September & October: Novella, #FinishUrBookFall, & More
(I originally intended to post this near the end of September or beginning of October. But life and other responsibilities got in the way and now this post is coming out near the end of October.)
I know the adage is ‘Time flies,’ but it truly felt like September and October said ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye’ in the span of a single breath. I hope the last months of 2022 slowly pass by. I love the fall and winter and I want to savor the cooler weather, longer nights, and future snow days.
This will be a slightly wonky post since I’m combining both September and October here. I may skip some highlights, but I’ll do my best.
The biggest news I want to share is that my novella is OFFICIALLY on submission. It’s a huge accomplishment that’s taken me over a year to reach and I’m pleased that I:
1.) took a chance and submitted to a dream publication and
2.) completed a piece that’s longer than a short story.
The submission period closed earlier this week and I’m sure the editors have lots of manuscripts to sift through. I can’t predict when I’ll receive a response, but I’m doing my best not to constantly refresh my email inbox.
I don’t think I’ve ever shared details about the novella, so I’ll do that briefly. ‘The Book of Ilesa’ is a science fiction novella that follows Dr. Agatha Spencer, a space-traveling librarian, who is desperate need of some money to pay for ship repairs. Agatha takes on a side mission, funded by a private donor, to find the Book of Ilesa which chronicles the history of the alien race, the Ilesaens. Her mission goes downhill quickly and spectacularly and Agatha finds herself in communication with the Ilesaens and it will cost her more than she’s willing to pay.
(I’m still learning how to write synopses and pitches. But that captures the story’s idea and central conflict.)
I’m now in the process of shifting from one idea to another, which is a weird and difficult time. The novella was my main priority for months. Writing, especially writing a lengthy work, is exhausting. I’m split between wanting to start a new project and taking a much needed (and well deserved) break. With work and school also on my mind, I have little energy left to devote towards a new project. Especially when that new project requires a new world, new characters and a different story structure. But I miss the feel of putting my thoughts onto the page. I’m chipping away at a new story right now and hopefully that’ll push me to carve out dedicate time to write.
And I have two writing ‘challenges’ to help me settle into this new project.
#FinishUrBookFall is a gentle writing social media program which was started by author Claribel A. Ortega. Here’s a link to the original tweet! I signed up and I haven’t made a ton of progress, but at least I can gain inspiration from this twitter community.
Speaking of writing challenges—I plan on doing a NaNoWriMo this November. I know in my previous post, I said I couldn’t commit to the challenge and I’m giving myself grace by telling myself it’s not the end of the world if I don’t reach 50k words by the end of November. But I want to make an attempt. And NaNoWriMo will push me to ignore my inner critic. If I can manage 5k or 10k or more, then I’ll feel good about starting the first draft of my novel (I’ll create a project code name soon) when 2023 begins.
One last update: the upcoming new year has been on my mind and I’m starting to think up writing goals for 2023. In a perfect world, I’d have a novel manuscript ready for submission (or self-publication) by December 2023. But I’m a student with a full-time job and a social life. I recognize that drafting, editing and revising a novel in a single year is a tremendous feat and I may not be successful. Or I may need to adjust my parameters. That’s just one goal.
My other goal is to write more short fiction without seeking immediate publication. Many writers wish to see their work in a dream magazine or small (or large) press. The promise of publication is a powerful motivator and I’ve certainly drafted a story solely to submit to a dream market. (Heck that was my main motivation for writing my novella!) But publication can also be stifling. I can’t speak for other writers, but I’ve noticed I tend to put the cart before the horse. I start a story from the space of ‘Will this be published one day?’ instead of ‘Is this a story I want to write?’ I find myself drowning in the fabricated opinions of editors and magazine readers before I’ve even titled my work. It sucks the fun out of writing and I feel myself squeezing to meet perceived market demands. It’s frustrating and I want to push back against this anxious tendency. In 2023, I want to write first and worry about publication later. I know my writing is capable of being published, but if I’m spending a significant period of time with one project, I should work on it for reasons outside of attempting to impress an editor or agent. This will be an experiment and by the end of 2023, I’ll have several unedited short stories (or maybe another novella or even a novelette) that live carefree on my laptop.
How is fall treating you? I’ve already made two soups since the temperatures dropped and I have two more I hope to try soon!
Take care of yourself! I’ll return with another post when I can!
