Well, here
we are yet again. Another year gone by. Time to look back and see how well we stuck
to our resolutions.
If you
bother to stop in here and read these little rants, I’m guessing you’ve thought
about being a writer. Not a weekend
dabbler, not an incorruptible artiste, but someone who wants to make
some sales and write for a living. And
the only way to do that is to write. Not
to plan, not to research, but to sit down at the keyboard and start typing out my
story one word at a time. There’s no other way to get something done and no other way to get something
sold. If I’m not writing... it’s just
not going to happen.
So, all
that being said... what did you get done this year?
Me? I started 2013 already waist-deep in Ex-Purgatory,
which was due at the end of April. Of
course, before I could finish that my editor at Broadway had some notes for me
on Ex-Communication. Really good notes, for the record. There were only
one or two things we argued over, and even on those we found a solid middle
ground that made us both happy.
But before
I did those, I had to go over the copyeditor’s notes on Ex-Patriots. They were doing a quick run through it before
the re-release in April. So I spent a
day or three on that.
At least, I
would’ve, but first I had to go over the new layout proof for Ex-Heroes. It was coming out in February, after
all. So that got priority. Then Ex-Patriots, then Ex-Communication
notes, and then back to working on Ex-Purgatory.
Of course,
by that point, I now had copyedits on Ex-Communication. And a layout proof for Ex-Patriots. And even some very last minute input on the Ex-Heroes
cover. And after all that, I could get
back to Ex-Purgatory.
Until...
well, I’m sure you can see the pattern at this point.
Despite all
this, I still managed to get Ex-Purgatory done on time. It went long, and then I cut it way back, and
then my editor suggested a few other cuts and some other additions. We did a bunch of work on it, and in the end
it went from a book I was kind of worried about to one that I’m almost proud
of. And it’ll be in stores in less than three weeks.
That was
the first eight months of 2013.
Somewhere
in there, between rewrites and layouts for Ex-Communication, I started a
new book. Something kind of
urban-fantasy-ish, but a lot darker. I
was about 15,000 words into it when I went to Comic Con. Alas, after talking with my agent and my
editor, it’s going on the back burner for a little bit. Hopefully it won’t end up being my new Dead Moon...
There was
also another idea I worked with for a while.
I pitched this one to my editor as “Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere
crossed with Cannonball Run.”
Which, if nothing else, caught his attention. For the double-handful of you who were at
Booktopia this summer, it’s the story I mentioned about the Model T Ford. I was
about 19,000 words in when new deals were finalized with Broadway. This one’s still going to happen, but it’s
been pushed a bit further down the line.
I wrote a
handful of short stories, too.
“Flesh Trade,” alas, didn’t make it into Clive Barker’s upcoming Midian
Unbound anthology (I only cried a little bit at that). But the guys at Kaiju Unbound really
liked “Banner of the Bent Cross” and the folks at Evil Girlfriend Media said
yes to another story (which I can’t talk about quite yet). I also polished up an old tale, “Contraption,”
for an upcoming collection of short stories from Permuted Press.
And since
then I’ve been working on my current book, The Albuquerque Door. Well, there’s been some concern about the
title, but I’m hanging onto it as long as possible. I’m about 25,000 words into it so far.
Plus there
were also thirty-eight posts here (to be honest, one of my worst years since I
started the ranty blog). And another
thirty posts on other pages I keep. Plus
a dozen or so promo articles for different books (including a handful of titles
from Broadway’s new Doctor Who line).
Thing is... I feel like I slacked off a lot this year. There were a few times when I was waiting to hear back on deals or between drafts or just feeling burned out by that glut of work at the start of the year... and I took a day off. In and of itself, there’s nothing wrong with it, and I didn’t miss any deadlines, but the truth is I took off a couple of days I really had no business taking off. Days I should’ve been writing. I look back at this past year and I think that I really should be further along in that urban fantasy story. The Model T story should have a lot more to it, too. I look at this list and think I didn’t write enough this year.
Thing is... I feel like I slacked off a lot this year. There were a few times when I was waiting to hear back on deals or between drafts or just feeling burned out by that glut of work at the start of the year... and I took a day off. In and of itself, there’s nothing wrong with it, and I didn’t miss any deadlines, but the truth is I took off a couple of days I really had no business taking off. Days I should’ve been writing. I look back at this past year and I think that I really should be further along in that urban fantasy story. The Model T story should have a lot more to it, too. I look at this list and think I didn’t write enough this year.
How about
you? How much did you write...?
Next time—next
year, really—I’d like to take a few minutes to talk about what I talk about
here. A mission statement, if you will.
Until
then... Happy New Year.
And go
write.
aw, sweetie. You're the only person i know who's had four books released in a twelve month period, and still worries that they're not working hard enough. ;)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your duvet-days, you've earned them! :D
any chance of a follow up to 14?
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