Unfortunately, I don’t have a great deal to report from the past week. I’m not sure why it’s been difficult to get myself out of bed this past week. Either it’s the change of the seasons, or a side effect of the medication I’m on. Which is more complex than whiskey, before that gets mentioned.
I have taken a bit of time to work over some of the concepts for Godslayer, but I can’t really call that ‘progress’. Some of that might happen next week. Same for editing Cold Streets. Hopefully that won’t take longer than a week or two, and then I can get my very patient test readers-to-be a manuscript to look over.
This weekend I’m going to rest up. Hopefully more progress will be made in the future, because that’s what I’m looking towards.
Well, the first draft is done, anyway. The sequel to Cold Iron (which, as a friendly reminder, you can buy here or here) was born out of a desire to lay a foundation for future, full-length projects. Once I take up the editing hat and really get down to business, it’s my hope to have a workable draft that’s ready for prime time near the end of the year. Then it’s a matter of lining up another breathtaking photo and some fantastic design work for a cover, and maybe, just maybe, it’ll be on the virtual shelves in time for a lovely holiday gift.
That’s kind of a tight deadline, and I need to line up the backing capital for the cover & design work, but we’ll see what happens. I won’t make petty demands of talented people. I know how that goes when I’m on the receiving end of it.
Once I get test readers tearing Cold Streets apart, it’ll be time to try something new. Godslayer has been rather neglected recently because of the demands of my schedule and everything else going on, and it’s past time I put together an outline for that, and perhaps a character/world-building bible. I’ve thought about picking up Scrivener to make organizing and reorganizing things easier, but we’ll have to see if the budget can accommodate that. And then there’s the matter of Morgan and Seth. I’m not done with them and their near-future slightly-screwy Philadelphia just yet. I have one more novella planned, Cold Light, to round out what I’ll be calling the Lighthouse Foundation trilogy. And as I said, from there it’s on to longer, more substantial works in that world.
I’ve had to put exercising on hold as I recover from whatever it is that’s making my throat and muscles sore. I hope to be back in the gym on Monday, but I’m trying to be realistic. It may be a while before I’m back up to my previous level. I don’t convalesce well; I’d rather be active in some way than simply sitting and resting. All too often such idle time can lead to me feeling broken or useless, even if I know intellectually that I am not.
It’s not all bad news, though. Cold Streets is very, very close to completion. I might have been able to finish it last night if I were feeling more on top of my game. As it is, I’ll settle for finishing the first draft of my second novella within a week, and lining up test readers for what is a very, very rough pass at the story. Part of me wants to appeal to mercy; the rest of me knows the harshest words can be the most useful in the editorial process.
I’m nearly there. I have to stick with it. I can rest when all of the work is done.
Given everything that happened this past week and a half, it probably comes as no surprise that I made no progress in Cold Streets. I’m not certain where my Waterman pen is located. I took a sick day and still ended up doing dayjob work from home. Life still feels in upheaval, like all of my feelings and ambition are getting shoved aside for the benefit of others.
I’m tempted to start pushing back.
I maintain that everybody has the right to be happy. Folks should be free to seek whom and what they want without judgment or prejudice. What I tend to forget is that “everybody” includes me, as well. As deathly afraid as I might be of being entirely selfish or neglectful for the sake of my own happiness, my fear is that I have and will go too far the other way. Martyrs are somewhat passé in this day and age, and not at all what someone should aspire to be.
I mentioned radical change yesterday. I know I need to make adjustments moving forward to make sure I do not repeat the past, either the recent past or the ancient past. I’m not entirely sure what they are. But without change, we die. And I’m still quite resolved that this thing will not kill me.
All of that said, normal blogging resumes on Monday. In the future I’ll remember to reach out to people for guest posts. Thanks for sticking around.
This is my week between travel in August. Otakon is behind me, and PAX Prime is ahead. The trip to Seattle will be much longer than the one to Baltimore, and I’ll have a bit more Internet access while I’m there. Reluctant as I am to check a bag, I think it’s going to be necessary. I can’t travel as light as I did for a long weekend, since I’ll be in Seattle for entire week and change. Thankfully, most of the people I’m staying with will have laundry they’re willing to let me use. I love having an adventure on the horizon.
Cold Streets is inching towards the first draft finish line. I wrote a scene on the train last week, and I’m closing the gap towards it. I’m excited. It’s the last big confrontation, and while I’m pretty much done with action for the novella, there will still be tension and drama, and hopefully a few more character revelations. I hope I’m doing this one better than I did Cold Iron. Proud as I am of my first published literary child, I know it’s got some flaws and rough spots. This is a good way to iron them out, I feel, and get feedback and even a little cash flow going.
I’m going to keep at it, keep carving out writing time in raw, bloody chunks, keep looking to a future that has more and more good aspects to it the closer I get.
