THEY CROSSED DIMENSIONS TO UNCOVER THE PAST.

Now they're fighting for the future.

They said humanity had been averaged out of relevance. Then came the girl with blonde hair.

In the far future, after an event known colloquially as The Averaging, all humans look alike—same hair, same eyes, probably same genes. Diversity is nonexistent. Deviations are unheard of. So when Daleon sees a little girl with piercing blue eyes walk into his dusty repair shop, he knows two things: she’s not supposed to exist, and someone’s going to come looking for her.

He just didn’t expect that someone to be traveling with a scavenger from the Westerland.

Bartering Nola is a post-apocalyptic novella about identity, power, and the people we choose to protect when everything falls apart. Set in a forgotten future, it follows Daleon, a reluctant hero, as he’s dragged back into the dangerous world of scavenging—and into a mystery that stretches across dimensions and defies the very laws of nature.

An Echo of Another World

Old iPods. Broken dishwashers. Daleon thought he left scavenging behind for good. But when a man named Rajink offers a DNA scan that opens a gateway to darkness, Daleon must make an impossible choice.

Follow Nola into the dark…

…or let her disappear forever.

Read it because...

• It’s short but cinematic—a 100-page punch to the brainstem.
• It explores a primitive future where technology is treasure and anomalies are dangerous.
• You’ll meet Daleon, Rajink, Obrego, and Nola—four people with very different goals, none of whom can afford to fail.

New Worlds Await

Bartering Nola is not part of the Vinestead Anthology. It’s a standalone novella that explores themes of identity, purity, and control in a world already lost—and a world just waiting to be found.

Whether you're a returning reader or a newcomer, this is your doorway to something different.

Read For Free*

Want a free copy of Bartering Nola? You’ll have to do more than lurk in The Underground.

Join The Syndicate, my paid subscription tier, and you’ll unlock immediate access to a free digital edition of Bartering Nola—along with a growing archive of exclusive content from across the Vinestead Universe and beyond.

💼 Syndicate Membership Includes:

• A free EPUB of Bartering Nola
• Early access to upcoming books
• Signed print editions of major releases (like House of Nepenthe)
• Secret blog posts, fake corporate memos, and in-universe artifacts
• Regular dispatches from the digital shadows

The Syndicate isn’t for everyone. But if you know how deep the rabbit hole goes, this is your next move.