Mister NiceGuy: Blog

I have good news, and I have - well, it may sound like bad news, but I think it's also good news.

First, the good news. I have just reposted the first 15 chapters of It Started With Christmas, with a few minor typos fixed, and with a few minor details added here and there. No big changes, though.

Secondly, the good / bad news. The story It Started With Christmas will end with Chapter 16, which will be posted on Sunday. As I said, that might seem like bad news. But it isn't, really. Because while this story is ending, the narrative of Alex and Jessica and Katelyn still has a long way to go.

So why am I ending the story? Well, I've learned some things about my writing style as I've done this, and also about my readers (altogether reasonable) expectations around how long a story sits between updates. And so, rather than posting a chapter here and there as I go, I am going to end this one, and start a new story in this saga. It will be about the same length as ISWC, and I will start posting it once I have it mostly finished.

So you'll have to wait a while, but more will come. And once more starts coming, you'll be guaranteed that it will get to a stopping point before I stop posting.

This decision also allows me to skip a few weeks here and there, during which not much will happen, and pick up the narrative at the next significant development.

(And no, I won't be doing that with my other ongoing story, The Bitch. It will go on as it has been, for a while at least, with chapters updated as often as I can get them written.)

Thanks for reading, and for your notes of feedback and encouragement!

Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to send me a note welcoming me back. And no one is happier that I am back than I am!

I'm going to try to post regularly, and have two chapters ready to go now that will appear over the coming weeks.

And while I've tried to focus on the stories that are half-posted, some other ideas have popped into my head and needed writing down, so I have some other stuff written too, but not ready to share.

I've learned a great deal about myself over the two and a half years that I have been posting (or, more correctly, not posting) my writing on SOL. One of the things that I have learned is that, while I love the idea of serialization, and following in the footsteps of great writers like Dickens who published their work as they wrote it, a chapter or two at a time, it is hard to sustain that process in any regular way. So for new work, I'm going to wait until it is more or less done before I start to share it, like so many other wise writers on this site do. That means a longer wait for you before you see stuff, but ensures that once you start to read something, it will keep appearing regularly.

NG

First, sorry for the long silence. And thanks to those who've been checking in.

When last I was on the site, I was suffering from what turned out to be pneumonia. It was pretty rough for a while. Then my spouse had some health issues that required surgery. But we're both back on our feet now.

And I have been writing. Not much but some. Enough that I have two new chapters to post today, one for The Bitch and one for It Started With Christmas. Those are now in the queue for posting.

I'm not making promises yet, because I've done that before and failed. But I'm hoping to be more regular over the summer months and into the fall.

NG

Sorry, folks, but this week's update has been postponed by an outbreak of disease in my house. Seems like a cross between the flu and the bubonic plague. For the past few days I've had no energy and very little brainpower. I'll be back when I am alive again.

Good morning,

It's Wednesday, and I do have a new chapter (almost) ready to post.

In fact, I've been working on both It Started With Christmas and The Bitch, and have two new chapters almost ready to go.

Chapter 29 of The Bitch is in final proofreading, and will be posted later today. Unfortunately, Chapter 15 of It Started With Christmas has a few wrinkles still, and while I'd love to post it, it won't be ready today. So it will appear next Wednesday.

Thanks for reading!

NG