Dread and Holiday Cheer: 2025 Recap

As I write this, there are only five sleeps until Christmas. I am never more grateful for my current job as a project controller than this time of year. The ghosts of Retail Past still haunt me. For twenty long years, the morning of Black Friday filled me with this same kind of dread:

Every retail worker on Black Friday.

You're probably thinking, "That's a bit overdramatic, don't you think, Ken?"

It is not.

Just yesterday, as I was waiting at the pharmacy, I watched a man grill the woman behind the glass about her policies and ethics. When she responded, he interrupted her. For fifteen minutes, this went on, but she held her ground politely and professionally until he finally relented and stormed away.

"Merry Christmas," a co-worker muttered.

"Your first customer of the day," another said.

This was a mild example of what retail workers experience. It takes amazing control to withstand that kind of abuse, even when you're retail-dead inside. I say this to remind us all to be kind to others, especially this time of year.

Sage wisdom from Bill and Ted.

Enough of that. This is supposed to be a 2025 recap.

Favorite TV

• Stranger Things, Season 5: Nothing fills me with 80s nostalgia more than this incredible show. I blew through the first round of 90m episodes and I'm eagerly waiting the next installment.

• Only Murder in the Building: This silly, quirky, entertaining show shouldn't work, but they continue to pull it off in surprising ways, season after season.

• The Rookie: This is probably my favorite show, the one I look forward to the most.

• Andor, Season 2

• Alien: Earth

Favorite Reads

I met this year's reading goal. Here are my favorites:

• Pacific Fire - Greg Van Eekhout

  • This was probably my favorite read of the year and quietly one of my favorite fantasy series. It's about osteomancy, the devouring of bones for their magic. Because the first book in the Daniel Blackland series was so perfect, I was hesitant to read the second, but it was great. In this one, a ragtag team must stop a terrifying magical plot in L.A.

• Tread of Angels - Rebecca Roanhorse

  • Weird western/murder mystery, featuring the descendants of angels and demons, by one of my favorite NM authors.

• The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - V.E. Schwab

  • Jumping back and forth through time, this tells the story of Addie who bears a terrible curse: to be forgotten. Another of favorite authors.

• The Devil and Sherlock Holmes - David Grann

  • A collection of tales about murder, madness, and obsession from the writer of Killers of the Flower Moon, The Lost City of Z, and more great nonfiction. One of my favorites was about a modern day Ahab. Another was about The Chameleon, a con artist.

• Terminal List - Jack Carr

  • A great revenge story starring a Navy SEAL.

I Need Ratings

If you like my work, please rate and/or review Midnight Agency on Amazon, B&N, or Goodreads. Those stars truly help me get more visibility. I only received one new one this year, and it was a wonderful surprise.

Me inside when one of my books gets a new rating.

Accountability Check

• New Fantasy Novel Queries ✅

  • Active: 1 (small press)

  • Declined: 13 agents

• Midnight Agency, Season 3 😞

  • Goal: complete draft by June. Sadly, no.

    • Word count: 67K

    • 96% toward goal

    • Realized I was writing book 4 instead of book 3 and had to rework it. Ultimately, this is a good thing, but it cost me time. Also, this is heading toward a 90K word count before edits.

• New novel series -- goal: start draft of a mystery, crime, or thriller in July. 😞

  • Not started yet, but thinking about it. I need to finish MA3 first.

• Short stories ✅

  • Active: 4

    • 1 under publishing consideration for next year!

  • Rejected: 14

• New Story Written ✅

  • I wrote a new story loosely tied to my other pirate story, "The Wreckers," which is loosely tied to my fantasy novel that I'm trying to sell. Fingers crossed that this story is accepted. I love this one.

• Craft - actively improve writing skills.✅

  • Books:

    • How to Write a Howling Good Story - Wulf Moon

    • The Making of a Story - Alice LaPlante

    • Gentle Writing Advice: How to Be a Writer Without Destroying Yourself - Chuck Wendig

  • Classes:

    • "Revise with Hannah Tinti" - One Story self-paced course

    • "Big Punch in a Little Package: Creating Short Stories that Sizzle and Sell" - webinar with K.C. Grifant

    • "Live Editing Flash Fiction with Rebecca E. Treasure" - Apex Workshop

    • "Dan Brown: Writing Thrillers" (MasterClass)

• Books - read at least 30 books in 2025✅

  • Completed: 30

• Blog - write quarterly accountability posts and at least four posts that might interest readers.✅

I accomplished most of my goals, which is cause for celebration, but I can't take my foot of the gas. I have many stories to tell. I want to publish the next Midnight Agency book as early as next year and possibly my new fantasy novel. Next year's goals will be coming soon.

Wishing you all a happy holiday season!

Until then, I'll be wordslinging.

Happy Holidays!