The Things I'm Doing

New Novel: So far, I've been able to plug away at the 1,000 words a day goal I set. Feels good to get into something new, and to already feel the pieces falling/clicking into place in my head. Already had a few character surprises, as one of them is nothing like I initially envisioned. Whatever, though. It's all about going with the flow, right?

Bring the Ink, Issue 1: It's almost finished and ready to rock your October. Not sure when tomorrow it will drop, but it is scheduled to drop on the morrow.

Book Proposal: I'm pulling together a proposal for a VERY different project than what I normally write. It seems to be shaping up better than I'd hoped, but who knows. All the work might be for not. More on this as it develops.

Waiting: Still no word from the agent-hopeful. It's only been a little more than two weeks since I mailed the book out--plus I heard that she's been busy moving or something. Regardless, I still feel the pressure.

Arting for My Friend: Still plugging away on his graphic novel. Fun stuff, but quite a bit o' work.

Broken-Hearted Bear: With the help of a few other artists and writers, we're building an on-going webcomic for Bring the Ink. I hope it will start in November.

On the Back Burner: The first volume of Gibberish; the collected group of my and Logan's reviews for the defunct Filmmedium.com; two ideas for webcomics/graphic novels; and my want to just watch movies and play video games.

Novel Update: Pacing

On every earlier draft I had, I couldn't wait to be done, so much so, that I barreled through the last few chapters, turning them into thin bits of plot rather than good writing. With each draft, they have gotten a bit better, a bit more meat on those bones, but I inevitably race to the finish line. This time, I'm really trying to hold back, to keep myself going at a slow walk through the prose, find where it needs more emotion, more description, more sensory images.

It's getting harder and harder to do this though, as I'm nearing the completion of yet another draft. I can tell that it is better than the last, but I'm not sure by how much, or if it was even worth all the extra time. I honestly have no idea what I'm doing. I never have. Words come, and I put them on the paper. They do their own thing. I simply listen. I just hope I was tuned into the right frequency this time...

See you on Monday, with a completed novel, and less of an ulcer--I hope.

Novel Update: Puzzling

At this point, I feel like my novel has become one of those puzzles that is nothing but one color, or the same kind of texture (grass, hair, clouds, etc.) where there are so many possibilities for the pieces to fit together--sort of--but only one of them is the correct spot. I've moved a few more things around, and they feel even better in their new locations. Hopefully this is a good thing.

I've also been combining a few of the chapters, cutting out the boring parts and going for the throat instead. I'm really hoping this thing is much more emotionally engaging than the last draft, but really, who's to say if I've truly succeeded? It's going to be different for everyone. But I know that I feel drained after writing some of these things, like my emotions have sapped from my fingers and onto the page. Could be wishful thinking, but I suppose I'll find out soon enough.

As a side note: My cat has now been missing for a full 24 hours, and that is always disheartening. He's done this type of thing before and been gone for a little more than two days, so my wife and I are trying to keep the worries to a medium. Plus, this time around he has a collar with his name and my number, so I'm thinking SOMEONE would've called if something had gone wrong, right? Here's hoping...

Novel Update

As this thing has all but taken over my life, I'm simply going to do novel updates for the next two weeks when Gibberish isn't there to entertain. If I see/read/hear something good, I'll still pass it on, otherwise, the updates might be a bit boring for the next bit.

Basically, things are on track. I've got until Sept. 14 to send off my novel back to the agent. (I just heard back from her on a check in, and they are still interested in seeing what I've done with the thing.) I've got less than a hundred pages to go, and unlike previous drafts of the novel, I feel like I not only know where this thing should go, but I also know the HOW and WHY it's going where it is. Perhaps this means I finally know what I'm doing. Perhaps I've finally just ruined the whole thing. I suppose we'll find out by the end of the month.

So get your freaking out hats on, because I'm sure caught up in the midst of it.

p.s. I'll be sure to let you know when the aforementioned interview/article about me drops at Broken Frontier.