Not really a resolution, more of a writing goal. I used to write a lot of poetry. There was a point where I wrote one haiku a week (usually right before a Weight Watchers meeting). It's been a while since I've written a poem so I'm thinking of trying my hand at it again. Maybe I'll dig up my old poems and publish them.

14 December 2014

I was doing some cleaning up, vainly trying to straighten up the apartment before the parents arrive on Christmas Eve, I made an interesting discovery. I found pages of notes I had made for "My Soul to Keep." These lay out the situation at the start of the story, a description of the alien protagonists behind it all. I did change the main character's name, from Jessica Troy (a good name) to Helena Troy (a better name). Her appearance changed a little as well. (Initially, Jessica/Helena bore a striking resemblance to Catherine Bell. Now she looks a bit like Kate Beckinsale.)

I'm glad to find these notes. There are two, maybe three stories that fit in with "My Soul to Keep" and finding these notes will help me get them planned out.

Imagineering

Started making notes for a new EarthGov Security story, set in late 2191/eartly 2192. I know which characters will lead the story - Special Agent Harmony Moore, her identical twin sister, Special Agent Melody Moore, and their partner, Special Agent Wesley Jensen. All three characters have been part of EGS for a while now, though only Harmony and Melody have made any appearances so far. (Their only published appearance is in On A Cold Wind, and that was essentially a cameo appearance. They do play a larger part in Broken Memories.) Wesley has been part of other stories that are in the To Be Completed pile. He's a close friend to Carly and Murphy (though not part of Carly's surrogate family...yet) and is also a devout Christian. (One of the TBC stories is centered on Wesley and his past.)

I don't have much thought out yet, just that it has something to do with a group of nomadic wanderers. I know nothing about them or why EarthGov Security would have any kind of interaction with them. Since this group is brand new, I have to do some imagineering to get their culture. I think they might all be walking around in armor though I'm not sure why.

This is a good development for me. Not that I wanted to start another story while I have so many other projects in the air. But the simple fact that I'm coming up with story ideas may mean I'm getting over whatever the hell;s been keeping me from doing any first draft writing.

We'll see how it goes.

Changing Course

There are five first draft projects that I have been working on, four shorter works - "Raven," "Stranger," "My Soul to Keep" and "Upon a Far Distant Shore," and the novel Under the Dark of the Moon. Progress had been slow but I had been moving forward on all the projects.

Until this week, that is.

I'm not really sure why but I haven't been able to do any first draft writing. I gave myself a couple of days without writing but nothing came. I'm starting to feel a bit of anxiety, like there's something I should be doing but I'm not.

So when you can't write...rewrite.

I'm turning to a project I've let languish for too long. I have a complete novel, titled Broken Memories. It concerns Special Agent Alexandra Sinclair, a courier with EarthGov Security in 2190. I completed the novel but never submitted it (probably because it's far shorter than what agents and publishers have deluded people into thinking a novel should be).

So now I'm going to be working on it while the other projects percolate in my subconscious (which is where I do all my writing). It's not really going to be easy; while the first part of the novel is more or less fine and just needs a few tweaks, the second part needs to be completely rewritten. (Fortunately, I'm a better writer now than I was all those years ago when I first completed the novel.)

Hopefully, by the time I finish Broken Memories, I'll have the other plot lines sussed out and be able to get them finished.

Discovery

I made an interesting discovery the other night. I was rummaging through some old folders and found another version of "Brianna and the Three." This was a slightly longer version of the story, including a character development scene (a call between Brianna and her cousin Stephen), and a slightly different ending. It also addresses a plot point that just drops away in the current version. I'm not certain why these scenes were removed, since they do add to the story and help round out Brianna's character. I have to make sure I keep track of this so I can put these scenes back in when I start editing later this month.

With Eyes Open...

Mira Frayne thought she was going to make a change. She had been used and lied to but now she would start to make a better life for herself. Little did she know how much her life would change.  She would learn there is more to the world than she ever believed. The nature of this discovery is something she would have to deal with far into the future.

With Eyes Open… is available from Smashwords, Kindle, iTunes & NOOK. Also available as Print On Demand from CreateSpace.

Find the links here –

http://wordboy1.wix.com/wordboyswords#!books/cnec

On A Cold Wind

The story of Caralynn (Carly) Adrasteia, an agent of EarthGov Security in the late twenty-second century. As an Enhanced Human, a group of humans engineered to have superior physical and mental abilities, she is subject to hatred and discrimination while continuing to work for the improvement of her people's situation. Along with her partner, Special Agent Murphy Greenfield, she is assigned to track down two escaped criminals who threaten a newly established colony. One of the criminals, Efhram Bartok, is also an Enhanced Human who wants to incite a revolution and lead the Enhanced Humans to freedom. There is a link between Carly and Bartok, one that only Carly's division director knows.

On A Cold Wind is available from Smashwords, Kindle, iTunes & NOOK

Find the links here –

http://wordboy1.wix.com/wordboyswords#!books/cnec

Rae

EarthGov Security Special Agent Kevin Martin and his partner, Probationary Agent Rachael (Rae) Mercer, thought they had been assigned an open-and-shut case. A murder had been committed on the colony of Haven and local law enforcement already had a suspect in custody, with enough evidence to ensure a conviction. Things begin to spin out of control when Rae is severely beaten and Kevin is accused of the attack. Who is trying to stop the murder investigation? What is connection between the suspect and the victim? How does the secret Rae is keeping tie into it?

Rae is available from Smashwords, Kindle, iTunes & NOOK

Find the links here –

http://wordboy1.wix.com/wordboyswords#!books/cnec

Expanding Horizons

I've been doing research into marketing the books in an effort to try and increase sales. There are a lot of options out there, and a lot of them cost a fair bit of money.  Unfortunately, given my current lack of employment, I can't afford any of them. To that end, I've been looking into free options. That brought me to a few sites that let you advertise for free. I've also been posting the books on Facebook, Twitter and other sites.

It hasn't helped...yet.

While reading Crush It With Kindle by John Tighe (available on Amazon, of course), I came across something that's so obvious it made me wonder why I hadn't done it before. Up until now, the books have been available exclusively as ebooks. Why not make them available as Print on Demand as well? They're already formatted and ready to go, so why not take the steps necessary to expand the market some more?

I'm my own worst enemy, sometimes.

So using CreateSpace, I submitted With Eyes Open... I did change the cover a bit; it's still the same image but cropped differently. The image now fills most of the cover, with the title and by-line toward the lower right corner. The text is the same. I also had to change the price. The ebook is $2.99 but the POD edition is $5.38. According to Tighe, the difference in price will bring people to Kindle to buy the less expensive ebook.

In all honesty, I'm not concerned which one sells better. I just want the books to sell.

As soon as I get the addresses, I'll be sure to post them.

ETA: The print edition of With Eyes Open... is now available from CreateSpace. Find it here... https://www.createspace.com/5071005

Here's the new cover, by the way...

The Fault Lies Not...

In the late twenty-sixth century, a serial killer roams the city of Naufolk. There is little evidence left at the scenes of the murders, and no trace of the killer shows up on any of the city’s scanners. It's up to EarthGov Security Special Agent Lin Sillo and her partner, Special Agent Vincent DeBurg, to stop him. But is there something behind the murders, something that reaches far beyond the city?

The Fault Lies Not… is available from Smashwords, Kindle, iTunes & NOOK

Find the links here –

http://wordboy1.wix.com/wordboyswords#!books/cnec