But with Christmas now behind us, this time of year I tend lay out aspirations rather than resolutions for the New Year. 2016 is a little different. Personal and publishing issues in 2015 have shifted my perspective. I'm facing the very real possibility of giving up my hopes of a writing career, or at least the hope it would pay me a living wage, for a full time job that will guarantee me a regular income. That may still be on the cards. Maybe not this year now, but in the not-too-distant future.
So I kind of have to prove myself in 2016. Right now I plan to release a novella length side story in the Redemption series (Reunion at Kasha-Asor, 21st May) the Rebecca finalist (working title Revived), a Travellers Universe novel June-ish, and possibly a trio of short SFR stories (if I ever finish them). I'm also waiting to hear on a short I submitted to an anthology. After that...well, there's book three for the Redemption series that I've promised for 2017, and I don't want to let people down. It's written. It just needs a huge, HUGE overhaul.
The majority of those are my editing/release plans. When it comes to writing... I have so many ideas. Over Christmas I thought out a prequel for my Inc-Su book Tethered. I also want to write a Colchester-based urban fantasy, a novel-length sequel to my short story Imprint, a kind of Edward Scissorhands meets Bladerunner mash up, half a dozen Travellers related shorts and novels... The list goes on. What I think I'll probably focus on is more work in the worlds I've already created. I've been asked for sequels to both Tethered and When Dark Falls, which I'd like to do but since neither book is selling well I can't justify them right now. At some point I also need to complete books four and five of the Redemption series.
So lack of ideas is not the problem. Lack of time is more the issue, and when self publishing that time gets eaten up a lot more by non-writing, publishing and promo type tasks. Not that I'm complaining! Well, not too much.
What I won't be doing
Draft2Digital--whom I use to distribute my books to B&N, iTunes, and Tolino--recently added 24Symbols to their partners. However, after learning that some of 24Symbols's customers discriminate against LGBT titles, treating them to the same lack of visibility and blurred covers as erotica, I've decided not to distribute to them. While I have no current published LGBT titles of my own, I won't contribute to a platform that chooses to censor titles (for the same reason I refuse to distribute to Inktera after the CleanReader fiasco).
For the foreseeable future, the books I already have in KU will remain there (When Dark Falls, Restless In Peaceville, No Angel, Reboot, and Hallow's Eve), while my series books (Redemption, the associated Travellers Universe books, and the Venus Ascendant stories) will remain wide. Some of my short stories will come down at the end of 2016 and be re-released as a set with my new ones (if completed), probably as KU exclusive initially before going wide.
Happenings
There's just two more days to enter the Goodreads giveaway for a print edition of Keir.
Meanwhile the print proof for Keir's Fall arrived on Christmas Eve (what a wonderful present!), so I'll be running a print giveaway for that shortly. Don't they look so cute together!?
Keir will be going back up at NetGalley in February, with Keir's Fall going up in March (I thought it made more sense to offer book one again before putting up book two).
I have the Redemption side story to edit this month (releasing in ebook only in May), and I'm waiting on the edits for a Travellers novel I plan to release in June (ebook and print). Unfortunately my poor editor got her laptop stolen (grrrr!) so she's having to redo the edits. Shameful! I'm just thankful she wasn't hurt.
Keir has already won me me my first award for 2016 - a Standout Award from review site One Book Two. *beams* Nothing like starting the year with a shiny thing.
Pippa Jay, signing off...
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