My time with Fiction Express draws to a close. All five chapters are available for readers of the site.
It’s been a blast. One of the nicest things has been
interacting with readers in the forum, which isn’t an experience I’ve had with my
writing before (beyond receiving feedback to improve). Each week, I’ve posted topics
for them to respond to (an opportunity for them to practice their English skills),
which has involved them commenting on an element of that week’s chapter. For
example, in the final week, I asked them what they thought happened in a conversation
between two characters, which is alluded to in the last chapter but not shown. Many
of the responses were fun to read, especially the ones where the students wrote
out their own conversations, showing a great understanding of the characters! It’s
been encouraging to know that readers have enjoyed the reading experience and to
see how they have engaged with the story.
At some stage in the future, the novella may become
available to purchase through Amazon. I’ll post a link in this blog if that
does happen.
The big question for me now is what happens next. I’ve
finished a draft of the YA novel that I’m sending to my agent later this month.
When I receive her feedback, I will be moving into a stage of revision with
that story. In the meantime, I’m outlining a couple of other ideas for Fiction
Express. I would love to write for them again at some stage, although I know it
won’t happen soon – they already have writers booked in for the next two half
terms, meaning the earliest I could possibly write for them is in March. It’ll
be back to Critique Circle in the short term with those projects, to hopefully
get some feedback to make them attractive to the Fiction Express editors.
The reality of the tax year 2024-2025 is that I won’t earn
enough from writing to cover my living costs. I’m not likely to be booked in
for Fiction Express again, and the new novel, still in its rough first
draft, is only at the beginning of a journey towards the editors at the big
publishing houses – an advance is likely to be years away, if it happens at all.
As such, I’ve applied for a part-time (ten hour) teaching assistant role this
week. I’m hopeful that I can find a balance with a job like that which allows
me to keep pushing forward with my writing projects.
The good thing about the Blood of the Giants novella
is that it is my longest publication to date (at 12,500 words) so hopefully it
is a sign that I’m moving in the right direction for the publication of a
longer work. I’m grateful for the opportunity and for everything I’ve learned
from the process.
