Tris Talks! January newsletter...
Hello, all, and welcome to the end of January!
I have a lot of positive feelings about this year so far. I also have a lot of negative ones. There has been a definite amount of chaos in our lives at home, which I keep feeling like I should be used to. But the moment we get used to one thing, something else comes up, y’know?
I mean, I guess that’s life. But my brain is already made of chaos; I like being able to have something stable to hold on to.
On the positive side of things: I’ve been much better about making time most days to focus on something writing or writing-related. Sometimes this has been blog posts, but sometimes it’s been publishing tasks, and sometimes it’s been plotting. I’ll get into those details in a bit.
We’ve also been fighting with our heat (spouse fixed it this weekend we hope!), and pet health (ongoing, and probably all the time when there are three pets in the house I think). I’m in a pain flare right now, which is uncomfortable and annoying. I do better when I’m sleeping well and my body doesn’t feel like it’s fighting me. Days when I feel almost “normal” make me forget that I have chronic issues. Then my body reminds me. With interest. Sighs. Been a bad week, anyway. Hoping to turn it all around for February!
What I’ve published…
The last month has been primarily about blog posts. Most of these posts have gone up on my website, Tumblr, Pillowfort, Dreamwidth, Livejournal, and Insanejournal. I’ll link to Tumblr & Pillowfort below.
2023 in Review / 2024 Goals & Objectives (Pillowfort)
ND Creative: Time, Focus, Organization (Tumblr | Pillowfort)
Practice retirement… (Tumblr | Pillowfort)
Self Help & Writing Advice (Tumblr | Pillowfort)
It’s a bit weird to me seeing that there are only four entries. I felt like I wrote more. I’ve been trying to be more present.
No new things published for either fanfic or original work this month. We’re getting there.
Other writing progress…
Ah, here we go. This is where I spent most of my time.
I bought notebooks.
Go on, laugh! I realized that I do much better work plotting—talking to myself, etc.—when I’m working with a pen on paper (preferably felt-tip, not gel). So I bought myself notebooks specifically for plotting PHU and 7Lakes, as well as one for blogging/publishing, and another for short stories.
OH! Audience participation moment!!
If I were to write something exclusively for Newsletter subscribers, what stories would you like to see? Original work only, of course. A missing scene from PHU? A future AU? Something out of 7Lakes that you’re curious about?
ANYWAY. I’ve been getting publishing accounts set up, and achieving ISBNs so I can release the first 7Lakes book—Finding Their Roots—this spring. I have found a cover artist. I’ve played with formatting, and set up a basic template so that I can apply it to all 7Lakes books as I produce them. I’ve been reading so much about indie publishing as I get ready to do this (I have been down So Many Rabbit Holes).
I still have a lot to do, but I’m closer. Once the contract is signed for cover art, I’ll be setting an official release date and start setting things up online for pre-order.
I’m also looking for pre-readers who are willing to offer a review in exchange for a proof copy of the ebook. If you’re interested, or know someone who might be interested, please feel free to reach out to me.
What’s next…
I’m investigating the Ream platform. It’s designed for writers to be able to share their work serially and apparently folks are using it to post draft copies of books as they write, which I’m very interested in. It’d be behind a paywall—because I wouldn’t want to publicly post either PHU before it’s edited, or 7Lakes in general. Interested readers would get to read what I’m writing pretty much literally as I write it, and long before it’s posted (PHU) or published (7Lakes).
Yes, this would be an alternative to Patreon. I’d probably invite folks to move from Patreon to Ream—they’d get to read sooner, although it’d be draft instead of semi-polished. Although Ream appears to be almost entirely stories, not newsletters or behind-the-scenes—I need to finish the investigation!
In terms of publishing, I’m figuring out how much I can get set up across all platforms for reviewers and pre-sales for Finding Their Roots, and I’d like to get that information out there by the end of February at the latest.
I’m falling back into edits for the PHU Twinned trilogy, so that we can get that settled so we can launch the Kickstarter. No date yet! I’m sure I will natter on about it on the patron-only updates as that progresses.
Upcoming appearances…
I have my Boskone schedule! I’ll be at Boskone February 9-11, and I’ll be on panels, doing an autograph session, and hanging out at the Duck Prints Press table. When everything else is done for the night, I will probably be in the gaming room with my spouse.
My schedule of panels/autographing will be…
Deeper Than Blood: Fictional Found Families - Friday, 8:30pm
Writing the Fight Scene - Saturday, 11:30am
Representation of LGBTQ+ in Pop Culture - Saturday, 2:30pm
Autographing - Saturday, 4pm
Alternative Publishing - Sunday, 10am
I have definite opinions on all of these, and am very much looking forward to this slate!
If you’re planning to be at Boskone, please feel free to poke me on social media to let me know, or come find me at any of these sessions or the DPP table! Paperbacks of the first book of my Twinned trilogy should be available at the DPP table in the dealers’ room.
That’s it for another month!
If you’re curious to see snippets as I work, all levels of my Patreon are treated to early chapters of PHU when it is posting, as well as behind-the-scenes looks at works in progress.
Come find me on social media if you want to chit-chat or just hear me natter on about life, writing, and fandom. I’m tryslora everywhere!
Thank you for reading Tris Talks...!
If you are interested in supporting my work, you can find me on Patreon and on Ko-Fi for one time tips.