2022 Arrives, along with a neglected old friend
I have always liked New Year’s resolutions as organizing principles--what worked, what didn’t work, what I want to work on--and as aspirational goals. As I enter 2022, however, I am still feeling unmoored, with so much that is impossible to know after two years of pandemic and associated confusion and unknown territories ahead. Of course the future is always impossible to know, but there are times when that maw of impossibility feels closer and more raw and fanged, and for me this is one of those times.
In other ways things are going decently well for me. Last year I completed two novels, one very long and one very short, revised both novels and am waiting for editorial remarks on both novels, and got through the production process for SERVANT MAGE, the fantasy novella arriving on shelves this month (whoo!!!). As vaccination rolled out on Oahu in March 2021, my canoe club got back into gear, with a one month pause in late August and September during the delta surge and a current holiday/omicron pause. We’ll be back in the water soon, I expect, and I’ll have my exercise, outdoor, ocean time, a much-needed mental health element in my life.
My goals for 2022 are modest. I want to write productively, keep in contact with my family and friends, and be a positive presence in my sff and writing community. After the last five years, I guess I hope for the basics: be safe, be well, celebrate the small victories, and keep moving. I wish that for all of you as well.
###
As I’ve mentioned here before, I have a Patreon. Among other things I’ve been using it to write two posts a month on writing craft (world building, revising) and deep dives into things like organizing world building notebooks and how I use my bullet journal. In 2021 I also posted chapters from an abandoned novel set in the Crossroads universe (let’s call it Crossroads 4) and discussed how some of the material ended up in a new form in Black Wolves after I decided that the way I was telling the story in C4 wasn’t going to work for me.
This glimpse into my process, and into unpublished material, was popular with my patrons. So in 2022 I’m going to offer (for all patrons) a “work in progress” look into Black Wolves 2, aka Dead Empire.
A quick catch up: In 2017 the publisher canceled the Black Wolves trilogy after only the first book had been released. However, the publisher did not cancel the contract, so they still hold the rights to the trilogy. This means I can’t publish books 2 and 3 even if I wrote them. Nor can I do as Michelle Sagara West has done and set up a Patreon to support writing the rest of her Essalieyan novels after her publisher had to cancel the rest of the series (but also returned the rights to her for the as-yet unwritten and unpublished final books). Believe me, I would do the same in a heartbeat if I could.
I respectfully ask that you not discuss this in public since at the moment there is nothing I can do about the situation. Whether there may be a solution in the future is as yet unanswered; I haven’t given up since this project is dear to my heart and it has been painful to be cut off from my creation in this way.
Now that I have the Patreon, however, I can share with my patrons “work in progress” that is not available to the public. As it happens, I already had a chunk of Dead Empire written when all this went down. So, in 2022, I am going to post at intervals (most likely twice monthly) the existing chapters of Dead Empire. There are currently about 70,000 words. The novel is not yet finished (although I know what happens), and I cannot guarantee a time when it might be finished--and of course I have to work on books I can get paid for (all of which I also love) so I can have a home to live in and food to eat. Still, it will give me pleasure to share even this unfinished WIP with writing I consider to be some of my very best.
Consider this a head’s up: If you would like to see the work-in-progress material, the way to do that is to become a member of my Patreon (There’s also a Finn photo every week!)
This free newsletter will continue in its current monthly format, or twice monthly if the need arises because there is a cascade of newsworthy news.
I thank all of you who are subscribed for your interest in my work!
###
My next release is SERVANT MAGE, a fantasy novella from tordotcom publishing, available in e-book and hardcover worldwide. Prepare for a newsletter drop on publication day, 18 January 2022.
A reminder that you can pre-order signed (and even personalized, if you wish) copies of SERVANT MAGE via The Signed Page (Shawn will be shipping the copies to me, and I’ll sign and return). Since I have no in-store appearances planned, this is the only venue where you can purchase a signed physical copy. Click here for the link to The Signed Page order page.
###
Finn hopes you will continue alongside him as we venture into 2022.
##
As always, thank you for reading. I could not do this without you.
Kate Elliott