I am so, so excited to share what I've been working feverishly on over the past two months: Lupine Dreams.
Part 1 has been posted, which includes the first 4 chapters to start things off and set things up. The story is finished and I've broken up the 40 chapters into 15 parts of 2-4 chapters each depending on natural story breaks. I plan to post weekly.
As it says in the story description, Lupine Dreams is a romance novel geared toward readers who are interested in diving deep inside the psyches of insecure, modern characters trying to become the best versions of themselves.
I totally understand that won't be a lot of people's cup of tea! It doesn't matter if the rest of it is good, if the characters don't click, the story won't work for you -- that's just kinda the way this story is. So I fully expect this will really only click with like, three people here. But for those three, it'll really click! :P
One of the things I appreciate most about SOL, though, in my very short time here, is that it’s a place where everyone can find something that speaks to them without a filter. So you three people out there, this one's for you (;
On a personal note, I’ve never written anything nearly as long or with as many moving parts, and the final product far, far exceeds my wildest expectations. I never knew if I had what it takes to write a story like this, and now I do. Regardless of anything else, it’s been a really rewarding experience to write.
I say this in a blog here on SOL because although I want to share my hard work with the people in my life...I don't think it would be a good idea to share this particular hobby, unfortunately. You kind folks here who have been so welcoming, including those who didn’t dig my first story but had something constructive or encouraging to say anyway, are the only people I can tell that I actually accomplished what I set out to do.
So thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoy reading (:
Arcadia
Even as I was finishing The Missing Piece, I had a larger story that was really just bursting to get out of me -- and it finally has! But, I've never written something so long and unwieldy and with as many moving parts. So I'm really hoping to find a kind SOLer or two with an affinity for long, slow-burn romance stories who could give me some high-level feedback.
If you like to carefully examine character motivations, root for a misfit pairing, and to tear up with a smile, then I'd really, really appreciate your help! I'd really love to talk with someone with some experience in reading or writing romance in particular, because it's not really a genre I've spent a lot of time doing either of.
It's definitely "minimal sex," and is very character-driven in a grounded, modern setting. The writing style is similar to my first story, but the subject matter is different. Content tags would just be M/F I think. I know all of that's probably a pretty narrow niche...but basically my goal is to continue to write stories that appeal to fewer and fewer people until finally it's just me :P
The story is about 130k words and is completed. Doesn't need any editing, just looking for some general feedback and maybe some more specific questions if you keep reading about things like pacing, certain emotional beats, character development, etc. to see if everything is landing the way it's intended.
I figure I could send the first four chapters (about 19k words) if you're interested and then if it turns out not to be your cup of tea, no big deal, that's still helpful feedback too.
As currently structured, I think it will probably be released as a roughly 15-week weekly serial, but all of this is new to me, so I'm not certain about that yet. In any case, I'm extremely excited to finally get to share the characters I've been hanging out with every day since the end of February. I hope you'll have as good a time getting to know them as I have (:
If you'd be interested in giving me a hand, I'd be extremely grateful! Please shoot me a message if so and we can link up (:
Arcadia
The feedback on my first story, The Missing Piece, was extremely encouraging, and I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who read it and especially those who let me know what they thought! I was nervous that there might not be many other people who would be interested in the kinds of stories I have to tell, but it's very gratifying to find out that there are dozens of us! :P The reception, comments, and messages have been so positive, including ones that had critical things to say. I think that was the most encouraging part -- all the feedback has been overwhelmingly constructive, and it's really encouraged me to keep writing.
One of the other great things I've noticed is that even readers who liked the story seemed to have interpreted it in different ways. That's terrific! One of the hardest things about writing the story was trying to make sure that readers could experience it just as Daniel did, without looking deeper into what was going on (especially because I was too afraid to have someone read it beforehand to give me feedback!).
At the same time, I also wanted readers to be able to see that Daniel wasn't seeing the complete picture. It was challenging to find the right balance between leaving some subtle clues about what Charlie was going through without hammering readers over the head with it. My goal was to make it so that that's there if you want it, but it's not completely necessary to enjoy the story. Personally, I see it as Charlie's story told through Daniel's eyes. But Daniel might disagree!
Thanks again to everyone who read The Missing Piece, and I look forward to sharing more stories in the future. If you like an even slower burn, romance, and music, you might like what I'm working on next (;
Arcadia