Greetings Readers!
It feels like ages since I did a proper update, so here it is.
First, I want to thank everyone who supported the release of THE STARLIGHT PRINCE. The book was a long time coming, and as I've previously mentioned, I feel immensely proud of all I achieved by writing it, as much of the process coincided with my autism and ADHD journey.
Even to the last minute, things were hectic, as I pushed back my release by a month to give myself more time to focus on the final developmental edits. And while I was doing that, I had some real-life changes. I won't go into detail, because it's not my story to share, but the TL:DR is my 22-year-old child is back living with us, after almost five years away from home. I hate the circumstances of their return, but I won't lie, it's great having them back! We're all settling into our new normal now, and my head feels clearer, and I'm more able to focus on writing-related things again.
On the topic of The Starlight Prince, in case you didn't see my previous post, during April, I will be taking part in the A-Z Blogging Challenge. Every day (except Sundays), I'll be sharing excerpts and tidbits about the book. Each day I will choose a commenter at random to receive free digital copies of both The Starlight Prince, and it's prequel novella The Adventures of Josain Jovenne. And there will also be a month-long Rafflecopter giveaway in which you can win a signed paperback copy of The Starlight Prince, and some swag like postcards of the character art I had commissioned.
So, as I was saying, now that I've settled into my new normal, and my focus has returned to writing, the wheels in my head have been turning. ("Since I looked at that crazy old man." - Sorry, the Disney lover in me escaped for a moment!)
Last month, my wonderful friend, editor and writing buddy for almost TWENTY years, Kyra Lennon, did a mini-NaNoWriMo type event, where she wrote over 52,000 words in 31 days! If you haven't already, you should follow her on Instagram to see the update videos. Plus, she just revealed the cover for the book she's been working on.
I was inspired, and given I love NaNoWriMo-type events so much, I figured I'd do one of my own in April to get a good start on my next project. That project was originally meant to be a shifter romance for a 'shared world series' to be released in August, but I decided against it for a few reasons;
1. While I need some sort of deadline to keep me focused, having a concrete one, like a pre-order or submission date, was a little too much for me. I want less pressure for this project, so that if I need more time to perfect elements of the story, I'm not rushing to get things finalized in a short amount of time.
2. I'm not in love with spicy, fantasy books as much as I was a few years ago. I'm a multi-faceted author and reader, with many different likes and dislikes. And while I have nothing against spicy books, and no doubt will return to them in the future, after writing TSP, TAoJJ and Frosty The Snowman all last year, I want to move onto something different.
This feeling coincided with the time I was taking a break and read two amazing books -- Oathbound by Tracy Deonn and Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins. (As a side note, would you like to see reviews for these two books on my blog? It wouldn't be until May, due to the A-Z Challenge and my mini-NaNo, but I'm happy to share my thoughts if that's something y'all would be interested in.)
These books, while very different, had some similarities. First, they're both YA books that deal with oppression, marginalization and fighting back against broken systems that do more harm than good. Oathbound is a fantasy, involving magic, and while Sunrise on the Reaping is meant to be set on a version of Earth, it's very different to our own.
I think the idea of being on Earth (or a version of it) and fighting back against broken systems that do more harm than good is something many of us can relate to in these current climates. I certainly can. Add to this my feeling of being 'othered' due to years of undiagnosed neurodiversity, and I've always loved stories that champion the marginalized. It's why The X-Men has been, and remains to be, one of my favourite fandoms for almost all of my life.
One of the earliest original stories I ever conceived (way back in 2009, before I'd fully made the switch from fan-fiction to original fiction) was about three witch triplets oppressed by an anti-witch government. Since then, the story has undergone various name changes, and re-writes, with something never quite feeling right.
I suspect some of that 'wrongness' was my inexperience as an author, and some of it was due to my neurodiversity causing me to seek perfection, but also causing me to struggle with less dopamine-giving tasks like editing. I LOVE the buzz of creating new stories and worlds, but often struggle when it comes to fixing mistakes.
But I feel I've grown as both an author and as a person since my last attempt at this story in 2018. I've learned not to rush things, and get over-excited too early by sharing detailed snippets or even serializing the story. I've also learned to love editing (when I don't have to do it in a mad rush) and how to find the dopamine in the process -- taking something I truly love and feel passionate about, and turning it into the best version it can be.
I've always felt like this story is my magnum opus. It's the piece I want to be remembered for writing above anything else I've created. Which means it takes time to get it perfect, and time is what I want to give it. I'm not saying I won't work on other side projects now and again for the dopamine rush of something shiny and new, but for the foreseeable future my focus will be this project.
This began today, when I started my mini-NaNoWriMo. Between now and April 30, I aim to write at least 50k words, which should be roughly half the first draft of this version. After that, we will see how I'm feeling and where my motivation is, etc. For the time being, I am only planning and committing to short-term goals.
I will try to offer daily and weekly count word updates on social media if you'd like to follow my progress. But I was also make a new blog post early in May to reflect on how the whole thing went, and how I'm feeling.
But that's all for now. I'm going to head off and schedule my first few A-Z Blogging Challenge posts.
Until next time,
Take care and stay creative!
T.T.F.N!
