August just sort of happened. I must have blinked. Sorry about that.
So, news:
1. If you follow my podcast, you know I’ve been dealing with some medical issues. Again. I think I’ve got the meds sorted out now and I’ve been walking again. This is a Good Thing.
2. In addition to walking, I’ve also been writing.
I started Cape Grace some time ago and have about 30,000 words in. I need to go back and revisit that because – so far – it’s just Otto’s story. That’s wrong. I need to add Sarah in there, but I need to cogitate a bit on that before I dig in.
I also took a swing at the first Smuggler’s Tale. That’s the Solar Clipper series that’s _not_ about Ishmael Wang. It’ll be a trilogy (I think) about Natalya Regyri and her wingman, Zoya Usoko, as they navigate the Dark Side of the Deep Dark. I had to put that one down, too.
I found I missed Ishmael too much. I’ve started the first of the Seeker’s Tales. I’m sitting at 11,000 words right now and the story is beginning to take on a life of its own. I’m not sure how long this book will be, when I’ll finish it, or even what the story is. I’ve got some ideas, but these things don’t really like to pay attention to what I think the story is.
I can tell you this much. Theme: “It’s not how hard you’re hit. It’s what you do after that matters.” With everybody still reeling from Owner’s Share, that seemed the most likely place to pick up the action as Ishmael picks himself up and … well, we’ll see if he moves on with his life or let’s the past become an insurmountable load of baggage.
Oh, and he teams up with Pip again.
3. You might find clues about where the stories are going if you play Eve Online. In a recent change to their policy, they removed a lot of unused names which allowed me to get Ishmael Horatio Wang, Phillip Carstairs, and Alys Giggone as avatars in game. You’ll also find Natalya Regyri and Zoya Usoko there. As the stories develop, I’ll have more stuff that Eve players can find. If you don’t play Eve, don’t worry. The story will be the story. Game stuff won’t make any difference – other than I won’t log in and find that fans are already playing my characters. 🙂
Late  summer and fall have – historically – been very productive times for me.
Fingers crossed that the trend continues.
Thanks for hanging in with me. We’ll get there.