I teach college lit and creative writing part time in the fall and spring so I always look forward to summer in order to get lots of writing done. Also, I attend a weeklong writing retreat in Cape Cod then. We write all day (after an hour gabbing over coffee). Often I start a novel at the retreat.
I'm already mulling over what I should concentrate on. This spring I finally completed a draft of a romantic suspense novel and Maizy of Bellagio, a story for the forthcoming UR Spirits in the Air anthology. So it's not as if I slack off between the days of teaching. LOL.
I am trying to decide between starting a new witch book, which would be a companion novel to Witch of the Cards, or another one in the new suspense series. Which should I pick? How do you decide when you have more than one book in mind? Do you choose the one you think will sell the best? Or the one you have plotted out most? Or the one that is closest to your heart? Help!
For my summer reading, I'll be delving into the Blue Fairy Book, Alice in Wonderland and Alice through the Looking Glass to name a few, because in the spring of 2018 I will be teaching a brand new college lit course simply called Fantasy. Woo hoo!
On another note, I finally redesigned my website, which has an entire shiny new page devoted to the UR Elements anthologies. Check out my main page, and then click into Anthologies Page to see what you think about the front page and the Elements page!
What are your summer writing and reading plans?
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| One of my Cape retreat "writing stations" |
I am trying to decide between starting a new witch book, which would be a companion novel to Witch of the Cards, or another one in the new suspense series. Which should I pick? How do you decide when you have more than one book in mind? Do you choose the one you think will sell the best? Or the one you have plotted out most? Or the one that is closest to your heart? Help!
For my summer reading, I'll be delving into the Blue Fairy Book, Alice in Wonderland and Alice through the Looking Glass to name a few, because in the spring of 2018 I will be teaching a brand new college lit course simply called Fantasy. Woo hoo!
On another note, I finally redesigned my website, which has an entire shiny new page devoted to the UR Elements anthologies. Check out my main page, and then click into Anthologies Page to see what you think about the front page and the Elements page!
What are your summer writing and reading plans?
My two cents worth says go for the one which is closest to your heart...
ReplyDeleteIt is likely to be the one that nags at you and won't let you go. And this reader believes it makes for a better book.
Yes, that does seem like a natural choice. The problem is, they are both close to my heart. Ack!
DeleteIt can be difficult to pick the next book to write. Lately, I've been focused on series with the plan to write the series before releasing a single book in it. That way I should be able to release them more regularly and quickly. Of course, once the current series I'm working on is finished, then I'll have to decide what to do next. I have a plan, but I also remain open to the muse striking and saying such-and-such book/series needs to be written next. Like Elephant's Child said, sometimes the one that nags you is the one you should write next. :)
ReplyDeleteThat is an admirable plan, Cherie. I'm afraid if I waited until a whole series line was done before I published the first book, I'd wait a long time! I'm trying to write faster, but I'm nowhere near as fast a writer as I'd like to be.
DeleteIt can be a long wait, but I must admit I feel guilty for making people wait 3-4 years between Book One and Book Two of a series I've written. My hope is that I won't have such long wait times again for series books. *crosses fingers*
DeleteGood luck with the Fantasy Lit course. Which books are you teaching besides the Blue Fairy and Alice?
ReplyDeleteI'm adapting a syllabus from a teacher who is retiring (at least from some of her classes), so it is too soon to say. Plus, I also teach a spec fic workshop, and I have to be careful not to duplicate reading material because I may have a few students who take both... that said, I can say I'll do an Ursula K Le Guin essay, a bruno Bettelheim essay, the Goblin Market by Rossetti, a story by Angela Carter and more. Part of the joy is in curating the reading list.
DeleteIt can be tough to choose. I've started projects close to my heart, but always seem to go with next in series. That doesn't mean I'm not developing other things behind the scenes. I'd like to get ahead so I can start on other series.
ReplyDeleteYes, that does make sense.
DeleteIt is hard to pick. I just go with whatever I'm feeling most into at the moment when I get an opportunity to choose. When writing a series, I go straight through. I hope to get some writing done this summer, but my little guy is off school. Maybe I'll do a bunch of short stories.
ReplyDeleteShort stories between the longer books are always great.
DeleteHi, Christine,
ReplyDeleteI try and write the one that's calling my name the loudest as that's the one that'll flow from keyboard to screen. If I have obligations, like a second in a series that's due, I write that so I can get on to the one that's on my mind. I'm sure this hasn't been useful at all. :)