STORY52 Project Update February

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My short story project is progressing really well. Today, I’ve reached another important milestone that keeps the entire project on track for completion this year.

Since the beginning of the year, I’ve designed all 52 book covers — roughly one cover per day. Today, I officially completed that phase of the process.

Here’s the current status of the project (out of 52 stories):

  • 52 book covers designed
  • 52 stories written
  • 18 stories edited
  • 18 stories translated
  • 13 stories published

If I can maintain the one-story-per-week release schedule, Story No. 52 will be released on November 9, 2026. That gives me a small buffer — about seven weeks until the new year starts — in case I miss a Monday somewhere along the way.

Once the project is complete, it will free up time to focus on something new. I might explore publishing short stories in magazines or e-zines to reach new readers — we’ll see.

The good news is: STORY52 is absolutely doable this year.

If you’ve missed one of the free giveaways, don’t worry. I’ve planned to offer each story as a free download for five days, repeating once per year — indefinitely. So if you follow me here on the website, on X, or sign up for the mailing list, you won’t miss any of them. Within a year, you’ll be able to collect all 52 stories at no cost — guaranteed.

Here’s the list of the stories already published:

  1. Black Market Dreams (US – DE)
  2. The Last Portrait (US – DE)
  3. The Companion (US – DE)
  4. Statues (US – DE)
  5. Those who go to war (US – DE)
  6. The Red Button (US – DE)
  7. The Asylum (US – DE)
  8. Protocol Twilight (US – DE)
  9. Killtime (US – DE)
  10. The Last President (US – DE)
  11. The Wheel (US – DE)
  12. The Equation (US – DE)
  13. Turing-Test (US – DE)

The Importance of Having a Routine

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Yesterday, I didn’t post on my blog. I had the time, I had a stable internet connection, and I even had plenty of ideas saved in my swipe file. Yet I still didn’t write anything. The simple reason is… I forgot.

I recently moved. In my new place, I have a bigger basement for my training equipment, which means I no longer need to go to the gym. I can simply work out at home. Since the move, I haven’t missed a single day of training. I think it’s because it’s so easy to walk down a few stairs and start exercising that it quickly became a routine.

That’s the same way I also approach writing.

Some people aim for a certain word count each week. Others write six days in a row and take Sunday off. Some crazy authors can sit down only when inspiration strikes, then not write again for days or even weeks. Whatever works for you is great — stick with it.

But for me, I have to write every day to make it a habit. If I miss a single day, it becomes harder to start again the next day. So if I want to make my life easier, I simply shouldn’t skip a day.

For blogging, I need to create a routine as well. Otherwise, I might forget to write — and once I miss a day, it becomes harder to begin the next post.

Before going to bed, I usually watch some sports. While watching a Super Bowl rerun, seeing the Mavs miss the playoffs, or witnessing my favorite soccer club, Borussia Dortmund, being beaten by Bayern Munich yet again, I can easily write one of my short 30-minute blog posts.

Once the routine is established, daily blogging should become effortless — just like everything else I do as part of my daily routine.

Get My Latest Short Story Turing-Test for Free (STORY52 No. 13)

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Another Monday, another free short story book from me. Turing-Test is available in German and English until Friday. You can get a copy here:

US | https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GM7B7N1C
DE | https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0GM796L1M

Synopsis:

No one has ever passed the test. Even today, the two supervisors are certain that no one will succeed. But then a subject gives answers that no machine should be capable of knowing …

An existential sci-fi short story, approximately 1,200 words long.

As always, please leave me a review if you liked the story, thanks.

A Marketing Lesson from the UFC

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I’m watching the UFC as I write these lines. Before my health went downhill, I was a martial arts student myself. I would never compare myself to real fighters like those in the octagon, but I shared the same passion for the sport—a passion that hasn’t faded, even with declining health.

Yesterday, there was a major MMA event in Germany called FNC (Fighting National Championship). It was heavily promoted across sports networks and looked very professional. The rules are the same as in the UFC, and I’m fairly sure the fighters are on a comparable level.

Still, I didn’t stick around to watch the full FNC event, mainly because I didn’t recognize a single fighter by name.

Now, as I’m watching the UFC today, I realize that I don’t know many of the fighters either—aside from the headliner, Bautista vs. Oliveira.

So why am I watching the UFC but not FNC?

The answer is simple: the UFC brand has value in and of itself, while FNC doesn’t—at least not for me.

UFC events are something I automatically check out. They’re part of my regular sports entertainment routine. FNC, on the other hand, is something I had never really encountered before.

The product itself may be comparable in many ways. Yet here I am, indifferent to FNC while treating UFC events as a must-watch whenever I get the chance.

Dana White has simply succeeded in getting into my head—so much so that I consume his product even when I barely know the fighters involved.

A Lesson from Star Trek: The Next Generation

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Netflix recently canceled The Abandons. I haven’t seen the show yet, but I was excited about the premise and the people involved, so I added it to my watchlist to give it a try soon.

It seems the series ends on a cliffhanger, and since Netflix has already announced the cancellation, we’ll never get a resolution—just like with so many other streaming shows.

What Netflix doesn’t seem to understand is a basic lesson of storytelling: sometimes a story needs time to develop. That applies to the world, the plot, and especially the characters.

Seinfeld, The Office, and even Breaking Bad needed a few episodes to find their tone—and their audience. The best example I can think of is Star Trek: The Next Generation.

The first season isn’t good. In fact, it’s bad compared to what the show eventually became. Luckily, the network didn’t pull the plug. In season two, the series experimented with a different tone and more philosophical ideas. By season three, it had established itself as an all-time great, delivering five years of sci-fi perfection.

The first season of The Simpsons wasn’t great either. But the network allowed the creators to experiment, and they went on to create one of the most successful and longest-running shows in TV history.

In short: Let stories develop.

Netflix produces a lot of trash. It would be better to focus resources on fewer projects and give creators the time and freedom to develop them properly.

And this is a general lesson for storytelling: if you have a premise you love, stick with it. Develop it year by year, book by book, issue by issue.

Sometimes greatness just needs some time to unfold.