Keith's June Newsletter

Welcome Friends, to your Hump Year newsletter. It’s the middle of the year! Who knew we’d get this far? Well done you. It’s been a bumpy ride, eh?

Taking Control

A swami once told me that if you don’t have a plan you’ll end up taking whatever comes along. They were not wrong. With that in mind I’ve started a job search in earnest, along with serious considerations about which country I want to live in? I’m not saying I specifically don’t want to live in England anymore, but with nothing to keep me here why not think about Iceland, or Sweden, or Austria, or New Zealand?

And as for work, I just need to make money. What I do to do that, and where I do it, matters not. I’d like it to be with writing, and I am striving towards that goal, but I have to do something in the meantime to tide me over; which is, of course, The Trap. You concentrate too much on Plan B and Plan B becomes your life. I hate The Trap. It has dogged me all my life.

I did a social thing this month. My friends at Northodox Press had an author meet up at the Hyde Park Book Club, which is just down the road from me in Leeds. I got to get dressed up, go along, and try and sell some books to those that showed. Sadly it was in a basement on one of the hottest days of the year, so the people that showed were mostly friends and family of the people that were there. But still, I sold a couple of books (which covered the taxi ride there) and I got to meet a bunch of other authors to trade war stories, so it wasn’t a complete waste. Would’ve been nice if more members of the public could have come though.

News From The Steam Factory

I had two weeks off work this month, which gave me the opportunity to do a number of things.

First up I sent Glunda The Veg Witch off to Uncanny magazine, to be considered for publication. This sadly didn’t pan out, as I received a rejection the other day. I kind of expected this (which is why I also paid for an edit for Glunda so I can self publish) but it still hurt. I got back the final round of edits today for Glunda, so we’re on track for me to bring that out later in the year. Now I just need to commission a cover image. The question is do I want to go full page with background included, or just the figure?

I was going to publish the short story ‘Inspector Lassiter in A Brush With Fete’ this month, for International Steampunk Day, but I decided to enter it for the Lindisfarne Prize instead. I was shortlisted for the inaugural Lindisfarne Prize in 2019, for my short ‘Miss Bloom’s Final Summation’ (terrible title, I know), and I figured it would be nice to win it this time round. Of course I won’t, the story I submitted being a genre piece (steampunk), but it’s not for me to decide such things, it’s for the jury. Never self reject my friends. If someone is going to say no to you make them say it to your face!

Finally, The Journeyman is out in the world. I used my time off to cobble together a submissions package to send to a number of agents. I’m really hoping one of them likes it, and that I can find a publisher for it. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever written. I just have to wait the several months it can take some agents to read and respond (if they respond at all). Publishing really is a waiting game. Even if I do find a home for The Journeyman, it could be years before it hits the shelves.

When I’m Not Writing

Part of getting together a submissions package is finding contemporary novels to compare it to, so people know how big a market there is for such work. To that end, this month I read Psalm For The Wild Built by Becky Chambers.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s well written, and the world building is very interesting. If you like low-stakes sci-fi with a philosophical bent you should give it a try. What I didn’t like was the £8:50 price tag for a 150 page e-book. That was a bit much for me. And with the sequel being the same price I’m not rushing out to add that to my collection. I needed to read it to be able to use it as a comp, but paying full print book prices for half an e-book really stuck in my craw. And it’s only half the story as well. Ends kind of abruptly. Story-wise and price-wise the two books should be one volume.

Saying all that however, if you want to see how to write a non-binary character well (something I had to do for The Journeyman), and if you can get your local library to get a copy in, A Psalm For The Wild Built is definitely worth a try.

And there you have it, quite a busy month for me. Shows what you can accomplish when you don’t have to go out and work for a living, lol. I hope you have all been enjoying the heat, and enjoying the year so far. Best of luck for the rest of 2023.

Take care, keep safe, and most importantly, take care of one another. We are the best hope for a brighter future, but we cannot do it alone.

Toodle-pip for now.

Keith