Life of Fiction: Videos

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 149: Shhhh,....I'm not really here (yet)

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 31 Aug 2026 13:03:45 GMT

I'm having a GREAT TIME!

Pretty sure, I am.

Yeah.

Hope so.

Were gonna go with definitely having a good time.

Positive thinking and all that stuff.

I'll give a full report when I get back for real.

Have a lovely day. Have a fanTASTIC week!

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *Time Lord* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 148: Season finale, trampolines, and I'm going camping!

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 12:07:42 GMT

This is THE week…

I'm going camping…with ALL my kids, and ALL my grandkids…

….and I'm even bringing my WIFE!
(and her mom)

The rest is all in the video…

Have a SUPER day. Have an even BETTER week!

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *Mountain Man* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

Buy The Hero Within Beta!

☕ Morning Coffee 147: The Hero Within Game...100 copies. Grab one.

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 17 Aug 2026 15:04:38 GMT

ahhhhHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

This is so good, I'm still pinching myself.

Ow, that hurts!

…shut up, you.

Oodles and oodles of fun that's HERE, right NOW! The Hero Within is playable!!!!

The Hero Within made some fun strides as we play tested and sent out copies across the country to see what others could find…

We are all having a blast.

We are so close to forming this into a permanent game and launch, so I'm taking the next step of faith and offering the Beta Version onward to 100 people, right now, who are willing to back this last step of progress.

100 copies. 100 families. $25 one-time purchase.

You will get:

The 3.5.1 version with the Learn by reading rules;
The detailed rules, the character sheet;
6 pre-made characters to jump-start your game;
A single test adventure to play with your friends and family;
Every update (free, of course) up to publication;
A complete PDF version of the complete, published version;
The first FOUR (4) module adventures (which we are selling from $9.99-$12.99 each);
…and your name in the back of the main game set, as well as those first 4 modules, as a thank you.

When they are gone, they are gone.

The rest is all in the video…

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *Game Guru-ish* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 146: New & Upcoming Treats...and off to the Hospital (again),

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 10 Aug 2026 15:26:42 GMT

Have to make this quick...

I'm off to the hospital this morning and I'll have to battle work traffic to get there.

Making fanTASTIC progress with the new game.

The Hero Within made 2 full transformations over last week, and now we are at version 3.2 (I was wrong, it wasn't 4.0 yet).

Though I hope to have this for everyone, the main people I hope this will work for are families. An actual family TTRPG…to make mom/dad/grandpa/grandma the cool ones in the eyes of the kiddies.

If I DO pull this off, you should be able to have a blast and play with a 7 year old, up to grandpa, and even entertain the veteran TTRPG players!

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *Taleweaver* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 145: 100 Weeks of Chronicles, Video Games with Desmond & Monday before Friday

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 14:34:00 GMT

Fridays chapter of ‘Chronicles’ is now live for Paid Supporters.

I know you didn't ask for it, but the fact that you support me so the lights stay on and I can offer all these treats to everyone else?

You're awesome,…and I want to do more for you.

That starts with giving you access 5 days earlier than everyone else.

So there's that, plus shorts stories, and I'm working on new 'perks’ (check out that link in the menu)!

There will be special perks for annual subscribers and Hearthkeepers (but there's only 50 Hearthkeeper slots available per year)…

Prelude to a Hero is now available in ePUB.

Wanted to point that out, because many have asked. Took me a while to get all the links and extra information coordinated, and it's done. I'm planning on leaving it at $2.99,…and as always, I make sure the files are created to fit your preferred reading app/device.

","action":null,"class":null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton">Grab Prelude to a Hero! -->

I got to play 7 Days to Die with a new friend…

Go check out Desmond Robertson. You won't regret it.

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *the-chicken-wrangler* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 144: OMGoodness...IT'S SO GOOD!!

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 14:08:14 GMT

I'm I finally "that”guy? Probably not…but I'm close.

This week has already promised me to be magical.

Not JUST because you and I get to spend some time together this morning, but because things I've been working on faithfully for over a year are coming to fruition.

Even more comes to life next week.

…and then HUGE projects I've dedicated more than a thousand hours to come to life after THAT!

See what I mean by magical?

Aren't you glad you hang out with a crazy person like me?

……

That was rhetorical.

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *giggle-bear* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 143: Old Men, Whipped Cream, Measles & Coloring Books.

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 14:40:04 GMT

Measles are miserable, and not an experience I recommend.

Just looking around at the tiny bodies in our front room, sprawled across the couch, on air mattresses and hunched in camping chairs…

It makes me itch.

A lot.

Welcome to the Buckley house, where we love you, feed you, make sure you get your nasty-tasting-but-helpful-herbal tinctures on time, switch between Acetaminophen and Ibuprofen to keep that 103 fever under control, and keep the air conditioner on 24/7 to take the edge off.

What a week!

Most of my attention has been on family, but I've not been a slacker by any means. Chapters written, art created for speed drawings, and side projects finally coming to a completed close for August!

WooHOOOO!

That's it. That's all I've got.

Hey……I'm tired.

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *don't-cough-on-me* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 142: Almost There...

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 14:37:51 GMT

The systems are now in place. Now i test them.

Oh crap, let's hope they WORK!

I know I may be rambling this morning…so sorry about that…I'm just feeling SO GIGGLY, it was challenging to keep my stuff together to film.

Almost a full year of intense effort is about to pay off, and all the benefits are for YOU.

Yes…you.

Don't look at me like that.

Who did you THINK I was doing this for?

[shakes head]

Right. Watch the video, have a great day and if you have ONE GOAL TODAY — make sure it's bringing someone new to Life of Fiction.

Well, no.

FIRST goal should be tell your significant other that you LOVE them.

THEN find a new person to tell about Life of Fiction.

Priorities.

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *almost-always-giggling* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 141: HAPPY REBELS DAY!

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 06 Jul 2026 16:16:59 GMT

I was here for the 200th Anniversary of this country.

I'm gonna try to be here for the 300th.

DID YOU PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT'S HAPPENED ACROSS THIS COUNTRY?

America is worth celebrating.

I am so grateful for the greatest gift of liberty this world has ever witnessed, and I hope you are as well. Those of us who live in this country are more blessed than any other people on Earth.

My thanks go out to God, my ancestors who fought and died to give me this liberty, my parents who gave me birth, and the men and women who KEEP defending these liberties I love so much.

My hope is that you had a wonderful holiday, that you were and are loved, and that things only continue to get better!

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *buckles* Buckley

P.S. — IF you are a writer or game designer, DO NOT MISS THIS LAST CHANCE. The Advanced Worldbuilding Course is likely to be one of the best resources you'll ever have to expand your worldbuilding skills. This is the biggest discount I offer, and there are 5 coupons left. That's it.

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 140: Normalcy, fires,...and a message from the 'cool' dad'.

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 29 Jun 2026 14:20:42 GMT

This is ALL ABOUT YOU!

You get that, right?

I hope you get that. I try my darndest to tell you each week…that the reason I'm here and that I still write and share stories, games, and more, is because you matter.

You matter to me, you matter to those around you.

Keep that in mind as you watch me babbling for 20 minutes, okay?

This is YOUR fault.
…in a good way.
(wink)

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *the-cool-dad* Buckley

P.S. — IF you are a writer or game designer, DO NOT MISS THIS SALE. The Advanced Worldbuilding Course is likely to be one of the best resources you'll ever have to expand your worldbuilding skills. This is the biggest discount I offer, and it's for one day only.

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 139: Father's Day, Marriage Proposals & AI Tools

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 19:17:17 GMT

Ever found yourself at a fork in the road of life and not sure which path to take?

That's where I'm at.

I am blessed.
I've achieved a great deal in my life.
I'm also very hopeful about the future.

…but I have to make some choices that conflict with my beliefs and goals.

Do I use a tool that seems to anger a huge swath of the creative community, or lean into what I've been shown, so I can continue to write freely, even if i can't draw?

I'd ask what would you do, but you're not me.

I've been drawing for 55 years.
I've clocked a minimum of 197,100 hours drawing.
I've had close to 1000 clients since 1986.
I've won awards and made a great living drawing for other people.
I've received 5 Stars from EVERY client I ever had (100% true).
I've created and sold comic books which have had well over 1 million downloads (and counting).
I've gone through hand surgeries…
I've had carpal tunnel in both hands…
I've broken my hands and fingers multiple times…
I've got arthritis.

…and I'm quickly losing my ability to draw my wonderful characters.

The characters I've lived with since 1990, and who I am committed to telling their stories to the world.

So I am searching diligently to find other ways to bring my creations to life, IF I cannot use my own hands.

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *never-gives-up* Buckley

P.S. — If you’re a writer and you’re new here, check the links below. Anne from Tell Me a Mystery runs a weekly writing stream where we hang out, visit for an hour, and do writing sprints. It’s low-key and it’s good.

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 138: I lost my shorts in public...

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 14:43:21 GMT

It is so challenging, trying to get healthy again.

That’s not a complaint, just a fact.

Who knew I could ride a bike a mile, let alone FIVE miles, and still walk afterwards.

…I just couldn’t do it up and over a bridge, with 1000 people watching me, that’s all.

Just watch the video, it’ll make sense.

Promise.

Have a great day. Have an even greater week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *the-bike-master* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

Morning Coffee 137: Internet Down...so what.

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 08 Jun 2026 14:21:56 GMT

Right.

Zero internet.

That’s okay. Here’s the video. Uploading from my phone…and i will fix all the details after the fact when Xfinity decides to do their job.

So sorry Ann, I wont be able to join you this morning for the writing sprint…but hopefully Wednesday!

You all have a great day, a better week…and remember:

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Jaime

☕ Morning Coffee 136: I got nothing.

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 13:04:20 GMT

Seriously…I got nothing.

Sorry about that. Not what to do…because I did all I could all week long and everything wanted to rebel.

Right.

Okay, so that was a thing.
Survived, yes, but wow it was a challenging week.

That’s it.

The rest you can listen to in the video….

Oh. …and here’s your treat today:

…for Mac users.

…for Windows users.

Just right click and “Save image as” to your desktop and use it from there.

Have a great week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *refuse-to-give-up* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 135: Memorial Day, Birthday, Wanted Hero Day,...and 57% Off Sale!

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 25 May 2026 13:03:41 GMT

…AAAAAND I FORGOT to tell you about my daughter Asia!

She’s still pregnant.

That’s not the point.
That I could have a grandchild ON MY BIRTHDAY….THAT’S the point!!

So close.

Soooooooo close, and she is SO done being pregnant.

I’m gonna pretend it doesn’t matter to me and she should just have the baby now.

Remember… SALE this week.

Everything digital is on sale. Both on Lifeoffiction.com and on JaimeBuckley.com.

Go on….TREAT yourself!

Have a great week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *completely-tired* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 134: Welcomes, Birthdays, & When to Club Your Nephew With a Pipe.

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 18 May 2026 14:25:57 GMT

Good MORNIN’ you!

Feeling good. REAL good.

SUCH a good week.

Wanted to make sure I said a special hello to , , , , , , Boris Bodwell, , , and .

Welcome, all of you, to our lovely little community!

Okay…I’m moving on to start writing for the day =)

Watch the video. Tells it all.

Have a great week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *the-gigglemaster* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 133: We Are So Back

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 11 May 2026 17:01:52 GMT

We are so back.

4 in the morning, two pages of notes, and I am genuinely excited to be here with you.

First — welcome.

We had 19 new subscribers join this community last week!

WOW.

Probably the most in a single week we’ve ever seen.

So I want to say good morning to , , , , cgonnelle, , cstoddard, , j.butterfield, , (paid supporter - THANK YOU), , (paid supporter - THANK YOU), , kavitajsus, tim.narey, Where I Break Open, , and .

Welcome, all of you.
I’m so glad you’re here.

Life of Fiction is now being read in 41 states and 41 countries. That’s not nothing. That’s pretty remarkable for a small community of the best people on Substack.
A quick note to those who only put their email in — no name. I see you. I love you. My readers have always been 90% lurkers, the sweetest people who’ll email me personally but don’t show themselves online. That’s fine. But at least tell me your name so I can say good morning properly.

Mother’s Day Adventure at Walmart

So yesterday I went on a mission with Roman (11) and Ruby (7, going on 45). The kids wanted to do something for their mom and their grandma, who lives with us. I don’t usually shop on Sundays, but they had their own money saved and big hearts, so off we went.

They wanted to buy the whole store. We had a talk. Pool your money, agree on something, no arguments, and older doesn’t mean you get to decide, Roman.
In about seven seconds flat they both gravitated to the same big gorgeous bouquet — yellow roses with deep orange-red fading on the edges. They had just enough money between them. I offered to pay. They said no. I was so proud I didn’t know what to do with myself.
Then we found a teddy bear bigger than Ruby. Kathy loves teddy bears — last one she got was before Roman was born. So, yeah. We found one.
Grandma’s obsession is turtles. Hundreds of them. Every kind, porcelain to lawn ornaments. We hunted the whole store. Finally found one and a short buff guy who looked like an older biker, climbed the shelves, fell off the shelves, grabbed it by the head, handed it to Ruby. Perfect dad-lesson delivered by a stranger.
Ruby picked a card for Grandma that made her cry. Roman picked a card for his mom — she laughed out loud. I kept my name off both cards. This was from those two kids. They got all the credit. As it should be.

Happy Mother’s Day. That includes the single dads out there carrying both roles. I see you too.

Photos and My Sister

Anyone else getting bombarded by Dropbox Plus and Apple Cloud upgrade emails? It got me thinking.

We just bought cameras for kids going on school trips and graduation outings. I told them how lucky they are — when I was young, you had 24 exposures on a roll of film, had to drive to a little kiosk that was barely big enough to stand in, wait three days, and then find out your thumb was in the way the whole time.
My sister Michal Ann visited from Washington this week. She takes pictures I actually want to look at. Everyone was laughing, kids were crawling over Aunt Michal Ann, grandson Tossie was sitting on his mom’s lap making the wildest expressions. Turns out my daughter Wynnie was making faces at him and he was copying her.
We also got one of my kids a Polaroid. The new mini kind. I’m telling you right now, the film is expensive and the photos are the size of a postage stamp. Should’ve just bought digital and printed at Walmart.

My Community Right Now

Small farming town, maybe a thousand people. And I need to say again…I have the best neighbors in the world.

There’s a measles outbreak moving through our community right now. A particular strain that can cause severe light sensitivity…some kids have been kept in dark basements for days because light exposure could damage their vision. Whole families getting hit like a wave.
When moms get sick, who takes care of everyone? Moms. And our moms are down too. What I’ve been hearing from neighbors is that other women in this community…wives, mothers themselves…are going house to house, sitting up through the night, caring for sick children and exhausted families. More than once. Quietly. Nobody asking for credit.
My wife wants to help but we’re holding back because one of our daughters is close to having a baby, and this strain of measles carries serious risks at her stage of pregnancy. So we wait. And we’re grateful.

I grew up in California.
Most of my neighbors there were not kind people.

I moved here and I haven’t met a single person in this town I don’t like.
Not one.
My two closest friends both live within three blocks.
That doesn’t happen by accident.

I’m very blessed and I know it.

What’s Coming This Week

I owe you an apology.

Last week’s cover said Chronicles of a Hero was restarting May 8th. I misspoke — it was supposed to be this Friday. I couldn’t make it happen on that date, and saying something and not following through is not my character. Some of you told me to say “oops” and move on.

So: oops.

Here’s what this week actually looks like:

Tuesday — Lore
Wednesday — Artwork / Speed Drawing (first one in a while, I’ve missed it)
Friday — Chronicles of a Hero chapters restart

The Life of Fiction Podcast is also coming back.
We stopped at episode 64.

Life hit hard and I took time to figure out what the show actually needs to be.

I think you’re going to love it.

I’m not telling you what it is yet because I have a plan and plans need to be built before they’re announced.

A Question for You — Audio

I’ve had a lot of requests for Chronicles audiobooks.
I hear you.

Hiram, I know you drive a truck. A lot of you are listening through Substack’s AI voice and it’s mangling character names and pronunciation.

Here’s my question:
I don’t have a studio, and I don’t have unlimited time. But I could do casual readings — me, live, no heavy editing, probably a few stumbles.

Real.

If that’s better to you than the AI voice, I’ll make it happen.
Let me know in the comments.

Hiram, I especially want to hear from you.

One Last Thing — Truly Found Grandpa on YouTube

My granddaughter Truly dug up old footage of me on YouTube from my Twitch days.

Truly found those old videos and started copying me while I drew. My daughter saved the drawings. I got Truly’s versions of what I was making on screen.

That’s it.
That’s the whole thing.
That’s a good week right there.

Thank you for being part of this community.
I’ve got surprises…things I genuinely want to tell you right now…but you’ll have to wait.

Have a great week.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *back-in-the-saddle* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 132: May the 4th be with you.

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 04 May 2026 16:59:00 GMT

Dang it. I lost my 4’ Yoda doll.

Seriously. I had an inflatable Yoda I would put out front of the house today, and I could not find it in storage…so that’s a blown year.

Dang it.

Well regardless….

…AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY to !

Been a lot of birthdays this month already!

First Ruby, then Wynnie, Joseph, my brother Jonathan is the 13th, and mine is on the 27th. There are more int he family….but I forgot what they dates are. I believe we have a May 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 13 (x2), 14, 18, 21, 23,...and then mine, 27th.

That’s between my wife and kids, and my brothers and sisters and their kids…

Wow…I think May is our busiest birthday month of the year.

WooHOO!

My Question About Referral Prizes

Seriously, what digital item could I create that you would share Life of Fiction to get your hands on? Let me know!!

I want to make them digital gifts, so I can automate the process and make sure you GET the gifts via Substack and we don’t have to rely on me remembering (embarrassed grin).

Let me explain the choices in more detail:

Exclusive Chronicles novella (never sold, 10k+ words, bridges book)
Complete character art collection (every main character, drawn by me, in color, high-res)
Full digital product bundle ($200+ value: all activity packs, curriculum guides, printables)
Executive producer credit in next Chronicles project (book, game, or music album)
Name a major recurring character in a Book (credited in acknowledgments)

I’m thinking about the tiers being 5, 15 and 50 referrals.

If you can think of something else you’d prefer, let me know in the comments. I’ll consider anything reasonable…or slightly unreasonable.

(grin)

Just enjoy the day…..

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *the-NON-Orca-swimmer* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!

☕ Morning Coffee 131: 150 Weeks — Wild Orcas, AI Sludge, and Why Being You is Enough

Jaime Buckley 💎 — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 14:19:06 GMT

Morning.

150 weeks of doing this together?!?

That’s SO cool.

Look what Substack sent me this morning!

I’m sitting here with my hot drink—some dandelion something that isn’t coffee, isn’t tea, but beats Pero by a mile. Small win before 6 AM.

This week feels like January to me. Brand new year energy.

Why?

Because I’m finally wrapping up a project I’ve been buried in for almost a year
Season 6 of Chronicles of a Hero is done
I’m excited to get back to all the things I’ve had to shelve.

There’s so much happening in the world of publishing and Substack right now, and I’ve got this feeling there’s going to be a massive migration coming.

A lot of famous names are joining Substack. Some people are saying that makes discovery harder for the rest of us.

I don’t see it that way.

Every big name brings their audience over.
They’re bringing new fans for everybody.
A bigger pool.
More opportunity.

Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t think I am.

The way media and the world are going right now, there’s so much lying.

I go to YouTube and everything feels like clickbait.

Channels I loved for two years?
Won’t watch them anymore.

There isn’t uniqueness or personality anymore. Everything feels and looks and tastes the same.

Except for those who are not.

I just want to tell stories.
I want to have fun.
I want to take you deeper into mystery and magic and... yeah, lots of stuff.

Let’s get back to some normalcy.

And here’s the thing: if you are authentically you and your stories don’t suck… you’re still in business.

If you’re consistent and authentic, eventually you’re going to stand out like gold.

Everyone else seems to be chasing fads or AI or whatever.
Everything eventually becomes the same.

Except for those who aren’t.

Quick shift.

My son tried to swim with wild orcas over the weekend.

I know.

My boys flew out to Oregon with some friends for a weekend of roleplaying. They went down to Pebble Beach to watch the seals. He climbed down to about 10 feet from the water to get a better shot.

All of a sudden, two black fins come up and head toward the seals.

Two orcas.
Two killer whales.

He looks at me while telling the story and says, “Dad, I can’t tell you how badly I wanted to just jump in the water and swim with them.”

I’m like, what?

He says, “There’s not a single documented case of a wild orca ever attacking a human being. All the cases where someone was attacked were from captivity. Four out of the five attacks? Same whale.”

I’m like, “What happens if you were wrong and they did attack you?”

He says excitedly, “Well, then it would be awesome. I’d be the first documented case.”

Dude. Dude. Dude.

I have such weird kids.

Awesome weekend.

I’m excited about this week. My project will finally kick off.
Wish me luck.

But everything else? Life is great. Life is really great.

You have more opportunities than ever before. More tools available than ever before. Easier ways to make connections with people than ever before.

Nobody can stand in your way!

Go do something amazing.
Go change the world.
Make it a better place.

That’s what I’m trying to do.

Don’t try to be the best. Be the only.

You are MORE than you THINK you are!

Until Next Time,

Jaime *the-NON-Orca-swimmer* Buckley

Want to contribute, but don’t want to do it through a paid subscription? Why not consider helping Jaime with supplies or gear to keep LoF going? Or maybe send him a treat for all his hard work (Coke Zero, yum)? He keeps a public list of what he’s saving up for…

Remember:

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY mornings at 9am Pacific, ’s Ann Kimbrough, will encourage you, make you smile, and give you that much-needed nudge to accomplish your weekly writing progress!!