Going my own way

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A very Kaffe Fassett block for my Flock of Stars quilt.

Since my last post I've had a brainstorm amid the lull between storms where I live. Physically I reside on the North Coast of California, but lately I've felt adrift between Earth and some far off galaxy where my novel also takes place. Flitting back and forth between these realms has been fine, but I've also been hurled against how to present my stories, and now as the flat gray sky breaks into streak of blue, I'm grateful to be back on the indie publishing train. It's truly the only way for me.

Releasing my own books isn't flashy. It is self-satisfying. Independent publishing demands a lot of work, or not, depending on how much visibility an author wishes to obtain. Self-publishing is a term I'm not fond of because I don't do this by myself. Yet if pressed, that's what it is. I publish fiction on my own rather than shove novels in a drawer or leave them cloistered in a hard drive, languishing until the computer dies or I'm long gone.

What brought about this change of direction? My previously mentioned chat with a fellow writer is part, her words encouraging me to write for myself a necessary reminder of why I write at all. Then there's that brainstorm, hehehe.... Suffice to say the planned book in the series is what I'll tackle next, but it's not going to fall where I thought it would. I may start writing next week, we'll see how I'm feeling, but I did loosely sketch out some characters, full names and birth dates. Need to figure out occupations for some of them, perhaps I'll do that while hand-sewing later today.

The creative journey is full of introspection, but those queries, while essential, can't overwhelm the essence of why someone crafts this, that, or a few other beautiful works of art. Reading through The Hawk has also played a part in my soul-searching, the joy I've experienced while reading a story written without any notion other than telling it. That is what I do, tell stories. And I am the only person who can relate these highly personal tales. Thank goodness for indie publishing; no longer do vital voices remain silent.

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