That's the Way It Was

So how did your year go?

I wanted to finish three novels this year. I didn’t make it, though Dave Wilbanks and I recently completed the first draft of our novel-length sequel to Dead Earth: The Green Dawn. I submitted another novel to a mass-market publisher, so 2 out of 3 is the final tally.

I have a short story coming up as part of Delirium’s Horror D’oeuvre series. Another story was just sold to an horror anthology, though I’ll wait until I have a contract to announce that. I have a few other pieces in the pipeline – including one story accepted nearly four years ago – that are awaiting publication.

The writing continues. Over the next couple of days I will wrap up a sequel to an earlier story for a possible chapbook. I’ve got more pulp-inspired fiction to write for Wild Cat Books, including my novel Mad Reign of the Plague Master. I also plan to make serious progress on two horror novels.

So my resolution is to find more time to write. I have a great job, one I love and one that fits my limited skill set. But it sometimes takes a lot of hours from my life, so I have to be more flexible about my writing schedule, and not allow the setbacks to bother me so much.

It’s also been a good year for Pod of Horror. Nanci Kalanta has been a gracious host after giving us a new home at Horror World. We’re looking forward to a lot of offensive fun in 2007.

I hope it’s been a good year for you, and that ‘07 will be even better. Read a lot, and write, if that’s what you do. In fact, if you’re a writer, here’s my wish for you: less talking about writing and more typing. Stop the excuses. Play the video games after your pages are done. And don’t give up on your project. Type “The End” before you worry about revising that paragraph that bugged you back on page 13.