That Writing Thing

Hey Kids.

No, I haven't died. No, I haven't quit the whole 'writing thing.'

It's funny. When I run into people I haven't seen in a while, that's one of the first things they ask me:

"So, Kingsley. You still doing that writing thing?"

Yes. Yes, I'm still doing that writing thing.

I've been doing this since I was in 2nd grade and I'm guessing I'll still be writing stuff until I'm too old to hit the keys on the keyboard. Then again, by the time I'm that old there'll probably be some kind of wire I can plug into my dumb head and the words will just...appear.

Anyway, some quick updates on what I've been up to:

- Got 4 more little short stories I'm going to shoot off to my editor friend at Picture Window Books this week. One of which she REALLY liked, but it needed some tweaking. I can do that.

I can tweak.

Two others were goofy little books I cranked out and think have some merit and the last one is a story that she didn't think worked in its current state. I totally revamped it and I'm going to send it again to see what she thinks. It'd be kind of cool if all 4 got picked up, eh?

- Less than one year before my little book comes out next September. I find myself sort of apologizing for it. I'm proud of it, but it doesn't really represent the kind of work I typically do. So, when my friends ask about it, I always tell them: 'Yeah, it's cool I'm getting published, but I'm just hoping it opens doors for my more important work.'

Man, that sounds snooty.

- I'm within reach of finishing my newest project. My goal is to finish it by the end of the month and shoot it off to my team of analysts to see what they think. It's kind of cool. People are anxiously awating to see how it ends. And no...this isn't part of my BIG series. That's going to resume again hopefully by year's end. I'm hoping to get 'SB' done this month so I can concentrate on...

- NaNoWriMo. Yep. I'm doing it. For those that are uninitiated, it's a contest/kick-in-the-pants to write as much of a novel as humanly possible in the space of a month. You start on November 1st and you finish up on November 30th. What you get is what you get. Anyway, I'm registered and all that jazz, so we'll see how it goes. I've heard from some that it's a good idea to go in with at least an outline or an idea of what you're going to write, so I've been kicking around some ideas. I've got some non-kid's-book-related ideas I think I'm going to pursue, but we'll see.

I've kind of decided that all of my free time will be devoted to getting a novel done. It'll be my 3rd (if all goes well) and I'm hoping it'll prime the pump for me to return to my ever-expanding kid's book series.

Call me crazy, but I like having the pressure. It helps me get stuff done. And heck, if I get a novel out of the deal, why not? Even if it's a piece of crap, I think I'll still get that good-ol-feeling of creating something out of thin air.

It's the closest I can come to being a god.

- Last but not least, I've been spending much free time this month doing some remodeling. My dad and I have constructed an office/4th bedroom/writing haven in our basement. It's going to be sweet. Recessed lighting. Hardwood floors. Painted wood ceiling. Cool closet with frosted glass windows that light will come through. Mini fridge built into the wall. Floor to ceiling bookshelves. Stylin' futon with all-new steel frame.

Seriously. It's going to be perfect. I've got it in my head that this will be where I report to work once that big fat book deal comes in. It'll be my retreat into the worlds I've created.

We just laid the floor down last night and we should have it done by month's end. See how it's all coming together?

***SB rough draft done***Room is complete***NaNoWriMo begins***

It's almost like I planned it...