Final Recap: 2016 Writing Resolutions @BooksByIntisar

You know how everyone’s starting to think about their New Year’s Resolutions? (Okay, maybe not everyone, but since I don’t have Christmas to keep me busy, what else am I going to obsess about? I mean, if I’m trying not to think about the news….) SO, it occurred to me that I should revisit my 2016 resolutions. I’m not really sure why, other than that I’m taking this “public shaming to achieve one’s resolutions” thing as far as I can.

But I have good news! I’m a total superstar! I achieved at least ONE of my goals! Next year, I’m aiming for two. (Ha!) Here they are…. updates and all.

Publish Memories of Ash – DONE! – May 30th marked the release of Memories of Ash. I really cannot describe the incredible sense of relief I felt in releasing this book, compounded with the utter terror of knowing I have two more Sunbolt books left. *dies*

Not quite a bull’s eye….

Share two original short stories with my newsletter subscribers – Kinda done! – In January / February I released Dragon Slayer Number Nine to my newsletter subscribers. It was a very short story but lots of fun to write and share. If you missed it, it’s now available as a free download to all new subscribers. Then I decided to play it a little fast and loose, and submitted a fantasy short to Fantastic Creatures, an anthology that released in November and is FREE on most platforms (so it’s totally still a free read for subscribers, right?). Don’t answer that. But go grab a copy of Fantastic Creatures if you haven’t already….
Revise the first installment in Rae’s story – Kinda not done… – This was on the calendar for the fall. And I really, really intended to work on it. But this fall hit me hard. I actually ended up changing gears to revise a manuscript to submit for traditional publishing, which then stalled out after the US election (the manuscript, not traditional publishing). I’ve spent the last month beating my creative head against various walls. It hasn’t amounted to much in terms of writing. But I’ve put Rae back on the calendar for the spring. I do love her, and I do hope to bring you her story as I’m able.
Complete a first draft of Sunbolt Book 3 – Um, nope. – I have nine chapters! Four of which will probably be summarily tossed out, which means I’m only slightly further along than the last update I provided. I do have the Most Extensive Outline I have EVER written, which actually amounts to about two months of writing for me. Yes, I spent two months on an outline. I really, really, hope this means fewer revisions and a shorter overall timeline. We’ll see!

Random Other Things

I also revised two other short stories that have yet to see the light of day. One, Vegan Dreams, is a contemporary retelling of Hansel and Gretel from the witch’s perspective. The other goes hand in hand with The Bone Knife, except that it centers on Rae’s little sister, Bean. I’m shopping Vegan Dreams around to various podcast and ezine options, and I’m hoping to give Bean’s story another polish before deciding what to do with it. (Newsletter subscribers may just get a sneak peek….)

AND, I started writing a comic script. (!!!) It’s still in development, and too early to give any detail, but it’s been the thing that has helped me to get back out of my writing rut. I’d been developing ideas for it since this summer, but only started seriously moving towards writing in the last two weeks. Exciting times, and totally not on the agenda. However, I’m trying to balance it with also working on my novels, hoping that one will give me the energy for the other. We’ll see how that shakes out!

If you don’t know where you’re going… this sign post definitely won’t help. Having goals, on the other hand, might.

Lessons Learned:

I should maybe kinda recognize my own humanity and not expect to revise and/or draft three full length works in a year. Two may be more realistic. Plus a couple of shorts–because, while I thought I disliked writing shorts, it turns out that sometimes working on a short is the change of pace I need between larger projects. So you might be able to expect a couple shorts from me next year as well.

Now to start stewing about my 2017 resolutions….