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Dear Abby...what do you think?

12/26/2015

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First of all, I'm glad to report that my wife, after eight weeks in Colorado and eight of the last ten days as a patient in the hospital has finally returned home, somewhat the worse for wear. She lost a lot of weight and not through exercise or intentional dieting.
On the writing front, I need your help. Yes, yours.  I am soliciting opinions.  Those that are readers or writers of speculative fiction, especially younger ones, I want advice. And if you fit in neither of those categories, your feedback would still be welcome.  It doesn't matter if your name is not Abby.
As I noted last week, Double Dragon Publishing has accepted my novel Witchery for publication. That is scheduled for November, 2016, or possibly October.
So here's my question: Should I turn all my writing efforts toward a sequel of Witchery, or should I continue on work on the current paranormal romance?
I am almost 60,000 words into the first draft of Saving Atlantis and I know where the story is going and how it is going to end. I just have to figure out some of the details about getting there.
On the other matter, I haven't written a single word of the Witchery sequel, which would be tentatively titled Witchcraft.  I do have an idea for a probable beginning but that's all.  No plot, no additional characters, no conclusion.  But if I can get it done, it would be ready for submission to the publisher about the time Witchery comes out and be ready for publishing a year later or less.
So, dedicated readers, what should I do?  Continue with the current project or start the new one?  Please contribute your two dollars worth on the contact page or on the comments section here.
Thank you for any help, and I hope you enjoy the rest of the holiday season.


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December 06th, 2015

12/6/2015

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I started writing a fantasy novel in 1990.  I finished it about '91 or '92 and submitted it to a few publishers, but it was declined.  I decided it needed rewriting. I was content, generally, with the plot and the characters but what the magic could and could not accomplish needed work.  I set it aside and did not work on it until 2014. I finished the rewrite and was pretty pleased. I also added some good details and characters in the second half, and the story is much better than it was. Most of my submissions were simply a synopsis plus the first ten pages, or twenty pages, or first three chapters, and I continued to accumulate rejections. Then I received an e-mail add for Autocrit, a software editing program. While researching it on the internet I discovered ProWritingAid and a few others.  If you're interested, just type in "manuscript editing software" in your browser and you'll find plenty of info. I decided I liked ProWriting Aid for a couple of reasons. ProWritingAid highlighted overused words, adverbs, passive voice, possible writing style defects, and other things.  It called for some rewriting, but after I was finished the manuscript was much better and about 6,000 words shorter.
Since I had received rejections from so many publishers, I submitted Witchery to Double Dragon Publishing, the same one that published Prophecy of Honor.  I received an acceptance e-mail in less than a week, and I've now signed the contract.
But here's a funny thing: Back in March I submitted the total manuscript to a small press publisher. Their website predicted a 2-3 month waiting period. In late July I sent them a follow-up inquiry but received no reply, so I just figured they weren't interested.  Just a few days after I received DDP's acceptance I got an e-mail from this publisher. They were going to start reading it but wanted to know if it was still available. 
I explained that the manuscript they had was no longer valid because of the massive edit I'd done since, and that they were just over a week too late.
As soon as Witchery has a scheduled publication date I'll post it here and on Facebook.


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    I'm a former teacher and current warehouse grunt that loves writing.

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