2022 is almost over. I thought it would be appropriate to inaugurate my new blog by looking back at 2022, and share what I’m excited about for 2023.
A lot happened to me in 2022. I wrote two books, got into querying agents and submitting to small presses for the first time, and outlined an ambitious project for 2023. I read 50+ books, and also published my website—the one you’re reading this article on.
• 2022 in writing •
The birth, death, and rebirth of Bright City, Shattered
In April 2021, as I was nervously waiting for feedback from my beta-readers on my first novel, I wrote a few thousand words about a city I dreamed of—Bright City. I wrote the story up until the moment Isaline, an enmagineer, is found dead and the investigation begins. Then, I stopped. I didn’t know where the story was going. I had never written a murder mystery. The plot had to be outlined if I wanted it to work. Eventually, I came up with an outline that excited me. But there was another problem: I didn’t feel capable of writing it. It was too ambitious, even for a novella. So I shelved this project.
In 2022, having an unfinished manuscript bothered me, especially since I had started working on my urban fantasy novel The Corporate Witch. So, halfway through my draft of The Corporate Witch, I decided to finish Bright City, Shattered. Several weeks and twenty thousand words later, I was done. And guess what? I shelved it immediately *again*! I was light years away from believing I could do anything with this story.
But something changed on September 9, 2022. Neon Hemlock Press tweeted about opening up to submissions on October 11-24 for its 2024 Novella Series. This was the kick in the butt I needed to revise and finish Bright City, Shattered for good. In mid-October, I submitted my revised novella to Neon Hemlock Press, and found a few other small presses opened to speculative novellas and sent them my manuscript.
I don’t know if anyone will pick up Bright City, Shattered. I don’t have hopes for it. It’s my first novella, my first sci-fi, my first murder mystery, my first a-lot-of-things. But I wrote it. I finished it. And I dared show it to other people and send it to editors. If there was only one thing for me to be proud of in 2022, this would be it.
• 2022 in querying •
One of my goals for 2022 was to query my manuscript The Crimson Pilgrim to literary agents and small presses—and it’s exactly what I started doing in June after preparing my querying packet. It was my first querying experience. I’ll do a post in 2023 to share my querying stats, my learnings, and my assessment of what worked and didn’t work with this manuscript. All I can say for now is that it’s been a hard-but-positive experience which brought me exactly what I was looking for: experience in querying, confidence to share my manuscripts with industry professional, and a thick skin.
• 2022 in networking •
For the first two years of my writing journey, I was mostly alone. I shared my first manuscript with book-lover friends who kindly agreed to beta-read it, but that was it. I’d never been part of a writing group, never studied creative writing (it’s not a thing in France, unfortunately), didn’t meet anyone else who was into writing original fiction. It was a lonely journey. At least, I was (and still am) fortunate to have extremely supportive family and friends.
In July 2022, I heard about Twitter pitch events and how they can help gain visibility and get agents interested in new manuscripts. I also heard about how big the writing community was. Six months later, I have hundreds of followers from the writing community, met amazing people both virtually and in person, and learned a lot about the publishing industry. This is the most supportive community I’ve ever seen and I’m glad I joined it. So, if you’re reading this lengthy blog post because we’re connected on Twitter, Instagram, or Hive, THANK YOU. You’re amazing.
Connecting with other writers also made me realize the importance of building a platform. That’s why I published my author website earlier this month, even if I have no story published yet.
• 2022 in reading •
I’ll write a longer post about my favorite reads of 2022, but I’m happy to share this year has been busy! I read 54 books, including:
- 37 novels
- 6 novellas
- 4 short stories
- 4 non-fictions
- 3 memoirs
Of these 54 books, 6 were in French, and the rest was in English (including one translation from Italian). That doesn’t include the comics and bande dessinées I read, because I don’t track them as well as novels on Goodreads, and I read most of them in magazines. I’ll still mention my favorites in my longer post.
• What’s coming in 2023 •
Plotting Of Blood and Bones
My latest project, Of Blood and Bones, will be a historical/gothic fantasy set in France that will blend f/f romance and a horrific magic system. This is, so far, my most ambitious project, and I want to tackle it as a plotter—or at the very least, a plantser. I approached all my previous project as a pantser with a vague idea of where the story was going. With Of Blood and Bones, I’ll spend more time plotting the story before drafting it. Of course, I’ll leave room for creativity while drafting, but I’ll make my outline as precise as possible, using templates and Excel sheets in a way I’ve never tried before.
Writing another story?
I’ve had an idea for a story for a while, and the more I think about it, the more I want to write it. I don’t have a lot to share about it yet, but it’s a queer revolutionary retelling of Perrault’s Donkeyskin in space. Does it sound like a crazy genre mashup? Yep, and that’s why I want to write it! (Also, I’m obsessed with Perrault’s tales since I studied them in high school.) How long will it be, and when will I write it? I don’t know. We’ll see. It’ll be fun.
And reading?
I bought too many books in 2022. More than what I can realistically read. I’ve already streamlined my wish list to limit it to book I really want to read. So in 2023, I will catch up with the 30-something books I already own, and will be more selective in the books I buy from now on—by reading free samples first, for example. I will also try to prioritize recently published books over classics.
Aren’t you a gamer, too?
Yup. Games I’m looking forward to in 2023 include:
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
• Diablo IV, whose amazing trailer inspired The Crimson Pilgrim
• Alan Wake 2
• The Wolf Among Us 2
That’s it. If you made it this far, thanks for reading. Have a wonderful holiday season!
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