There is just a thing around me and coughs. I managed to develop one just after getting back home after family holiday gatherings. I’m keeping an eye on it and will seek out extra medical assistance if it continues to be tricky, but I think I’m on the mend – even if I’ve been flat on my back for almost two weeks.
That does however mean a lot of things have been delayed – this Patreon update, getting the year started, and getting momentum re-built on the process for writing Quicker than Blood.
(Fancy math currently implies Quicker than Blood will be between 115 000 words and 136 000 words, and the first draft will be done between March/April. I suspect this math will continue to evolve.)
It’s a good time to look back and ahead, though. 2023 was a real mixed bag for a lot of people – myself included. After struggling to adjust to living on my own, though, I started to settle down this past year. Building my work routines, getting things moving, and (with) a little luck, get the foundations of productivity rebuilt.
So far that’s gone relatively well – finally being in the middle of Quicker than Blood feels like proof of that – though, as ever, there’s still room for improvement. Time management is one of those skills that requires constant attention and work.
I’ve also been judging SPSFC, which, let me tell you, qualifies as work – it is a lot of reading, and figuring out how to write reviews has been a (hopefully) positive new skill to work on.
As for 2024 ahead, it’s all a little murky. The big and obvious landmarks are Quicker than Blood’s first draft – which will hopefully be followed by a relatively quick turnaround to some kind of publication – and helping bring this year’s SPSFC winner to light.
Beyond those, though, I’d like to try and build on plans I had to get a long-awaited fantasy series I have in mind started, make some progress towards the next San Iadras book after Quicker than Blood (likely a war-doggy one), and there’s my space opera, and… well. This list can go on forever. The question is how much is viable for me to actually fit into a year, and not expect too much of myself. Nothing’s more demotivating than attempting to do six things and achieving one – instead of having achieved that one thing, I am one of those people who will fixate on the five things undone.
The main thing is getting Quicker than Blood done, for now. We’ll see what else 2024 brings – and I hope it brings plenty! – but I intend to hyperfixate on the cool things I actually manage to do with it, rather than the things I only wish I’d done.
In the meanwhile, I still need to focus on self-care after that cough, and I need to catch up with everything that’s slipped through the cracks. Much as I’d rather start the year with fireworks and a fancy light show, I think slow and steady is probably a lot more sustainable, and likely to get me somewhere.
I hope your year’s starting well, and even if you’re not managing to make the year start in flashy fashion, I’m sure you’ll make somethinggood out of it.
As ever, thank you for your support and your interest in my work!
