12/03/17

What is it about getting a big stack of edits that makes me want to run the other way?  I don't know if this is a me thing or an authors in general thing, but edits suck.  They're this necessary evil staring at me from the abyss.  I know I have to work on them, but I can't help putting them off.  What this means is I took one look at the edits for Kelpie Blue, gulped, and then scurried back to the safe realm of writing.  I have completed writing The Red Apple Witch when I should have been working on my edits. 

Those of you that have been following me for a while know that The Red Apple Witch is a fairy tale I started writing soon after Cinder-Elle came out in 2012.  Every once in a while I poked at it, but for the most part the story lay stagnant in my computer.  Then I had the idea to combine a bunch of my fairy tales into one compilation and I said to myself, I have to finish this one too.  Well, I've finally done it.  The Red Apple Witch still needs a lot of editing, especially the older parts of the story, but I am so glad to finally say it's complete.  This means I have five fairy tales complete and just about ready for submission, one tale that I need to rework the ending (Thunderbird), and two more that I need to write.  I recently read through A Heart's Dream, which I've been stuck on for a bit, and realized the reason I was stuck was I was trying to force the story to be 30k words when it was really only calling for 15k.  The other story I need to work on is Trip Trop Trail, which is a Billy Goat Gruff retelling with a twist.  I have the main points figured out, but I can't decide whether I want it set in the modern day (which would be the only one of my fairy tales in that setting) or if I should do a more fantasy-like setting instead.  Once I figure that out, I'll be able to start writing.

Supernatural Consultant, Volume Two came out recently.  This is the second print compilation of the series and it picks up where Volume One left off.  It includes Dragon Detective, Dragon Soldier, Dragon Adventure, and Dragon Home.  You can buy your copy at LT3 today and it's also available at your favorite print retailer (but it's cheaper for you to buy from LT3). 

Kelpie Blue is also available for pre-order at LT3.  They're having a very nice sale right now, so you can get it for 32% off: https://lessthanthreepress.com/books...  It comes out on March 21, 2018, which will be here soon.  (And, yes, I have been working on those edits.  Don't worry.)

11/7/17

LT3 and I have been sending emails back and forth.  I've asked far too many questions and probably annoyed the heck out of them (sorry!), but it was very productive nonetheless.  I now have lots of news to share with you.  First, the cover for Supernatural Consultant, Volume Two has arrived!  Volume Two is the second print compilation in the series and will include Dragon Detective, Dragon Soldier, Dragon Adventure, and Dragon Home.  LT3's plan was to try to get it to the printer today, so--barring human error and unforeseen circumstances--it should be for sale sometime next week.  I will let you know when it's up on LT3's site.  I know Amazon and some of the other online stores take a bit longer, but at least you'll know when to start looking. 

Second, Volume Two has been included in the list of books to be turned into audiobooks.  I believe it is currently third on the list and audiobooks take time to make, so look for it to be available next February, March, or April.  I'm hoping to be able to pin down a more exact date when the book is sent to the voice actor. 

Third, LT3 and the editor for Kelpie Blue conferenced and came to the same conclusion I did: a January release date for Kelpie Blue--given the extent of the edits--just wasn't realistic.  LT3 provided me with a new release date instead.  Look for Kelpie Blue to be in your hands on March 21, 2018. 

And, don't forget to pre-order your copy of Hadash Aviv, my short spy thriller.  It will be released in just over a month, on December 13, 2017 and (if you haven't read it before) I think you'll really like it.  It's a reprint, so check your ebook libraries to see whether you already purchased it, and then if you haven't go grab your copy today: https://lessthanthreepress.com/books...

Passover kicked my butt more than I thought it would.  During the week itself I was too busy to get any writing done and the week after I was so exhausted I needed every moment to recover.  Then I had to drive home again, which killed any weekend writing time for this last week in April.  Basically, I was successful at my goals for the first half of the month, but the latter two weeks were a wash.  Here's how I did:

1. Work on The Sentinel's Prophesy. I did not get a chance to work on The Sentinel's Prophesy like I wanted to.  I just need to find time to sit down and get this completed, and this month it wasn't happening. 
2. Work on my Fairy Tale stories.  The only story I was able to work on was my (still untitled) Rapunzel story.  I made a lot of progress and all that's left to write is the end of the final battle scene and the epilogue.  Hopefully I'll get it completed next month and be ready to move on to the next fairy tale. 
3. Work on Book Seven of my Supernatural Consultant series.  I didn't get much written in this story, but I did get a lot of planning done, which means I'll be ready to get back to writing it soon.  

It's been about a year now since I put together a proper goals list that I knew I could keep to.  My life has started to gain stability and my writing time has settled down to a proper schedule, so I would like to try setting these goals again. 

Some considerations for April that I will have to keep in mind are 1) Passover, which will take away a few days from my writing time, and 2) Editing, since I'm expecting the copy edits for Dragon Adventure, the second round of edits for Justified, the first round of edits for Dragon Home, and all the edits for The Dragon's Hoard series and Short Stories. 

With all that in mind, here are my goals for April: 

• Work on The Sentinel's Prophesy
• Work on my Fairy Tale stories
• Work on Book Seven of my Supernatural Consultant series

If I can confine my writing to just those stories, I could very well be able to complete one of them and make a lot of progress on the rest.