Apologies for radio silence on this blog for the past year or so. I've been hyper-focused on completing edits on my next novel, and have neglected to work on short stories or other smaller projects. So while I've been busy writing every day, there hasn't been much to report as far as new content that you can actually read just yet.
This particular novel is a bit of a long one, and it's taken me far more years than I expected to whip into shape. I've been trying to make it both as short as possible and also as developed as possible, and those two goals fundamentally conflict.
Fortunately, the end is in sight. I've critiqued the book extensively with my writing group, I've made all the changes I wanted to make, and I've finally cut it down to under 150K words. (I know, I know, editors want everything under 120K words, but 150K words is a huge relief after the 200K-word draft I had at the beginning of the year.) I'm currently wrapping up my final editing pass.
What does this mean?
What it means, my friend, is that I will soon be querying agents. A nerve-wracking, soul-crushing, eye-gouging endeavor, but an endeavor that is exceedingly important to take. If I can get an agent, it will dramatically increase this book's chances of getting a publisher and be a huge leap for my career.
So. What can I say about the book?
-It's a Dark Fantasy / Biopunk / Lovecraftian Horror hybrid set in a nightmarish dystopian-future Earth.
-There are 3 POV characters.
-It explores mental illness and PTSD. (Empathetically. I struggle with mental illness and PTSD myself.)
-There's a LOT of body horror.
-There's a LOT of tentacles.
-There's also magic and mystery and humor and romance and heists and epic battles.
-It tells a complete story with an actual ending, but my plan is to make it a trilogy. I've got Books 2 & 3 plotted out, and I'm hoping to start writing Book 2 shortly.
Here's hoping someone will take a chance on my latest mutant baby.
Until next time!
~ Jonathan
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