Tag: editing

Scorpio Market Tomorrow!

I’ll be at the Wisconsin Masonic Center in downtown Madison from noon until 4! In addition to plenty of cool writers, artists, and craftspeople, there will be some fundraising raffles and sales for Palestine. Be aware: this is a fully masked event, so don’t forget your mask. Here’s more information.

It’s been a hell of a week, but Journey to the Water has reached 121,618 words, and I’m about to start on Eske’s last voyage (Chapter LXIII in the serial version, chapter XXIX in the rewrite). I have four more chapters (three chapters and one interlude) to go. Wish me luck!

Fall Fon du Lac Spirit Fair Tomorrow!

Tomorrow, I’ll be packing up my books and heading to The Hive, W4786 County Highway 23, Fon du Lac, Wisconsin for the Fall Spirit Fair! Admission is one non-perishable food item or cash donation to the Sheboygan County Food Bank. The market opens at 10AM, but you should come at 9 if you want to book an appointment with a reader. For more information, here’s Spyral Events’ website, and here’s the Facebook event.

I am plugging along on Journey to the Water, and I’m currently rewriting what was Chapter LIX in the serial version (now chapter XXVII). Current word count is 112,850.

A few quick updates + The Tarot of the Gates

First: I’ve cracked 100 pages and 75,000 words in my new draft of Journey to the Water! I just finished the Svilsara arc, which was roughly chapters XXIX-XXXVIII in the serial version. For now, I’m keeping it where it is (after Nagara and before meeting the sorcerer).

Second: the Figuratively Speaking Mermaid Tarot Kickstarter has met its fundraising goal! It’s on its way to its first stretch goal. If you haven’t supported it yet, now’s a good a time as any, and with the project funded you’ll be guaranteed to get all your rewards. There’s still time to decide, though; the Kickstarter runs until the end of the month.

Third: I wanted to write you something new for today, but I ended up not having time, so here is a good place to send you way back in the blog to check out Chapter One of The Tarot of the Gates, an Arcana-themed space opera. This and The Well Below the Valley will be among your choices for my next serial project.

That’s all for today! Take care and enjoy your weekend.

Quick Journey update + Horror Book Fair tomorrow!

Hello!

I am 58,261 words into the new draft of Journey to the Water, and have rewritten through Chapter XXVIII. Almost halfway done! I’m currently debating whether to put the Svilsara arc where it sits now, or move it later, making it a quest that the sorcerer sends Eske to complete.

Tomorrow, I’ll be at Spooky Frog’s Horrifying Book Fair, Part Two, at X-Ray Arcade in Cudahy, WI, along with some other cool indie & local horror authors and spooky artists & craftspeople! Admission is free, unless you want to skip the line and get in an hour early for $5. The event runs from noon until 4, but VIPs get in at 11.

Hope to see you there!

Some more notes on editing

This rant is brought to you by some writers in the fantasy book groups I’m in complaining that editing is too expensive, so they just…don’t do it? I neither recall their names nor wish to share them even if I did, so this is just sort of a general rant.

Editing is hard. Editing your own work is harder. As writers, we all have to learn how to do it, whether it’s to keep our manuscripts out of the slush pile, give our editors fewer headaches, or avoid annoying our beloved readers.

Continue reading “Some more notes on editing” →

Some notes on editing

I’ve finished my reread of Journey to the Water! Next step to get it into shape is a new outline, and then the Great Rewrite begins. In the meantime, I thought I’d share a little bit about my editing process, in the hopes that it will be helpful, of interest, or both. I’ve mentioned a few of the steps of my process before, but it will be good to have it all in one place.

Here are three things about me:

  1. I cannot afford to pay a good editor at the rates that they deserve.
  2. I have a Master’s degree in English literature. (Points 1 and 2 may be related.)
  3. I do my own editing, but I always, always have at least one other person whose taste and advice I trust read through my manuscripts before they go to publication.

In order to edit my own work, I need to first distance myself from it.

(This got long, so the rest is behind the cut:)

Continue reading “Some notes on editing” →

Song of the Week

Cassyette, “Dear Goth”

Good morning!

Not much to report this week; I’m working on rereading Journey to the Water and will have a new chapter for you on Patreon tomorrow. Last week’s chapter will be up here on Wednesday.

I’m also thinking about posting some of my editing notes, if that’s something you might be interested in? Editing your own work is a skill that takes time and practice to develop (and you should always, always have at least one other set of eyes on it before it’s done), and maybe my notes and commentary might be helpful–or you just might be curious. I won’t pretend that I have all the answers, but I spent several years in academia, and I’ve developed a pretty good critical eye. I’ll see what I can round up for Friday.

A few petitions for this week:

Via Amnesty International: End US Complicity in Global War Crimes

Via MPower Action: Stop Genocide in Gaza

Via 350.org: Declare a Climate Emergency

Via HIAS: Support the Rights of Asylum Seekers

Thanks for being here. Stop by again soon!

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: A Comparison

The title image for the serial version
The published version, sitting on my bookshelf

The version of Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea that you can purchase and hold in your hands (or your e-reader) is the same story as the serial version that was published chapter-by-chapter here on the blog between 2019 and 2020, but it has been improved upon in several key ways! I thought I would spend some time talking about that process and the work that went into making it a “real book.”

Continue reading “Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: A Comparison” →