Thursday Update February 1

Now for another Thursday update. This was a busy week, so I didn’t type out a regular post. I did outline a few, but didn’t make it far enough to actually finish one. You get a Thursday update instead. (I know these are probably not that interesting to read, but I’m trying to get myself into the habit of posting on Thursdays.)

Speaking of outlines, I have finally outlined the Balance of Souls world descript! I have one book published in this setting (Victim), another book soon-to-be published (Into the Unknown), and one that’s my current main project (working title: Natsume). So, it makes sense to work on this setting. Although I have it outlined, I still have to fill in (or at least type up) some of the details. For example, I have most of a lexicon list for time point three, but it’s still just handwritten on the back of my Natsume editings. I have to finish it and type out the list before I can actually post it, but that’s only one segment of the world descript. I’ll probably just have to take a few hours someday soon to finally put all the information together and type it. Maybe Monday.

Natsume’s day one finally has a complete outline, along with the beginning of day 2. I already know the ultimate ending, so it’s just a matter of figuring out what all I want to go where in the middle. As for the actual draft, it’s currently only a few thousand words. A lot of that is still handwritten, since I tend to use a hybrid approach between typing and writing by hand. Essentially, I’ll print out what I have so far for a draft then edit and write (by hand) around it. Collectively, I call these my editings. Although this was not my most productive week, I can still say I’ve made some decent progress. The literal character Natsume is still missing (oops). That’s because Natsume is basically a rewrite, so I moved things around a lot and accidentally cut out that character. Maybe he’ll make a cameo in day two or three. Plot-permitting, of course.

Also, I’m not satisfied with my options for a local writers circle in the area. I’ve drafted some guidelines for a speculative fiction one I’ve like to run, but I’m not sure how to get it going here. I’d prefer to go through the local library system, so I’m going to try to meet with the founder of the local mystery writers group after their next meeting just to ask how she got the group going. I technically ran one when I was at college, but we didn’t have enough members to really do much.