I'm reading three books as I write three stories simultaneously. Insomnia has its benefits, as does prolonged bouts away from the drink.
I stopped writing for a couple months because I thought everything I put to paper was shit, and nobody would ever read it. Then one day, I was hanging out with some friends, and it came up that I was, once upon a time, a writer of fiction. I kind of dragged my feet and did my customary "Yeah," followed by about five minutes of navel gazing.
It got me thinking though.
And on a lark, I went through all my current and old stories and printed off the best of each genre I'd been working on.
I took it a couple of weeks ago and shared them with some friends, and I was rather shocked by the reaction.
These aren't people who are themselves writers (or attached to writers) or media-gears, or enthusiasts in any respect. And they enjoyed each story, each completely different.
And so, every night for the last week, I've been staying up until 5-6 a.m. and just writing. It's like walking into a world, half-finished. Details hazy, but distinction is only two or three paragraphs away. I'm hoping I don't drop the ball again, but with all the responsibility coming my way in only a few short weeks, I can't guarantee anything will get done (as usual). Still.
The three I'm working on are these:
Scott Bentley, whom most of you are already familiar with. I've decided on an end-state, and the story will be something of a short story or novella. Probably not more than 200-300 pages max.
Priest, a high political fantasy rife with existential concepts of faith and ambition. It was started in a drunken haze one night, and has gradually grown into a thriving concept that scales well both in detail and scope. The notion of a religion that strives against organized religion and tyranny played a huge part in scoping the concept, as did the idea of power and celebrity raising one above concepts of justice.
Old Earth, a story of post-post-humanism, set thousands of years in the future, long after a cataclysm that changed the face of the Earth, and humanity. Humanity has undergone the singularity, albeit in pieces, and the post-humans have since left Earth behind for thousands of years. Now, they're coming back. Some say they're looking for something. Others say they're fleeing a war gone wrong, and are seeking to recruit more into their ranks of so-called Immortals.