After about 6 years of monthly writing updates, I finally missed two in a row. Sorry folks. This winter was rough. Like, super rough. Turns out that writing a horrible dystopian novel, while a horrible dystopian reality unfolds, in the middle of the cold, dreary winter, is really hard on your brain. Who’da figured?
This year’s Write-bernation wasn’t nearly as productive as last years. I managed about 60k in comparison to the mid-90’s of last year. About a 35% drop. That puts me more than a month behind schedule in my publishing plans and is forcing me to either alter or abandon a whole bunch of marketing stuff I’d hoped to do with the next book. At this point, it’ll be a rush to have print copies ready for Capercon and Y-con. Editing/formatting of Shunt, my dystopian horror, is underway.
The good news is that the feedback from my test readers has been really positive. Lots of “interesting and very unsettling”. Which is good. It’s not a “Boo! Scared you!” type of horror, and more of a “My god, that would be awful to experience” style. There’s stuff to fix in the draft, but it’s pretty solid and won’t require more than a few adjustments of the dials to tone up and down certain elements. It helps that I did a major revision at the halfway mark and straightened out a lot of the issues in February.
I’ve been sitting on the cover since before Hal-con, and have been showing off a poster I had made to lucky in-person people, but it’s time to reveal the cover to everyone and explain what the book is about. Here’s a temporary “book back blurb” I’ve been working on and the amazing art by Elizabeth Ranger.
In a future where food is indigestible without filtration, the world’s poor survive on nutrients strained through the esophageal shunts of the rich. While some will do anything they can to upgrade their status and join the ranks of the elite, when poor people start being violently murdered through the filtered food they consume, others embark on a dangerous investigation into the truth.
It’s quite a ride, I assure you, and is more than a little stomach churning.
As much as I think it’s turned out well, I’ll be happy to put thoughts of miserable futures behind me on my next project. Navigator Gods is all queued up, but I likely won’t start working on the actual draft until June, after Y-Con.
Speaking of Y-Con, I’ve submitted another request to do a panel. I’m calling it Theme by Scene: What’s the Point of Creative Fiction? I’ll be going over a bit of how to differentiate plot, character arc, and theme, and how each of those elements work on a scene-by-scene level to keep them all rolling to their ultimate destination relatively smoothly. Should be lots of fun, if you’re into that sort of thing. Haven’t gotten official confirmation, but finger’s crossed. I expect it’ll happen.
I attended the first ever Death-Con in Kentville a few weeks ago. It was a smaller event, but what a wonderful concentration of folks it was! Very enthusiastic crowd, lots of fun, and a few dozen books when home to new owners. I’m definitely excited for next year!
While Death-Con broke my winter sales hiatus, my season officially starts on May 10th, when I’ll be back at my regular post at the Bridgewater Farmer’s Market. Any week that I’m not at another event, you’ll be able to find me there, selling books, story cards, stickers, bookmarks, mystery envelopes, bags, and on-the-spot stories! You know, the whole kit-n-kaboodle.
A little sidenote; I don’t think I’m doing another serial novel again any time soon. While Patchworld Nova is selling fantastically live, the whole “release a chapter a month online” didn’t really pan out with the attention I’d hoped it would. Turns out, in the age of binge-watching shows, waiting a whole month between chapters is too long for anyone to care. There’s a fair bit of serial fiction happening out there, but posts are weekly, at least. When/if I do another, it’ll be re-structured, to be a shorter timeline. Also, the next few books are shorter, on that fringe between novella and novel, with the intention of putting them into Kindle Unlimited. And Kindle Unlimited is very picky about exclusivity, so posting chapters serially is a big no-go if I want the final result to go to them. It was a nice experiment. I learned a lot, but I have no plans to attempt it again.
I hope everyone else made it though the winter better than I did. The weather’s getting warmer and the buds on the branches are a welcome sight. Things are looking up!
Stay creative out there. The world needs weirdos with big dreams now more than ever!
If you’d like my strange stories and want to help supporting my writing…
1. Buy my books. For yourself or as gifts for the unsuspecting. It’s all on Amazon.
2. Rate and review my books on Amazon or Goodreads. This one is HUGE and wildly appreciated.
3. If you read something of mine, let people know. Either lend them a book you bought, or mention it on social media. Word of mouth is awesome for indie authors.