What I’m Working On: Spring 2018
Whew! Things are getting interesting over here in Tyler Land. I have a number of writing projects I’m working on right now, and I thought it’d be fun to keep you updated on my progress!
Current Projects:
1) “Honeybee”
Sci-fi short story I’d like to be about 5k-7k words. My original draft was 5k, but the premise is kind of far out and so many of my beta readers had so many questions, I decided to let myself wax verbose on the second draft and answer all the questions. This resulted in the story swelling to 9k (almost twice the length of the first draft). I figured I could review how the additional 4k felt and shave it down if needed. Adding more narration and more backstory, as well as changing the starting point, made the whole thing feel like the first chapter to a Young Adult dystopian novel instead of a sci-fi short. It was so far from what I wanted, I considered shelving the whole project. But I talked to my critique partner Kris, and she helped me create a vision for draft number three, where I could refocus and hone in on the story I most wanted to tell. So that’s what I’m currently doing. Goes on submission: May 31
2) “Satellite”
Sci-fi flash fiction about 650 words long. The concept behind this story is so niche I have no idea if it will ever get published. That said, I think it may be one of the best ideas I’ve ever had. I’ve recruited help from my husband and my best friend from high school to help me with some of the technical stuff. They’ve been geeking out about it, which is absolutely thrilling to me. I brought the story to my library writing group and had one person understand it completely, one person understand the gist of it, and three people who couldn’t make heads or tails of it. I asked the group if there was a way to balance the story so it could be understood by a wider audience. The group unanimously advised me to ignore the wider audience, commit to the idea, and charge ahead with it. Goes on submission: April 30
3) “Submarine”
Sci-fi/fantasy short story I’m hoping to keep between 7k-10k words. This story is still in the note-taking phase. When looking for ideas, I often begin with my resources. My husband and brother-in-law both worked on submarines for three years, and I simply couldn’t pass up the spec fic opportunities! This will definitely be my most challenging short story to date because it deals with the ethics of nuclear war, and I’ll have to get all my technical and inside information from interviews and research. Goes on submission: August 31
4) “The Island Book”
Historical fantasy novel about 100k words. This is the first installment in a series of books about two families struggling for control of a fictional island. Magical beings and speculative science get involved. Chaos ensues. Currently working on: chapters 11 and 12
On Submission:
5) “ALIENS!”
Sci-fi short story about 5k words. This project was inspired by my years in Japan, one very interesting SCUBA instructor, and memories of my grandpa introducing me to various SETI programs. The whole story is essentially a conversation–hopefully an interesting one. Currently on submission: Writers of the Future
Okay, that’s it for now! Wish me luck!
Christine
