Yes, I am alive.

If barely!

Many of you have written me emails or posted comments on previous threads asking after my writing pursuits.

First, thank you all for your interest. It's always nice to wake up to an email from someone curious about what I am up to, even though I've technically not done anything worth warranting such interest.

If any of you follow me on Suvudu.com, you will know from reading my article The Healthy Writer that I had to take some time after Terry read and gave his insight on The Dark Thorn. I spent that time recovering. I had allowed The Dark Thorn to overwhelm the rest of my life—eating healthy, working out, seeing my friends and family, even my reading time. I decided I had to reassert a level of control and find some balance. It took two months to really do that.

It doesn't mean I haven't been working on the rewrites for The Dark Thorn. Far from it. Incorporating some of the things Terry had to say, I've spent the last few months solving numerous plot problems that arose from the changes. Some were easy to figure out; others were not so easy to figure out. One problem was particularly nasty, one that took three weeks to figure out all by itself. Now all of those have been resolved.

Which means I've been rewriting. A lot.

I'm not that far into it. By the end of the month I will probably have seven or eight chapters finished. I am really taking time as I rewrite, trying to make sure every word is necessary, building a story that flows off of the page. I'm quite happy with what I've done. I am really happy with the first three chapters. The fourth and fifth chapters will barely change. The sixth chapter will be rewritten and streamlined. The seventh chapter will be all new material.

I am rewriting as I juggle a very busy The Signed Page and Suvudu. The rewriting is going to take some time. I'm not that worried about it. I decided to spend time building up my business and ensuring in this tough economic climate that I am not thrown out on the street. It has allowed me to gain some more perspective on The Dark Thorn, and as my friend Pat Rothfuss says that is always a good thing.

I've also been working on a new story idea about death. More on that later if I ever decide to do it.

Then I might put the first seven or so chapters into an eBook of some kind, but I might have something cooler than that if things come together right. Stay tuned.

So yes, I am alive.

And rewriting.

And I hope to hear from some of you and perhaps get some questions!

Hope you are reading something great.

Labels: Suvudu, The Dark Thorn

The second post was finished on Friday as I took the train southward from Seattle to Vancouver WA. I think it accomplishes the two things I wanted it to do: 1) discuss Suvudu a bit more in depth, and 2) talk a bit about me so people know where some of their content is coming from.

I'm definitely a personal life type of blogger. Rather than report straight news, I like blogs that give the reader a feel for who the writer is. It adds a level of intimacy between the writer and the reader that I feel is necessary to easily navigate through all the spin that is out there.

Some of the people who will be also contributing to Suvudu have read the first two blogs and liked them both. I can wipe that sweat from my brow. Both posts were fairly dry but they needed to be; now I can branch out a bit and begin talking about things that are hopefully not only interesting to me but to others out there.

I have since left Vancouver WA and drove the 14 hours to Bakersfield CA. In the heat only the middle of California can dish out, I'm thinking I will continue writing my Paolini/Bowling/Fantasy Writers piece, and then I have to go Hellboy 2, Wall-E, and later this week The Dark Knight to review them. Should be great fun.

And next week: the San Diego Comic Con! I have my schedule planned out for all four days of the Con and which panels I will be going to. It's going to be a very busy four days but I am really looking forward to it! I wonder if any of you are going to be there? Hmmm?

But right now, I need to write on The Dark Thorn. Therefore I am going out to the pool, find some shade next to the water, put my feet in a bit, and then write on my laptop beneath the sweltering heat. I want to finish this 20th chapter so it is off my back entirely and I can get back into the beginning parts of the march toward the climax! Fun stuff!

Labels: Suvudu, The Dark Thorn

The Suvudu website at www.suvudu.com will be going live soon, hopefully within the next week. When it does, that means I am officially on the proverbial hot seat to supply content.

But what about those first few posts? Shouldn't they be done before it goes live?

Right. Right. They should. So today I wrote the short and sweet opening post for Suvudu, explaining what Suvudu is right out of the gate. The next post, which is significantly outlined, discusses why Suvudu is needed and relevant -- drawing from experiences I had all the way back in 1996 to give readers a bit of knowledge about me as well as Suvudu's future. Should be fun!

Labels: Suvudu

I have been relatively absent the last month or so, for two reasons: the first I will talk about here, the second will be in my next post.

The fun news first!

Random House, in its infinite wisdom (haha), has decided to hire me for a few hours a week to be an Editorial Coordinator and blogger for a new website it is launching in a few weeks. The website is called Suvudu, and Suvudu will be something special.

I can positively hear the scratching of heads!

"Suvudu? What's that, you say? Suvudu? Sounds like a night club."

Well, what is Suvudu?

Suvudu, found at www.suvudu.com, is a new website catering to sci-fi and fantasy items of interest—not only in-house projects from Del Rey, Bantam/Spectra, Knopf Childrens, etc., but also from other publishers and other mediums! The idea is to build a community of like-minded people who love sci-fi and fantasy. Sounds great, right? To do it, I will blog, conduct interviews, post videos and podcasts and write reviews on sci-fi and fantasy books, audiobooks, comic books, graphic novels, games and movies. I will link to other blogs who are doing a great job of doing similar work, and multiple editors will join and write content as well.

In short, it will be a one-stop website for sci-fi/fantasy news!

All teasing aside, Random House has taken a big chance with me... and given me a huge opportunity. As many of you already know, I invest a lot of time on various websites and on different forums talking about the sci-fi/fantasy genre. I've done it for 12 or 13 years now, wholly unpaid, my payment being the chance to meet some wonderful writers, editors, agents, publicists, and artists.

Now I'll just be paid for doing what I love!

So, what happens with this blog? Good question. All of my personal endeavors and writing hopes will be posted here still. That means I will keep you all updated on my progress as I make my way through The Dark Thorn, what I learn as I write, answering the questions that are posed to me occasionally.

But I will also post what I am working on with Suvudu. So, for instance, yesterday and today I worked on podcast topics to ask Terry Brooks for the upcoming release of The Gypsy Morph. I also worked on a short interview with Drew Bowling, whose first book, The Tower of Shadows, is now out in paperback. Fun stuff, right?

Every day I will try to post what I've worked on for Suvudu—sometimes my work will bear fruit, sometimes it won't. Regardless, I think it will be fun to not only write about what I am working on but to get ideas for what you guys want from Suvudu! I've always been very open to ideas and suggestions and that will not change with Suvudu.

Suvudu should have a "soft" launch in the next two weeks. I will then be attending the San Diego Comic Con to talk to different people and report on the fun stuff I see there—with pictures and videos too!

Have any questions? Post them here!

Labels: Suvudu

Well... do you?

More on this soon!

Labels: Suvudu