Optimism for the new year
I am 100% for Asimov Hour YouTube videos in 2017. Sure, the reality of that is a mere four days. But there’s something about referring to something as ‘complete’ that has power. I am also 100% for daily planks and push-ups. I am 100% for remembering to give our cats their medications. And for scooping the litter pans, and making sure there’s firewood for the morning before I go to bed, and for getting the coffee pot set up and the timer turned on. These are all small things, but the cumulative effect is that I feel 100% unstoppable. Not wanting to break that streak – to prove that I could potentially be stopped – has driven me forward for almost as many days as I have fingers on one hand. They weren’t resolutions. They’re just momentum. I’m willing to bet momentum will get me further. So, where am I in my process? Flotsam: I received the proofread edits back, have gotten them printed at Staples so I can better reference them, and have that set off to one side to begin maybe in a week or two. I expect that I have at least two months before the cover illustrator sends up smoke signals that she’s ready to begin. I have reached out to a sales copy professional (who just had a baby) and am waiting to hear back from him at his leisure. I am ahead of schedule to release this story per my plans. Salvage: My editor and I have reviewed the initial draft and I am working to implement his recommendations. I’m almost to the end of the opening hook of the story, and hope to at least complete that ahead of our next session on January 20. I believe I am ahead of schedule to release this story per my plans. The editor also recommended three books for me to reference as examples of successful sequel-craft. I just completed Fool Moon (Dresden Files Book 2). I will begin Caliban’s War (Expanse Book 2) today. After that, I will re-read Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Phantom Traveler: I have a third revision of the opening story, which I will re-approach at the end of January. I am waiting on illustrations to accompany the Patreon releases, which will be created by my husband (who has been walloped by a cold and is recovering). I am a little behind on this project. I must accept that since these stories will not be edited (it’ll be a monthly income level goal to run them past a copy editor), I must be satisfied that they will not be perfect. However, I would at least like to run these past SF beta readers, which means I need to get back on track with my critters.org critique participation. So far I’ve been managing all this work (minus the reading) within the morning writing hours. As I’ve recently taken on another project that will likely eat into my free time during the rest of my day, I’m glad that I can look back and see such progress in a tiny window early in the morning. 2016 was a major year for me, with little to show anyone but myself. 2017 is the year that my harvest will become publicly visible. I’m terrified, but also thrilled. I’ll keep up the momentum, and I’m gonna blow ‘em all away.