Ask an author what he’s working on and he will either be specific about whatever is on his computer right then and there or tell about every iron in the fire, from contracted works to pipe dreams. But our minds are always “on”, always looking at something and asking, “What if…?” There will never be enough time to write everything that occurs to us nor is everyone momentary cogitation worthy of development.

There is also the matter of the other distractions in our lives that may make some projects easier to focus on than others. Rarely can creativity be turned on and off so we all have partially completed works that await the right moment.

And there come times when the opportunity seems to have passed you by and the project no longer makes sense so its time to reluctantly put it aside.

Thankfully, I have a few things cooking that are real enough to talk about. First up, Voyageur Books has decided to release a softcover edition of my Star Trek: The Complete Unauthorized History. I’m not sure when it will be out but I’ll be sure to let you know.

Coming in the fall is The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: Murder at Sorrow’s Crown, co-written with Steven Savile. This was certainly a creative stretch and I await my editor’s feedback in May to see if we were successful or not. I have to say, it was a challenge in a good way.

I also have completed one of Joe’s Books Cinestories, a graphic novel adaptation of the 2011 Winnie the Pooh movie. It was a good exercise in storytelling and I am scheduled to do at least one more for them.

On Thursday I received the happy news that a media tie-in anthology has been approved by the publisher. I have three story ideas in with the editors and we’ll see which one they select. It’s a new-to-me franchise and one that could be loads of fun.

Of course, I continue to review books and movies at ComicMix and recommend collected editions twice a month over at Westfield Comics. I have some upcoming articles for Back Issue! magazine and am completing a piece for the Doc Savage novel reprints.

But what about Crazy 8, you ask? Well, there’s my forthcoming contribution to Pangaea but after that, I will be writing my first solo ReDeus novel. I discussed this over at my own blog if you’re curious but I will be updating you here, too.

So, atop being a fulltime teacher, I manage to find time to get some writing done and trust me, it feels good.