Nearly a year ago the
wonderful Gilda Evans was kind enough to publish a post I wrote called A Dream
Deferred, which speaks to my lifelong writing dream, how I was--well—a
few decades tardy in pursuing it seriously, and what the main factors have been
behind the progress I’ve made in the last year or so. It also touches upon that
oh so elusive life-work balance sought by so many of us, and—like for so many
of us—if that balance includes maintaining a full-time job and pursuing the
dream –for me, writing—in your precious scant spare time—AND trying to be there
for your family (and friends, and all areas of your life), it can be all the
more daunting.
But no one said
realizing your dream would be easy, and I rather think it SHOULDN’T. Little
that is worthwhile and enduring, ever is. And if you think about it, isn’t the
chance—even a long shot chance—to articulate and pursue our dreams, our
passions, an utterly beautiful thing?
I say, yes.
And I have to say this:
the progress I have made in my writing in the last year has been encouraging,
and I am very excited about things to come. But the most beautiful part of the
journey by far (aside from, as my post for Gilda refers to, sharing it with my
children, my little girl in particular), has been the people I have met and
gotten to know along the way. Amazing people who are talented writers and
better human beings. I consider this nothing short of a blessing.
I am grateful to
everyone whom I’ve met in the last year or so, as well as those friends and
family who have also supported me and my aspirations along the way. I very much
hope this is only the beginning, but for what it’s worth, an update:
The David Rose Series: The incipient book in this YA/Fantasy series
will be published this year by Booktrope, and I am very excited and grateful. My editor Ally is
the best in the world, and I am deep into revisions based on her sage feedback.
March is a very busy time with work and travel and, of course, writing—but I
hope within about a month to be done with the rewrites. With a series you
really need to be thinking ahead and prepping to dive into the next, at least
outlining where you want to go--because nothing worse than capturing readers' interest through a first book(which I hope to do), then letting the sequels
languish, until they lose interest. I have penned a fun opening scene for the
next book, and can't wait to work on it. It's a balance--you don't want to get
ahead of yourself, but books in a series--while they should be strong enough to
stand on their own--ideally convey a plausible synergy and connection--between
and among characters, storylines, and the books themselves.
Stories & Guest
Posts: David Rose has been
the driving force of my aspirations but I love to write, period, and always
have many things in the pipeline. And one of the biggest epiphanies as I
started to get serious a year or so ago—obvious though it should have been—was
the need to build something of an author platform, a little name/brand
recognition—get a little buzz going about me and my writing if I
could. Part of this has meant publishing some stories and guest posts—a win-win
since writing is writing and we must always hone our craft, plus it confers a
little exposure and opportunity to build said platform and connect with the
literary community. I have been fortunate to publish
some pieces, and am working on more as we speak (a short story I am
rather fond was recently picked up, and I’ll link it when it’s
published—hopefully soon!). Finally, I am thrilled to be part of fantasy
writing project with three stellar scribes (and wonderful friends). The
stories/project will hopefully be published by summer, and I can’t wait to
share, including the intriguing challenge/opportunity/process involved in such
collaboration.
Literary Novel: I have a
draft of a literary novel called Musclewood, which I have queried a bit and
garnered some interest. It needs some work, but I am very excited about it. A
very different voice & style from YA.
Serial: I released a few early
chapters of Ten Acts of Penance, which may be found on my
blog, and intend to circle back, as it’s a story and protagonist I am pretty
fond of. I intend to consolidate it at the end and seek to publish it as a
whole.
Interviews: I have had the good fortune of interviewing
some amazing writers(here’s a sample), and am thrilled to announce I
have lined up several more in the queue—I promise they are talented folks and will
have some compelling stories and insights!
Thanks again to everyone
for your support. As you’ll discern from some of my posts, I am all about
community: we are better by virtue of supporting and challenging one another,
and sharing our unique and valuable insights and ideas. Please feel free to
weigh in on anything I’ve said here, and most assuredly weigh in about YOUR
journey—be it literary, vocational, LIFE. We are in this together, after all.
Happy weekend to all,
and may you find inspiration and support as you soar onwards toward your
dreams…
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