How It's Going

Marketing:  I've mostly been working on consolidating the various profiles I have out there, including Facebook, Twitter, Smashwords, and the blogs.  I've also finished a couple of other projects which must remain secret.  In total, I feel like I'm making progress.  Heck, even this is making progress in terms of marketing my work, but I must do it more often.

Short Project:  I finished the blocking and have moved on to the writing.  About halfway through scene 1.  I love this part, though it tends to go slowly, mostly because I'm revising while I do it.  I've set up a revision notes page, just a place where I can give myself general notes (IE move the new teeth thing up to the first few lines so it's the grabber) and I don't get caught up in revising while I'm writing.  Also, my tone sounds a little wooden and formal.  Even though I'm writing for the Wild West, it can't be stuffy.  One thing at a time; multi-tasking for me means many projects done, none well enough.

Long Project:  Still hashing out the basics of the plot.  It's a long project, but the logjam is starting to break and the flow of the scenes is coming easier.  I'm starting to feel like what I'm putting down now is the groundwork for stuff later and that's GREAT.  It means I'm leading the audience.  I just have to keep thinking that way.  I'm also finding the antagonist needs an assistant weasel, someone to prime her bad behavior pump.  He'll show up; I just don't see him yet.

Blog Posts:  I don't do enough of these.  And I'm also going to include springpunk/clockpunk references I find in a Google alert.  Nothing says all this has to be about me.  I'm also going to be looking at a few new tools as time goes on.

A good couple of weeks.  This is the busy part of the season for me, so I'm hoping I can sustain a good work schedule in the midst of all the rest of it.

Passing Landmarks

More than one, in fact.  It has been a year since Turning Springs was released.  While sales haven't been spectacular, trends I see in the media are very encouraging.  Fantasy and simplicity are in; the less explaining you have to do, the better, especially when selling entertainment to busy people.  Haven't seen anything about a reboot of Wild Wild West, but I suppose that isn't far off, since it appears that everything else is being rebooted.  A few more marketing things to try with Turning Springs, perhaps registration of that and other works on different platforms might be the key.  And yes, I'm planning a print-on-demand copy of Turning Springs.  Get seen, then get known. 

The long project I've been working on is taking longer than expected, as are they all.  I only get about six hours a week to work on any of this stuff and most weeks I don't even get that.  I'm upbeat, though; all steps are steps forward and that's always the right direction.  I'm still slogging through a pile of notes and that's taking a lot of time.  I'll get it done.

The short project passed a landmark today:  I finished roughing out the plot and the chronology.  Fill out the settings and the characters and I hope to have well in hand by Memorial Day.  It will not be a free distribution as stated before. 

And, I updated the blog.  That's good news, too.  Stay tuned!