Craig Andrews's Blog - Posts Tagged "writing-process"
June Writing Update
Hey everyone,
I'm alive! To be completely honest, this update is long overdue. I had originally wanted to provide an update every month, but looking back now I realize that idea is not only impossible, but overkill. That's not to say I don't want to provide updates, I do, but these larger sized updates take time and planning which takes away from my writing time--and as someone who works full-time, is married with two small boys, my writing time is limited as it is. So as a compromise, I want to put these larger updates out on a quarterly basis, while giving smaller ones every month or so.
That said, what's been going on?
Well, Splinter has been out for six months, and continues to sell consistently. This is huge for me, because I really didn't know what to expect. I knew how many copies of Fracture we had sold and I knew it was pretty well received, but I didn't know what kind of appetite there was for a sequel. To my surprise, Splinter shot out of the gate, vaulting up the Amazon Bestseller lists in Urban and Contemporary Fantasy and stayed there for several weeks. Like Fracture, it seems to be pretty well received, and that's really all I could ever ask for. For those that have read Splinter you know that there is a third book coming out titled, Martyr, but before I get to that I want to take a step back and talk about the series as a whole.
The Machinists was always intended to be a multi-volume series. I'm not pulling a Jim Butcher or Kim Harrison and writing a 10-20 book series, but I think five or six books is a healthy size for this story. Five, because I like the way it lends itself to story structure; six, for...other reasons. Knowing this, I started to flesh out the series outline, highlighting key moments, key conflicts, and turning points before I began working on Martyr. I want to make sure we're moving the story to a satisfying conclusion, while laying the groundwork for the exciting things that will happen in later books. So when I started working on Martyr I was already in outlining mode and decided I wanted to try something new. I wanted to write a detailed outline of the book too.
See, I'm a discovery writer (or what George R.R. Martin calls a Gardner). I don't start writing until I know my entire first act (I'm a firm believer in story structure), but beyond that I only have a fuzzy idea of how the rest of the book will play out. I typically know my ending, or at least, an ending, and a couple key moments between it and the beginning, but it's all very loose and can change if I want it to. It's like knowing I want to drive from Portland to New York. I know I'm headed East, I know I'll stop in Denver to visit my wife's family, and probably catch a Cubs game at Wrigley, but beyond that, I have no idea. I don't know where I'm getting gas, I don't know where I'm eating, I don't know who I'll meet along the way. But I know I'm ending in New York. Well, with Martyr I wanted to try and build a solid outline hoping that it would quicken the actual writing process.
It didn't.
Or, I should say, it hasn't. I'm no longer discovering the story as I write it. I know it. It's like re-watching a movie you just saw yesterday. It's not as fun, and your more prone to distraction. I'm no longer like a reader, driven by the need to know what happens next, or how our heroes escape to become victorious. I already know all that, and it's just not as cool. Having said that, and potentially having revealed too much, I'm incredibly proud and very confident in the story I've built. It's going to be a good one! Martyr is bigger, we're introduced to new characters and new settings (our conflict is going global!), and coolest of all, new villains. The stakes are bigger, the internal battles more personal, and above all, long held magi secrets will be revealed. If you like the first two books in The Machinists, I really think you'll like this one.
Right now, I'm only about 20% of the way through my first draft--like I said, it's been a slow process. But of that 20%, I don't see any large scale story problems and hope that the rewriting and editing process will be shorter than my first two books (one of the benefits of outlining, right?). My tentative goal right now is to complete the first draft by November, and have the book ready by March of 2016. If I get into a good rhythm that could change. Ideally, as you can likely imagine, I'd like to get the book out in December like the first two, but right now that's a pretty big stretch and I don't want to make promises I can't keep.
So... There we are. Fracture and Splinter continue to exceed my expectations, the entire Machinists series will be five or six books and has a loose outline to keep me on track, and Martyr is in the works and will likely be released in early 2016. I hope you enjoy these peeks behind the curtain, and understand my process.
As always, thank you for reading, and taking this journey with me. I'm forever grateful for every one of you.
Until next time...
Take care,
-Craig
I'm alive! To be completely honest, this update is long overdue. I had originally wanted to provide an update every month, but looking back now I realize that idea is not only impossible, but overkill. That's not to say I don't want to provide updates, I do, but these larger sized updates take time and planning which takes away from my writing time--and as someone who works full-time, is married with two small boys, my writing time is limited as it is. So as a compromise, I want to put these larger updates out on a quarterly basis, while giving smaller ones every month or so.
That said, what's been going on?
Well, Splinter has been out for six months, and continues to sell consistently. This is huge for me, because I really didn't know what to expect. I knew how many copies of Fracture we had sold and I knew it was pretty well received, but I didn't know what kind of appetite there was for a sequel. To my surprise, Splinter shot out of the gate, vaulting up the Amazon Bestseller lists in Urban and Contemporary Fantasy and stayed there for several weeks. Like Fracture, it seems to be pretty well received, and that's really all I could ever ask for. For those that have read Splinter you know that there is a third book coming out titled, Martyr, but before I get to that I want to take a step back and talk about the series as a whole.
The Machinists was always intended to be a multi-volume series. I'm not pulling a Jim Butcher or Kim Harrison and writing a 10-20 book series, but I think five or six books is a healthy size for this story. Five, because I like the way it lends itself to story structure; six, for...other reasons. Knowing this, I started to flesh out the series outline, highlighting key moments, key conflicts, and turning points before I began working on Martyr. I want to make sure we're moving the story to a satisfying conclusion, while laying the groundwork for the exciting things that will happen in later books. So when I started working on Martyr I was already in outlining mode and decided I wanted to try something new. I wanted to write a detailed outline of the book too.
See, I'm a discovery writer (or what George R.R. Martin calls a Gardner). I don't start writing until I know my entire first act (I'm a firm believer in story structure), but beyond that I only have a fuzzy idea of how the rest of the book will play out. I typically know my ending, or at least, an ending, and a couple key moments between it and the beginning, but it's all very loose and can change if I want it to. It's like knowing I want to drive from Portland to New York. I know I'm headed East, I know I'll stop in Denver to visit my wife's family, and probably catch a Cubs game at Wrigley, but beyond that, I have no idea. I don't know where I'm getting gas, I don't know where I'm eating, I don't know who I'll meet along the way. But I know I'm ending in New York. Well, with Martyr I wanted to try and build a solid outline hoping that it would quicken the actual writing process.
It didn't.
Or, I should say, it hasn't. I'm no longer discovering the story as I write it. I know it. It's like re-watching a movie you just saw yesterday. It's not as fun, and your more prone to distraction. I'm no longer like a reader, driven by the need to know what happens next, or how our heroes escape to become victorious. I already know all that, and it's just not as cool. Having said that, and potentially having revealed too much, I'm incredibly proud and very confident in the story I've built. It's going to be a good one! Martyr is bigger, we're introduced to new characters and new settings (our conflict is going global!), and coolest of all, new villains. The stakes are bigger, the internal battles more personal, and above all, long held magi secrets will be revealed. If you like the first two books in The Machinists, I really think you'll like this one.
Right now, I'm only about 20% of the way through my first draft--like I said, it's been a slow process. But of that 20%, I don't see any large scale story problems and hope that the rewriting and editing process will be shorter than my first two books (one of the benefits of outlining, right?). My tentative goal right now is to complete the first draft by November, and have the book ready by March of 2016. If I get into a good rhythm that could change. Ideally, as you can likely imagine, I'd like to get the book out in December like the first two, but right now that's a pretty big stretch and I don't want to make promises I can't keep.
So... There we are. Fracture and Splinter continue to exceed my expectations, the entire Machinists series will be five or six books and has a loose outline to keep me on track, and Martyr is in the works and will likely be released in early 2016. I hope you enjoy these peeks behind the curtain, and understand my process.
As always, thank you for reading, and taking this journey with me. I'm forever grateful for every one of you.
Until next time...
Take care,
-Craig
October Updates
Hello from Portland!
If you've been following me on Facebook at all, you've probably seen me talk about a lot projects lately, so I wanted to take a moment to explain each in a little more detail. Here's everything I'm currently working on (with confirmed and targeted release dates!):
Martyr, Book #3 of The Machinists - This is done and will be available on October 18th in print and eBook format at all major online retailers.
Heritage, Book #0.5 of The Machinists - Yes, I kinda made up that numbering system. Heritage is a prequel novella (22,500 words compared to Martyr's 78,000) set in the world of The Machinists, and will be available on the same day as Martyr (October 18th). I wrote it to take a break from the normal Machinists crew, explore new character, setting, and time period, while also rewarding those who have signed up for my mailing list. Fans of The Machinists will really like it (my editor loved it) as it gives us a view of what life was like for early magi, and shows the formation of one of the Order's most influential Families. Since it was written to readers who have signed up for my mailing list, the only way to get it is, you guess it, by signing up for my mailing list. It will never be available via Amazon or any other retailer.
Exposure, Book #4 of The Machinists - I've mentioned before that The Machinists is going to be a five book series, so the tension really gets ratcheted up in this one. I'm currently writing Exposure, and am about 20% of the way through my first draft, and targeting a late Spring/early Summer release.
As if that wasn't enough, I'm outlining a couple ideas for my next series. There's a sci-fi series that I'm really excited about and an epic fantasy series that I've been tinkering with for a couple years. I haven't decided which direction I'll go yet, but in either case, I'm excited about what the future holds.
As always, thank you for reading. I can't wait to share these new books with you!
-Craig
If you've been following me on Facebook at all, you've probably seen me talk about a lot projects lately, so I wanted to take a moment to explain each in a little more detail. Here's everything I'm currently working on (with confirmed and targeted release dates!):
Martyr, Book #3 of The Machinists - This is done and will be available on October 18th in print and eBook format at all major online retailers.
Heritage, Book #0.5 of The Machinists - Yes, I kinda made up that numbering system. Heritage is a prequel novella (22,500 words compared to Martyr's 78,000) set in the world of The Machinists, and will be available on the same day as Martyr (October 18th). I wrote it to take a break from the normal Machinists crew, explore new character, setting, and time period, while also rewarding those who have signed up for my mailing list. Fans of The Machinists will really like it (my editor loved it) as it gives us a view of what life was like for early magi, and shows the formation of one of the Order's most influential Families. Since it was written to readers who have signed up for my mailing list, the only way to get it is, you guess it, by signing up for my mailing list. It will never be available via Amazon or any other retailer.
Exposure, Book #4 of The Machinists - I've mentioned before that The Machinists is going to be a five book series, so the tension really gets ratcheted up in this one. I'm currently writing Exposure, and am about 20% of the way through my first draft, and targeting a late Spring/early Summer release.
As if that wasn't enough, I'm outlining a couple ideas for my next series. There's a sci-fi series that I'm really excited about and an epic fantasy series that I've been tinkering with for a couple years. I haven't decided which direction I'll go yet, but in either case, I'm excited about what the future holds.
As always, thank you for reading. I can't wait to share these new books with you!
-Craig
