Writing Update: February 2023
It’s been a while since I’ve posted one of these. Recently things have been moving very slowly, but there is some good news on the horizon.
Progress on The Shadow of Arcadia is still slow. I’m finding this to be the hardest book I’ve yet written, but I am still making progress. It is now past novella-length, and past the length at which I extracted it from the original draft of From the Grave of the Gods, but there’s a lot still to add, and I’m just shy of half the way through. As I write Part Two of the novel, I have a very clear picture in my mind of where it’s heading, and there’s a sequence which I am absolutely dying to write. In my head, it’s possibly one of the coolest sequences in all of sci-fi! Am I being overly optimistic that it’ll turn out that way? Perhaps, but it’s exciting and action-packed, and pays off a bit of foreshadowing from the start of the book. In short, it’s keeping me going. After Part Two is done, it should be a lot more plain-sailing because the skeleton of Part Three is already in place, so there’ll be less to rewrite. I’m still hoping to get Book Two of the Augment Saga into your hands this year, but I will have to find beta readers and a professional editor, and both of those processes can take a long time to complete.
In the meantime, however, I have finalised the cover art for the book. This had been giving me grief for a while as well - I did say things may change, and they have. I made some artwork at the start of last year as I mentioned in my previous update post last May (wow has it really been that long?) and while I love the background painting still, I was never totally happy with how it fitted in with the typography and other elements. So I gave up on that top-down concept, gave it another go and… Yep, this is the one! I love it and I’m really excited to share it with you. The cover reveal will come after I finish this draft of the book, and if you’re subscribed to my newsletter, you’ll get to see it first!
But also, just so I have some pictures for this blog post, look up at the banner for a sneak peek! :D
The Globe Collaboration Project
They are squishy and I love them.
I should have posted this on the blog, but it completely slipped my mind. Those of you who follow me on the socials will be aware that in September I won Matthew Cross’s Flash Fiction Collaboration Contest for my ending to his short story, Incoming! The task was to write the ending in 500 words or less. I’ve entered one of these before and became a finalist, but I came first place in the September contest.
You can read my ending here along with the rest of the short story.
What did I win? Well, along with a really awesome $50 Amazon Gift Card, I received an awesome hand-crocheted rocket, and a pencil (for being a finalist the previous time) from Matt. They’re so cool and they now adorn my bookshelf. If you’re following me on Instagram, you may have seen them already pop up on my book reviews there.
Not only that, but I was also offered the chance to be part of a big writing collaboration project called The Globe, writing short stories in a shared universe on a planet inhabited by the descendants of William Shakespeare. You can read the first two Acts of the project from the other collaborators on Matt’s website under “The Globe Folio”. The big news for me, however, is that I have recently submitted my first short story, titled Favourable Benefits, which will be published as part of Act 3. I’m super excited to be able to share this with you when it comes out, as I’m really happy with the story. It’s about a father and son who find themselves in disagreement over the politics of The Globe’s occupation by the Polity. So, watch this space, I’ll be sharing more with you soon!
Newton’s Reach: An Augment Saga Short Story
Do you remember how I promised that eventually I would replace the free newsletter copy of The Re-Emergence with something else? Well, that time is drawing close. I know it’s been a few months since I took down the novella and added it to Kindle Unlimited, but I have been working on a short story titled Newton’s Reach to fill the gap for newsletter subscribers. What’s more, it’ll tie-in directly to The Shadow of Arcadia. When it’s ready (you can check my progress at the bottom of my Books page), I’ll make this special short story available to download for all current and new newsletter subscribers. Another thing I’m really excited to share with you when it’s ready!
Update about SPSFC2
I mentioned some time ago that I entered From the Grave of the Gods into the second annual Self Published Science Fiction Contest. Just as an update: unfortunately the book was knocked out of the competition in the first round. It’s been really interesting following the contest so far, and I am grateful for the opportunity to have entered. If it should come to pass that I’m able to re-enter again for the third contest, I may do so, but that won’t be until much later in the year.
Narratess #IndieApril Sale
Once again, I’ll be participating in the Narratess #IndieApril mega sale. This year I’ve entered both From the Grave of the Gods, and The Flight of the Aurora, which will both be discounted to 99p for the period of the 1st to the 3rd of April. It promises to be the biggest version of the sale yet, with collaborations from the SPSFC and SPFBO (Self Published Fantasy Blog-Off) competitors. Expect more news on this in the coming weeks.
