FINISHED

On Wednesday night I finished the novel I've been working on writing - the one that takes place in a world called Aelon Ere, the one where the main character is named Grayden, the one with airship pirates and a splash of sci-fi mixed into the fantasy.

I am so excited!

I still have some writing to do before I turn it over to my content editor, of course. I have jotted down several scenes or snippets of dialogue that need to be inserted into the story before it is truly complete. But the main story is finished. It's all editing from here on out.

There is always a strange mixture of feelings when a story comes to its close. There is the sense of accomplishment. I like to imagine this is how many feel when they reach the summit of Everest (except I don't have the breathing trouble that they have up there). An enormous relief that the story has finally come to a close overwhelms me. And yet, there's also suddenly a gaping hole that looms in my mind: What to write next?

Sometimes this question is terrifying... because the answer is, "I have no idea."

But this time, the question is exciting... because I have quite a few projects on the back-burner, awaiting my attention. Of those projects, there is the obvious choice: the sequel to the story I just finished. And why not? I already know the characters, the world, the history. Writing sequels is fun (and while I would never call anything about writing "easy" - it tends to be easiER than starting fresh). But then, I also have this sci-fi world.... it's one I've been getting really antsy to write. It will be different - as it is sci-fi, set in our own future - on Mars. It isn't a quest-based story - it will be more of a political-mystery-thriller-adventure... and I'm really looking forward to writing it. I have a lot of the chapters outlined, even more than I normally have outlined - I just need to fill them in with dialogue and plot and characters.

And then I've got this other story... it's one my brother gave me. It's sort of a George MacDonald/Lewis Carroll type story about another realm, connected to our own, and filled with monsters... but I think that one needs to simmer a bit longer before I can write in it. I don't even have an outline for it yet.

And then, of course, I do have a lot of editing to do on Book Three of The Minstrel's Song if we're going to be able to get that published in 2014. So I probably won't be diving into a new writing project until my first pass of editing on that book is complete. But it is really a lot of fun to have so many options! I can't wait until they are all available for you to read!