Friday, May 8, 2009

A Year and Seven Days Between Blog Posts? Seriously?

So, I always knew I was something of a procrastinator, but going three hundred and seventy-two days between blog posts is a new record, even for me. I thought about playing it cool, just sliding in a post (this is May, same month and all) and hoping no one would bother looking at the year but then I realized I'm not that slick. I figured a better course of action would be to fess up and tell you where I've been. I had some health and family stuff to deal with--normal, everyday, real world stuff--but I'm back with a vengeance, feeling great, and ready to blog.

So many cool things have happened I don't even know where to start. I suppose the most exciting thing is the formation of Romance Writers of America's first ever GLBT chapter, Rainbow Romance Writers. To say this is a major milestone would be like calling a tarantula a little spider. Total understatement. The best part for me is having the privilege of being in on the ground floor of it all. I'm the vice president, so I get to have both hands in the inner workings of chapter life. Our numbers are multiplying like ambitious little bunnies and I couldn't be happier.

Project wise, I've got several pots on the stove. The print version of my online novel The Way You Say My Name is in the final stages of editing and due out at PD sometime between the end of this month and the first of the next. Some of my readers have wondered what's taking so long with the release. It's probably because I don't brag on them enough that readers don't know this, but those ladies at PD take more care than any small press I've ever seen to make certain every book they publish is as close to perfect as a book can get. I get not one but two editors and two additional read-throughs before any of you ever sees the final product. For a small press, that's a really big deal (in case you couldn't tell, I'm a satisfied author).

Another press I've greatly enjoyed working with is Torquere and I have a couple of projects coming out with them this year. One is a novella in the Here Kitty, Kitty Anthology called "Beckett's Pride" and the other is a Torquere Press Arcana based on the tarot card The Five of Wands. This is my third Arcana piece, and I have to admit I knew nothing about the tarot when I started writing Arcanas. Some of the interpretations are fascinating (I may never look at a tarot card reader the same way again). I don't have a firm release date for either of those but once I do I'll post it here. One of the great things about both these pieces is I get to work with editor extraordinaire Michelle Rhode again. She's fabulous and she gets my quirky, right-brained weirdness. You gotta love that in an editor.

Beyond the contracted pieces, I'm also working on the sequel to my fantasy romance, The Devil's Fire and--I know some of you won't believe this--I'm finally, after five years, working on the third book in The Reed Series. I know. Shocked the daylights outta me, too. Like the first two books in the series, I'll be posting this one free online as a thank you to my readers. Unlike the first two, though, I won't post a word of it until it's completely finished, so you've a bit to wait yet. I'll do my darnedest to make it worth your while.

I've also discovered something I never thought I'd enjoy, and that's tweeting. I'm on Twitter
@ wavyscribe and I'd love to tweet with any of you who happen to be in a tweeting mood. I love the very sound of it. Tweeting. Makes me feel like a canary.

So that's pretty much it from my corner of the universe. What's happening in yours?

2 comments:

Jackie said...

I've loved everything I've read by you but I'm especially anxious for the Devil's Fire sequel. That book was so romantic! It's one I've kept to reread periodically. Any timetable on releasing A King's Ransom?

Sara Bell said...

Hi Jackie: Sorry it's taken me so long to reply your question (I've got to be the worst blogger on God's green earth). I'm about a third of the way through A King's Ransom right now. Once I finish it I'll have to submit AKR to see if the publisher is interested. If they say yes (I'm crossing all the appropriate appendages that they will) it usually takes about six months to a year before the book is ready for publication. I can't thank you enough for your kind words about my work and I promise to put the pedal to the metal and get that joker written!