Friday, February 28, 2014

So many things to do, no time to do it

Do you ever have those months where you told yourself to take a deep breath and the beginning of the month, and when you remembered to let it out all of the sudden it was over? That was my February. It was a busy month, omg busy, but really fun too and actually quite productive.

I'm so excited to announce that I have finished my first draft of my newest WIP, a YA novel about a foster kid searching for her home, and battling her inner demons along the way. It has actually been a very, very different writing process for me, and in some ways, it's been much harder than my fantasy novels. 

This book is not nearly as long as my fantasy novels, it's actually just a little over half their size, but it's very intricate. While writing fantasy and having characters in a different realm, I make up the rules, the laws, the concept of "normal. This contemporary has challenged me beyond my wildest dreams.

Foster care is not a simple system, not one bit, and staying true to the legal and emotional aspects of the system for this book has been an interesting time. Luckily for me, I work with an incredible woman with long experience with foster kids who has been incredibly gracious with answering all of my random questions, though it breaks my heart every time I come up with a horrible scenario and she confirms that yes, that it quite common for kids in Alyssa's shoes. 

After this one...I'm not sure where I'm going to go. I have several NA contemporaries started that I would like to get out into the world, but I also have some of our old friends from Kaldalangra tapping on my brain and wanting me to tell their story. I'm planning on two more stories to be added the Land of Kaldalangra series, so many they will be next :)