Thought I should take a moment and fill you in on the latest with me. It’s been a while since I’ve done that and, in case anyone wants to know, here it is.

I finally signed the contract for my first book deal Monday after three months of negotiations and delays. “The Worker Prince” will be released in August from Diminished Media out of Hudson, Michigan. YAY!

Meanwhile, I am on chapter 4 of the first sequel in the series. Things are going well, about a scene day, with a few breaks to do other stories and such. This week, I am a sponsored attendee at Rainforest Writer’s Village on Lake Quinault, Washington. I hope to get more than my usual writing done. Lots of cool people here, including Kat Richardson, Mary Robinette Kowal, Jennifer Brozek and several Twitter friends. Good to be with them.

I also sold my first story to an anthology this week. It’s “Cats & Dragons” from Dreamzion Publishing and comes out in April. Yep. It’s a fast edit by my friend Dana Bell. So I’ll soon have an anthology to see you with my story “Amélie’s Guardian” about a dragon’s friendship with a little girl. It’s told in fairy tale style and, I’m told, a moving story.

I just submitted a story with a newly developed comedic character to the “Wicked Weeds” anthology edited by Jaleta Clegg. It’s for Cyberwizard Productions, on the companies which was interested in my book. This story is about a demolitions expert named Duncan Derring with a ship name Trini, after the words for TNT. It’s told in a noir style and was a lot of fun to write. I’d like to do a whole series. In the story, Duncan has to save a passenger liner from doom amidst space tumbleweeds.

I have stories currently out to The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Port Iris Zine, Daily Science Fiction and Tales Of The Talisman, which makes five submissions total.

I am hoping to finish two short stories here: one a revision, the other half complete, so that I can send them out as well. Hoping for my first semi-pro and pro sales very soon.

Beyond that, the “Space Battles” anthology is a go but held up negotiating a contract with the publisher. So once that’s completed, I’ll move things along with the invitations to writers. Also, I am trying to sell my “World Encounters” anthology which has commitments from some name writers.

Lastly, waiting to hear this month if I got accepted to UTEP’s MFA in Creative Writing.

That’s pretty much the latest on my writing. For what it’s worth…

Hello, blogosphere.  I know I’ve been neglecting you, at least as a contributor.  I have been visiting other blogs and reading.  But that’s not the point, right?  This is supposed to be my blog, so I’m supposed to regularly post here.  Apologies.  Tomorrow will be a new chat log from our chat with Mike Resnick but today, here I am.

I’ve been doing a lot of different things lately.

First, I am still tweaking my novel manuscript as I wait for the publisher to read it over and approve the contract, so he can send it to me.  I have another small press insterested but I’m debating whether to go back to them because they are less on the same page with me than this one is and that’s important.

Second, I am still trying to get the editing I’ve taken on rolling at a good pace.  I work some each day but the nonfiction job is complicated and history, so accuracy in facts is really causing me to spend a lot of time working slowly to be sure I don’t edit out the wrong things.  But that just delays me getting to other projects.

Third, I am working on outlining novel 2 in the space opera series of which Book 1 is about to sell.  The first was a coming of age/adventure story, but the second is shaping up more into a chase thriller/murder mystery.  So I am working hard to outline it in a way which can help me capture the right pace and page turning effect needed.

Fourth, I am revising some short stories with the hopes that I might finally place on with a paying market.  Three are priority, the first being my prequel to the above mentioned space opera novel series.  What better way to promote the book than get the world and characters out there, right?

It frustrates me how much my crazy, out of control world is effecting my writing.  I used to be so much better disciplined.  I wrote through a major health crisis with my wife a year ago.  But right now, I am just really fighting depression and such loneliness, and so it’s been difficult to keep myself on the same keel as I have previously known through hard times.  It’s weird to “not have time to write” when you are unemployed and spend a lot of time sitting around the house all day.  But somehow I manage to do that.  I do get some reading done, some outling and editing, but not as much as I should be and am capable of.  I can only hope this will change.

In any case, still here, still pushing on, and I hope to have more exciting and useful blog entries soon.  In the meantime, if you’re looking for an inexpensive book for Christmas, my “North Star Serial” is a great buy and appropriate for all ages.  Find it at www.bryanthomasschmidt.net and click the Pay Pal link.

Blessings, For what it’s worth…

I haven’t written more than 1000 words in a month. Shocking considering how productive I had been before that. But between editing a friend’s novel, critiquing for my group which I was way behind on and still am, moving, job interviews and other responsibilities, I just have not been able to focus enough to sit down. I also started this month as a reviewer for Tangent Online, so busyness is my life.

My goal though is to get Sandman‘s first draft finished by mid-September or at least in time for World Fantasy at the end of October. I’ll start on it tomorrow, though I’ve been away long enough, it will probably take some reading time to get back into. In the meantime, I have had time to think about some things I haven’t resolved and did come up with a good reveal for the ending which will help push it into the sequel and explain unanswered questions from throughout.

I also have my SF novel The Worker Prince being read by three small presses. Hopefully one of them will pick it up. It should be the first of a series. I have at least three in mind and the second is already partially outlined.

I also have ideas for a novella or two and some short stories. I did revise and get my WOTF losing entry back on the market, and a friend who just went through Clarion is looking at it as well. But I have others awaiting revisions as well, and I need to get back on these and revise them and get them sent back out.

In the meantime, I am putting together an anthology with some pretty cool people and hope to find a publisher for it. More on that later.

I am hoping the editing, proofing and critiquing, especially of the short stories, will help me learn my craft better. It will also help me make use of magazines I have subscribed to for a year now and never been good about reading cover to cover. I need to change that and this motivates me to push forward. My first assignment for Tangent was Asimov’s August issue and I am now working on Analog’s November issue while awaiting the Mike Resnick collection Blasphemy.

I am enjoying it so far and have discovered some amazing stories. More on this later as well, but you can find my Asimov’s review at www.tangentonline.com.

For what it’s worth.