Preview of Red Lotus Audiobook Work-in-Progress on YouTube

Audiobook coming soon!

To those that have been paying attention, the only thing less surprising than announcing an audiobook adaptation of Commanding the Red Lotus is that I have secured the fabulous Danielle Muething to work her narration magic. Danielle has done a fantastic job on all the other titles. Call me crazy (I am, but not for this reason), but I see no reason to mess with success.

Thank you to publisher Hydra Publications for their ongoing support of my efforts.

Darkness With a Chance of Whimsy Audiobook Now Live


I’m not gonna lie, Amazon put this up and out faster than anticipated, based on past experience. Nevertheless, it’s true that your greedy ears can hear Danielle Muething read the ten short stories from my collection now.

This includes Able Bodied, Starter Kit, and Backstage Pass. and of course, Robot Vampire. It’s great stuff, if I do say so myself.

Here are the direct links to get you there:
Audible
Amazon

My Web Page

RJ Gushes About His Audio Book Narrator

Narrator Danielle Muething

NOTE: This blog came about upon Danielle Muething concluding the recording of my latest Audible release, my short story collection Darkness With a Chance of Whimsy. I wanted to update my live blurbs for her and instead ended up writing this couple hundred word blog. Ah, well, it’s what I do.

Back in 2019, starting on my first ever audio book project, Danielle Muething blew me away with her blind audition read. All I knew I wanted at the time was someone who could read my story Haunting Obsession with a convincing “Marilyn Monroe” voice to represent the antagonist ghost of the story. Any narrator who could do that was the best logical choice “voice for hire.”

FREE Audio Story The Assurance Salesman now on YouTube

You can now go to YouTube and listen to one of my more popular stories “The Assurance Salesman” performed by my audiobook narrator and Team RJ VIP Danielle Muething. No, this is not a preview, a scene, or a chapter, this is the entire, complete and unabridged short story, nearly an hour of audio, and you can listen to it for nothing.

What’s the story about? Here’s my nifty one sentence pitch: A man in black disrupts five weary travelers sharing a passenger train carriage to claim he literally holds in his hand the answers to their deepest questions.

Intrigued? Cool, go check it out. No catch, no gimmick. I simply ask that if you like what you hear, you consider going here to support our efforts and buy more similarly awesome tales. Same author, same narrator, but… you know… more. If you do, thank you very much. If not, that’s okay, times are tough. Maybe later. I still sincerely hope you enjoy this free hour. Also, please Like and Subscribe and Comment while you’re there.

This Darkwhimsy Books audio story production includes a cover image by my digital 3D artist and Team RJ VIP Nell Williams, and includes one of my favorite intro / outro music tracks “Rezonata” by composer, keyboardist and Team RJ VIP Jan Pulsford.  Thanks so much to everyone for the hard work you all put into this.

“The Assurance Salesman” is part of my short story collection Darkness with a Chance of Whimsy. And do I even need to say… an audiobook is coming in the near future!

Now enough of that, here’s the free story! Enjoy!

Slimmer, Cheaper, Sexier Haunting Obsession

Just in time for Halloween, the Revised Edition of Haunting Obsession by DarkWhimsy Books is now available in all formats and from all outlets (including the fabulous Audible read by Danielle Muething that never went away). The just-launched paperback features a new interior layout, bonus illustration, and lower price point! Here’s the breakdown.

  • The Revised Edition paperback has a tighter but still easy to read page layout. It’s now 106 pages over the previous 190 pages.
  • With the shorter page count, I dropped the everyday price from $12 to $8!
  • The Revised Edition paperback and ebook still feature the original cover and interior artwork by Bonnie Wasson. but now include her third interior illustration of Rebecca Burton previously only available in the limited edition hardback.

Red Lotus to Relaunch at Hydra

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I’m excited to announce that my Red Lotus series will officially relaunch at Hydra Publications, a publisher that specializes in science fiction and space opera titles and owned by long-time associate Tony Acree. The original ebooks and Commanding the Red Lotus paperback will be re-loaded onto the usual online retail outlets, with new novellas and collections to follow that continue the saga. Watch this space for announcements of dates and links as they become finalized.

Haunting Blue Audio Book Now Live

NEW for 2020
Haunting Blue, my first published novel from 2010, is my second audio book release, and that release is now live. Published by DarkWhimsy Books, Haunting Blue puts Danielle Muething back in the narrator’s booth to repeat (and dare I say exceed) the amazing and dramatic performance similar to Haunting Obsession (Click here to order the Haunting Obsession audio book).

Click the link of your preferred format to order:  Audible        Amazon
Apple (not yet available)
Don’t care about audiobooks? Click here to go to the paperback and ebook page.

Check out this short YouTube Preview

A note to those who have already enjoyed the Haunting Obsession Audio Book:

Haunting Blue Audible Preview

As announced earlier, I’m excited to expand beyond the amazing first splash that is Danielle Muething narrating Haunting Obsession. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, Click Here).

Now Seventh Star Press and my imprint DarkWhimsy Books have partnered to secure Danielle’s narration talents to bring the rest of the trilogy to audio! Danielle is already in the sound booth laying down tracks and voices for Haunting Blue, my first novel and the start of the paranormal adventures of punk girl Blue Shaefer and her boyfriend Chip Farren. Haunting Blue will likely be out on Audible and other popular audiobook options well before summer!

Audiobook Trilogy to Go Forward

The details have been worked out and we are a go!

Last spring, my first-ever audiobook happened. It was a perfect-storm project where the ideal narrator submitted a random audition for a novella she deep-down wanted to land much more than she cared to admit at the time, whose reading blew away the anxious author who fretted that his vision be dramatized by a kindred spirit who “got it” (and knew that boy-howdy did she!). And they were backed by a supportive publisher making their first ventures into audiobook and who knew they had something special.

Steady sales and excellent reviews of Haunting Obsession the Audiobook followed, (also, these promo videos, did you see these awesome videos?) so we’ve decided to finish the trilogy together!

…we’ve decided to finish the trilogy together!

New Videos To Support Haunting Obsession Audiobook

If you missed the Haunting Obsession Halloween Party on Facebook on October 21, you missed out on a lot of fun. We gave away a lot of FREE download codes for the new Haunting Obsession Audible Audiobook and other prizes, and premiered my new Haunting Obsession Elegant Paperdolls book, available at an event near you in 2020.

But we also premiered two new YouTube videos in support of… all of the above, but which mainly showcase the talents of my fabulous audiobook narrator and her hitherto hidden paperdoll performance talents. Danielle Muething not only created these videos and props herself, but she did so within hours of the event.

So here you go! First, enjoy Danielle performing as Paperdoll Maxine Marie singing “I Wanna Be Loved By You.”

Next, Danielle took both paperdolls, built some sets, and created something new. It’s… well, you’ll see.

If you love this, you’ll love how Danielle narrates my sexy ghost story Haunting Obsession and you should click this link to get all the details about ordering the Audible.

If you’re not an Audible type person but still want to order the paperback or ebook, click here!