And so my writing journey continues. Since wrapping up an intense promotional run a week or so ago, I’ve been reassessing my situation on a couple different fronts.

One has to do with my new novel that’s been gnashing at the bit to take the lead. I’ve been slowly working on it around the edges, spending concentrated time on the preface to infuse my narrative voice with enough grit to survive all the storms & floods during the actual storytelling.

It might come as a surprise then that I wrote a detailed preface for each of my previous novels but didn’t publish them. For a series of reasons, neither one contributed to a reader’s appreciation of their respective stories; in fact, both would’ve interfered. In my mind, they’re like character backstories that never get a chance to see the light of day.

However, I do plan to publish the preface of my third novel. I won’t go into details as to why in order to avoid divulging what my work in progress (WIP) is about till the second or third draft is done. Even then I always tread carefully since a reveal like that could potentially tweak my perception just enough to jeopardize the precarious balance of my storytelling.

That’s why I don’t share what I’m currently writing with anyone till the storyline, speech patterns, character arcs, & so on are solidified enough to withstand my inclination to ask for input at too early a stage.

I know, I know…maybe that’s taking the indie part of independent authorship too far. But my current circumstances tend to drive that bus since, after all, I’m my own editor, advertiser, social media manager, website designer, etc. Hell, if I had the equipment, I’d even record my own audiobook.

Meanwhile, I’m happy to be at a point where I can take on the second front of reassessing my current situation—lowering my presence on social media, dialing back on promoting, & enjoying the moment a bit more.

The first step of that phase will be triaging social media platforms to decide which ones to stay active on. I’ll be the first to admit it gets complicated when you’re not a natural in that world, & yet you maintain a website like this along with eight other platforms.

But I’ll save the nuts & bolts of that issue for next time.

Keep you posted.

Drew

P.S. I’m happy to report that at the time of my writing this post, Core Haven: Hope Amid the Ruins has maintained its 4.8 out of 5 stars with 55 global ratings & 53 customer reviews on Amazon, & 132 ratings & 121 reviews for a 4.63 out of 5 stars on Goodreads. Not too shabby, right?

P.S.S. If by chance you’re interested in reading and thoughtfully reviewing either of my two companion novels, please see the Amazon links below. (And thanks so much in advance!)

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Lee Hall’s Review of Core Haven: Hope Amid the Ruins

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I invite you to check out Lee Hall’s excellent video review, especially the first book he includes on his short list of memorable indie reads—uh-huh, that would be Pearl Fields and the Oregon Meltdown.

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