June writing wrap-up.

June come. June go.

Lots of shuffling going on this month, mostly in preparation for projects which will begin ramping up in July. There also was one bit of insanity toward the end of the month, which continues at least for the next week or so. Read on!

In Tempest’s Wake – A “coda” of sorts for the Star Trek: Vanguard novel series, which recently was given its grand finale in the form of the kick-ass book Storming Heaven by series co-creator David Mack. I was approached by my editor back in early February about writing it, and though I admit I was reluctant at first to it take on, I was able to work with my editor to develop an idea I thought might work, told from the points of view of non-Vanguard characters. I received the copyedited manuscript from my editor on June 6th, and returned my corrections and other changes back on June 17th. I’m currently waiting to see first pass/galley pages, which I expect to receive later this week. Still no word on cover art or copy, so stay tuned!

Untitled Star Trek novel: I delivered an outline for this on June 4th, and after a bit of tweaking a revised version was submitted on June 10th. I’m currently waiting for licensor approval (and contracts). I can’t reveal much about it at this point, but I will say that if they let me do this then it will be one of my “pet projects” I’ve been hoping for years to be able to do. More on this when I’m allowed to share. As of now, the novel manuscript’s not due until January 7th, which you think would leave me with a nice, fat cushion of time to which I might devote this project, right? Yeah.

Share universe short story – I was approached on June 25th by one of the creators behind this series, which will remain unnamed until such time as I’m given the green light to talk about it. I suspect that green light will come if the story I agreed to write ends up being selected for the anthology. I insanely agreed to attempt writing a story for consideration, which is due by July 10th. More on this if I don’t screw the pooch.

“They Like Your Money!” – My latest monthly column for the Novel Spaces blog, which was posted on June 16th. This month, I offer a few thoughts on a writing scam that was sent my way, and how to be in the lookout for such schemes, which continue to evolve right along with publishing itself.

Other stuff in the pipeline:

“The Enterprise Job” – This actually was a topic of conversation back during the Starfest convention in April, between me and a friend who’s also runs a small-press publishing venture. He asked to see the manuscript, so I sent it to him a few weeks ago. If he decides it’s a good fit with the rest of the stuff he publishes, then we’ll be in like Flint. In addition to covering all of the popular e-Book venues, we also discussed print-on-demand in order to make available hardcopy editions. When I know more, so will you!

Essay for Bob Greenberger’s Star Trek: The Complete Unauthorized History – Friend Bob asked me to contribute a piece highlighting Star Trek fans who, due to one reason or another, have found a way to contribute professionally to some aspect of the franchise. How could I say no? The piece will be one of many sidebars Bob is including in the book, which is scheduled for publication in October 2012. I sent my contribution to him back in November, and the latest reports tell me that the book is currently in the editing/formatting phase, and publication remains on schedule. W00t!

Tie-in novel – For late 2013 or early 2014. I was approached about this project back at the end of May. At this point, I have very little to say about it, as I’ve not even really figured what the story will be. Things will be taking shape as we move through the summer, and I’ll likely be writing up an outline for the editor in the late summer or early fall, with a possible manuscript delivery of next summer. How’s that for frikkin’ vague?

Kid’s story book – The idea behind this is to create one of those illustrated books for very young kids (like, say…my 5 and 4-year old). I have an artist in mind, particularly since it was work he did for similar books which inspired me to do this in the first place. I have a completed manuscript, and at the moment we’re waiting on him to get some time in his schedule so we can talk about it. There also are a few other obstacles to navigate before I can approach the appropriate parties about possible publication. For now, this remains a “passion project.”

“And Then One Night…All Hell Broke Loose” – My contribution to a series of “special stories” set in the universe of HG World, the kick-ass zombie apocalypse audio drama series which is the brainchild of Jay Smith. Other installments are being written by authors Keith DeCandido, Terri Osborne and Elizabeth Donald. The script remains in pre-production limbo as the crew works on other episodes of the series, so stay tuned for exciting updates!

Also, I’ve continued to answer the call of friends Nick Minecci and Terry Lynn Shull, they off the weekly Sunday G&T Show, responding to queries submitted to them via their show’s “Ask Dayton” feature. What can I say? I’m a glutton for punishment.

Possible future projects:

Steampunk short story: I was invited to submit a story to be considered for a forthcoming steampunk anthology due out in the fall. I’ve never written anything in this genre, so the challenge intrigues me. I’ve got plenty of time, but the more I think about this the more intrigued I get, so this may well be the next thing I work on.

Vampire short story: I know, I know…I said I’d never do one of these. However, something caught my attention back in late April and I thought I might write something for an open submissions call. I opted out of doing that for various reasons, but the idea and notes I jotted down are still there, mocking me. If nothing else, I have a fallback plan for this year’s annual Halloween story.

Shared-world story – I was approached earlier in February about perhaps contributing something to an author-created “shared-world” series. At this point, our discussions have been very, very preliminary, as at the time I still was wrapping my head around the series concept and the possibilities it presents. I already have a notion for a story, but it naturally needs refinement to fit the series’ framework. I’m not even sure yet whether we’re talking novel-length, or something shorter. Now that contracted work has heated up again, this likely will be back-burnered for a while. Stay tuned for any updates on this front.

See ya, June. Hell-ooooooooooooooooo, July.

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