The Best Laid Plans

What's coming here.

Friends, I’ll be honest: I usually bite off more than I can chew. And then stick with it rather than give up. And no more so than in all the writing projects I start. At least I know it. Well, it hasn’t driven me mad, yet.

I have a novel — the Novel In The Drawer, I call it — that is begging to get out. I started it years ago, while I lived overseas. The story came to me more easily than anything I’ve ever written, all except the last act. I wrote it as three novellas that were tied across time by the interaction of the characters with a folktale. The folktale exerted a captivating effect on them regardless of time, leading them to make decisions, for good or ill, they never would have otherwise. I intended to publish each novella individually, then compile them into a three-part novel. Didn’t get there, so it went in the drawer — but I’m there now.

The fly in the ointment: this Novel In The Drawer is very off-brand for me. My novel Victory Ruins is distinctly Southern lit, maybe with a hint of historical fiction, and my current WIP runs in the same vein. But this novel’s setting is quite different. For a while I thought it would be a distraction or confusing. “I’ll go the normal publishing route and see if I can get it out that way.” It’s probably more appealing to contemporary audiences than Victory Ruins, I’ll admit. But I just don’t have the patience any longer. I’m just going to put it out there.

So in coming months, I’ll be posting this Novel In The Drawer, chapter by chapter. Once a week, once every other week, I don’t know yet. Depends on how the final edit goes. I’ll probably leave it free at first. Eventually it’ll go behind the paywall. And once it’s all out, I’ll put it out as a paperback and ebook.

In addition to this novel, I also have short stories that I intend to publish here. And some occasional essays and commentary. Oh, and I have an idea for a story that follows the journey of post-apocalyptic Hebridean sailors to find the lost kingdom of Prester John, which I might serialize here. Yes, I know, more than I can chew.

I have no idea what I’m doing, but I can promise you it’ll be worthwhile. I’m in a busy season of life and will publish as frequently as I can, and more and more frequently as we go — but whatever I post, will be good. There’s too much “content” out there, too many emails in the inbox. I promise to keep each post worth your time.

I’m glad y’all are here at the beginning with me.