From One to Three to Two to One

 Hello conduits!

It's been nearly one full year since I've written. My last post was about the grief I've been wrestling with losing two cats and my mother within three months of each other. It's been rough. God and life are still good, though, but the main reason I've been M.I.A. (A.W.O.L.? Both apply.) is that I realized that this journey of writing this story could be altered just slightly to reduce a trilogy/duology into one book.

And I did it!

The book, and the story I intended to write which I've been avidly working on since 2020, is complete. Done. I have three CPs reading it right now to give me final feedback, and I've signed up for the Virginia Writing Conference next month, and have registered for all services offered. I have, in actuality, entered into the phase of beginning to get my book out there--even if it takes a wee bit longer than intended.

So. I recently read the stats. Given the fact that most businesses are overworked and understaffed, this already-competitive industry of book publishing is now even more so. The stat, I think, is that only TWO out of TEN THOUSAND manuscripts get selected to be represented by agents, wherein they try to sell the book to a tradition top-five (or is it top-four, now that Penguin bought out Simon & Shuster? Did they? I may be misremembering). Regardless, my chances are incredibly low, but I already kind of knew that.

The good news is that fantasy is anticipated to be the second most popular genre in 2024. So I have that going for me.

I figure: I'll still try. After the writing conference and I receive the feedback from my query letter and first ten pages, and pitch to two agents, I will continue to pitch to agents within the genre while I save up for the funds needed to self-publish. I would love to be traditionally published, but either way, I intend to publish, and the book will be done right (all 3 edits [developmental, copy/line, and proofread). I admit I'm itching to commission an artist to create my cover, but that is jumping WAY too far in the future. 

All this said, I should now be able to have more mental space to dedicate time to inviting you all along the process. Reworking and revising this one story has been such a learning curve, but now I feel rather confident in my ability to write a story without much fewer edits (it took 11 rewrites...). This said, the book is written as a stand-alone (because the story is done), but it is also left wide open (but all questions answered) for a possible series. That said again, I do not believe I want to expand on this right now.

And THAT said, my husband challenged me to write two short stories covering non-main characters in the same world. I might just. All I know is that it's been one week since I finished the story, and I feel at a loss of what to do with my mental space. There are things and chores to do, of course, but my heart and love and soul is fiction, so I'll definitely have to start writing SOMETHING here soon.

Anyway. Thanks for sticking with me to the end of this. Let's hope I'll be more present in 2024.

God bless,

Jess



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