The Song, At Last, Is Sung...

Yup- last night, or rather in the early hours of this morning, I finished the first draft of my new novel, The Song Of The Sibyl.

I started work on this nearly a year ago now. Bear in mind, I tend to write pretty fast, so that's a long time for me. Took nearly five months to get the first five chapters written as samples for an interested publisher. Normally if something is such tough going, I'll abandon it, assume that it's just not time to write this yet... but the novel wouldn't let me go.

In the end, I realised that one of the storylines I'd put in there was just pointless and unnecessary, so out it went. And the rest of the chapters were easily written.

So writing this mother started in earnest back in November, with a break over Christmas/January to write a couple of short stories, and finished last night, around about 4.00 am.

It's one big Bertha of a novel. 171,151 words in first draft. I'm knackered, but proud.

Of course, the work's barely started. I still have to do a megaton of rewrites and research, and find a publisher- the interested one decided it wasn't quite right for them- but right now, and for the next few days, me is just gonna chill out, bask (to the extent you can in the weather here oop North right now) and recharge a few batteries.

One of my New Year's Resolutions was to post on this blog more often- like, say, once a week- and to post about shit other than me and my writing. That one needs some catching up on, I know.

But until next time, be excellent to one another, dudes.

New Review Of Tide Of Souls!

That nice Mr Matt Fryer has posted a very complimentary- er, I mean perceptive- review of Tide Of Souls here on his blog. He also lists Pictures Of The Dark as one of his top ten genre reads of 2009. Which is very nice of him indeed. Go and have a shufti if you feel so inclined.