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 I have news: positive, negative, and neutral. Isn't that the way of things? First, the good news. I've just finished a nonfiction book I've been working on: After God: Making Sense of the World after Leaving the Faith. Ever since I abandoned the faith five years ago, my sister has been tormenting me to write about the experience, but I've resisted. I didn't think I had anything to say, and whenever I tried to write about it, it came out all wrong.
Less than a month ago, that changed. I realized that I'd been writing about my transition away from traditional Judeo-Christian beliefs for the past year on this website. I went through all the articles I've written about my spiritual evolution and copied those I thought pertinent. Then I amended them--putting in more research and perspectives, and clarifying things--until the book formed a coherent whole. Though less than 20,000 words (about an 80 pg book), I'm thrilled the result. Leaving one's faith is an incredibly painful and personal experience, and I'm hopeful that this book might ease the way for those looking for something to fill in the void.
More good news: the English teacher at my daughter's high school has resumed proofing Lakshmi Rising, and has already finished the first 8 chapters and returned them to me. His suggestions and comments have been incredibly helpful. Most of the time, it's simple grammar, but what I've most appreciated are those comments about where I need to elaborate (descriptions, mostly). Elaborations take time and I have to be careful to keep them consistent with the rest of the text, but I think the book is much better for them.
Now for the bad news. All but one of the publishers and agents to whom I submitted my fiction trilogy, Soul Eclipse, have declined interest in it. Two of them specifically stated they weren't interested in a trilogy (committing to 3 books on a relatively unknown writer is a huge risk). Keeping in mind that there aren't many fantasy publishers to begin with, being rejected by 2 out of 3 is as discouraging as being rejected 27 times out of 28 by a romance publisher. I submitted to about 10 agents, but without a contract in hand, most agents don't want new writers. They want a sure thing.
Lastly, the neutral news. I'm still being considered by a publishing company that favors my type of stuff. They are known for publishing both fiction and nonfiction that deals with Hinduism, Taoism, Buddism, etc. And since both my fiction and nonfiction incorporates that kind of mystical focus, they are actually my first choice as a publisher. The only reason this is neutral news is because I don't know if they'll want me.
Another piece of neutral news: Saraswati Rising is coming along nicely. I was temporarily sidetracked by the nonfiction book and revisions to Lakshmi Rising, but I've got a good sense of where this last book is going. Since Saraswati Rising is the culmination of the trilogy, I've been drawing all the players together for an explosive climax. It's quite thrilling, really. |
