Black Horses / Murmur
Choices...
Last week, I wrapped up editorial revisions on the new novel I have coming out this year, that we’ll still call The Black Light Club…
However, in a weird way, I can’t even really talk too much about that book, since it’s sale has yet to be formally announced (blame it on the holiday push/rush). Yet, I’ve already been in discussions about a possible cover, and have started to think about a potential followup.
At the end of 2024, I was tinkering with two novels—Black Horses, a more of a traditional crime novel, and another, Murmur, far more speculative in nature (probably closer in theme and tone to The Black Light Club). I’m not sure my current publisher will be interested in either, and honestly they likely won’t have an opinion until we see how BLC performs. Fair enough—no reason to throw good money after bad, and that’s the business, after all—but BLC won’t be out until the fall, and I don’t want to sit on my hands until then.
FWIW, I’m also throwing words at a third book, a full-on fantasy novel, of the type I haven’t attempted in, well, decades. At one point, I was a huge fantasy reader, but after college, drifted away to other genres. This fantasy book is more of an exercise, an exploration, a dalliance at this point, rather than a full-on commitment. If I enjoy it, I’ll keep going, with very little pressure or expectation, particularly since time (as always) remains at a premium.
Nevertheless, I do want to finish at least one book this year, sooner rather than later, and two paths lay before me. I’ve enjoyed working on both Black Horses and Murmur, and although they’re very different, I think they both have commercial appeal. If I am committed to a follow on to BLC, then the latter is probably where I want to push in my chips. Yet, BLC clearly lays the groundwork for a direct sequel (maybe even the beginning of a series), and Murmur is definitely not that. I probably have the rest of this month to finalize a commitment to something, and if I had a gun to my head, then Murmur would be it…and it doesn’t hurt that I already have nearly 150 pages already down.
While being a full-time writer has huge advantages, it doesn’t necessarily make career choices any easier. While it’s simple to say write what you love that adage has to be balanced against the realities of writing as a profession, where expectations and contracts matter, and business decisions have to be made. And being a full-time writer doesn’t mean endless time, because there’s still only so many hours in a day, and so many projects can you commit to. I know some writers can crank out five or six thousand words a day, even more, but I also know me well enough to know that’s not my pace. I clearly have more flexibility to choose what I write, and more hours to write with, but they’re still finite, and even moreso if I’m committed to a Hollywood series. I can work on all three books this year but I have to prioritize them, and dole out my writing hours accordingly.
Anyway, that’s where I am with that…more to come as I make some hard but necessary decisions later this month.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the ravaging Los Angeles fires. Having lived there and spent time there recently, I’m familiar with many of the locations that are now little more than ash. While the folks I know there are safe, they’ve recounted to me horror stories of truly apocalyptic devastation. LA is amazingly resilient, but it will take a while for things to heal…
As always, feel free to—