A World of Words

Hello there. Today has been a gorgeous fall day that allowed me to take a long walk, do some work in the yard and have the house open. A warm trend is on tap for the eastern edge of the West and we're ready for it.

Welcome to the world of words.

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Baseball season is over. For the last month or so we've been in postseason playoffs and the Kansas City Royals are in the World Series. They've been magnificent all year and this run against the New York Mets is full of devil magic and miraculous comebacks.

My Twitter feed and Facebook are filled with memes and photos and hair pulling during the games. It's exciting. It reminds me of my youth when baseball meant a lot because of my grandfather. I listen to Denny Matthews on the radio as much as I watch games on TV. Every time I listen I can feel my grandfather's presence around me. On fishing trips we listened to games on whatever AM station was close.

The last three years of Kansas City baseball have been exceedingly special in that way that only your home team being good can be. All my friends who aren't into sportsball have been very tolerant of my posting about how great the Royals have been. I'm appreciative. It's almost over. Maybe tonight but certainly by Tuesday.

Hang in there. The postseason won't go on too much longer. It's been a wild ride that promises a fantastic finish.

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I'm not participating in NaNoWriMo this year. A group of writers who I love dearly are doing it again this year, hosting the local events as they always do. I feel like I've done it for seven or eight years and I've gotten an awful lot out of it. I have learned how to write fast, how to slap the story down on the page and then go back and hammer it into shape.

I've learned how to make room for new ideas by throwing words out. I've learned how to pace myself, to work steadily every day no matter what. (Well mostly.)

What I haven't learned is how to write a solid First Draft. NaNo is great for the Zero Draft. Really great. But it doesn't teach me how to organize my ideas coherently. It doesn't teach me how to write a good novel. Rather it teaches how to write a passable story or a treatment. Which is much more its purpose.

So I'm not doing NaNo for the second year in a row. Doesn't mean I won't do it again but I feel like I've learned as much as I can from it. That said, I am going to try to get out to the write ins because the energy there is aMAZing. It won't hurt me to soak up a little of that.

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This past week I turned in the third Evolver book called, for now, Acceleration. It's cool to have completed a trilogy of stories that appeal to young readers. Like any good writer I left plenty of room - PLENTY of room - for more stories but essentially the origin is complete.

In this story, Jackson must face off against the man who murdered his father. Meanwhile, the reason for the power behind him is revealed. It's full of twists and turns and it's got a bit of Dr. Moreau in it.

Here's hoping it finds some traction somewhere. If it doesn't, I'm glad for the experience. It was really too much fun.

Also I'm working in earnest on a short story that will be published next year. Stay tuned for information on that one. It's very cool.

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Finally, I'm nearly ready to send this novel I've been tinkering with out to beta readers. This will be an extensive revision of the NaNoWriMo novel from 2011 so a couple will have read it before. I'm so close to being ready to put it out into the world I can taste it. I can't wait for everyone to read it. I hope it's as good as I think it is.

We'll find out. Watch for announcements here.

In the meantime, I'll be at Air Capital Comicon on November 14. I'll have the first two Evolver books, the first Agent of DANGER book, and I'll be writing Velocity Stories for you too. Come find me in Artists' Alley, will you? There are a lot of us who love to talk to people.

And that's all from the rolling hills atop the prairie, where a little baseball team can make a big noise and the plains can generate fantastic visions. Glad you stopped by.

OH! Here's a little thing. Just a bit of fun.