This is just a general “what’s up” post. If I understood Facebook, I’d probably post this there.

I mailed back the student portfolios yesterday, so, barring something showing up unexpectedly, I now have a few weeks to study up and prepare for the next portfolio, and to work on some stories and other writing.

The novel – The Rotated is complete and I have submitted that to the editor. I have another YA novel I wrote a while back but had put aside. So, with more confidence having completed the adult novel, I’ll be coming back to that – Octane (working title) – for rewrites and revisions.

I’ve had two story rejections and one poetry acceptance in the last few days. It has been nice to have had some stories published recently – quite a cluster really – and have the poetry contest placing, but rejections still feel huge and hard. I do seem to get more acceptances these days, but still the rejections feel a bit off-putting. Questions come up like “What’s wrong with my story?” when really it’s just that that particular editor is perhaps looking for something different, or the style didn’t quite gel (or maybe that there is something wrong, but hey). So, those stories will continue to circulate until they find the right editor or so much time passes that I will look over them and wonder what I was thinking to write such schlock.