A Look Back (I Steal Things)

Inspired entirely by fellow WeAreOneFour'er Kat Ellis' great post My 2013 In Review, I thought I'd start off the new year on m'blog by looking back at where I've been. After all, "Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal," as T. S. Eliot probably wrote (He did, actually - see this helpful investigation into the quote's source).

What I Got Up To in 2013

January

At the end of 2012 I found out my short story The Storyteller's Jig would be published in an anthology of fairy tales. January, then, saw e-mails flying back and forth about edits, titles, author info, and more. It was exciting - and the first time one of my stories would be in a real, live book. Eren, meanwhile, was still on submission to publishers across the world.

February

More edits, more writing. I wrote a guest post on Kat's blog and she wrote a great one about New Adult fiction on mine

March

THE BIG ONE: News broke that Eren had sold to Constable & Robinson in a two-book deal. Can't even express how this made me feel. Everything got a little strange and mad and good.

April

A calmer month, but lots going on. Eren's sale meant edits were on their way - and there were still plenty of short stories I had in the works. Found out that October Rules would be published in a new anthology from Elephant Bookshelf Press.

May

Modern Grimmoire launched, and now I had a book I could show people that had my name in it. More happiness. More disbelief.

June

Neil Gaiman's new novel came out - and my wife and I went to see him in Brooklyn. Magical and wonderful - a reminder of what writers can aim for.

July

A quiet month! Well, almost. Summer's Edge was published - a great collection by some amazing writers and another one to add to the part of the bookshelf where Eren would one day sit.

August

Working on Eren took up more and more time - and I took a break from this very blog. Well, kind of. I also helped launch We Are One Four, a 2014 debut writers group that is just now coming into its own. Go, check them all out. They are good people.

September

Edits. Edits. I dream of edits. Edits are the only thing that exist. Edits for breakfast. Edits for everything.

October

With much pomp and exhaustion, I sent Eren back to the publisher, all smart and polished and nice-looking. To celebrate both that and the general awesomeness of stories, I held the 1031 Story Challenge here on the blog, asking writers to pen a new tale in 1031 words or less (10/31 being the U.S. date for Halloween). Some truly fantastic submissions. I was humbled.

Also took part in Chloe Banks' Zodiac Series. I wrote about Cancer the Crab. You can read it if you like - it's here.

November

My short story Billy McGuire's Faerie was published by Stone Crowns in their free YA magazine. The first time I'd seen original artwork based off one of my stories. MANY feelings.

Look, isn't it pretty?

December

Another great highlight - seeing Neil Gaiman again! His 'An Evening With...' series, with Amanda Palmer, was baffling and incredibly fun. A birthday gift from m'wife, who is amazing.

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Well, that was 2013. 2014 looks like it's going to be busier and more amazing than ever - and I can't wait. What have you been up to? Time for me to get back into blogging. Thanks for sticking around.