Mr. and Mr. Smith in Spaaaaace!

In a little over a month, the Remembrance War ends. What comes next?

Hi, everyone! With only 39 days until What Rough Beast hits store shelves, I thought I’d talk about what’s been going on in non-Remembrance War stuff.

I had planned to be dropping daily “facts” about the Zhen universe, but that hasn’t happened; the idea fizzled. See, I’ve been having trouble writing.

Depression isn’t constant; the levels—what I call “depression load”—changes over time. Sometimes it’s low, and I’m fairly normal. Other times, it’s higher, and I find it difficult to get things done.

I’ve been dealing for months with a higher Depression load than normal, and it’s been rough. I’ve been able to keep up with day job and parenting (mostly), but writing took a back seat for a time.

I just couldn’t come up with ideas, or when I did they felt stale, like I was just recycling stuff from old 70s shows or books I read years ago. So I just let myself relax and stop for a while.

This week, my author copies come. Most, if not all, traditional publishers send anywhere from 3 to 20 copies to the author whenever a book sells. I get 10 of each edition, so both hardcover and paperback (I don’t get ebooks, but then I don’t really need them).

Anyway, I saw them, and something in me just… broke. Not in a bad way—but the dam that had been holding me back from writing more just stopped working. I had ideas again!

Alas, the epic science fantasy I’ve been planning just isn’t ready yet. I have had other ideas, though, and one in particular has grabbed onto my mind. I took a sleeping pill one night, and apparently just before falling asleep I texted myself an idea.

I’m grateful to my half-asleep self, because I didn’t remember anything in the morning, and the text took me by surprise. But it was a really good idea! So I’m working on it. I’m calling it “Mr. and Mr. Smith in Spaaaace” because that’s (kind of) what it is, really (the name was first mentioned by my friend Devin Singer when I told her the concept). But I’ll think up a better specific title eventually. Right now I’m fleshing out the basic plotline and characters.

In 37 days, Tajen, Liam, and Katherine end their chapter of my career (for now, anyway). I look forward to hearing from readers when the book drops!