Like Glass and Shattered To Be Published
Well, I haven’t written a whole lot on what’s going on with Like Glass in a while, and that’s mainly because I’m trying to learn from the mistake I made last year when I first thought I might have a publisher lined up. Namely, I started talking about the book getting published, then the deal fell through and I felt a bit like a jackass for getting so excited about it.
This time around, I’d promised myself I’d wait until everything was signed, sealed, and delivered before I made any kind of a fuss about it.
That said, I love setting myself up to look like an idiot, so I’m going to break that promise to myself 
Here’s what’s happening (keep in mind that this is still preliminary, though most of the details have been worked out as far as I’m aware):
1) Like Glass will be published by H and E Publishers in the U.K. with a release date set for November 25th, 2010. (In an earlier post, I’d said it was going to be 2011; they were able to fit it into next year though.) A U.S. release date is pending, but it will probably be about a year after the U.K. release.
2) Shattered will be published by H and E Publishers, though no details regarding the release have been set. Odds are (and this is just a guess — this hasn’t been discussed at all) it’ll probably be released in the U.K. a year after Like Glass, and in the U.S. a year after Like Glass is released in the U.S.
3) If I can ever get around to working on Broken Peaces, the third book in the series, H and E will probably handle that one too. Since this book hasn’t even been written yet, don’t expect any release details any time soon.
I don’t have any other details worth giving at the moment, but I will post what I can whenever there’s something worth posting.
Need to get back to having a lazy Saturday, so I’ll catch you on the flip side.
–Matt
NaNoWriMo — Getting Warmed Up!
Alright, we got one week left before NaNoWriMo — National Novel Writing Month — gets underway. I don’t know about you, but I’m getting stoked. This is going to be my second year participating, and my first time working on a novel while I’m working full time. I’ll admit I’m a little nervous about that too — every time I’ve tried to write without being able to focus entirely on the book, it’s fallen flat. I’m hoping that this year I’ll be able to use NaNoWriMo for motivation to keep me going.
I’m going to be working on Broken Peaces, with hopes I can finish the series up by Christmas — that’s the goal, at least, and we’ll see what happens. I’ve got some ideas to work out, and I wish I could bounce them off this thing, but since Shattered isn’t out yet, I’m going to keep my mouth shut for now.
Okay, it’s getting close to my bedtime and I need to get an email or two out, so I’m going to wrap this up. Catch you on the flip side.
–Matt
A Spark Arises
Well, the old fires are starting to spark up again. Maybe it’s because it’s nearing November, which as any writer who’s spent any reasonable time online can tell you, is NaNoWriMo. Maybe it’s just the changing of the weather — colder days seem to draw out the creative juices a little better for me for some reason. Or maybe it’s just because I’ve taken enough time away from it that I’m starting to miss it and get tired of coding all day again.
Regardless of the reason, the writer in me is starting to stir around again, and I’m once again fleshing out ideas for Broken Peaces. Of course, I’ve still got to get Shattered up to specs, but I think most of Shattered is pretty solid. It needs some clean up — there’s a lot of typos and a lot of stuff that could be worded better — but it’s … well … solid.
The main thing I’m having a bit of trouble with right now is how to come up with a story that can top the drama in Shattered. Like I said quite a bit last year, Shattered is a lot darker than Like Glass was. A lot darker. I was re-reading the last third or so of the novel today, wanting to bring myself back up to speed on that world so I can dig into Broken Peaces, and I was pleasantly surprised at it. It’d been a long time since I’d looked through any of it, let alone the tail end where things really go to hell, and while I’d remembered the genera idea of the plot (i.e. who does what to whom and for how much), I’d forgotten the overall gist of it. It’s kinda like the difference between just hearing a song’s melody and hearing the song with the full band behind it.
Anyways, I’ve got a couple of decent ideas for things that could … well … go wrong. And let’s face it: stories where things go right are pretty boring — something has to go wrong in order to get your interest. The girl has to dump the guy. The aliens have to invade. The super villain has to have his plot to destroy the world unless the world governments are going to pay … one million dollars (where the hell is the Dr. Evil pinky-to-cheek emoticon when you need it?). Otherwise, it’s a yawn fest.
And for what it’s worth, I already know how Broken Peaces is going to end. It’s just a matter of getting there — the journey’s the best part.
It’s going to be interesting to see how I’m going to pull it together though, now that I’m working full time at a job I actually enjoy. When I wrote Like Glass, I was working from home, so I could write while I had some down time. When I wrote Shattered last year, I was taking a leave of absence for personal reasons. Where I’m at now though, I couldn’t take the time off, nor do I even really want to — the job’s actually pretty good.
That probably also has a lot to do with how I’m looking at Broken Peaces and why I’m having such a hard time getting my brain fired up for it. I’m in a much better mind set than I was when I wrote Like Glass, and worlds better than when I wrote Shattered. Now I don’t quite have the same emotions to build from, so getting the juices flowing is going to be a lot different this time around than last time.
At least there’s one thing in my favor for this: I’d never planned on Broken Peaces being anywhere near as dark as Shattered. Probably not as dark as Like Glass either, but definitely much lighter than the last venture into Rob’s world. So that should make it a bit easier to get going. We’ll see though.
Well, I’ve got about three weeks to get things in order before NaNoWriMo starts, so hopefully that’ll be enough time to get the fires lit properly and get some good ideas flowing.
In the meantime though, it’s nigh on bedtime, and I’ve got a couple of projects due at work in the next couple of weeks, so I’d better start heading along. Catch you on the flip side.
–Matt
Another Day In Paradise
Okay, got up way too early this morning for a Monday, but it’s all good: one of the downsides of trying to work with someone in the UK is the ~7 hour time difference, but over the years I’ve become more of a morning person than I used to be. Coffee is my friend, and it’s a friend I cherish deeply.
Nothing really to report on the publishing deal yet, except for the fact I’ve discovered how different mailing addresses are in the US vs. those in the UK. The publisher wants a hard copy of Like Glass, and the other day I tried to start an order from Amazon to get an idea of how much it cost. Fifteen minutes later, I think I might have gotten it to accept their address, but I’m a little leary of sending it out. For roughly $50 total (w/ S&H), I’d really rather not take a chance on it coming back and having to send it again.
Also, I’m wanting to discuss the options we might have available for working on Shattered and Broken Peaces together — those are the other two books in the Like Glass series. We’ll see what happens with that. Not really getting my hopes up, but hey: stranger things have happened, right? At least Shattered is technically finished. It’s a mess at the moment, but mainly because I haven’t had any need to work on it (and I’ve had more pressing issues to deal with, like “real” life). If there were interest in it, I could probably have it polished up to a pleasant shine in a couple of months. Broken Peaces, now… that would take a little time. But hey, even if we signed the contract today, Like Glass wouldn’t come out for another couple of years, then Shattered would have to make it’s rounds, probably a year or so after Like Glass, and then we’d have to worry about where the final book in the trilogy is.
Aside from that though, things are trucking along. Work’s getting … interesting, to say the least, and quite hectic as project deadlines loom.
The missus and I are moving — did I mention that? Nothing major, just moving across town. Cheaper rent, and I’ll be a little closer to my old stomping grounds. Longer drive to and from work, but you can’t have everything, can you? Gonna get that taken care of this weekend — thankfully we’ve got some movers lined up, and that’ll make things a lot nicer.
Other than that, just another day in paradise. Need to start getting ready to get back into the grind, so I’ll catch you on the flip side.
–Matt
Broken Peaces Started
Well, so much for taking a break
Today I’m starting in on Broken Peaces (no, that’s not a typo), the third and final installment in the Like Glass series. This one should be a bit more light-hearted than Shattered or even Like Glass. That’s the plan at least.
No real details yet, just that Rob’s going to explore the world of music a little deeper in this go-round, now that things have levelled off a little bit from the hills and valleys in the previous two books.
I know already how this one’s going to end (and no, I’m not telling, because it may change between now and then), I just don’t know how we’re going to get there. Should be fun…
Anyways, that’s all I’m going to say for now. I’ll try and keep you posted as much as possible, but I also know that’s a good way (for me at least) to kill a WIP.
Catch you on the flip side.
–Matt
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