Status Update: 7/10

Good news! I've got two new contracts at two different publishers! Huzzah! "Hurricane and Panther" will be published at Sapphire Blue Publishing! (YAAAAY!) And a new flash I wrote called, "Mermaid Lips" will be published at Pill Hill Press. Both are erotic stories. I'm so excited to work with Sapphire Blue! As soon as the cover art comes back, I'll post more on that.

As some of you already know, Lame Goat Press is kaput, but my "Odd Orval" story will be published at another publishing press. The details are still being ironed out, but we'll see what happens. When I get my contract (if I get my contract) I'll let you know what's up and I'll post an excerpt. The whole process has been an absolute NIGHTMARE with this story...but that's how it goes with some small press publishers. *sigh* No use getting upset about it. It's not like it was a paid gig anyways.

I'm working on my novel (a new one--the other has been trunked!) and a "short" story at the moment.

My short story is an interracial (AW/WM) heterosexual erotic romance/comedy. You remember, the one inspired by my trip to the cirque du soleil? I tried to make it about sex but the characters kept nagging me they wanted to fall in love...so yes, ME, the romance genre HATER is currently writing a ROMANCE! *shudder* I HATE myself for doing this...but the fricking couple won't cooperate and just have sex!

What started out as a whang-bang-boom kinda story has now morphed into this monster of a project. It was SUPPOSED to be 7-9K. I wasn't SUPPOSED to get attached to my characters.

Uh uh. Nope. My characters wouldn't have it. They conspired against me, see? Look at their faces. They look smug, don't they?

They mucked it up with cheesy dialogue and "falling in love" scenes so now I'm guessing my "short story" will turn into a "novelette." I'm already over 9K words. Maybe 12-15K words when it is finished? That is, if they COOPERATE like good little characters! 12-15K is a tricky length to sell. Too long for a short story, too short for a novella. I could be digging myself into a hole. I will scream if I have to stretch it out to 20K.

It'll be a HEA erotic story after all. Which pisses me off because I said I would NEVER do it. My only saving grace is that my characters are weird. The plot is quirky. I wanna say it's like the movie "Amelie" in its "bizarreness." And I'm hoping it's funny (in a sick and twisted way it sort of is). I have no idea if this story will be published as it is my FIRST romance attempt. If I'm going to write a romance it better be a pretty fucking WEIRD romance. That way I can keep my tomboy goth card without feeling like a total sell-out. Hahaha!

Oy. Off to finish up my story. Wish me luck. I'm gonna need it.