Update: Bounty 2, More Conference Appearances, and a Self-Pub Project?

A look ahead to what's up for 2026

Well, it's been a while since I used this blog, and in 2026, I'm hoping to do this a bit more often to keep folks updated on what's going on in the land of Jason Pchajek, promote a few upcoming projects, and maybe even flex the old sports writing muscles I've let atrophy for a bit too long.

But first, we have a bit of ground to cover for what's ahead in 2026!

Summer Conference and Convention Line-up

I'm going to do a bit of travelling again this summer, but unlike last year when I made the jaunt down to Seattle for Worldcon 2025 as a speaker, it'll be mainly within Canada this time around. So here's where I'll be, and what I'll be doing.

May 27th to 29th: CanLit, Writing, Publishing and Pedagogy Conference (Winnipeg)

Starting things off will be a conference in my own backyard. The University of Winnipeg will be playing host to this conference that'll feature some interesting guests and conversations on the U of W campus.

At the CanLit conference I'm happy to announce that I will be speaking about climate fiction! A topic near and dear to my heart! Copies of Bounty will also be on sale at the event, so if you still don't have a copy, you can snag one there, and I'd be more than happy to sign it for you if you'd like!

June 12th to 14th: Scintillation 7 (Montreal)

I've never been to Montreal before, so this one has me very excited. The seventh running of the Scintillation conference will be taking place at the Holiday Inn Chinatown, and while I am not as of yet on the docket to speak at the event (fingers crossed), I will be there to meet folks ahead of Worldcon 2027 next year!

June 15th to 16th: Science Writers and Communicators of Canada Conference (Montreal)

Well, Scintillation will not be the only event I'm in Montreal for, as I'm happy to announce that I'm scheduled to speak at the SWCC Conference right after! For those who were around for my Fiction in the Age of Climate Change talk at Keycon 2025 in Winnipeg, this will be a bit of deja-vu, as I'll be presenting a revised and punched-up version of that at SWCC.

Bounty: A Price to Pay Update

Just in case you missed the big news a few weeks ago, my publisher Turnstone Press made the official announcement on February 13th that my next novel, Bounty: A Price to Pay, is in the works!

Straight from the press release: "the second installment of Jason Pchajek's Argite Cycle series follows Nikos and Mack as they venture into unknown territory, the domed mega-city of Phoenix, in pursuit of their target Castor Roy, while their companion Maria is left to wage a one woman fight against the Eden's Purpose remnant still stirring up trouble in Winnipeg."

Sounds exciting right? Now there's no fixed release date yet, but the hope is to have it in readers' hands in 2027. The current draft is with my editor, and I'm awaiting feedback, so stay tuned! Updates will be here, and on BlueSky.

Making the Self-Pub Plunge!

Well, if you've been following some of my posts on social media, you may have heard that I've been working in the background on a fantasy heist novel. After some hard work, and a lot of thought, I've decided to take the plunge with self-publishing! I've hired a good friend of mine as an editor, because she does amazing work and is more than happy to be mean to me if she thinks my work sucks, and am currently on the hunt for someone to do the cover art, layout, and design.

This is my first time going the self-pub route, and I want to throw everything I've got into this. I believe in this story, and what I've written, and while I'm still open to it being picked up by an agent of traditional publisher, the siren's call of self-pub has me hooked.

I'll be sharing more details about the project, and my journey in publishing it, very soon. Stay tuned!

The future of this blog

Now for the more complicated bit. Over the last few weeks I've been debating how best to use this blog. I've never been good at playing the social media game, and if I'm being honest, I tend to just put my head down a write (not that I think there's anything wrong with that). But from time to time I pop back to this site to check metrics, and the blog section sits there, staring blankly at me.

Anyways, I recently had a chance to pay a visit to me old journalistic stomping ground, and got into a long conversation with the current Editor-in-Chief. For those of you who don't know, prior to my current day job, I worked as a sports reporter, and later editor, at the University of Manitoba newspaper, the Manitoban. These were some of the most fun years of my professional life, and I sorely miss them.

I also missed writing about sports. Although I get some of that out with my weekly radio show (links to that are on this website), there was still something there. So, I've decided to kill two birds with one stone. Fill this blog with activity and scratch that sports writing itch.

While I'm still going to use this blog to update everyone on the progress of my current writing projects, as well as provide links to interviews, podcast appearances, and reviews of my work, I'm also going to make a earnest effort at routinely doing a bit of sports writing. If that's something you're interested in, buckle up, because Reporter Jason is making a comeback!