In 2023 I finished and published Hunter’s Redoubt, the first book in the final sequence of the West universe.
In 2024, I intend to finish The Wild Road. Or at least finish the first draft of the book. It will still have to be revised, editing, copy-edited, proof-read. Having a publisher didn’t mean those things didn’t have to be done, but my part in the doing was much smaller. It was reactive, not active.
But having done it once, I think I’m more aware of what can go wrong, and things should be much smoother.
***
In 2023, I finished Cast in Atonement, but that’s author-finished; the book will be published in, I think, August 2024. 2023 also saw the publication of Shards of Glass.
For me, “finishing” a book is done months before the book is actually available — I use “finish” in the author sense, which simply means I’ve submitted the book. Behind the scenes, the book goes to the editor and returns to me; I revise the book, send it back to the editor. If she thinks my revisions haven’t added the clarity she was looking for, I revise again. The book then goes back to the publisher, and the publisher sends it to be copy-edit.
(During this stage, or a little before, the book is sent to the art director, and the cover is designed and sent to the artist.)
I review the copy-editor’s comments and suggestions. From there it’s sent to the excellent internal proof-reading department. And I review proofreaders comments and the book itself. And then it’s done – for me – until the book is published.
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News: I have sold two more Sagara novels to Mira! Cast in Atonement was the final book under the old contracts. So: there will be two more novels.
The next Sagara book I write will be the sequel to the Academia novel, Shards of Glass. I have started that book. Multiple times T_T.
The book after that will be the next Cast novel, which I have not started yet.
***
In the meantime one of my gifts this year was an apple watch. I have never had an apple watch, and haven’t worn a watch for years.
Because I have never had a watch, it took me a bit to figure it out — and the first thing I did was to choose a watch face. In this case, the Snoopy watch face, because I thought I could stand to see Snoopy and Woodstock on the watch when I looked at the time.
What I did not realize, in choosing that, was that every single time I look at the watch, I get 3 – 5 seconds of actual animation, and the animations are different each time. So I may have spent a bit too much time just … looking at the watch, which makes people around me think I’m being impatient about possibly wasting time >.<.
But I kind of love seeing the various animations. I admit I frequently fail to notice the actual time while looking at them.
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And in other plans for 2024: This year, I’ll be heading to Eastercon in the UK as a guest. I’ll be dragging my husband (by invitation from Eastercon) with me because he can hopefully prop me up if I flag :).
https://bsky.app/profile/easterconuk.bsky.social/post/3khqwtgjhcr2i
***
I hope you all had a happy holiday, and that those who celebrate Christmas had a Merry Christmas as well. The last of my holiday events is New Year’s dinner; my sister is coming over to cook, and my parents will be here for dinner as well.
And then I will sink into my normal routine of writing and bookstore work, and recharge my people battery.
Thank you all so much for being my readers in 2023!
Joyce 
Elizabeth KW 
Elissa Carroll 
Melanie A Allen 
Estara Swanberg 
Steve Faught 
Jazzlet 
Hilary 
Grace 
Alan T Witty 
Melanie Watson 
AllysonH 
Vicki LENOIR 
SuE 
Katie 
Aquilegia 
Tracy Perkins 
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Fond wishes for a great new year to you and yours, all of the rest of us as well…