At last, I had a week I would call not just acceptable from a writing productivity standpoint but actually good.
Here’s the stats for last week:
Writing statistics for the week ending 13 September 2025: Words: 5,054 Days writing: 7 of 7. Days revising or planning: 0 of 7 for 0 minutes. Daily Writing Goals Met (500+ words or 30 minutes of planning/revisions): 5 of 7 days.
Considering I was a bit behind my pace of attempting to write 225,000 words this year, a decent week last week and these numbers this week made me happy. To make sure I’m ahead of my pace, I should try and aim for 5,000 words per week (which is pretty heavy for me traditionally).
Part of putting things together this week was getting back to work on stories I haven’t had much time or inclination to get restarted. I spent much of last week adding more to my sequel to my debut novel, The Holy Fool (Currently called The Fool 2). If I get into some other dormant projects, I hope to have other favorable results.
That’s it for now. I hope all of you writers have a good writing week.
If you don’t have the budget for a paid subscription, feel free to just send me a one-time payment of whatever you have the budget for.
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
I didn’t make up much if any ground toward my yearly goal this week, but this was by no means a disaster like the past month has been. At the very least, I didn’t fall too much behind which means a better position than I felt like last week.
With this said, here’s the totals from last week.
Writing statistics for the week ending 6 September 2025: Words: 4,224 Days writing: 4 of 7. Days revising or planning: 2 of 7 for 60 minutes. Daily Writing Goals Met (500+ words or 30 minutes of planning/revisions): 6 of 7 days.
It’s a far better start to September than I had in August, I’ll say that, although my word count for this week was a a little more than 100 words under what I try to hope for. Regardless, it is not a disaster, which is far better than what I could say for the past four weeks.
This question was what I pondered last week, and what I found (as I often find) is when you get reluctant to write a certain scene or section of a story, the solution is to start writing about something else and keep going on it. (It also helps if you decide to cut the scene and move on to another part of the book, but at some point you do need to write and produce something.
For this week, it worked better than what was working. So, I’m planning on doing more of it. If I have a big enough month, hopefully I can get caught up to my goal of 225,000 words for the year. We’ll see if it works.
If you don’t have the budget for a paid subscription, feel free to just send me a one-time payment of whatever you have the budget for.
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
Hi, all you readers old and new. This is the official newsletter of me, Jason Liegois, as I talk about what is going on with me having to do with my writing projects, my personal appearances if I’m making them, and some personal items.
So, let’s talk writing and a couple other things.
The Home Front
Not much to discuss here. I’ve started back with my school district for the 2025-2026 school year, and I’m feeling a bit more settled in with the place. I was also lucky enough to get a bigger room than what I had last year, which was a relief for my students who were feeling a bit crammed into the old place.
It’s good to get at least one year under my belt. At least this year I don’t feel like I’m building every single little thing from the ground up and trying to build relationships with my department colleagues and other teachers, as well as associates. I don’t feel like I’m trying to catch up all the time.
I’m also glad Premier League, the NFL, and the Hawkeyes got started with their seasons, but this week we’re in one of those weird soccer international breaks so I’m watching USA vs. South Korea this afternoon while I’m finishing up the newsletter today. However, they are honoring the legendary US player Michael Bradley at halftime, which I think is overdue1. He’s coaching New York Red Bulls II, the developmental team for the Major League Soccer team of the same name, and I think he could wind up being a great head coach one of these days.
What I’ve Been Writing
In all honesty, I’ve been disappointed with my productivity this past month, which was the least productive from a word count standpoint for this whole year. I’m desperately hoping to try and get more productive this month even though it is now the start of the new school year and restarting teaching once again. I get the feeling I need to have to be able to budget my time and not feel like I have all the time in the world. If I have a lot of time, sometimes I have a tendency to waste it. Hopefully I can turn things around in September.
So, let’s take a look at my ongoing projects, wherever they are in the process of creation.
Any guesses on the full title?
The Yank Striker 3 (AKA YS3, AKA Working Title): The Yank Striker series follows the exploits of Daniel John “DJ” Ryan, a prospective American soccer player who leaves his family behind to try his fortune with an English Premier League team in the East End of London. Check this out if you want more information about the first book in the series, and thislink if you want to know more about Book 2, The Yank Striker’s Journey. YS3 continues DJ’s story as he attempts to progress as a footballer, despite new challenges and an unexpected event that could either be a setback or opportunity. When I’ve not been dawdling or trying to distract myself from anything productive, I’ve focused most of my creative energies on this project. I’m happy to note I’m now at more than 11,000 words into the into the rough draft. If I want to get this thing published next year, I truly have to push myself to have a full rough draft ready to go by at least by January. I learned from my experiences with Journey this year I need to take any estimates I have of completing a novel and double it. I’m not taking time for granted this time, especially since you never know when you have scheduling things come up that are totally out of your control. I have an ambitious goal of getting it published by next year, but I’m feel more capable of reaching this goal than I did with Journey at the beginning of this year.
There is also the sequel to my debut novel, The Holy Fool. This journalism thriller features Samuel “Sonny” Turner, a newspaper columnist tasked by his editor and mentor with protecting his newspaper, the Chicago Journal, from sale by its unscrupulous owner and breaking a major story on the Iraq and Afghanistan wars during the 2008 presidential election and Great Recession. After a considerable break from this project, I’ve gotten back on it this week. The rough draft is now at more than 11,000 words. As with YS3, I don’t want this book to be a massive one, but I am willing to adjust if the story calls to be a little more heavier on word count than I might have expected.
The Untitled Iowa Series: Over the past year, I’ve started to want to write some books set in Iowa. For one thing, I’ve started to feel a compulsion to tell some stories based here in the actual Midwest and not all over the world. Part of the themes of this story fit into the current social and political environment and have something set in a familiar territory. It’s always fascinated me to see how smaller communities process larger sociological and historical changes. Also, in all honesty, I get the feeling I might be able to attract more local readers if I start producing stories set here in local settings. Sue me for wanting to be more popular. Two stories (I’d like to try at least three in this new setting) I have already started to formulate in my head.
The Heart Project: This is speculative/fantasy/soft sci-fi story I have in mind informed by our troubled times involving four one-time friends, a high school reunion, and a microcosm of a larger sense of chaos. Despite the events of the novel touching in some way on national and even world issues, the vast majority of the story would be focused in Iowa.
From a recently completed short story (more on that whenever it gets released), I think I have the germ of an idea about a fantasy/horror novel set in Iowa, leaning on the environmental damage being done to my home state. Let’s give it the working title The Land, The River, and The Waste.
The reasons I have not done much on these is unlike the sequels, I have not decided on how or when to release these books. I’m not sure whether I want to explore working with a smaller Midwest publisher or if I want to go the self-publishing route. I want to see what sort of options I might have available for me if I want to try and change my approach to producing my books.In the meantime, I’ve put together both a biographical and physical sketch of the community which will be my main setting. I’m very excited about putting it together, and I can’t wait to share some of this work with you soon.
What I’m Doing Having to do With Writing (Which in This Case Means Where I’m Making Appearances)
As it turns out, I have a pretty busy September and October coming up before all the book festivals and events start to slow down. I’ll list them below, and I hope to see you there at one of these events.
At 1 p.m. on Saturday, September 20, I will be back at one of my favorite book stores, Bent Oak Books, 619 7th St., in my new hometown of Fort Madison. I’ll have copies of my book The Yank Striker’s Journey and my other offerings there for sale. It’s a fantastic store and Danette, the owner, has been a fantastic supporter of mine.
At 4 p.m. (thereabouts) Thursday, September 25, I am going to be back at Burlington By The Book, 301 Jefferson St., Burlington, for a Farmer’s Market appearance. Chris (the store’s owner) has been a massive support for me, so when he calls, I answer. It’s as simple as that.
I am going to be making an appearance at the Atlas Collective, 1801 5th Ave, Moline, Illinois, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, 27 August. This is this first book store event I’ve participated in outside Iowa, and I am hyped for it. Atlas is a fantastic bookstore, one I would recommend to anyone.
I will be at the Windsor Heights Book Fair on Sunday, October 5, at the Masonic Lodge at 1141 69th St., in Windsor Heights, Iowa (outside Des Moines). This will be the third time I’ve appeared at the event and I’m very much up for the event. Tyler Granger, the organizer of the festival, is a good acquaintance of mine and a fellow Iowa author himself.
Finally, I will be at the Iowa City Book Festival, which runs from October 5-12 in Iowa City. I will be attending the local author book fair as part of the event, which will be on Oct. 12 at MERGE, 136 S. Dubuque St. I’ve always had a great time there, and I’ll be looking forward to it.
If any podcasters or bloggers are interested in new fiction, if you are interested in stories based in the world of soccer, or if you are interested in featuring writers from Iowa or the Midwest, I would absolutely be open for a feature or interview. Get in touch here or at jasonliegois@liegois.media.gois@liegois.media.
Writing Quote(s) of the Week:
An intriguing quote about how some authors want to give their readers more than just a good story. Which is a perfectly valid thing to do.
“You guys know about vampires? … You know, vampires have no reflections in a mirror? There’s this idea that monsters don’t have reflections in a mirror. And what I’ve always thought isn’t that monsters don’t have reflections in a mirror. It’s that if you want to make a human being into a monster, deny them, at the cultural level, any reflection of themselves. And growing up, I felt like a monster in some ways. I didn’t see myself reflected at all. I was like, “Yo, is something wrong with me? That the whole society seems to think that people like me don’t exist?” And part of what inspired me, was this deep desire that before I died, I would make a couple of mirrors. That I would make some mirrors so that kids like me might see themselves reflected back and might not feel so monstrous for it.” ― Junot Díaz
Considering how much I jump genres, I’m in total agreement with this quote, too.
“Don’t classify me, read me. I’m a writer, not a genre.” ― Carlos Fuentes
When I Post
Check out this post for when and what I post on a regular basis.
How to support me😊.
As always, go to the links on the side if you are reading this on a desktop/laptop or the links on my profile on mobile. If you go follow the links above, you will be able to buy both the paperback and ebook versions of my books on Amazon. If you just put “Jason Liegois” in Google you’ll find them on the first page of search results.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have quite a few places that now carry at least some of my books. Until the Iowa Indie Bookshop Tour got started a few years back, I wasn’t aware of many of these great and fantastic independent bookstores in Iowa and the Midwest. They’re still doing the tour through the end of September. These are the bookstores you’ll find at least some of my books2:
Bent Oak Books, 619 7th St. Fort Madison.
Burlington By The Book, 301 Jefferson St, Burlington.
[NEW] The Corner and More, 703 Main St., Mediapolis.
Green Point Mercantile, 217 E. 2nd St., Muscatine.
[NEW] The Brewed Book, 1524 Harrison St., Davenport.
[NEW] The Black Rose, 116 W. Main St., West Branch
Beaverdale Books, 2629 Beaver Ave. # S1, Des Moines.
Pella Books, 824 Franklin St, Pella.
[NEW] The Atlas Collective, 1801 5th Ave, Moline, Illinois – my first out of Iowa bookstore, very proud of this.
I’m always looking for some new places to place my books, so feel free to hit me up in the comments if you have a suggestion.
For those who are budget conscious among all of you, my books are part of the collections of the Fort Madison, Burlington, and Musser (Muscatine) public libraries.
My poetry book The Flow and the Journey is available at Bent Oak, Green Point, Burlington By the Book, and The Corner and More, but it is also available online but not on Amazon. I’ve set up a new online store for copies of my chapbook on my WordPress site, Liegois Media. If you want to get a physical copy, go ahead and click on the button below.
The Flow and the Journey
The first collection of poetry from author Jason Liegois.
All you writers keep writing, and all of you keep safe. See you down the road.
-30-
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
Well, I can still give excuses, but that’s not going to get my word count up. It was a lame week to wrap up the worst month I’ve had this year. So at least I know I can’t just dawdle around anymore. I’m behind, but it’s not a disaster. Yet.
With this said, here’s the totals from last week and last month.
Writing statistics for the week ending 30 August 2025: Words: 2,504 Days writing: 4 of 7. Days revising or planning: 3 of 7 for 420 minutes. Daily Writing Goals Met (500+ words or 30 minutes of planning/revisions): 5 of 7 days.
Writing statistics for August 2025: Words: 12,447 Revise/Plan: 600 Minutes DWGM: 75 percent.
Other than the time spent revising and planning other work, which seems to be among the median amount I’ve done on a monthly basis this year, this is easily the worst month I’ve had productivity-wise this year. It’s the least productive by at least 4,000 words (4,351 per week is what I’ve been shooting for at least since I started this year) and the least consistent I’ve been writing during that time as well.
My goals at to write to 225,000 words by the end of this year and to meet my daily writing goal (or quota) at least 80 percent of the time. At that rate, I should have written 150,000 words by this point. By my count of words written from January to the end of August, however, I am under that number by fewer than 300 words.
I’m going to say, I’m not looking for excuses for why my productivity tanked this month. What I am trying to sort out in my head is an explanation of how I went from a few thousand words ahead of pace to a couple of hundred words behind it.
With this very much on my mind, I ended up posting this on my socials today.
So, what would you call it when you have all these ideas rattling around in your head, you’ve worked them out in your notebooks, and yet when you sit down at the desk and try to put them down on the (electric) page, but the words aren’t landing or even starting to land? I mean, is that just plain laziness, or is there some condition akin to writer’s block which covers this? I have the ideas, I’m just stalling at putting them on the page.
Maybe I’m getting a bit tired of trying to do a third Yank Striker book when there’s several other stories I want to get into. Maybe I’ve been discouraged by the lack of public interest in these novels. And maybe I’m in the mood to write a novel about Iowa that’s not some paean to the ideal agri-paradise of Iowa, but a horror tale that might relate to my fellow Iowans, something that could tell a tale of what Iowa is like now.
I’ve gone far enough where I have a name for the main setting of these books, an amalgam of the Mississippi River towns I’ve lived in for more than forty years of my life. At the end of last week, I even sketched out a map for the place in one of my notebooks. It’s starting to become home now, at least in my head. As I’ve said before, I’ll look forward to introducing it to all of you sometime soon.
I don’t have anything else to say at the moment. I’m a bit down about letting myself get this much into a slump. Now, however, I’ve got a chance of getting it all back. Later.
If you don’t have the budget for a paid subscription, feel free to just send me a one-time payment of whatever you have the budget for.
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
I have to be honest, unless I have an all-world week this coming week, August is not going to be a productive month for me. At the very least, I hope I’m not behind the pace I’m hoping to keep throughout the year.Here’s the stats for last week:
Writing statistics for the week ending 23 August 2025: Words: 2,978 Days writing: 6 of 7. Days revising or planning: 2 of 7 for 150 minutes. Daily Writing Goals Met (500+ words or 30 minutes of planning/revisions): 6 of 7 days.
The only good thing I can say about last week’s productivity is it’s marginally better than last week. There’s not much else I can say about it – I wanted to try and write at least 1,500 more words last week to keep up the pace to get to 225,000 words by the end of this year. I might still be at that pace, but not with as much of a cushion as I had at the end of July. I’ll do a recount of where I’m at after August is wrapped up.
Most of the word count for this week, as for the past couple of weeks, has gone into The Yank Striker 3. I’m surprised I’ve gotten past 9,000 words considering I only got started on this last month. Now I just need to produce more of it.
Most of my planning has gone into a new series that came into my head, set in Iowa. I’ve been reaching in to my perpetual stew of ideas and combining it with some of what is going on in the world to create something new, something that might be of interest to my neighbors.
Last week, I got started creating the main location, the main community, where these stories will be set. It’s a nice little town. I’ll look forward to introducing it to all of you sometime soon.
That’s all I have for now. See you around.
If you don’t have the budget for a paid subscription, feel free to just send me a one-time payment of whatever you have the budget for.
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
(I used the search phrase “downward trend” to select the graphic I used for this journal. You’re welcome. 🙂)
The last full week of my summer vacation and I absolutely took my foot off the accelerator. After a while, I think I need some outside influences, activities, and demands on my time motivate me to use my time more efficiently.
Here’s the stats for last week:
Writing statistics for the week ending 16 August 2025: Words: 2,911 Days writing: 4 of 7. Days revising or planning: 1 of 7 for 30 minutes. Daily Writing Goals Met (500+ words or 30 minutes of planning/revisions): 5 of 7 days.
Right now most of my work has gone into The Yank Striker 3, as I want to have the rough draft of the thing done by the end of the calendar year. I might be very ambitious with this goal, but I want to just get on with writing and keeping being productive.
Last week, I mentioned I was interested in setting some books specifically in Iowa. I’m starting to do some planning on three ideas I’ve sort of let cooking in this perpetual stew of ideas I’ve had bubbling for years and years. I’ve talked about that stew for a while, where I’ll let some ideas cook and simmer for years at a time before trying it out in a story. But they’re starting to get ready to serve. I’ve got an idea for a fictional location for these books, something that was an echo of the places I’ve lived here in Iowa. I’m looking forward to serving up some stories based there.
That’s it for now. All you writers keep writing and the rest of you keep safe.
If you don’t have the budget for a paid subscription, feel free to just send me a one-time payment of whatever you have the budget for.
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
I’ll likely keep this one short. (Like my productivity this week).
I mean, it wasn’t a disaster, but again it’s not at the level I was hoping for (4,350 words per week). This is what I actually got:
Writing statistics for the week ending 9 August 2025: Words: 4,045 Days writing: 6 of 7. Days revising or planning: 0 of 7 for 0 minutes. Daily Writing Goals Met (500+ words or 30 minutes of planning/revisions): 5 of 7 days.
I feel good that a lot of this is original writing for projects I want to get done as soon as possible, especially the third book in The Yank Striker series. At this point, however, it’s almost like, what possible projects don’t I have going on.
[Rant incoming.]
I want to try and write some novels based in Iowa. For a long time, I’ve avoided it, but part of me is getting a bit tired of writing niche subculture fiction, and I figured subversive regional fiction might sell around here, or at least get some more eyeballs. Mention in the comments if you want me to be less cryptic about the content, but this stuff has been cooking in my perpetual stew of ideas for a long time. I don’t want to spew it in front of everyone just for no reason.
That’s it for now, everyone. Take care and I’ll see you down the road.
If you don’t have the budget for a paid subscription, feel free to just send me a one-time payment of whatever you have the budget for.
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
I was wondering how this month was going to look like after I totaled up all the words for the previous week and the month of July. This was a month where I had all the time in the world to write, as well as to promote the new book out, The Yank Striker’s Journey. There were times, to be honest, where I wasn’t feeling like I was using my time well, especially when it came to writing.
Then I took a look at the numbers.
Writing statistics for the week ending 2 August 2025: Words: 4,368 Days writing: 5 of 7. Days revising or planning: 1 of 7 for 120 minutes. Daily Writing Goals Met (500+ words or 30 minutes of planning/revisions): 5 of 7 days.
Those numbers are actually … not bad. The word count is just above the weekly average I need to meet to get to my goal of 225,000 words for the calendar year. I’d like to meet my minimum quota more than five out of seven days, but it’s not a disaster.
Now, here’s last month’s stats.
Writing statistics for July 2025: Words: 23,511 Revising/planning: 390 minutes. DWGM: 80 percent.
Hmm, these are looking like decent numbers.
23,511 is the highest monthly total since January of this year, and the second highest monthly total of 2025 to date. And the number of revising and planning minutes were more than double the ones I had for January (although they were a lost smaller than the really revision and planning-heavy past three months). The 80 percent figure was the lowest level of any month I’ve had this year (ironically, #2 was January), so that’s a sign my writing productivity was not as consistent as previous months. However, my other statistical goal for the year was to be able to meet my daily quotas at least 80 percent of the time, and given I averaged 89 percent for the first six months of the year, I’m feeling good about the numbers.
A good thing is I now have plenty of projects to keep me busy for the rest of the year.
I’ve gotten started on the first draft of the next book in The Yank Striker series(known here for now as The Yank Striker 3). I’m already 4,000 words into the book.
The Fool Part 2 (working title, naturally): Still 7,800-plus words into the first draft. I want to pick that up again soon.
There is the Kayfabe Stories trilogy I’m interested in putting forward. I’m more than 50,000 words into the first draft of the first book. I honestly don’t want to go much further than another 30,000 words or else it might get too big, but I might make an exception on this project.
Then, I have two books, both of which I would base in Iowa like a good Iowa author would do. Basically, they would be a blend of modern sci-fi and urban fantasy, depending on how you interpreted the projects. Right now, I wouldn’t even guess at their timetables, but I’d like them to be done within the next couple of years.
That’s it for now, everyone. Take care and I’ll see you down the road.
If you don’t have the budget for a paid subscription, feel free to just send me a one-time payment of whatever you have the budget for.
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
FEATURED PHOTO NOTE: My hometown of Muscatine, Iowa is known for its melons. The city leaders are leaning into this history it appears. 🙂
Hi, everyone. It is officially the start of August, which means people who have summer vacation are now thinking about returning to work in the next few weeks, myself included. However, I’ve gotten quite a bit of activity done in the time I’ve had off. I’ve gotten a new book published, gotten started on more than a few other projects, and met a lot of other people as well.
So, let’s talk writing and a couple other things.
What I’ve Been Writing
It’s nice getting some books written at a faster pace than I ever had to date. So, the fact The Yank Striker’s Journey is now officially released is no excuse for me not to get going on other projects. Such has been the case for me, thankfully, this past month.
Any guesses on the full title?
The Yank Striker 3 (AKA YS3, AKA Working Title)1: For those just joining us here, The Yank Striker series follows the exploits of Daniel John “DJ” Ryan, a prospective American soccer player who leaves his family behind to try his fortune with an English Premier League team in the East End of London. I decided to ask myself years back, “What would the first American soccer superstar look like?” and it snowballed from there. Check this out if you want more information about the first book in the series, and the Journey link above if you want to know more about Book 2. YS3 continues DJ’s story as he attempts to progress as a footballer, despite new challenges and an unexpected event that could either be a setback or opportunity, depending on how he faces it. I’ve finished preliminary notes on the project and have already gotten more than 3,000 words into the rough draft. I have an ambitious goal of getting it published by next year, but I’m feeling good about trying to reach for it.
Also on my list is the sequel to my debut novel, The Holy Fool. That was my journalism novel featuring Samuel “Sonny” Turner, a Chicago-based newspaper columnist who was tasked with helping his newspaper, the Chicago Journal from sale by its unscrupulous owner and breaking a major story on the Iraq and Afghanistan wars during the 2008 presidential election and the beginning of the Great Recession. The sequel, which will be set in around 2024-2026, is now over 7,000 words for the first draft. At most, I only want the story to be 70,000 words2 – a quick, lean bit of storytelling. I will get most of the writing done this year (I hope I hope I hope) but I want to see how a certain event next year plays out before I finalize the last scene.
The Heart Project: The speculative/fantasy/soft sci-fi story I have in mind informed by our troubled times involving four one-time friends, a high school reunion, and a microcosm of a larger sense of chaos.
From a recently completed short story, I think I have the germ of an idea about a fantasy/horror novel set in Iowa, leaning on the environmental damage being done to my home state. Let’s give it the working title The Land, The River, and The Waste.
What I’m Doing Having to do With Writing (Which in This Case Means Where I’m Making Appearances)
I’ve got several events coming up, some that I have confirmed, some I have mostly confirmed, and others I’m hoping will happen. I’ll list them here however I have them.
At 6:30 p.m. 14 August (a Thursday), I’ll be over at the Fort Madison Public Library. I’ll be talking about the writing process, creating fiction, and my books, in particular The Yank Striker’s Journey. Any friends of mine in the eastern Iowa area, I would love to have you out here to celebrate the evening.\
At 4 p.m. (thereabouts) Thursday, Aug. 25, I am going to be back at Burlington By The Book, 301 Jefferson St., Burlington, for a Farmer’s Market appearance. Chris (the store’s owner) has been a massive support for me, so when he calls, I answer. It’s as simple as that.
I am going to be making an appearance at the Atlas Collective, 1801 5th Ave, Moline, Illinois, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, 27 August. This is this first book store event I’ve participated in outside Iowa, and I am hyped for it. Atlas is a fantastic bookstore, one I would recommend to anyone.
Also hopefully on the schedule will be the Windsor Heights Book Fair on SUnday, October 5, in Windsor Heights, Iowa (outside Des Moines), and an appearance at the Iowa City Book Festival, from October 5-12.
With The Yank Striker’s Journey having officially dropped, I am hoping for quite a few more appearances this year. Watch this space for new events. 🙂
If any podcasters or bloggers are interested in new fiction, if you are interested in stories based in the world of soccer, or if you are interested in featuring writers from Iowa or the Midwest, I would absolutely be open for a feature or interview. Get in touch here or at jasonliegois@liegois.media.
Writing Quote(s) of the Week:
A lot of stuff I’m seeing on the interwebs seems to relate to me this month.
With this first quote, replace “diary” with “manuscripts and notes” and it absolutely fits me.
“This diary is my kief, hashish and opium pipe. This is my drug and my vice.” ― Anais Nin
One from The King.
Writing is magic, as much the water of life as any other creative art. The water is free. So drink. Drink and be filled up.
― Stephen King
On the good days it absolutely feels like this.
Every few weeks she would shut herself up in her room, put on her scribbling suit, and fall into a vortex, as she expressed it, writing away at her novel with all her heart and soul, for till that was finished she could find no peace.
― Louisa May Alcott, Little Women
When I Post
Check out this post for when and what I post on a regular basis.
How to support me😊.
As always, go to the links on the side if you are reading this on a desktop/laptop or the links on my profile on mobile. If you go follow the links above, you will be able to buy both the paperback and ebook versions of my books on Amazon. If you just put “Jason Liegois” in Google you’ll find them on the first page of search results.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have quite a few places that now carry at least some of my books. Until the Iowa Indie Bookshop Tour got started a few years back, I wasn’t aware of many of these great and fantastic independent bookstores in Iowa and the Midwest. They’re still doing the tour through the end of September. These are the bookstores you’ll find at least some of my books2:
Bent Oak Books, 619 7th St. Fort Madison.
Burlington By The Book, 301 Jefferson St, Burlington.
[NEW] The Corner and More, 703 Main St., Mediapolis.
Green Point Mercantile, 217 E. 2nd St., Muscatine.
[NEW] The Brewed Book, 1524 Harrison St., Davenport.
[NEW] The Black Rose, 116 W. Main St., West Branch
Beaverdale Books, 2629 Beaver Ave. # S1, Des Moines.
Pella Books, 824 Franklin St, Pella.
[NEW] The Atlas Collective, 1801 5th Ave, Moline, Illinois – my first out of Iowa bookstore, very proud of this.
I’m always looking for some new places to place my books, so feel free to hit me up in the comments if you have a suggestion.
For those who are budget conscious among all of you, my books are part of the collections of the Fort Madison, Burlington, and Musser (Muscatine) public libraries.
My poetry book The Flow and the Journey is available at Bent Oak, Green Point, Burlington By the Book, and The Corner and More, but it is also available online but not on Amazon. I’ve set up a new online store for copies of my chapbook on my WordPress site, Liegois Media. If you want to get a physical copy, go ahead and click on the button below.
The Flow and the Journey
The first collection of poetry from author Jason Liegois.
Again, sorry this is slightly late, but better late than never and it’s still on the weekend. Take care, everyone.
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While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
I’m trying to give myself a break about not writing as much as I could last week, but it’s hard. There were so many years of my life where I didn’t write a single word, so I feel down on myself when I don’t write as much as I want to. Plus, there’s so much I have left to write, I feel.
Based on the stats for last week, at least it wasn’t a disaster.
Writing statistics for the week ending 26 July 2025: Words: 3,219 Days writing: 4 of 7. Days revising or planning: 2 of 7 for 150 minutes. Daily Writing Goals Met (500+ words or 30 minutes of planning/revisions): 6 of 7 days.
Part of the delay in getting as much words out as I did was because I was still in the process of outlining my next book in The Yank Striker series. I finally got a good rough outline of that book (known here for now as The Yank Striker 3) and began the first draft of it over the weekend. It’s great to explore where DJ is at in his quest for soccer greatness and what twists and turns remain in the way. I also want to make sure this book gets released mid next year, so I know I’d have to get a rough draft completed before the year is out. That would be an ambitious goal, but not something impossible if I make it my priority goal above any other projects I have going on.
And there are more than a few other projects, with varying deadlines (or lack of them).
The Fool Part 2 (working title, naturally): I am 7,800-plus words into the first draft. For narrative reasons (which I don’t want to reveal because it’s too close to a massive spoiler) but I want to wait until July 2026 before I wrap up the rough draft. You’ll have to speculate why that is the case, but if I’m going to drop a slight hint towards why, note the fact the main character of The Holy Fool, Sonny Turner, is thirty-two years old during the events of the book (set in 2008). I’ll let you do the math and deducting.
There is the Kayfabe Stories trilogy I’m interested in putting forward. I’m more than 50,00 words into the first draft of the first book and I have a little more to go through before wrapping it up. Part of the reason I don’t have a specific release date for this project is two-fold. First, I’m not sure if I want to release each book in the trilogy as it is done or whether I want to get them all done and then start releasing them. Second, I’m not sure if I want to just release it myself (self-publishing) or do it through an outside publisher.
Then, I have two books, both of which I would base in Iowa like a good Iowa author would do. Basically, they would be a blend of modern sci-fi and urban fantasy, depending on how you interpreted the projects. Right now, I wouldn’t even guess at their timetables, but I’d like them to be done within the next couple of years.
Regardless of all that, all you writers make sure you are at work and producing some words. Time is money and life, fam, as the English would say. And everyone keep safe, even though it’s not always easy.
If you don’t have the budget for a paid subscription, feel free to just send me a one-time payment of whatever you have the budget for.
While I do appreciate you following this blog, I really would like you to subscribe to my Substack page. By subscribing to that page, you’ll not only be receiving my Substack newsletter, The Writing Life With Jason Liegois (the companion blog to this one), but you’ll also be signing up for my email list. Just click the button below.
