Fifty-One Goals
You’re not really going to list fifty-one goals, are you? That sounds exhausting.
Brosef, I don’t even have fifty-one goals. I have like, three, and two of them heavily involve sugar and the other is to watch as much TV as possible.
I’m not really into self-improvement.
So what are you going on about?
This is Part Two of my birthday newsletter last year, because today is my birthday, and I made a promise to myself a year ago.
I said that, by this day, my goal would be to have a new book under contract.
Oh my gosh! Congratulations!
Thank you! I’ve watched so much TV!
I don’t yet have a new book under contract, but I made that goal rather cautiously, even in that newsletter. I like goals, but I’m wary of ones that rely on factors outside of yourself, like my past goal of having a woman president. You can’t control much in publishing. Feedback and replies aren’t often immediate, and the reward may not match the effort. It’s hard to depend on anything outside of yourself.
Do you feel sheepish?
Not at all! I feel excited. Here’s why.
I haven’t actually tried to sell the book yet, but I did finish it, and I’m maybe a draft or two away from it being ready to sell. I wanted to write something different, a direction my other books hadn’t taken, but one in which everyone was pointing. It was my wife who told me that I should write more about relationships, and a good writer friend who said that “if a guy wrote well about relationships, I’d read the shit out of his books.” And my editor who said that relationships is where my strength as a writer lies.
When that many people tell me something…well, okay, it still takes me a while to catch on. But I finally did, and I wrote a book that centers on a couple, desperately in love but struggling with lies, until the lies overwhelm them. Rather than eternal elements happening to them, I had their internal drama create the external crisis.
What does that mean?
I’m not sure. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that writing this new book felt wonderful.
I’ve talked before about the joy I had when writing my very first (unpublished) book. This was right after college, and although I’d read a ton, I’d never tried to write a novel. But I had a novel-length idea, and I eagerly pursued it without knowing much about writing and nothing about publishing. It took four years to finish, and it wasn’t very good, but it was, unquestionably, one of the best times of my life. It felt like when you learn to play an instrument and, slowly, eventually, you start to hear a song emerge.
I didn’t think I’d ever have that feeling again.
Part of it was due to writing in a different subgenre (still crime fiction, but not as murderous as my other work, more psychological/domestic than hardboiled), and part of it was writing something so character-driven. I’ve always prided myself on writing character-driven books and, whenever I read my reviews (something, honestly, I never do and firmly think writers should do more often, another newsletter topic for the future), it’s the characters that readers enjoyed the most. And it’s been years, maybe not since that very first book, that I’ve lost myself so much in two people. I fell in love again.
What does that say about your other books?
Nothing bad. Even though I’m brutally tough on my own work, I think each of those books said something important to me. Another thing I’ve talked about is the need for a novelist to find their identity, their voice, their place.
I found the place for my stories.
But you didn’t meet your goal.
I’m good with that. If I had, with a different book, it wouldn’t have been worth it.
Just a reminder that I’m chatting with Alma Katsu at One More Page on Monday, September 15, about her latest novel, Fiend! One of the things I love about Alma is her versatility as a writer. Every writer has certain things they want to do, genres they want to explore, but Alma is one of the few who actually does it, and does it well. It’s hard to have a presence in two fields, but Alma is a well-known figure in both spy fiction and horror. Come join us!
It's giveaway time! This newsletter I’m giving away a copy of Alma Katsu’s Fiend! And the winner is:
dcm_____e@aol.com
Congrats, and I'll send you an email with more information soon!
In my last newsletter, I listed a bunch of other writing-related newsletters I enjoyed and, of course, absolutely forgot three that I regularly read. Lori Rader-Day is one of the most determined, strongest writers I know, and her newsletter offers an inside, insightful look at how her life intersects with her writing. Tori Eldridge doesn’t hold back on the honesty involved in her work, and the result is always a wonderfully compelling read. And it’s crazy that I forgot this one, but Louise Penny writes a beautifully heartwarming newsletter on the first of every month, always tied around a particular theme, and always a touching read.
Also also, I can’t believe I didn’t say this, but since it’s my birthday today you should totally get me a gift and buy one of my books. Unless you already got me a gift? Did you? Don’t look away, I can see you didn’t. Very rude IMHO.
Eighteen-year old Charlotte Reyes ran away from an abusive home only to end up tricked, kidnapped, and taken across the country by criminals. Charlotte manages to escape with the help of a reluctant former soldier named Mace Peterson, but she can't seem to shake the gang or the crooked cop paid to bring her back--alive or otherwise. With nowhere to run and nowhere to hide, Charlotte realizes she only has one option. She has to fight.
"A gut-wrenching crime thriller. Readers who appreciate depth of character alongside gritty nonstop action will be rewarded." --Publishers Weekly
Two men from vastly different backgrounds are murdered one after another on the same night, in the same fashion with two bullet wounds: one in the head, another in the heart. The two slayings sends their wives on a desperate search for answers--and a desperate attempt to save their families' lives.
“A hard-boiled crime thriller in which the women fight back. It’s expertly plotted and action-packed, but it also features a diverse cast of characters—including two strong women of color as protagonists—and offers biting social commentary.” —Buzzfeed
The chilling story of two conflicted sisters, their murdered brother, and the secrets a family hoped they’d never have to face.
“An affecting tale of what we do for the ones we love.” ― The New York Times
A young couple fleeing a criminal family confronts a reluctant assassin in this heart-pounding thriller.
“Instantly cinematic, opening with a skittish pair seated in a diner and quickly catapulting into a series of frantic chases and narrow escapes… This would appeal to fans of Elmore Leonard's and Jeff Lindsay's books and the Quentin Tarantino film Reservoir Dogs, with high-stakes violence tempered by humor and disarmingly sympathetic antiheroes.” ― Booklist
Happy birthday, Ed!