What are you working on right now?

[Ed Ryder]

Planning the sequel to my first novel (not sure if I'm allowed to mention its title here due to advertising and post count rules?) and reviewing books from other new authors.

 

[Beth Wagner]

Finished Crit. Finished latest comic. Now, working on next comic, research for a novel (I didn't realise that I'd need to do more research until just recently) and will begin reading over a manuscript that I will be editing.

 

[Ray McCarthy]

At 50% proofing current (maybe last?) version of "The Apprentice's Talent".

My beta readers all think my Talent series SF is "better" than my fantasy books (now six titles! Though two need more work). I think though the Fantasy is more what trad publishers look for, so I won't SP them. My SF has sort of psychic powers (the Talents) and now is one short story, one novella and five full length novels (one not finished).

I think I will start to Self Publish the "Talent" SF series this year, with 3 month to 6 month gap between titles and thus the current unfinished WIP, "The Mission's Talent" (set twenty years after the previous title "The Master's Talent") might get published in 2019 or early 2020, should I live so long. I'll offer DRM free eBook, Paper title about €14 ex postage with free eBook and then maybe eventually the Talent Trilogy (Apprentice, Journeyman, Master) as paper set with eBooks on a "free" micro SD card with adaptors for USB and standard SD card included.

I've just taken photos for the cover of "The Apprentice's Talent" and done some revised covers. I've discovered "The Mission's Talent" needs a lot of research.

I've renamed the most recent fantasy from "Quadrivium Secundus" to "No Silver Lining". I'll probably rename "Quadrivium Genie-Sys". These stories tie in with the "Celtic Otherworld" Trilogy (Stone, Sword, Spear treasure books), but basically later and mostly in our World with some of the same characters. "Quadrivium Secundus" needs re-written, it's only 1st draft.

I've re-written the unconnected 45K "Jorath's Quest" (last edit was 1994) as "Restoring The Talismans" and the first draft is about 97K. I think it will need a lot more work, but people loved the story then (badly written as it was). I think that a million words and more than 20 years later the new version will be much better.

(I'm fairly sure I've written over a million words since May 2014 and finding I can spot more mistakes when proof reading now on Kindle or Kobo. I got my first Kindle in June 2013 and then a larger Kindle DXG in October 2013. It and now my Kobo Aura H2O have saved me more than they cost in not doing draft printouts. Faster too to "Print" to eBook using Calibre)

 

[Pentagon]

I' recently finished a non writing project so having more time for my writing.

I have worked out the rough story / chapter plan. Unfortunately, it involved moving the previous beginning of the story to the middle and moving a difference scene to the front, but I am much happier.

Having now tinkered with the scene in question, I have deleted half of it that was kinda pointless and added an additional POV. Once, I have the scene remotely not awful I can do the old adverb check and maybe think about having it critiqued :S

 

[Wrenn Flint]

I had to scrap my project. I got to 15K words and read a book that was SO similar (recent pub that I hadn't read yet) I decided to just dump it. I'm going back through some of my plot lines to see what I like and whether I want to pick one back up. Bummer.

 

[Cathbad]

Damm. That was a lot of work Wrenn, to have to stop at 15k. I feel for 'ya!

 

[Pentagon]

I had to scrap my project. I got to 15K words and read a book that was SO similar (recent pub that I hadn't read yet) I decided to just dump it. I'm going back through some of my plot lines to see what I like and whether I want to pick one back up. Bummer.

At the risk of being nosy, do you mind if we ask what the theme roughly was?

 

[Wrenn Flint]

A future dystopian earth, a human going to an alien world. That wasn't the part that bothered me. The appearance and characterization of the aliens were eerily similar. I didn't want to run the risk of being accused of fanfic, so I made the decision to stop before I got any further. At this point I could probably heavily rewrite, but I'm not sure I want to.

I know there are truly no original ideas but that was just too similar for my liking.

 

[Ed Ryder]

There's something to be said I think about not reading anything in the same sub-genre when planning or writing

 

[Wrenn Flint]

There's something to be said I think about not reading anything in the same sub-genre when planning or writing

Probably.

 

[Venusian Broon]

There's something to be said I think about not reading anything in the same sub-genre when planning or writing

I don't know. The more you read of your genre, the more different your work becomes. At least I find that. You've got to find your own distinctive patch of ground to plant your ideas...

On the other hand I always don't like reading another authors work while writing first draft - in case of 'stylistic infection'

 

[Dan Jones]

I'm working on a superhuman (Notice I didn't say 'superhero') war series with a police procedural short story spinoff, a mixed science fiction/fantasy spin-in, and a few bonus chapters.

Wowsers! That's a mashup and a half! Intrigued to see how you juggle that little lot together - good luck

As for me, I'm closing in on my first draft of Man O'War. Am getting quite excited about it.

 

[Old_Man_Steve2016]

Wowsers! That's a mashup and a half! Intrigued to see how you juggle that little lot together - good luck

Thanks! I really liked the introduction of the police characters in the first book of the war series, and so it dawned on me I could use them elsewhere, and throw in characters from the main series all without losing consistency. Those short stories I'll probably release on Wattpad or another site.

I was expecting the spin-in to be more difficult, but as I went through the outline process, it dawned on me that I didn't spend that much time in the main series in that setting (all of 1 chapter, I think). So I can almost go 'hog wild' as I want with the setting because it will barely clash with the main series.
I'm also going to do a little bit of 'choose your own adventure' in this book, though with not as many paths as say a typical book of the genre. It'd be fun to make a movie out this one, though.

So I wish you and any other writers here luck. While I am a rookie at this and can't help in the way of actual good writing advice, I can help with productivity and research at least.

 

[ratsy]

I'm working on the last section of my first full length novel. I was hoping to finish last week while I was off but Lake Manor kept me too busy. I did manage to write a couple thousand words at least so I moved forward with it. School almost done for the semester so I will have 5 months with nothing, so lots of time to make this bad boy shiny.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Trying to get back into writing (still going to see if I can get a few more reviews in the pipeline).

Much easier to get back into serious writing than comedy.

 

[pambaddeley]

Continuing the edit of my long fantasy novel, using CampNaNoWriMo for some added motivation.

 

[Wruter]

I'm trying to use Camp Nano to do 50k as in the main November nanowrimo...and struggling badly. My main problem is I just don't have the energy to write in the weekday evenings after work. I might have to resign myself to being a weekend writer...

 

[psychotick]

Hi,

Half way through the final edit of Samual which will hopefully be pubbed in a week or so. Cover was done months ago. And I did the blurb a few days back, but am thinking it doesn't sound right. Will have to look at it again.

After that I can finally enjoy the nervous breakdown I've been putting off for so long!

Cheers, Greg.

 

[Ray McCarthy]

Proofing paper version of "The Apprentice's Talent" (format & layout issues)
Editing / Revising "Restoring the Talismans"
Starting "The Fairy Godmother"
Final edit & proof cycle for "The Journeyman's Talent" (aim to order paper proof before end of April 2016)
Marketing "The Apprentice's Talent"
Preparation for photography for cover of "The Master's Talent".

 

[Nick B]

Reading through Liberator as a reader would. Picking out small continuity and odd errors. It's strange reading it start to finish after so long.
Still have to rewrite a small bit at the end before it goes back to our fantastic editor