Everyone’s Been Askin’ “What’s Next?”  

I know it’s been radio silence this last month. Over the last few weeks I have been prepping for/attending/ and debriefing from Camp Oasis, a program put on by the CCF to help kids with Crohn’s and colitis. I am still working on a blog post about that, but in the mean time I figured I’d share some news on what I’ve been writing over the last couple of months.

Since getting Seven-Sided Spy accepted for publication, I have been on a major upswing. I spent the first month post-contract doing edits on the novel. I then followed that up with an intense month-long sprint to finish an anthology piece (which was accepted!) But then after that I kind of…meandered.

A lot of authors get asked how they pick what to write next. Some authors have their books planned out years in advance. Some just start writing and see where it takes them. But, the obvious answer for a lot of debut authors is a sequel. I’ll tell you now, Seven-Sided Spy is a strictly stand alone work.

So, it was up for me to pick a new novel, a new project I could pour the next year of my life into. I threw around a few ideas, some great, some not so great. I even wrote 10,000 words of a project about a group of witches…and it was okay, but it wasn’t catching me the way a project should. I did another 10,000 words of just brainstorming and letting a cast of characters take me wherever it wanted, and we ended up some place a little weird and not to my liking.

Then, I started Act With Agency. I doubt the title will stick and I’m hesitant to really even say what the project is about because so much changes from first draft to final, but I hit 10,000 words with this project and I’m showing no signs of stopping. I’m in love with these characters. I’m in love with this plot. I’m excited about this project. I hit 10,000 words and knew this was it.

I honestly think 10,000 is kind of a magical number. At that point you’ve got around 30 pages and you’ll  either dig your heels in and decide this is where you’re going to be for the next year (possibly even years) or you realize that this project isn’t it, at least not now. It could be a best-seller years down the line, but it isn’t right for you at this time.

So that’s what I’ve been up to/will be up to for the next few months! I’m still writing IBD poetry and will likely get distracted by an anthology or two, but for now it’s full speed ahead.

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