About Four Months

Halloween is coming. Are you ready?

Back in August I finally finished editing my novel, Duende, and sent it back to the editor. I haven’t gotten it back yet. I turned it in nearly a month after the deadline I originally agreed to, so I don’t blame him for taking his time. He’s weaving it in around other projects. I really can’t complain.

But it would be nice to have it back. I want to read over his notes and feel that swollen mix of pride and delight welling up inside me. Or the heavy, unfamiliar sting of dread if his feedback is something I don’t want to hear. I welcome that, too,because I want Duende to be the best possible book it can be.
Even if that means a lot of rewrites.
Fingers crossed that it doesn’t, though.

I’m alright at waiting, but it’s starting to eat away at me. Luckily I’ve had a lot to think about.

There’s this:


I know it looks like a coyote but the doctors assure us it’s a human boy.

and there was this:

This day ended more badly than you will ever imagine when looking at this picture.

And now there’s this:

We put Claire back at Gardner School and we couldn’t be happier about it. But I digress

I’m only bringing this all up to justify my lack of progress.
“What progress?” you ask.
Come closer. I’m going to let you in on a little secret.
You seee…
I’ve been working on a new project. If I’m being completely honest, it’s slow going.

I’m not ready to reveal a title yet. Right now I’m just calling it Thekla.
This project is something I really believe in. Maybe that’s why it’s taking so long to get started.

Without giving much away I can say that Thekla is more of the book I always thought I would write. Nothing against Duende, of course. I’m very proud of what I’ve done there, and I can’t wait for the rest of you to meet Jack and Edgar, but Duende isn’t going to build the writing career I’ve always wanted. I really think Thekla might.

At least it could if I start making time to write again. Starting something new is slow going. I started Duende on an anniversary trip with my husband when Claire was just a year old. I scrawled the prologue and some scraps of what eventually became the second chapter on loose sheets of hotel paper early in the morning while Brandon was taking full advantage of the opportunity to sleep in.

It occurs to me that writing is easiest to do when I don’t have other things waiting for me backstage. I’m really hoping to get back there again.  The clock is ticking now. February is creeping closer all the time. Every day I don’t work on the new project is a wasted day. Once the baby is here I won’t be able to write at all for at least a year. I’m running out of time, and I know it. I have to – no I HAVE TO finish a draft before the baby is born. I’ve got about 4 months. If I do make this deadline it’ll be a miracle. In a stroke of serendipity, miracles are what this book is all about.

Wish me luck.