I finished my manuscript and I’m already racking up the rejections. Everyone knows that rejections are a part of the game but at least the manuscript is out there bobbing around in this odd sea of publishing and I can move on to what’s next.
Progress
I finished this manuscript so early in the month that I mainly feel like I’ve been querying. Aside from both of those things, I’ve been working on my next project Cut Throat, and have about 8k words of brainstorming and plotting done so far. I am taking things a little bit slower right now as I try to rest a bit before a trip in late April and then after that, I will get right back into things. So my progress in writing this month has been slim but just like resting a sore muscle and coming back to lifting refreshed, I must rest my writing muscle to be able to continue at it better than before.
I am exceedingly excited about Cut Throat and it very much feels like the book I need right now. Interestingly, each book and idea has come around at the right time for me. This is probably on account of the fact that my subconscious is working through things that are bound to come out in my writing. There are so many levels to why writing is wonderful and sure there are days when it’s a struggle to write, but in the end, I believe I am better off for it. More people should write, even if it is solely for their own edification.
What I’m Learning
When am I not learning that rest is necessary, but yesterday I spent most of the day reading with just a break to work out and watch a bit of a show and it was probably the best thing I could have done. Even today I haven’t done any writing (this blog notwithstanding as that flexes a different sort of muscle.) and have opted to rest a bit more and recover from both the strain of revision and the stress of the query trenches.
Speaking of the query trenches, they are a lesson in patience. I want everything to have happened yesterday. By and large, I am not a patient person and querying will test your patience. I’m just over two weeks in and it’s eating me up a bit. I know it’s a long process so jumping into the next project is important but that is even more difficult when I’m trying to rest.
Leisure
I’ve done a decent amount of leisure this month though I’m thinking I will do even more next month. I’ve read three and a half volumes of Manga, my first ever. They were all number one or zero and included: Komi Can’t Communicate, Demon Slayer, Choujin X, and Jujutsu Kaisen. I am also currently reading “The Crown Tower” by Micheal J. Sullivan on a friend’s suggestion and am listening to “Gideon the Ninth” on another friend’s suggestion. I also read “The Spirit Bears it Teeth” for our Teen book club. I may be missing something but that is already more than I normally read.
It is also finally warming up enough for me to take regular walks (when it isn’t raining that is). Just this afternoon I was walking in the park and a group of deer were playing around and chasing each other. I thought they might run right into me. Then they started to follow me as I walked. For a moment I felt like a Disney princess.
Looking Forward
I am very excited, looking forward. As often happens when I finish a manuscript my attention fractures as various backburner projects try to push themselves to the forefront. However, I’d already decided that Cut Throat was next on the docket and I’m standing strong however much Mythsonian is trying to break out and force me to pay attention to her.
My plan is still to draft Cut Throat from the beginning of May to the end of July. Then I will take a couple weeks of a break before jumping back into a Project A reread, replot, and then revise and finish that project before jumping back into Cut Throat for the first round of revisions as my writing group would have hopefully finished with it by then. Now of course this timeline is always subject to change, especially if querying goes well but as it stands, this is my plan.
It does feel like the calm before another storm. Which is amusing since the storm is of my own making, but at least I look forward to it. Then again, I’ve always been partial to rain.
