March 2025 Recap – Writing, Day Job, and Publishing

Ya know you blink and time just floats right by. I can’t believe it is April already!

So, let’s catch up.

In the beginning of March, I finished the first draft of my novel. It clocked in at only 30K words, but that is the longest writing piece I have written in decades. I’m proud of myself for finishing this draft, even if it took longer than I would have liked. Right now, my novel has a beginning, middle, and ending. I have words on the page to work with and now is just a question of how much more do I want to add. Certainly there are sections that need revision, but I’m not sure it will (or should) be a standard length of modern novel. AKA 80,000 -100,000 words.

I’ve been reminded recently that shorter novels are coming back, so I’m going to aim for 60,000 words and if it needs more, I’ll add. If not, then maybe my novel will end up being a novella instead.

Also, around the beginning of March, I was informed by my company that I will have to return to the office a few days a week. It’s not as bad as others, who have to come back five days a week, but the commute is tough some days. One day, it took me two hours to get home. That’s nearly double how long it usually takes. It was good to see everyone face to face again. I’ve done hybrid schedules before, so I can do it again. I just wish my commute was a little quicker.

While I give my novel some space, I have been working on a new short story. I also have two other stories to revise. I plan to work on those and then take up the novel again. My 2025 plan is still in effect. I want a submittable version of my novel by July 1, 2025.

Reading has also taken a hit. I’m far behind where I should be, but in fairness, writing trumps reading in my world. When I’m writing a lot, I end up reading less. I have a huge TBR pile (like any good writer), but I find myself not having the time like I used to. Between work, writing, YouTube channel, and getting out in the world to spend time with friends and family, reading has been down on the priorities list. But summer is coming and perhaps I need to pick up some of those short novels I was talking about earlier.

Finally, I have been thinking a lot about how to handle my writing in the current cultural landscape. Earlier this year, some big companies rolled back their DEI initiatives. Amazon was one of them. I have several short stories up for sale on Amazon, and I don’t plan on taking them down. However, I don’t want to discourage those who want to pull money away from a big monopoly.

Amazon, along with Target, Walmart (and others) are huge billion dollar companies. I’ve never been a fan of Walmart (I haven’t been inside one in years.) and I’ve pulled back on shopping at Target (mostly to be better at spending my dollars). But as an author, I understand how hard it is to divest from Amazon. Often small presses, indie authors, and authors with smaller followings, are not available at the local bookstores. I’ve always tried to buy from the marketplace sellers when I buy books, but I don’t think I can fully stop. So, I’m leaving my stories up for sale.

But I’m also planning on offering an alternative. I’ve started up my Substack and sometime this month, I’ll set up a paid tier where folks can have access to all my short stories (and hopefully other content like novel excerpts, cover art, etc. in the future) without using Amazon. I think this is a good alternative to Amazon, but I do want to eventually put my work on other platforms (like Kobo, Nook, etc.). That takes time, and since my Substack is already set up, that what I’m working on first.

That’s the update. I have a lot to keep me busy. Hope everyone is having a good spring. Everyone stay safe out there!