May & June... Where art thou?

Wow... where the @#$% did those months go?!

So, just as I was beginning to get a decent number of hits to my blog (by decent I mean more than 1 or 2) and May & June happen. As an unpublished, aspiring author, two things usually get in the way of raising my profile: Life and Work - not necessarily in that order.

Work has been busy, busy, busy - so much so that hours have been long, travel has been nauseating and my time at home, writing, has been restricted.

Life has also been busy, but in a good way. If I thought raising one child was hard... two is unencroachable (not sure that is a proper adjective but hey, artistic license et cetera). But at the same time it is full of the joys and wonderment of parenthood.

Full of joys and wonderment of parenthood... yes. Conducive to effective writing... No. But I wouldn't change it for the world.

So, just a few months ago, I was hitting all my writing goals and in an almost euphoric place in terms of creativity. The last two months has seen me confined to scribbling ideas on the back of a notebook while riding a train to the airport; typing paragraphs into an iPad (other quality tablets are available) and emailing them to myself so I can retype them into Scrivener; and dreaming up sequences in my head only to forget them when I wake up upon landing in a different country.

But progress has been made. Much progress. Significantly more than I had realised.

My initial push was going to be trying to get the novel published a few months ago, but after a series of rejections, I decided to get some external input (see Plot Changes and Editing), take on the advice and rewrite.

Alexandra Frost & The Dragons of Overearth is now developing into an Epic/High Fantasy split into multi-book format. I was unsure about this at first, but it is really beginning to take shape and the whole first part of the story now has a clear purpose, obstacle and is driving head first into a proper resolution.

My writing pace is picking up; the path is mapped out; and I've conjured up a few more ways to make poor Alex's life more difficult. But she's strong and we know/hope she can pull through!

My new goal is to get the book finished ready for My Editor to go through with a fine-tooth comb so I can submit the book to the upcoming SCBWI Anthology in mid-August.

As my favourite record-breaker host famously said at the end of every show, 'Dedication's what you need, if you want to be the best'. So dedication is there, I think a little blood, sweat and tears is all that's left to give.

I may not be a successful writer... but I am still a writer!