State of Writing

Of course I’d have to go ahead and write another book this year! That’s the big project announcement that I’ve been waiting to make. I have so many people asking me questions about the form and process of writing (and I’ve even booked to speak about this on a few occasions) and so I decided to start compiling many of the things that I’ve learned into a nonfiction book–it’s something like 90 articles long and will be titled The Indie Author’s Bible. On a sidenote, I have my writing advice column now written and scheduled for every wednesday through the rest of the year.

Back to fiction, I got my chapter edited and also got my comic book done! Wolves of the Tesseract: Taking of the Prime should be available soon!

State of Writing

I got my requisite chapter completed! But barely. I forgot how big some of those chapters are. The Kakos Realm is a wholly different animal compared to my other stories: chapters are about twice the length, prose is a bit higher brow (though I’m editing out some of the purple prose I occasionally slid into–most of this story was originally written a decade ago, right after the initial first parts and I can see how my writing has improved and tightened since then.)

Another of last weeks accomplishments were to finish a WIP cover for TKR3 as well as for my new nonfiction mystery project.

Maybe you noticed that my writing column did post last wed? It should be straightened out now.

I may or may not edit a chapter this week (but I’d guess I get to it). My main goal is to work on some more on the articles needed for my new nonfic which I’ll unveil soon.

State of Writing

Had a great weekend at the first ever Chapelcon in Albert Lea. It was a smallish comic convention that really shot high. they learned a few things (organizer said so himself at the end) and will hopefully come back bigger and better next year.

I got one chapter edited in TKR3, and sold a number of copies of the series at the con, plus networked with a bunch of other writers and affiliated nerds. I also got a back issue of superman I’ve been looking to purchase for 25 years (I feel so old being able to write that sentence).

I’m in a crazy hectic week for youth work and fundraising, so setting a low bar, but I still want to edit a new chapter. I’ve also been working on a top secret nonfiction project and hope to have that done in the near future.

State of Writing

I didn’t do much writing or editing last week. I got a chapter and the prologue edited for TKR3, but that’s about it. hoping to do 2 or 3 chapters this week plus have a great turnout at a comicon I’ll be at. Still editing… and will be for weeks to come.

On a sidenote, still looking forward to John in the John’s September release. I’ve got plenty of material for a followup book… now to get some more submissions to it as the series will eventually morph into a kind of devo-anthology with me editing and contributing rather than writing the whole book outright.

State of Writing

I had a great book signing in the Mankato Mall’s B&N… almost sold out of books there (despite it seeming slow. I asked the manager for the best sales hours and so we did an event in the evening. Always default to local expertise.) Those people who were in the store were serious shoppers. One lady bought a copy of all my titles they carried, another was looking for bookclub ideas, and another awesome family of readers and fellow nerds had an armload of books and I got to help their teenage son get a couple of mine and then shop for other stories in the SF/F section with him to guide him towards some stuff I thought he might like. That’s a total win. (also a newspaper interview and stuff.)

I really did not do much on my writing besides some blogging (I try to keep at least a month’s worth of articles scheduled in advance.) My art team has pulled together some good stuff. Final pages of the WotT comic are still coming in and I had a deviantart user complete a repaint of my cover for TKR1 so that it matches the second book (more of a fantasy oil-painting) so that the motif stays consistent.

An email went out to my mailing list about beta readers for WotT2 (contact me if you want to read it and provide feedback—be forewarned, it’s bigger, badder, and darker…about 400 pages.) I will begin edits on TKR3 this week! As soon As that’s done I can start sketching out The Hidden Rings of Myrddin the Cambion.

cover comparison

State of Writing

I usually write these updates on Mondays but I was recovering from my job and doing some family vacation stuff… I did want to get t it. I’m just late. My biggest report is that I completed the second draft of WotT2 on the 4th of July! I also did some prep and promo work for upcoming book signings, etc. I’m about to take a needed break to brainstorm and outline some upcoming projects and begin the final draft for TKR3 (while doing a cover art revision for TKR1 and finish producing the WotT comic).

State of Writing

Had an optimistic week: positive response from a literary agent, hit all my marks at work, made a cool author connection, read a great book, and edited well past the halfway mark in WotT2. I would really like to finish the second draft this week if possible (though it might not happen because of my workload: I’m at camp with a bunch of youth through Saturday this week.) I’ll have this book wrapped up and ready for beta readers within a couple weeks, though, and then onto the final draft of TKR3! (right after I finish an official query to a literary agent who seems like a good fit–what she enjoys reading seems a perfect match for what I write).

State of Writing

I decree that it’s Choose Your Own Adventure Week on Inside the Inkwell. This should be fun. In the meanwhile, a quick update on my progress last week. I actually wrote a new, early chapter last week in Wolves of the Tesseract: Through the Darque Gates of Koth and mostly finalized the cover art. I had a lot of supplemental, minor things I intended to insert in earlier chapters, but based on some of the structure I decided to write a new scene/chapter in order to put them in since they didn’t really fit as smaller, aside snippets to the action already happening. About eight of thirty-two chapters are edited now for the second draft. Hope to finish up over the next month or so and then let it simmer before my next revision when my eyes will be fresher (should also be able to get it out to my beta readers around that time. I sent a few new queries to agents as well, and did some business side of things. Forecast looks good, and I’m probably on track for my 2017 writing goals.

State of Writing

 

Crazy week. Like always, I guess. It was actually my weekend that nearly killed me. Here’s what it looked like:
Fri-up before 7am to volunteer in weight room with teens… work till 5pm, fix stuff around the house till late, try to go to sleep early (to no avail) leave for Twin Cities around midnight
Sat-get to Park N Fly around 3am. and catch plane to chicago, grab an Uber, setup table for Printer’s Row Festival in the AM and find a Starbucks… talk to people all day and battle the wind-tunnel that is downtown Chicago. 7pm, Uber back to the airport and try to nap for 90 min before flight–no success. coffee instead. Flight back to MPLS… three quick catnaps, but I kept waking up myself with snores (and disturbing hte other passengers.)
Sun-midnight, back in MN. get to my car for drive home… oh, now my body says it can sleep? Crawl into bed about 2:30am… can’t even see straight

I was a little tired. I think this week slows down for me… but lots of busyness and a few work meetings will keep me productive. Since I finished WotT2 recently, I’m in general editing before I let it sit and simmer for a while so that I’ll have fresh eyes on it. Hoping to have that first edit done over the next two weeks. I’m mulling over a large scene to add to Fear in a Land Without Shadows (like, 7 months after the final draft… this is why we let this rest for a while) that will really help color in a relationship between two friends in the book and reinforce why everyone is so scared of the dark.

Tuesday book reviews should be up again beginning next week.

State of Writing

I know I was shooting for four chapters last week and had to apologize to my wife for seeing very little of her–I pulled down about seven and finished the dang book using up most of my nonwork time. Wolves of the Tesseract: Through the Darque Gates of Koth weighs in around 100k words and will grow only slightly in the second draft (took lots of notes during writing about foreshadowing and development points I needed to make but didn’t slow down in the middle of it all).

Back to some blogging and cover art work this week and then off to Chicago for Printer’s Row Lit Fest this weekend. Come see me if you’re around. I’ll be at the Black Rose Writing booth all day Saturday.