Hey, everybody. Long time no talk, yeah? *nervous chuckle*
So, um, I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, whether
you celebrate or not, and I hope that the very rapidly approaching new year
treats you better than the old.
Speaking of the end of the year, many of you may be aware
that I made public noises with my mouth (or rather fingers, I guess, but let’s
not muddle our metaphors right out of the gate) that Amra #5, The Thief Who Went To War, would be out
by the end of the year.
I, uh, I’m not gonna be wrapping this bad boy up in the next
36ish hours. That’s not happening. I was wrong about that one. So very, very wrong. And I want to apologize.
Not as an excuse (unlike most of the times I say that in my
life, this time I actually mean it) but rather just to let you know I haven’t
been goofing off, we’re currently on the third
first draft of this book. I haven’t been stricken by writer’s block; words have
been coming out. They’ve just been the wrong ones. Lots and lots and lots of wrong words. So many initially
promising but ultimately dreadful plot-related decisions. Allow me to
illustrate where I’ve been at with this book for the last half a year or so:
 |
| it me |
It ain’t been pretty.
When I first started writing Amra’s misadventures, I was
this happy, innocent idiot. Nobody knew me or her, and it didn’t much matter in
the grand scheme of things if what I wrote was great or dreadful. I didn’t think
much about it; I just wrote.
Things have changed. Oh, I’m still an idiot, but now I’m the
kind of idiot that has juust enough self-awareness to worry about the
consequences of my idiocy. In other words, I really want to get this book right,
and the first two drafts weren’t. Really, truly, no foolin' not good enough to publish.
I’ve literally had to go back and re-teach myself how to plot, (yes, this will be my eighth
full-length novel; I wasn’t joking about the idiot part) but Amra 5, Version 3
is now coming along more smoothly. Everything seems to be working at last, and
it is my top priority. I’m not going to open my big idiot mouth and give another
possibly wrong time frame for its release, but I’ll be giving weekly updates on
writing progress on the blog for those who’d like to check in.
So, to sum up: I’m an idiot, Amra 5 isn’t ready, but things
are looking better and you can expect weekly reports on progress here on the blog.
Happy New Year, everybody!
6 comments:
Dear Michael McClung, thank you very much for the honest update. I only discovered Amra a few weeks ago and loved all the books so far, especially the last god. So thank you very much for giving me so much excitement and laughter. I know readers can be impatient and of course I would love to continue with book 5 tomorrow but please take your time - I’d rather read a book you are pleased with at a later point in time and I’d rather you still have some time for yourself and your family and keep writing awesome books instead of burning out or deciding that the pressure is too much. So: all the best to you and yours for the new year and happy writing!
PS: English is not my first language so please forgive my mistakes.
PPS: I will try Prayers in Steel, too, even though at first glance it sounds a bit too fighty/grand-scale-conflict-heavy for my taste
DUDE! YOU'RE ALIVE!!!
I don't give a good goddamn about the books. I mean, I do in the long run cause you're a fantastic writer, but in the short term you've scared the shit out of some folks by dropping off the face of the planet like that.
*furiously hugs you*
The book will happen when it happens. If it sucks it sucks, if it's great it's great. But knowing you it'll be entertaining, fun, and fantastic.
We love you brother man, because you're an amazing human...the books are just a bonus.
- Jon
You are more important than any book. I’m so happy to hear from you. I am sure all your friends and fans are thrilled as well. You will be done with your book when you are done. I hope the new year brings you happiness and good health.
So happy to hear from you! I hope you had a good holiday and I really can't wait till the next installation comes out. Take your time, Amra is worth the wait.
Thank god you are okay. Had me a little worried there, going into radiosilence for so long. Welcome back :) And thank you for that honest update. I´m more than happy to wait for Amra as long as it takes. So take a breath and take all the time you need.
I wish you great year and all the best.
Great to hear your ok mate and happy new year looking forward to the next instalments
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