Oh, how I am truly abhorring the summer months! I want nothing to do with 20-30 days of 110-degree+ weather! I know, I know, you are instantly thinking, then why doesn't he move? To that question, I have two answers. 1) There is too much here in terms of family and relationship, 2) One word: culture. I simply love the culture in Phoenix! In fact, without that culture, my first novel would have never been created. Phoenix is the sixth largest city in the U.S., but yet it is not congested. You see, Phoenix exists in a very large valley; therefore, it is spread out all over. That's why nobody walks here. You have to have a car. Yes, it kind of sucks considering the current fuel crisis. But, hey, everything has its price, right?
Moving right along, I exited April with accomplishing much that I set out to do with my writing. Of course, there were a few obstacles along the way. Hell, there always is.
To recap the month of April...
I finalized my short story, Joseph's Request, and submitted it to Cleis Press' Best Gay Erotica 2009 anthology. This is such a crazy horror story, (chock full of sex, death, and violence) that, if rejected, I plan on definitely adding it to my short story collection, Much of Madness, More of Sin. It certainly fits the bill!
I finished editing my short story, Sacrilege: Experiments With Holy Water. All that is left to do is query the anthology to which I will be submitting it to.
Ah, A Cub's Tail. This short story has been going on and off the back burner for months! I still have to give the story a worthy end (no pun intended). However, I have discovered an anthology I am interested in submitting it to. Once again, it is an anthology by Cleis Press entitled Daddies. I know, the name may seem demeaning, but it really works for the story.
As for the story I was researching for the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition (The Metamorphosis of Tatiana), I came to the decision to hold off on the story. On the other hand, it is definitely worth adding to my forthcoming collection.
In the interim of these stories and beginning the process of researching/writing others, I submitted a chapter to The Edward Ballister Project. For those of you who may have not read my previous blog, Edward Ballister is intended to be the "ultimate horror novel" comprised of multiple writers who weave the terrifying tale with a contributed chapter to the collective work. Currently, chapters are still being written and I am awaiting publication news of the collaboration. For more information on my work with The Edward Ballister Project, read my previous blog entitled My Time With Edward a.k.a. Contributing To The Edward Ballister Project.
Shadow City Press (the publisher of my new novel, Nightfall) put out the book trailer for Nightfall. It's great, so please check that out on my website. Speaking of Shadow City Press, they also (very recently) announced that "due to production delays" the release date for Nightfall was changed from May 21, 2008 to June 24, 2008. OK, I guess I take the bad with the good.
There are many other projects transpiring which I don't feel are worth expanding in this blog. After all, this particular blog revolves around my monthly writing goals. That said, I'm sure that I will have many entries to follow this one. Remember though, to keep with the current, read the blogs and visit my website (www.AndrewWolter.com).
So, moving on to May's writing goals, I plan on the following:
1) Finalizing and submitting A Cub's Tail (short story) to Cleis Press' Daddies anthology.
2) Submitting Sacrilege: Experiments In Holy Water (short story) to anthology.
3) Submitting Jailed (short story) to publication (to be determined).
4) Finish re-writes of Being Human (short story) (no publication yet determined).
5) Organize final edits of Much of Madness, More of Sin (short story collection).
That being said, I hope to sizzle (creatively, that is) with my inspiration in the month of May. I pray the 100-degree mark doesn't hit, but who am I kidding?
I often look back at previous blogs and the goals that I set for my writing career each month. I find that there are times I accomplish what I set out to do and this pleases me. Of course, there are other instances where I find that certain writing goals get thrown to the proverbial "back burner" due to changes in criteria for certain publications and an overall interest (on my part) of new anthologies/magazines that are open to submissions. Yet, there are times where I discover that a manuscript I initially anticipated sending to one publication does a 180-degree turn to fit the guidelines of a much more well-suited publication.
The point I'm trying to make is that my monthly blog, revealing my goals for each month, is not a definitive. It is, plain and simply, a structure of projects I am working on. I do this for those who are interested in following my writing career and I do this for myself as well. It gives me a bit of sanity in a maddening world of creating, marketing, and submitting works. That being said, I try not to come down on myself when I fail to meet certain writing goals defined by my "Goals" blog entry. After all, for certain projects that do not get completed, there are projects that are unexpectedly accomplished.
Thus, to recap the month of March....
I finally received a release date for the limited hardcover edition of my novel, Nightfall. The book will be released by Shadow City Press on 5/21/08. If I'm lucky, it may be sooner. I suppose that all depends on the final product.
In regards to the many short stories that have been circulating between the realm of submission and publication, I received news that my short story Puppeteer will be published in the premiere issue of The Ashen Eye magazine! I came to the conclusion, while editing my short story A Cub's Tail, that the story would be more suited for an upcoming anthology by Cleis Press. Hence, I will not be sending it to Velvet Mafia as previously indicated. I have finished editing my story Joseph's Request and anticipate submitting it to Cleis Press' Best Gay Erotica 2009 anthology before mid-April (yes it is a horror story). I have to give it one final read (blame it on the perfectionist in me).
I did manage to get some research done relating to the short story I will be entering into the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition.
Which brings me to April's writing goals:
1) Submission of Joseph's Request (short story) to anthology.
2) Finalizing A Cub's Tail (short story) and preparing it for submission to anthology.
3) Write The Metamorphosis of Tatiana (short story) for the Writer's Digest competition.
4) Edit and finalize Sacrilege: Experiments With Holy Water (short story) for submission to anthology.
It looks as if April has the best of me and is already two days in. Therefore, it's time that I spring into action as well!
There are many exciting things to look forward to in March. But first, a recap of February....
It seems that I have been consumed with promoting my forthcoming novel, Nightfall. The process has taken a lot of time, however, it's difficult to promote a novel that doesn't have an official release date as of yet. I'm looking forward to announcing this news very soon! What's exciting about Nightfall is it is going to be first released as a limited edition hardcover novel. Of course, most hardcover novels (especially limited editions) tend to carry a heftier price tag. On the other hand (being a collector of hardcover first editions), at least a hardcover novel long outlasts a paperback.
In regards to the short stories that have been submitted for possible publication, I am still awaiting to hear the fates of my stories Rush, Puppeteer, and Jailed.
I'm still in the process of organizing my short story collection, Much of Madness, More of Sin. Currently, I have placed this project on the proverbial "back burner" until I have worked out the last business related to Nightfall.
Other than those projects, I have been working on some exciting new stories for submission into a couple of anthologies of interest. In addition, I'm in the midst of researching information for a short story to submit to the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition.
That said, my writing goals for March are as follows:
1) Tying up loose ends (with) and providing release date news for Nightfall
2) Finalization of A Cub's Tail (short story) and submission to Velvet Mafia
3) Final edit and submission of Sacrilege: Experiments With Holy Water (short story) to anthology
4) Final edit and submission of Joseph's Request (short story) to anthology
5) Research completion for The Metamorphosis of Tatiana (short story) {to be submitted to the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition before May}
March seems to be looking as busy as February was. And with the amazing sensation of invigorating, springtime temperatures here in Phoenix (we're in the upper-seventies/low eighties all week), I think I'll find myself relaxing with my laptop on my patio a lot!
Check back to my LiveJournal and MySpace Write Now... blog (or visit my official website) regularly so that you can stay up to date!
As I look out my office window, the skies over Phoenix are clearer than they have been for a majority of the month. Winter in Phoenix is ending. Winter? Yes, our idea of Winter in Phoenix is overcast days filled with wind gusts and, sometimes, rain. Rain has been abundant this month, what with the total rainfall of the month being half of what we usually receive in an entire year! It's not quite over. The local meteorologists predict that it will rain Sunday and Monday (yes, that would be Superbowl Sunday hosted here in the Valley of the Sun). Other than that, the stormy weather has almost passed. The remainder of our storms will begin in the first part of July, with the arrival of the freakish weather from the annual monsoon.
Comparable to this past month's weather, my January writing goals have created a similar type of unexpected turns. I'm not sure why it is, but I tend to change gears with certain goals throughout the month. It's not that I'm accomplishing nothing whatsoever. Rather, other ideas seem to branch from the goals at hand and I take off with them! As a writer, it would be stupid not to run with an idea for a new story if the inspiration is there.
Although, I did get a quite a few things accomplished.
I revamped my official website. I changed the look completely and made it more user friendly. It makes it easier for me to update on a regular basis! On the Contests/Promotions web page, I began a promotion for readers to win a hardcover, autographed copy of my upcoming novel, Nightfall. It's kind of cool if you're into the MySpace crowd and want to learn more about the main character of the novel (Stefan Powell).
Writing wise, my short story I'll Be Home For Christmas ranked thirteen out of seventy-three stories (for category Short Story Horror) in the 2007 P&E Reader's Poll. I finalized a short story, entitled Jailed, and submitted it to Apex Digest for publishing consideration. I wrote and finalized a new short story, Puppeteer, and will be submitting it to a magazine this week (I'm not sure which one quite yet). And, I'm almost done with the final edits of my story A Cub's Tail. As for my stories Dead Asphalt and Being Human, I was informed by Amazon Shorts (to which I was going to submit both) that they were currently not accepting submissions. I may keep these two for the short story collection I am currently working on.
As always, for more specific information on the status of any of my writing goals, you can read previous posts from that month.
January was definitely a creative month for me in the short story department!
For February, I'll be focusing on a lot of promotion and marketing. My writing goals for February are as follows:
1) Final edit of A Cub's Tail (short story) and submission to Velvet Mafia
2) Submission of Puppeteer (short story) to a yet-to-be-determined publication
3) Promotion and buzz for Nightfall (novel), including release announcement
4) Organizing Much of Madness, More of Sin (short story collection) for submission
As always, check back to my LiveJournal or MySpace blog entries for announcements and how I am progressing.
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