I talked faster than a squirrel in a can of chocolate covered coffee beans.
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Sounds like you are on your way to controlling things around you and proceeding. Hope it all works out for you. You sound excited and positive. Go, go, go, etc,etc.
PS The question of who is infringing on who’s time goes both ways.
The 90 day scheduling is probably a good move on your part. Did you get to talk to Sigler at Balticon, by chance?
On the subject of whiteboard calendars, yes you can get them in multi-month. but then you are having to redo the calendar each month, two 1-month (or three) that you can rotate is how I do it at work.
1) Gotta love the dance of the vehicles. Always changing, always entertaining – like those square dances with front-end loaders they used to show on Captain Kangaroo.
2) With regards to website – part of the problem really is that you have so many – NathanLowell.*, SolarClipper.com, LammasWood.com, Durandus.com (which has so many different things hidden under it – especially the fan forum which really doesn’t get the love it deserves!) Heck – I’m not sure most people realize just how much is over on Durandus when you dig through it!
3) With respect to the 30K words of “characterization” that used to be in Owner’s Share… Seriously – you need to think about adding it back. Ishmael didn’t feel disoriented in that book to me, lost in what he had to do – he felt *COMPLETELY* out of character, as though a whole new person came in. I suspect, as well, that more of what we need to make Gretchen feel right with Ish got lost in that missing 30K.
4) Next Ish novel – awesome, and I seriously want to see it. But you’ve lost a huge amount of the momentum you had on Zypheria’s Call and Hermit, and apparently from the sound of it, Cape Grace needs to limp back to its starting dock and get a new keel laid. Plus all of these small side projects you have – I don’t recall if you managed to get with Sigler & Co about your contribution to whichever of his universes you’re supposed to be helping with.
5) Every minute of time of your life is *your* time. I’m sure the same kinds of problems came up while you had a day job – how did the problems get solved *THEN*? You’ve transitioned from having a teaching job as your day job, to now – at least in theory – writing is your day job. And when you’re self-employed, you end up with the worst son-of-a-bitch boss you’ve ever had – yourself. While yes, now you’re able to do things during the day that you couldn’t before – that should, at least in theory, result in a somewhat compensating cut in daddy time later in the evening. You have got to get your infrastructure in place, certainly – but that has to include the family support part of your infrastructure as well – both you supporting them, and they supporting you. You’re definitely right about needing to make the connection more visible to them.
6) Fear that the next book wouldn’t sell? I can’t quite imagine that for you – you have a *HUGE* following for the Trader’s Tales, some following for South Coast (Cape Grace is currently the one *I* personally wish you were full steam ahead on), and a growing following for Tanyth Fairport. Pretty much anything you write in those two universes is going to sell – as long as you don’t change yourself so much trying to be more commercial that you become Just Another Rockets-and-Rayguns Writer. Truthfully – people are going to argue what your “Bad Book” is, once you do write it. A lot will probably argue that Quarter Share was your “Bad Book” – I personally would argue that as it stands, Owner’s Share is your “Bad Book”, and it’s not that bad at all. Others are going to pick at Ravenwood, and using a menopausal woman as the viewpoint character. But unless you screw up *MAJORLY* – and I suspect your beta readers will catch that – you’re *GOING* to sell. Maybe not the 500+ books that would pay off your car repairs in a single day – but in a week or a month? Definitely.
(Wow on the awesome post by Tara Li!)
I hadn’t appreciated the problem for your family, in that it would be unclear to them when you’re home from work, and when you’re at work. I.e., “when are you with us?” I’m really appreciating Deborah’s approach of a writing office a few minutes drive from home.
Open comment section – start listening to current release – pause and comment as it comes to me. This could be dangerous, really.
I agree +100 to Tara Li!
I’m having to do a bit of “don’t bother daddy for less than injury when…” in order to have time before I am too tired to get some of my project work done.
I have setup a usb light-up hub that I turn on when I’m “on the air” as it were.