by J Alan Erwine

Fall is the best time of the year, and Nomadic Delirium Press is having 25% off sales at several sites. Many of my titles are part of these sales, so if you’re looking for a new game to play, or some new fiction to read, this would be the perfect time to download some new titles.

Check out the sales at Payhip at https://payhip.com/NomadicDeliriumPress

Itch: https://itch.io/s/201907/start-of-fall-sale

or at RPG Trader: https://rpg-trader.com/creator/133/nomadic-delirium-press

Struggling to write…sort of…

by J Alan Erwine

Almost all writers struggle with their craft at times, and I’ve definitely had my own bouts of writer’s block. This time, however, I know it’s something different. I’ve never actually made a lot of money from my writing, but in the past, I could be confident that I might be able to buy a week or two of groceries, or pay a couple of bills, but sales have definitely fallen off as the economy continues to struggle, and this couldn’t happen at a worse time. My family is continuing to struggle, and we’ve had to take some drastic (legal) actions to make sure that we can keep a roof over our heads. Still, with me not able to find a “real” job, I know that I need to be making more money off of my writing, and this is putting a whole new kind of pressure on my craft. In the past, whatever I made was just extra money, but now, it needs to actually help us survive, and because of this, I’m finding it hard to write. This is a pressure I’ve never felt before, and I’m not always good at adapting to change…

Having said this, there are still some things that I’m getting written. I have a story that I’m writing for Boundary Shock Quarterly that’s almost done. When I started on it, I thought it would be about 4,000 words. I have one more revision to do, and it looks like it will be close to 7,500 words. Hopefully they like it! This has to be done by October 1st, so I’ve found myself able to focus with the deadline closing in on me.

Everything else I’m working on, whether it’s fiction or RPG titles, is nothing but a struggle. Maybe I need more deadlines in my life. I’ve tried to set artificial deadlines to see if that can stimulate my creativity, but my brain just laughs at that and ignores those deadlines.

For now, I will continue to try to get everything written that I can. We need the money, but I really don’t need this kind of pressure…but I guess that’s the world we live in. Maybe I’ll find a job soon, and I’ll find it easier to write. I know that sounds absurd, but that’s just me.

Setting a novel aside

by J Alan Erwine

I’ve been working on a new novel for a while now, and I have reluctantly decided that I need to set it aside, at least for now. The further I’ve gotten into the novel, the more I’ve realized that it’s progressing in far too linear of a format. The book is way too predictable, and I’ve made it too obvious as to where everything is going. And since I can’t figure out how to fix it at the moment, I’ve decided it’s best to just stop working on it.

Not to worry, however, I am now working on a sequel to A Problem in Translation. I’m currently rereading the original book so that I can get to know the characters again, since it’s been a long time since I’ve worked with them.

This means that the amazingly annoying Lemec will be making a return, and everyone’s favorite Kulnar, Grisan will also be coming back. There will be all new worlds to explore, and a few new alien species will also be on display. And, of course, the humans you all knew and loved…or hated will also be there. No Senator Washburn this time though, but maybe I need to come up with another annoying and dangerous politician…there are definitely enough examples to draw upon.

Obviously, since I’ve just started work, I’m not sure when the novel will be ready, especially since this one, like the original will have world building that requires math. Yes, science fiction authors actually do use math to create their worlds…at least this one does, because I need them to be believable.