There Are No Rules

I know. I’ve said it before, but I feel like now is a good time to reiterate it. There are no rules when you’re indie. Hell, even if you’re just a writer. The laws that govern progress are wild and intangible. What am I on about? Let me explain.

Something I don’t talk about much here when I discuss my writing journey is a middle point between my first publication gig falling through and my descent into indie publishing. The very first version of Order of Crows aside, my solo books were not the first thing I wrote to actually get published. There are two novels and two novellas that are part of a co-authored project. They’re still out there, under one pen name for the two of us who wrote it. Then life happened, a lot of it, and we never wrote the third book. So for years, those characters have been left hanging with no resolution.

Now, bring the camera back to about a week ago. I was looking through some old files and I was reminded that I did write a handful of chapters for that third book. I fell down an entire rabbit hole, realized I miss those characters quite a bit, and with the blessing of my co-author…guess where I have been. Yep, I’ve been writing in a story that has been dead for literal years. It has taken some gentle prodding to get the characters to talk to me again, but they’re talking. Perhaps they missed me, too.

So that’s what I mean when I say there are no rules. Is a project ever really utterly dead in the water? Only if you leave it there. It might take actual years, but even the least likely project has hope. To boot, this writing breaks a creative block that has persisted for the majority of this year. Crazy? Yes. Also pretty cool? Very.

This will definitely be a long-term endeavor, as both I and my co-author are busy ladies. But I have a new determination to eventually finish that book. I think we both deserve to see it through. And we have tentative plans to eventually release second editions of the first two books, too. Again, very long-term goals, but even just having those plans settles my soul a little in a way I didn’t realize I needed. And if this isn’t a sign not to give up, then such a sign doesn’t exist. (It does and it is.)

Well, that’s my inspirational tale for the day. We may only have a few months left of the year, but they’re going to be better than the ones we’ve already survived. Cheers to you, my friends!

Blessed Equinox

I know, y’all, I’ve been super slacking on posting lately. The summer has been . . . hard, and on several levels. Now that it’s slowing down a bit, it’s also catching up. Some things take time to process. I try to keep that in mind and, occasionally, I have to admit that I’m not a terminator, no matter how much I sometimes wish I was.

I did manage to finish the editing job I’d been working on. That’s my fourth official job, and a repeat client who was quite happy with the work. I haven’t ventured into the world of actively seeking editing jobs, mostly because this year has been, well, this year. Also maybe because I’m not ready to take a whole bunch of those jobs, with being an indie author almost a full-time job, and still having an actual job. Editing feels a bit like a third job. That being said, I do look toward a future where it’s a more viable source of income with some solid referrals from those who have worked with me. I really enjoy doing it, too. So maybe some day I can lose the actual job.

The last few months have also been void of book events. It’s disheartening, but I refuse to count it as a failure. Not yet, anyway. It’s a down compared to last year’s up, for sure, but it’s not the end. I’ve come this far and I won’t stop here. One thing I’ve tried to keep in mind is that, once my books are published, they’re not going anywhere. So even when the sales are down, and the promotion seems not to be reaching anyone, my titles are there, waiting.

I do, at least, have one more event scheduled for this year. I’m not going to try to force any more into the schedule. I’m going to hope and believe that last event will be a good one. So, if you’re local to me, I’ll be at the Florida Writers Book Fair in Sanford, FL on November 14th, 10am-3pm. I’m pretty excited in a distant sort of way, and I also learned that an author friend I made at an event in July will also be attending. So that’s super cool.

I haven’t written much of anything lately, which sucks, yes, but is not entirely surprising with everything that’s been going on behind the scenes. I did manage to format the second Sevina Gate novella and order a proof that will help with the art planning. That one doesn’t have any important dates set, but it is, at least, a step forward for the project. I will, of course, do an update on that when and as it moves forward some more.

Tomorrow is the autumnal equinox. Yes, my friends, we are headed into the darkness. Honestly, though, I’m embracing it this year. I’m more than ready for Florida to turn off the broiler. I chaotically planted a bunch of seeds in my little garden yesterday. Spooky season has as good as started. And I have a beta read sitting in my inbox, which is pretty cool, too. I’ll be leaning into non-writing things for a bit while the creative well refills.

To you, my friends, I hope the equinox ushers in a period of peace in the dumpster fire that is our economy and political environment. May we find stillness in the darkness this year. Blessed be.