In The Middle Of Everything

That's how I feel right now. Let me explain. No, is too much, let me sum up. (Gotta love The Princess Bride)

So, I just finished revising a story that had been sent to a few markets, and turned down by every single one. Oh well, it happens. After going through it again it's a much stronger story. Too bad I can't resubmit it to the places that rejected it. However, now I think this story is strong enough to use as one of my Clarion submissions, so it's all good. And, I can always make it my submission to Writers of the Future for this quarter.

Another story has gone in for a CBC contest. We'll see what happens with that. If it comes back I'll give it another look and think of other places to submit it. It's a really short piece, so it may be easier to sell. Heck, if it sells then great, if not, I can always rework it.

Another story just got rejected so I was able to give it a once over and fix a few things. This has gone to less markets than the first story, and I've never submitted anything to Fantasy and Science Fiction, so guess where it's headed?

Another story (seeing a pattern here?) is in with Critters.org for review and critique so that I can get feedback on it. I'm really hoping this one will be my other Clarion submission piece. I feel both things I have are or could be really strong fantasy stories. That seems to be where my head is right now.

Finally, (yes there is an end to all this) the books I wanted in preparation for starting my next novel are in. My previous attempt at writing a novel, let's just say I wasn't happy with how it turned out. I learned a lot from writing it, the most important part being I can actually sustain a novel length effort, but it was several shades less awesome than I hoped it would be. The new novel I'm going to start writing combines some of my loves. It will have martial arts, magic, and a vaguely Eastern setting. Let's say, Eastern inspired and influenced but seen through a Western eye. I'm not going to use any specific Asian culture to base it on as I don't want to be disrespectful/get it completely wrong.

However, before I start writing I need to do some research and plan a bit. Right now I'm reading A Daughter of The Samurai, the story of a woman raised as Japan transitioned from the medieval period to the modern age, and it's given me some great background and setting ideas. Recently I purchased a book on Shaolin training techniques, another on Japanese architecture, and a third on Buddhist monastic life. All three of these will be fed into the wood-chipper that is my brain to pump out chopped bits of awesome.

Before I start the novel I'm going to make sure my Clarion submissions are ready, so the next few weeks I'll probably be writing less and reading a heck of a lot more.