A Long Overdue Update

Inspired by my friend Christine Tyler, I’ve decided to dust off the old blog. What will I post? Not really sure. How often will I post? Probably twice a month. But I’ve been researching marketing lately and the message is clear across the board–if you’ve got a blog, use it.

So, I’m going to use it.

This is a really good start, I can just tell.

Rather than giving a long and boring update on my life, this post will center around my WIPs–their status, a general description, and how I feel about them. What writer doesn’t love talking about their stuff? Weird ones, probably.

Constellations of Fate – I dubbed this the Book of Eire when I started it back in 2014. It’s the fourth novel I’ve written and the first I’ve queried. That’s right–I’m down in the query trenches. They are unpleasant. But! It’s exciting to finally be here. Many writers query long before their fourth book, but I’m a perfectionist and wanted to wait until I not only had a book I wanted published, but I felt my writing was ready for publication. Is it actually? Only time will tell. CoF is Celtic mythology-inspired contemporary fantasy. It deals with mental illness, forgiveness, mother issues, and questions of fate. I love it with all my heart. I grew so much as a writer while writing and revising this book and owe so much to it. It will get published, whether now or in ten years, traditionally or indie.

Thread by Thread – I’m crazy excited about this one. Why? Because it’s second-world fantasy aka high fantasy aka epic fantasy (depending on your definition). Epic fantasy was my first love, but I was always too intimidated to write it. “I can’t invent an entire world!” I said to myself and anyone who would listen. And I may be right. But I hope I’m wrong. I’m still intimidated by the task I’ve set before me, but I know when I finish I’ll be so proud of myself. It’s a Trojan War retelling, currently planned to be a series of four books. I’m excited about the ways I’m subverting common themes and characters in the myth, as well as the other stuff I’m throwing in such as postpartum depression, PTSD, class dynamics, and winged horses. Because winged horses make everything better. The outline is almost done, so I hope to start drafting next week. All of my first drafts thus far have taken me one year to write, but I’ve done extensive pre-writing with this book. Also, it’s been four years since my last first draft and I’m a much better writer. So I’m hoping this one goes much quicker.

Constellations of Fate sequel – Originally CoF was going to be a trilogy. Then last fall, in my final revision, I changed the end which clipped the series down to two books. I’ve had the general plot of the sequel floating around in my mind since, but I finally sat down this weekend and beat it out (a la Save the Cat, which I love now). And now I’m even more excited about it. But I’m still going to write Thread by Thread first because I’m chomping at the freaking bit to start that one.

So, there you have it–my current brain babies. And now I’ve blogged. Bill Murray’s in my head right now saying, “I’m blogging! I blog! I’m a blogger!” I think Dr. Leo Marvin would be proud.