The less we talk about the previous few years the better. We’ve all been through a lot. This storm will continue to reshape our world and I am not here to labour over that.
So what have I been doing?
WELL, after publishing Black as Night, I didn’t dive into publishing the next collection. I did something crazy, I took a break. AND YOU KNOW WHAT, I COULDN’T AVOID WRITING. Whatever godforsaken demon I have in my soul that makes me write never let up. So I finished writing a rough draft of a kaiju novella. I finished that novella, tried to write the follow-up and when that failed I went back and rewrote the novella as a novel. I also rewrote another novel about centaurs battling in the badlands and have been shopping it around. I am currently drafting novella, a Game of Thrones-style war between two rival Eastlander families in the backwoods of Ontario and Manitoba, bringing in themes of cyclical violence, indigenous sovereignty and some good old Viking duels.
Once I finish that draft I am diving head first into the next short story collection. Where Bloodied was bloody, Black as Night was dark, this one will be wild and barbaric. I will also be querying a few other pieces and projects.
What’s up with me? Well… I quit my job as a line cook at a chain restaurant with the offer of a position at an opening restaurant in February… but then the Omicron wave hit and everything is delayed. So I am once again enjoying a sabbatical time during this wave in the countryside at the family cabin.
I keep a writing habit of over 1k words a day, I am getting better at keeping physical activity as a part of my life and going on hikes through knee-deep snow. I even spent several hours writing in an ice shack with only a wood burning stove for warm. The silence was immaculate and the location drove my brain into world building overdrive.
I am going to continue to be a cook when it is safe to do so. I love being a cook, I really do. Being a cook is fun, I am lucky to be doing it. Even if I got that book deal, sold a bestseller etc… I would still want to do a couple shifts a week as a cook. I am addicted to the adrenaline of a good rush, the satisfaction of dishing out food efficiently, I love the humor, vulgarity and manic energy of kitchen staff. I LOVE being a cook. I just don’t always love where I get to cook.
In my 2021 reading list, I talked about how I came to rely on audiobooks and therefore struggled to read physical books again. Therefore, I am going to work at reading properly again. I am working through the pile of large fantasy, science and history books to work through. That may seem like difficult dense content, but for me I fly through a hundred pages in a day where thirty pages of a smaller book is agonizing.
I straight up just stopped posting on this website… so I am going to alleviate that failing.
I am drafting blogs weeks in advance, making it a priority. Even if no one ever reads this stuff, I know it is good for me. Bringing ideas into a format and throwing it to the void is a cathartic process.
In two weeks, I shall talk about some inspirations I find in survival games. So look out for that!
I hope everyone stays safe out there!
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Thank you!
ZFSigurdson 