My Novella Project

It’s hard to believe that we’re already knee deep into 2017! I’m still not completely certain where I put last year. I remember December being a flurry of book publishing, promoting, and learning. I spent January catching my breath, making plans for 2017, and February was Visioncon  with my muses. Which may make you wonder, what about that writing thing I’m supposed to be doing? What about Angst 5, “Something Something near Angst”?

Because Everyone Loves A Cliffhanger

Let me tell you, I’ve got every reason to hit the ground running with Angst 5. The launch of my fourth fantasy novel, Burning with Angst, was successful. So far I’ve received nothing but praise and well-deserved bitterness. I received an incredibly flattering review from Critical Blast, saying, “Pedersen is the one making Robert Asprin laugh out loud while at the same time telling George R.R. Martin to stop coddling his characters.” Wow! More praise than I deserve, but please check out the review.

On the other side, my mom saying that the ending makes me an evil person and a friend from cons messaging me, “I just want a few minutes with your creative process in a dark alley. It needs to be readjusted.” These kinds of “constructive criticism” tell me how much everyone loves a harmless, little cliffhanger – which is why I’m happy to share that I’m taking a brief hiatus from Angst.

My Novella Project

Before you send me hate mail, you’ll be glad to know that the break is almost done. Back in October, while waiting for my editor to start on Burning with Angst, I began working on a novella. My intent was to challenge myself in several ways. One goal was to write within a confined space. My books aren’t short (usually weighing in at about 130,000 words), and a novella is roughly between 18-40,000 words. I wanted to tell a 30,000 word story in ten chapters. 35,000 words later, the rough draft is complete. Close enough.

Another goal with the novella was to become more efficient at writing. I’ve got enough stories in my head to write two to three books a year. Unfortunately, it appears that between the holidays, family, friends, work, and videogames – I haven’t figured out how to compress time and write faster. I wrote this novella at the same pace I tend to write my Angst books. Realistic expectations have once again been reset, for the most part, but this goal wasn’t a win.

Next... Angst 5

Finally, I wanted to write something outside of my comfort zone. This novella has absolutely nothing to do with Angst or that universe. It’s still fantasy, but more for young adults. It’s also a little weird, and sort of quirky, and fun. The story needs some polish but I feel good enough about it to send off to my alpha readers this week. Fingers crossed.

As for the next Angst novel, “Something Beside Angst”, the beginning and ending are finished, it’s just that middle part I need to work on. I’ll be started on this along with a few other things…

Some Fun Along The Way

If you keep track of my appearances, you may have noticed that Cristi and I will be attending Manticon this year as guests. You may be scratching your head wondering why a fantasy author and his incredible muse are attending a military science fiction convention honoring David Weber’s work. Wait and see! I had a great meeting with some of the folks organizing Manticon. I can’t tell you much, but we are planning some fun, and I cannot wait! If you live within driving distance of Minneapolis, you should join us Memorial Day weekend!

We are also confirmed for Demicon, and for those of you who have asked, my muses and I will be at Planet Comicon at the end of April! You’ll find me at my booth when I’m not trying to talk Billie Piper into being one of my muses. (I already bought two photo ops, I figure that’s a good start!)