State of the projects, end of May edition

People seem amused by these, so here's another. Plus it helps keep me focused.

Here's what I'd like to get done by the end of May (or, since my Production Schedule starts on Mondays, by June 3):

Writing

• "Clap Your Hands" (dark mystery) due 5/31 to Fearful Symmetries
• untitled fantasy story for second Elemental Masters anthology due 7/1 – my proposal was accepted, so all that’s left is to write the story. I’d like to get it off my plate early; I know the editor would appreciate it!
• untitled SFF story for Penumbra – Revolution due 5/31 – if I have time—but I’m also waiting to hear if another story I’ve written will come free in time edit: The story came free, but I realized I'd be better off sending it to better-known, higher paying markets first. It would be nice if I had an idea for the anthology theme...!
• humorous SFF story for Unidentified Funny Objects 2 due 5/31 – they passed on the first story I sent but liked my writing, but at this point I have no ideas…
• direct-to-epub erotica – no due date; I’d just like to get more of these up
• two untitled erotica stories for anthology calls due 6/1 – I love the editors and would love to send them something, but these fall down the priority list for various reasons edit: Realized I could tweak an existing story for one of them, so that's tweaked and mailed!

Getting those written would mean I would have June for novels:

• Ghosted (urban fantasy as Dayle A. Dermatis) – This is a stalled, almost-finished project. It would be groovy to finish it in the first week of June. edit: in the process of printing it out.
• Possessed, Undressed, and in a Mess (spicy romance as Sophie Mouette) – This one’s more than half finished; Teresa and I started it eons ago, before our lives both went insane with other projects. Ideally, I’d love to get this done in June, but I'm waiting to hear about Teresa's schedule. edit: We've scheduled a phone confab after she gets back from vacation, with a rough draft due date of mid-July.

Design

• added: "Under a Double Rainbow" (Sophie Mouette) – Teresa and I decided to get another long-ish (8K) short story out before we published Cat Scratch Fever. Edited, ebook designed, need to upload. Next month I'll put this and "Catalyst" out as cute little PODs as well.
• Cat Scratch Fever (Sophie Mouette) – Proof copy of the POD is in hand. I need to input all changes into the POD and ebook, publish the ebook, and then publish the ebook
• What Beck’ning Ghost – finish interior design, write the back cover blurb/finish designing the back cover, upload ebook, upload files for proof

Copyediting

• freelance job, fantasy – finishing it up today
• freelance job, mystery – received, would like to finish by first week of June edit: In progress and on track!

Editing

• Possessed, Undressed, and in a Mess (see above) – I’ve got 4-5 more chapters to read through before Teresa and I can have a plotting/planning session.
• Blackwood House, gothic romance as Dayle Ivy – doing a final readthrough to add a small element throughout. It’s been copyedited, so after this, it’ll be ready for design.

Other

• Out of the Frying Pan – ping copyeditor re: schedule, contact the artist of the potential cover art
• A Little Night Music – ping cover designer with ideas and artwork; write letter for artwork permission
• A variety of fiddly website and online stuff

A project of my heart

I wear a lot of hats, professionally: writer, publisher, copyeditor, developmental editor, proofreader, designer. While the writing I do is pure joy (even when I'm tearing my hair out), it's not often I get to use my skills on a project that is as near and dear to my heart as this one.

Before my aunt passed away in 2005, she wrote a book about her son, my cousin Rick, who was in a terrible motorcycle accident when he was a teenager (I was only 4 at the time and wasn't aware of everything 'til later), and his amazing life as they dealt and triumphed over his traumatic brain injury. She was unable to find a publisher for the book before she died, and my cousin Pam, Rick's sister, took up the mantle.

I'm proud beyond belief to be able to say that my publishing company, Soul's Road Press, can now announce the publication of this book. I did the editing and design, and a dear colleague proofread the book for free, and she and a colleague of hers assisted me with some of the computer stuff. (I can't thank them enough, I really can't.)

This book…it's not something I would normally pick up and read, and so I feel truly fortunate that I was a part of the publishing process for it, because it's amazing. I didn't know about everything that happened, especially in the early years. (Plus, as a kid, I just accepted my cousin for who he was, and thus never really saw how hard it was for him. He was my cousin who taught me to shoot pool, who was a fantastic photographer. So what if he sometimes struggled to find the right words? We've got time.) It moved me to tears, and I think that wasn't just because I'm related to these phenomenal people.

Thus, this book is also one of my Recommended Reads.

Without further ado, may I present...

No Horns, No Trumpets:
A Memoir of Brain Injury and Recovery
Alice D. Clark & Richard W. Clark

Once a normal day is lost, will it ever return? A reckless driver runs a stop sign and plows into a motorcycle. On that beautiful October day, a young mother’s life shatters as doctors tell her that her 15-year-old son will never come out of the coma. But when he does, the doctors are at a loss. No treatment plans for traumatic brain injury exist in 1970. But Alice Clark refuses to take no for an answer – knowing her son is a fighter, she brings Rick home. As his greatest champion, she uses her head and heart to guide him from sitting in a wheelchair to downhill skiing, from being unable to speak to writing and editing a monthly newsletter. In No Horns, No Trumpets, Alice and Rick tell their story of setbacks and successes with humor, honesty, and pathos.

About the Authors

Alice Clark tackled the challenge of her son Rick’s brain injury in 1970 and became an early advocate for traumatic brain injury. Active in several TBI organizations in Florida and New York, she and Rick traveled across New York and gave speeches on behalf of Think First, a program aimed at educating teenagers about brain injuries. For nearly thirty years, Alice continued to learn about TBI from personal experience, trial and error, and from the many professionals she met before she began work on No Horns, No Trumpets. She enjoyed golf, horseback riding, scuba diving, and downhill skiing, and took classes in painting, photography, bartending, and flying. She became a stockbroker in her 50s. Her uncanny ability to always see light at the end of the darkest of tunnels was a gift she generously shared with others.

Traumatic brain injury survivor Rick Clark’s competitive drive and desire to succeed thrived even after his motorcycle accident. Under his mother’s guidance, he finally found his niche when he began writing stories about his experiences with brain injury, and writing became his career. As the founding and current editor of the North Country Regional Traumatic Brain Injury Center’s newsletter, Sudden Impact, Rick writes heartfelt stories focusing on the positive aspects of life with brain injury and always extolling the many virtues of positive thinking. He enjoys public speaking and one day hopes to compile an collection of his stories.

Available in print and in a variety of electronic formats:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Smashwords

Sophie Mouette on Facebook!

Sophie Mouette—the writing team of myself and my gorgeous and talented friend Teresa Noelle Roberts—has her own Facebook page now!

Please Like it if you want an easy way to keep up with Sophie news. We'll be posting news there about new releases, what we're working on, all that sort of groovy stuff.

Sophie Mouette: It's pronounced "Mmm...wet!"

Ever fantasize about your pool girl?

I'm terribly behind on posting thing—hell, I'm terribly behind on everything thanks to being knocked out of commission by illness for a week. (More on that later, you lucky dogs, you. Or maybe not.) So I'll try to space out all the posts and news and whatnot.

First up: Sale! I've signed the contract and the editor—the ever-scrummy Alison Tyler—has posted the news on her blog, so I'm happy to report that my story "California Dreamin'" will appear in Shhh! Don't Tell Anyone... Erotic Fantasies about Sexy Occupations from Cleis Press. (What a great theme for an anthology!)

I haven't seen a cover or heard what the publication date is yet, but I wanted to squee anyway. Because it's my blog and I can squee if I want to!

Introduction: The “Want” Ads
Construction Worker: Grimy by Sommer Marsden
Cowboy: Bonanzed by Kate Pearce
Professor: O for Effort by Delilah Night
Chauffeur: Driver’s Seat by Sophia Valenti
Meteorologist: Warm Front by Heidi Champa
Physician: Doctors Orders by Sasha White
Delivery Boy: Just A Little Tenderness by A.M. Hartnett
Pool Girl: California Dreamin’ by Andrea Dale <-- font="" hey="" me="" s="" that="">
Book Binder: Rule of Thumb by Laila Blake
Baker: Kneading Lessons by Tilly Hunter
Personal Trainer: Work It Out by Elisa Sharone
Stage Manager:  SM Or How I Met My Girlfriend by Giselle Renarde
IT guy: Talk Nerdy to Me by Crystal Jordan
Porn Star: Current Photo, Please by Devin Phillips
Mechanic: Body Work by Cora Zane
Museum Curator: Under Her Auspices by Jeremy Edwards
Treat Vendor: Ice Cream Boy and Sprinkle Girl by Kathryn O'Halloran
Barber: Close Shave by Alison Tyler

Also, I just noticed on editrix extraordinaire Rachel Kramer Bussel's blog that the anthology Fast Girls, which contains my story "Flash!", has been translated into German. German-speaking fans, keep an eye out for Leicht zu haben: Heiße Stories (which translates back as Easy to do: Hot Stories).

If you want to read "Flash!" you can order an electronic copy from any of these fine establishments:
Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords
(Kobo to come—and if you prefer a Kobo edition, let me know and I'll bump that project to the top of my list!)