What am I working on?
A better question is: What aren’t I working on!
The life of a freelance writer is cyclical to say the least. Sometimes we’re the ones chasing after the editors for work…and sometimes the editors are the ones chasing us for the work we’ve promised to deliver. If you had asked me what I was working on a few months back, I would have answered, “Perfecting my thumb twiddling technique.” But the new year has brought with it new prospects and, huzzah huzzah!, new projects.
Crazy 8 Press-wise, the big news is Pangaea, an anthology featuring all-new stories some of science fiction’s most inventive writers (and me), including Michael Burstein, Adam-Troy Castro, Russ Colchamiro, Peter David, Michael Jan Friedman, Robert Greenberger, Glenn Hauman, Kelly Meding, Aaron Rosenberg, Lawrence M. Schoen, Geoffrey Thorne, Dayton Ward, and Kevin Dilmore. After a successful Kickstater campaign (thank you, everybody!), it’s time to get down to writing out stories.
Following that, fellow co-creators Bob Greenberger and Aaron Rosenberg and I are about to embark on a series of solo novels set in the world of ReDeus, the Earth where the gods of all the pantheons of all the world have returned and are demanding worship. Bob’s working on the outline for his, the first of the books, and things are shaping up nicely. And, of course, I continue to try and make time to work on an original mystery novel that I’ve got started. But between now and then, I’m putting the finishing touches on a Crazy 8 collection of my short stories for (just one or two more short-shorts to complete) that will be out by this summer. And I’m preparing a book to print a bunch of my old unpublished comic book scripts
Elsewhere, I’m contributing to yet another prose anthology, this one featuring a major motion picture franchise. The proposal is making its way through publisher and movie studio, but look for an announcement soon. I’ve also got a couple of original Young Adult novels floating around with editors…but see my earlier “chasing after the editors” comment, above, for where those currently stand.
I’ve also started working with Joe Books on graphic novel adaptations of Disney movies, including (so far) 101 Dalmatians, Aladdin, and The Little Mermaid. Zippity-doo-dah!
In the comic book world, not only do I still pen the occasional short story for Archie Comics (while talking to them about possible new ongoing projects), but I’ve got my hands full with my duties as executive editor of and writer for the new Charlton Neo Press, a really small indie comics publishing concern with Roger McKenzie and Mort Todd. We’ve got a few books up and running, including The Charlton Arrow (#4 is in production!), Charlton Wild Frontier, and the first issue of my two-issue Paul Kupperberg’s Secret Romances, with several more titles in the works. In addition to a bunch of one-off anthology stories, I’m also writing several series: “Digger” Graves: Paranormal Investigator with artist Andrew Mitchell, Blank with artist Rick Burchett, and The Scarry Squad with Dev Madden. We also have the new subscription Pix-C Weekly Web Comics website, which features new episodes of new (and a few reprinted) comic strips, including my own N.E.O. with P.D. Angel Gabriele, and the upcoming Gorillas & Dinosaurs, with an artist to be determined.
Beyond the world of entertainment, I’ve been discussing a variety of jobs over the last few months with an array of clients in assorted fields (marketing, promotion, advertising). And, in the general philosophy of “it never rains but it pours,” several of these little buggers are threatening to become real as well.
So. What am I working on?
Everything. Just not fast enough.
Isn’t it great?