2 October 2026 · Weekly update

A stronger beginning for Jorgen

This week I returned to Jorgen the Bear, strengthening its opening chapters while preserving the warmth, danger and winter character of Norvisca.

This week I returned to the opening of Jorgen the Bear, the companion prequel that follows a younger Jorgen through the winter country of Norvisca. Opening chapters carry a lot of weight. They have to introduce a place, a family and a way of life while giving the story room to move. My work this week has been about making those first steps clearer and more involving without losing the warmth and rough edges that make Jorgen's early world feel like his own.

The first chapter now gives a stronger sense of the working life around Gyllenfall and lets the early relationships unfold more naturally. Small exchanges have been clarified, practical actions now reach their proper conclusion, and the winter setting feels connected to what the characters are actually doing. These aren't changes that alter the direction of the story. They help the reader settle into it, understand the people around Jorgen and feel the pressure building beneath an ordinary day.

I've also tightened the second chapter so it moves with more purpose. Repeated thoughts and explanations have been pared back, the important physical moments are easier to follow, and Jorgen's fear of what other people may see in him sits more cleanly beside the support offered by those closest to him. I wanted the power in the scene to feel personal before it feels spectacular. That balance matters throughout Power of Heroes, where Essan is never only about what someone can do, but what using it may reveal or cost.

Both revised chapters are now back in the complete working manuscript and have been checked in context, though the novella still has more work ahead before I'd call it ready. For now, it has been lovely to spend a week among the snow, forests and mountain roads of Norvisca again. If you'd like to meet Jorgen and see where his companion story sits beside the main series, you can find him on the books page. Thank you, as always, for following the journey.