Now surgery

So, where am I? Gosh, I’ve been working so hard, but I struggle to answer that question. Sometimes, it seems I take two steps forward and one step back. I am moving, but it never seems fast enough. I completed a facelift, and now it is time for some surgery.

After creating my new book covers, I began to apply what I learned in my rewrite of Koen to my entire Absolution of the Morning Star series. This endeavor includes using my new tool, Autocrit, and my old standby, Grammarly, which has improved drastically since I published my books. Don’t worry. I’m not saying I’m rewriting the story, but I want to ensure that what is out there remains the best writing I can produce. This mainly includes little tweaks and, at times, a minor adjustment to ensure continuity in the series and alignment with the prequel. I’ve finished going through Dawn of the Lightbearer and have begun The Mourning Son (then Noonday in the North). I don’t know why I decided to embark on this project. I tell myself it’s just a bit of spring cleaning, but it might really be a diversion from some growing insecurities.

I state the obvious here: two thousand pages of story is hard to keep track of in my simple human brain. As I began to re-read Dawn of the Lightbearer, I realized I was forgetting some things and also discovered some minor disagreements with both Koen and the rest of the series. Knowing this made it difficult to continue writing Destiny of the Daystar (book 4). I just couldn’t ignore it. Before moving too far, I had to ensure Erik and his allies traveled in the right direction. I don’t want to say it was writer’s block, but the words weren’t going to flow in Destiny of the Daystar until I refreshed myself. So, I returned to the beginning and started re-reading the books. I had refurbished the outside of the books. Why not do the same to the insides?

As for Koen, a fantastic tale sits patiently and waits. Every week, I query about ten agents/publishers and receive about three rejections. Most are form responses and come too quickly to have possiby read what I submitted. No worries. I understand they’re busy or my project is not right for them. At the moment, I have thirty-three queries teetering between heaven and the slush, with ten more ready to shoot out into the void this week. I’m still tipped to the positive. It only takes one, yes, to open a door, right?

Not all of Koen‘s reception has been negative, either. I have a few things in play that might bear fruit, and professionals in the field have told me I am a good writer. That alone gives me some tasty validation. There is nothing definite yet, but there’s hope. I know from past experience that everything might fall through in the end. So, I won’t jinx it. I’m still fully prepared to self-publish Koen at the end of the year, knowing that the cards are always stacked against me. I am ok with that. I’ll never stop writing, and there is always the next one.

Cheers!