Let's Write This Thing! vol. 1

Serendipity

A Magical Country, and

My Publishing Journey

SERENDIPITY (or, the genesis of my fourth novel)

A couple of years ago I ran into an acquaintance, someone I hadn’t seen in years. She looked hollowed out. I might have moved on, but she needed to talk. Her husband had disappeared, she told me, and taken their son with him. She had no idea where they were. So much time had passed, she was on the verge of giving up hope.

A few weeks later, it felt like fate when I ran into her again. This time, she was walking on air. She had spotted her son in a public place, and what followed was riveting.

I couldn't stop thinking about it. Eventually I asked, and she agreed to let me use her experience as the basis for a fictionalized story. Ten hours of interviews later, I began to write.

That story—one that hijacked my writing plans and refused to let go—is now in its third draft. More on that in a moment.

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A MAGICAL COUNTRY

St. Andrew's Cathedral and St. Andrew's Castle

Full confession: I returned from twelve days in Scotland with a small problem: I immediately wanted to go back. (I may be addicted to visiting castles and cathedrals.) While I'm pulled to get this first newsletter off to you, I also can't stop thinking about that trip. I went expecting beautiful landscapes and got something harder to name—a country that feels simultaneously ancient and alive.

Driving through ethereal highland valleys, mist rising like it had been there since before anyone thought to name them. Black-faced lambs skittering sideways, legs still figuring themselves out. Stone-faced Highland calves (aka "hairy coos") beyond bored with the man and his zoom lens.

And there was the stranger who spent twenty minutes trying to get the parking meter to accept our foreign credit card, gave up, dug six pounds in coins from his pocket, and waved off the ten pound note we offered in return.

I plan to put together a full letter about the trip, including the jolly taxi driver who told us a gruesome history of two pubs on the Royal Mile as if he’d lived it himself. For now, let me catch you up on where I am as a writer of fiction.

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MY PUBLISHING JOURNEY

My publishing journey began in 2014 when I started writing full-time. I've self-published three novels and hope to find a traditional publisher for my fourth.

1. Writing the first draft of the first book, Ambiguous, took about ten months, and I thought it was in pretty good shape. But feedback from a literary agent who read the first five pages opened my eyes: basically, I had no idea what I was doing. Fortunately, vast resources, many free, are available to improve writing skills. I dove in, found it fascinating, and became a dedicated consumer of craft books, webinars, workshops, and writing groups. (I’ve probably reread page 131 of Robin Black’s Crash Course a dozen times.) Three years later, I was satisfied with Ambiguous and sent it out into the world.

2. With my second novel, The unNatural Aging Process, I challenged myself by writing from multiple points of view, all in first person. Voices I could hear landed on the page, characters rooted in the southcentral Kentucky of my childhood, circa 1970. It was released at the height of the Covid pandemic, which I tell myself is why it found so few readers.

3. The third book, The Twelve Sisters, was coauthored with David Dorris. It was well received; readers wanted to know what happens next, and we quickly began work on a sequel. I learned something in the process: sequels are tough. Without going into details, let me say I understand why they so often fail to meet expectations. After four months of work, that project is on hold. David and I still trade ideas occasionally, and I haven't given up on it.

Next, I began work on a sequel for The unNatural Aging Process (working title: Jack and Cokie), got through the first draft, and hit a wall. I set it aside, expecting to come back in a few weeks with a better perspective—and that's when I ran into my acquaintance. The new project, a novel inspired by actual events, took over. That work now stands at ninety thousand words and is ready for editorial feedback. Then I'll begin looking for a literary agent—which means I'll need to show that real readers are following my work. This newsletter is part of that.

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If something I’ve written moves you to leave a comment, even a word or two, it genuinely helps. More than that, I'd love to hear from you.

Thank you for being here at the beginning of this!

Don