Okay, so it's been a while. Actually, over three months...but rest assured, I have not given up on my quest. In fact, the silent New Year's Resolution I said to myself as 2002 was whisked away into retirement was:

'This is the year things start to happen.'

So, since I haven't been trying too hard to get published in the last couple o' months, let me fill any interested readers in on what I have been doing.

1. I got engaged on Christmas. An April wedding is in the works.
2. I've been settling into my new home in Woodbury, MN. (that's in the good ol' USA, folks)
3. I worked on and finished the first draft of my next novel (the 2nd book in the series)

Right. So after patting myself on the back for getting the thing done (it only took me 4+ months instead of 2 years) I realized I needed to pick up the slack and get back on track to having these things into the hands of the right people. For your approval, here is my game plan for the year 2003.

Step One: Submit, submit, submit. I've picked up the Guide to Literary Agents and I've been scouring the listings that are interested in juvenile fiction. There's a healthy number of agencies that will look at stuff like I've written, but I needed to sweeten up my query letter. That's been my task this week and I think I've got it nailed. The next thing I wanted to do to make it stand out a bit is have a card to go along with the letter for the agenices to return if their interested in reading my manuscript. I've got an artist here drawing a happy face and a sad face for my main character near either of the replies. I feel like I'm sort of bullying them to read my book. Why not?

Step Two: Edit Tyme. After I've let my newest manuscript steep for a few months (say March or so) I'm going back into the trenches and make Book Two sparkle and pop like it did in my original vision. Since I'm a firm believer of not just sitting and over-thinking the story to the point that I don't write anything, I forced myself to keep on at it, even if areas needed a bit more fleshing out. I'm glad I did it this way. I now have a manuscript that's longer than the first, but is definitely a strong draft, considering how short a time it took me to kick it out. So, I'll begin editing it and allow my faithful readers to read the third draft, hopefully some time in April.

Step Three: The Next Project. Although I've already got plenty of ideas for what my next book in my children's book series will be, I think I'm going to give the little guy a year off. In the meantime, I'm hoping to delve into another genre, just for fun. Not sure if it'll be as much fun as the previous books I've written, but I've had a pretty good idea bouncing around in my head for a year and a half or so. Might see if I can get it on paper and see how it goes. Oh...and the artist guy and I are thinking of collaborating on a children's picture book. We'll see, though.

So, I've been plenty busy and haven't wavered from my dream in the least. Just got sidetracked a bit and ended up with another novel in my lap. Fair enough. Step One will be underway once I've got my cards created to go with my query letters. For now, I'm going to compile my lists of agencies, pick a handful to target first and sit back and wait for the replies to come it.

Ah...being a writer is such fun. (no...really, it is!)