Well, the title isn’t entirely accurate. I did do some writing this month, but not a lot. I’m getting back into writing From the Lake, and tackling some edits on Skull Daddy. At this time, Farm to Table is still on hold. Although I had planned on publishing that one by now – and I even got all the way to the beta reader phase – it still has yet to meet my expectations. The more I research and brainstorm to fix the issues, the more I’ve come to realize that the story I’ve already put so many hours into needs some serious re-writes and overhauls. Honestly, that’s not a bad thing. I’d rather learn that it needs improvement now rather than after it’s been published.
But if I’ve only been doing a tiny bit of writing and editing this month, what have I been doing with my time?
Work. Lots of work. That, and getting sick.
Once I returned from my trip to Scotland, I worked exactly one shift at my part-time job before my exhausted immune system lost the fight with a cold and I ended up with laryngitis. Even though I’m all better, my voice is still a little scratchy.
But once I was well enough, I jumped back into work. For June and July, I’m busting my ass between my part time job and some contract work. But that’s only temporary. Come August, there will be some MAJOR changes to my work schedule – but more on that in next month’s writing update. This temporary career chaos is going to set me up for some long term success. And come August, I will have A LOT more time to devote to my writing and publishing.
In the meantime, I’m also putting in a lot of work to get more of my books into the hands of readers. Physical copies of my short story collections are still available at The Comic Book Shoppe on Bank Street in Ottawa, but soon you’ll be able to find them in Petawawa too! Earlier this week, I met with Evermore Tattoos to discuss tattoos and books. Once her new shop is officially open, she will have a section displaying work from local artists – I am one of those artists! So when you go to get an awesome tattoo, you can pick up an equally awesome spooky book while you’re there.
But wait, there’s more!
Every year, I attend TFCon Toronto with the amazing crew from Retro Joad’s. This year, you might just see something for sale other than Transformers at our booth (spoiler alert, it’s books). So stay tuned for updates, and come visit me at the booth if you’re attending the convention this year.
Last, but certainly not least, it’s a book launch week! This Thursday, June 29th, “Cold Cuts & Cigarettes” will be available for purchase from your favourite eBook retailer. The other day, I was talking to a friend about this short story and I realized that it might be one of my favourite things I’ve written so far. As the story is too short to publish as a print book, it is an eBook exclusive for now. I thought about adding it to a larger collection so that I could get physical copies made up – and that might happen in the future – but I had to publish this one right away. Inspired by my uncle’s funeral, I’ve decided to dedicate the story to him and publish it on the anniversary of his passing. Thanks Uncle Rob!
That’s all for now folks. I’ve got a busy July ahead with stricter writing goals that before, so wish me luck!
