(Apologies for the late drop on this post. October started fast and before I realized it, 2 days had blown by on a stiff breeze and blast of heavy metal. Dropping this now with bleary eyes after a fun night with Foo Fighters and AC/DC.)
With the beginning of the school year and the arrival of autumn, I am looking more at the end of the year creeping up on me. I have already received some terrifying emails announcing the remaining number of shopping days until Christmas, I have seen holiday and winter-themed decorations in several stores, and meteorologists are making their winter predictions. It all seems so rushed, so dismissive of all the days and events in between. There is nothing new in that, but it does help to remind me of the value of slowing down, enjoying now while being mindful of the future. Plus my wife and I enjoy the fall – we got married in October – and would rather savor the season.
By now you know I am not an expedient writer. I take my time. I am hardly prolific. But I try to use the time I have to write stories that I can be proud of. Occasionally I find myself in a rut (if you read these posts, you know I struggled badly this year) like this past weekend, when a powerful nor’easter raged up the East Coast and washed away my enthusiasm. Now that the sun has returned, so has my energy.
I am chugging ahead with book 3 of the YA series that occupies most of my writing time. I finally have a chunk of dialogue written to start the book. I was hung up on the main character’s voice for this outing, until I decided upon an approach to his dialogue that I think works well with where he is mentally and emotionally when the story opens. Armed with that, I am confident I can gather some momentum as the year winds down.
I do have an announcement, but I must wait for the publisher to make their announcement first. I hope to share that sometime in October.
Speaking of announcements – you did see my post announcing the launch of the Kickstarter campaign for “We Suck at Comics” right? And you clicked the link and saw how awesome this book will be and backed it right? Just in case, click here to back the best anthology ever!
My prompt for my writing group this month was “clock.” I was inspired by the true story of Naaman Diller who stole more than 106 clocks and watches from the L.A. Mayer Museum for Islamic Art in 1983 and was never caught. The sole reason they know (and why most were recovered) is his death bed confession to his wife. Building upon that, I wrote about time and memory, something speculative but tied to history. It takes place in a small town in France, so I titled it in French (thank you Google translate). It has 2 titles right now but I’m hoping my group can help me pick. Our meeting was postponed due to the aforementioned storm. It can wait.
My annual trip to NY Comic Con is in a couple of weeks. I will post more about that after. It will be great to catch up with the guys from Wayward Raven, meet some great people, and have a blast letting my geeky side run wild. Until then, pumpkin spice is everywhere right now, so go enjoy a taste of fall before they ram winter down our throats!
1 – Finish writing book 2 with at least two full rounds of edits. First round done. I will let it sit for a month or two, then go in for the second round
2 – Be at least halfway through writing book 3. Good news – the page is no longer blank. Its not full either, but I’m starting to get into the head of the MC. October should be a good month.
3 – Have at least two short stories accepted for publication. This one is completed, I just can’t say more than that right now.
4 – Expand my search for someone to publish these YA stories. I have queries out to small presses and a couple of agents. We’ll see . . .
5 – Average two additional blog posts a month outside of monthly updates and publication announcements. If I count publication announcements I’d be closer. But I won’t take the easy way out.
6 – Read 36 books. August reads: “The Best of Isaac Asimov.” (total for the year – 9) Wow I really blew this one.