Author Journey (February 1, 2021)

This week was a good week. It wasn’t an easy week, but I got a lot accomplished and feel confident that I can keep things going at this level. If it was easy, it would be boring!

February 1, 2021

So, how about that? We’re already one month down in 2021 and it feels very much like 2020… Who would have thought that changing a number at an arbitrary date would change anything? Not this guy, that’s who! Anyhow, things keep on rolling and I keep on plugging away. I’ll admit, I haven’t been working on my plan, although I do have a good idea about how that might go. No, this week, I have been working hard on the edits for the Black Death Trilogy.

I’ve mentioned before how I’m trying to align the three storylines in the series. It’s quite important that they do align as they all come together in the third book. So, after a lot of time reading through, making notes, making more notes, and working out when things happen sequentially, I am pleased to say I’ve cracked it. Not only that, I’ve reorganised it so that they fit together perfectly. It will require about fifteen new chapters, a couple of tweaks to existing chapters, and a little shuffling. This is going to be my main focus for now. It really feels good to be getting somewhere.

Hopefully, I can get this all done and dusted in February so I can finish off my first draft of my web-novel that I started back in November. With the way I’m working now, my focus is on quarters rather than months. My provisional goals for this quarter are to finish the edits of Black Death and the first draft of my web-novel. I think my ongoing goal will be to write one first draft a quarter and complete a full edit a quarter. If I can do that, I can produce four books a year. Of course, Black Death is a little different as it’s three books and is almost one-hundred and fifty-thousand words.

On top of all the work I’ve been putting into my writing, I have been working hard on my blog posts. As you may be aware, I have been revisiting Harukana Receive, KonoSuba, and Goblin Slayer. I have now finished all the episode posts for the first seasons. Those posts will release throughout February. After that, I plan on continuing with KonoSuba and finally getting around to the Goblin Slayer movie.

There’s also Record of Grancrest War which is a new show for me, but as it’s old for everyone else, I can keep working away. Being able to schedule posts and work into the future is a big help when it comes to keeping this site alive with new content. It’s also a lot of fun and a great way for me to cement the lessons I’m learning from these stories.

That leaves The Quintessential Quintuplets, The Promised Neverland, and Dr Stone for this season. Ironically, all three air on Thursday, so if I time things correctly, I can have them all ready for the following week before the weekend. It’s a far more relaxed process than trying to be the first to get a post up after the show airs. It might be good for SEO, but not for my mental health.

As I said earlier, this week was all about editing. That meant no new words for my web-novel, but that’s fine. I had a huge breakthrough with Black Death, and honestly, it’s been hanging over my for quite a while and feels like it’s blocking me from getting into new projects. It’s the one thing that I absolutely must finish this year, and preferably in quarter one.

Once I’d finished revising the outline, I just sat back in my chair and let out a huge sigh. It’s one thing plotting a multiple-perspective story that spans three books, but trying to do it after they’d all been written was a new one for me. I am genuinely excited to get to the end of the project, which I’m sure you tell given how much I’ve been talking about it in this post alone.

Last week was also the last week for virtual learning as the schools in Ottawa reopen. I’m glad for my son and all the other children who will benefit from in-person learning. I’ve definitely noticed that some are struggling with isolation. Of course, it can all change again at any time, so this week I’m going to be putting the pedal to the metal in order to get as much done as possible. Wish me luck!

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