Happy Holidays. This post is long overdue, and I apologize. I try to do too many things, and some fall by the wayside. I began writing my blog post several years ago, long before I started a newsletter, a podcast, or any of the many other writing projects I tackle. My wildlife posts aren’t long, but they require time to research and write. I know people see them, but I don’t receive much feedback, so I often feel I’m writing in a vacuum. On the other hand, people do respond to my newsletters and podcast. I sell books through my newsletter and podcast, so I tend to concentrate my effort on those two projects. I do not intend to walk away from my blog, though. I want to post every other week, but I think once a month might be a more attainable goal. In any case, I am sorry I have been absent lately.

I hope that you are safe and healthy. It has been a rough two years, and I know we are all ready for things to return to normal (whatever normal is). I know many places in the U.S. had an unseasonably warm fall, but ours here on Kodiak Island was bitterly cold and stormy. It warmed up a few days ago, but we’ve had to deal with one storm after another.

Due to all the nasty weather, I’ve stayed indoors and spent as much time as possible writing. My fifth novel is in the hands of my publisher, and I am now concentrating on my next book. It will be a true-crime book containing several of the Alaska murder and mystery pieces I’ve written for my newsletter. I have decided to group the stories by regions of the state to take the reader on a tour of Alaska. This tour allows me to showcase differences in geography, average temperatures, cultures, and environments around the state. I can also stress distinctions between police-response times from one region to another. Authorities usually respond to a crime in a matter of minutes in Anchorage or Fairbanks, but in a small, remote village, troopers might not arrive for a day or two after the crime occurs.

Although I’ve already written the stories for my true-crime book, I still need to spend a great deal of time editing each story. Then, I will send the text to an editor. I hope to release this book sometime in 2022, but the process always takes longer than I think it should. For a break from the tediousness of editing, I hope to start writing my next novel while working on the true-crime book. I have a rough outline of the story in my head, but I haven’t put it together yet.

My podcast and newsletter audiences are growing at a steady pace. I started a Patreon group called The Last Frontier Club, and it is a way for people to support my podcast and newsletter. In return, I do one or two short podcasts every month that only my patrons can access. I appreciate my patrons and use their contributions to pay for my podcast and author websites, the charges for digging through newspaper archives online, advertising, and the many other memberships a writer and podcaster must join — such as Headliner, Vimeo, Canva, etc.

As you might guess, my New Year’s Resolution is to write more blog posts (and eat less). I promise to be back soon with my next wildlife post, and I will keep you updated with the progress of my latest novel as it moves through the publishing process.

I wish you a wonderful 2022, and I hope by this time next year, we all feel safe in public without wearing a mask.

Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels: Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. She recently released the non-fiction book Kodiak Island Wildlife. Sign up below to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true crime and mystery in Alaska, and listen to her podcast, Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier.

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