Witches and Ray-Guns

If you haven’t read The Aquarian Incident yet. Stop reading now, and definitely don’t read the comments.

So, three posts in one night. I was not planning this. Anyway…

I was just wondering how many of you spotted the Dragonball reference. I have never watched any of the Dragonball series (and certainly never the film), which was why I figured I could get away with this one without explanation. It’s kind of surpassed anime culture. But I’d love to know how many people spotted it.

Okay, the art dump for The Aquarian Incident is up on ArtStation. Link from the image above.

More than usual, this one has a lot of fanservice. Trying to decide what kind of swimsuit Mel should wear took months. I ended up not really using most of the ideas I had.

So, in case you haven’t heard of this, My Dress-Up Darling is a newly released anime (based on a manga) about a high-school loner who hooks up with a stunning girl. No! Don’t run off! It’s not like that!

Well, it is, but… Wakano Gojo is a lanky boy who likes playing with dolls. Or, to be more precise, he’s training under his grandfather to make hina dolls. Since that’s a bit of weird career goal, he has no friends, keeps himself to himself, etc. So, he’s not a typical otaku nerd type; he’s his own kind of nerd. And then he happens to bump into Marin Kitagawa in the home studies classroom because his old treadle sewing machine finally broke and she doesn’t have a sewing machine of her own. It turns out that Marin wants to be a cosplayer (she is an otaku nerd type), but can’t sew worth a damn. Gojo decides to help her (by making that maid-type outfit in the picture above) and hilarity ensues. Marin falls for Gojo. Gojo gets horribly embarrassed. It’s all good fun and fanservice.

Why am I drivelling on about this? Well, partially because I just watched the latest episode and felt like posting something about this series again. That’s why I’m doing this now. Why I’m doing this at all is episode 4. A couple of weeks ago, the English dub of episode 4 came out I watched it and noticed something which I didn’t really take in watching the subtitled version. The concept behind the episode is that Gojo has everything he needs to make the first costume (Shizuku from Slippery Girls 2; I’m not explaining, watch the anime if you want to know), but he thinks Marin wants to wear it at a cosplay event in two weeks and works himself to near exhaustion getting it ready. Other thinks conspire to create delays. He’s at wit’s end. Then, in his darkest hour, he remembers something his grandfather told him about making hina dolls: it’s hard work, but when someone sees one and they smile, when someone falls in love at first sight with something he’s made, it’s all worth it. Energised, Gojo finishes the outfit, and then discovers, of course, that Marin would have been happy with it being ready whenever it was.

And yesterday and today, I’ve been reminded of why I put myself through all the pain involved in writing these books. (Okay, yes, they make money and feed me, but…) I put out a book, you guys comment that you like it, and I really appreciate that. Just like Gojo and his grandfather, it’s the smiles that keep me going. Now, if I could get a Marin to smile for me when I finish a book, I’d probably be putting them out every other week, but we can’t always have what we want.

So, thanks.

Also, if you’re into anime (or just want something funny to watch), I’d recommend My Dress-Up Darling. If you can put up with adverts, you can watch episodes free on Crunchyroll (link on the image). The dub is really well done, so you’re not missing anything watching it in English. Episode 4 is not the only one that’s resonated with me. It’s an all-round show: meaning, massive boobs, tips on cosplay, and plenty of comedy. This show has it all. Uh, except for battle scenes. So far.

The Aquaria Incident, aka Death’s Handmaiden 5, aka The Beach Episode, is now out. And in time for the weekend!

• Smashwords.
• Amazon, ASIN: B09VCF5M28.
  • US
  • UK
  • DE
  • CA
  • AU

Art dump sometime this weekend. I understand that you’ll probably want it sooner, rather than later…

Not my favourite day of the year, to be honest, and the weather is miserable. I brightened it up with Nava and Suki. This is a UHD image; feel free to use it as wallpaper if you wish. I am.

Meanwhile… I update the ‘What I’m Working On’ page recently with what I was planning to be my next project. And then I started writing it and, well, it’s boring. I like the concept. I’d like to do something with it. I just need to come up with a way to un-boring it.

Death’s Handmaiden 5 now has a name, The Aquaria Incident. If nothing changes in the next week, it’s going to be followed by DH6 which doesn’t have a name yet. It also may not have enough plot to go forward with; I’m currently working that out.

Updates on progress when I have them.

Someone asked for Tatsu with a CM1328… and this isn’t exactly that, but it’s something like. The CM1328 should probably be a bit bulkier, but that front grip can be unbolted to let this thing be mounted to a vehicle or tripod. It works.

Also, I hadn’t had a chance to use this environment model yet. It’s from Stonemason, one of my favourite environmental modellers. ‘Streets of Japan,’ it’s called. I feel like I’ve been there since it’s based on a Tokyo neighbourhood. Of course, the only thing almost as ubiquitous as the vending machines is the 24-hour/7-11 shops. Sigh. I wanna go back!

The art is up for Mask of the Demon. Click the image to go to ArtStation and see. Enjoy, but be aware that it’s not all suitable for work.

The second Tatsu Yamada book, Mask of the Demon, is now out. And now the race is on to see if I can keep coming up with Something of the Something titles for this series!

• Smashwords.
• Amazon ASIN: B09RKKYNBC
  • US
  • UK
  • CA
  • DE
  • AU

Also, whoever asked to see the bike, well, that’s the bike.

So, according to the BBC, it’s already 2022 in Australia. Hopefully, they’re now having a better year than the rest of us. They had a pretty bad one last year. Of course, so did the western side of America. And pretty much everyone else. Hm.

Some girls in catsuits. Reminded me of that spy thing with the three teenage girls, whatever that was. Which is appropriate. You’ll find out why when the next DH book comes out.

Forward to 2022! May it be… not worse than 2019, 2020, 2021…

I’m busy writing the fifth Death’s Handmaiden novel, so here’s Nava wishing you all a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Honest. She’s really happy for you all. Really.

I was planning to post this a bit earlier, but this has turned out to be a more interesting Christmas than expected, so this is late. Well, those in America will probably see it while it’s still Christmas…

Have a good one (whatever you celebrate) and there’s more of Nava and friends coming in February or March after more Tatsu and friends in January/February.