Howdy! Today is Friday May 12, 2023.
Where am I at?
Well for one, my allergies are going bananas.
The weather has finally transformed into that time of year we’re always dreaming about here in New England. The bloom is taking form and changing the landscape by the hour. The yard demands attention. Bugs we’ve forgotten about are crawling and buzzing around. And I can’t stop sneezing.
Life is grand.
Today I received the printed proof of my book; the first copy of Spirit Foul is in my hands. And it’s so cool!
I’ve been busy. I dropped the restaurant serving job to take on 3 to 4 days a week bartending at the local country club. The members are all kind and happy to be golfing (and drinking) while the weather slowly complies.
Maybe some folks out there have noticed that I’ve stopped posting Friday morning Resistance chapters. Unfortunately, my story about Covidia has taken a backseat in recent weeks. I plan to work exclusively on Resistance in the coming weeks so that this doesn’t happen again. Spirit Foul has taken all my free attention for the past two months.
I’ve updated the Spirit Foul page religiously. Recent posts include an FAQ, some info about the beautiful artwork by Brenna Fisher, and the first chapter. That’s right! First Chapter is available for free, right now! Check it out! https://therealzsmith.com/2023/05/06/spirit-foul-chapter-1/
In between registering LLC & copyright, getting ISBNs, ordering stickers, printing quotes, formatting, and grammar hell, I also completed my final read through of my first novel. I feel a sense of completeness with the story. I’m truly happy and pleased with it, front to back. I think it should be shorter, (99k words, 340 pages) but I’m chalking it up as new writer fault. I’m feeling immense gratitude toward the process, my loved ones, friends that have helped round it into form, and the fact that I can do this in the first place. It is time for Spirit Foul to be released into the world, and I’m so excited for people to read it.
By far the most uncomfortable part of this process is trying to get people to read it. Last week I went to the home opener of Boston Glory, the local AUDL team. I passed out stickers and spoke to some folks. Soliciting is uncomfortable. For some reason, I felt unconfident and self conscious. I love the story and I stick by it. So, please help me spread the word. I will continue to post and pester and approach strangers with stickers of Huck Rat leaping for a disc, but all the help is so deeply appreciated.
I had never before thought about releasing art into the world. It’s not much different from releasing engineering work. You look it over, spend some time with it, think of all the places holes could be poked, then accept that perfection is a myth, and click the yeet button. From there, people are free to poke the holes and criticize. But what I learned years ago from releasing engineering drawings, calculations, studies, findings and suggestions, is that peace is found before the yeet button is yammed. You work hard, yeet, and trust that you did your homework.
Not much different than anything else in life.
Most of the validation comes from my own happiness with the product. However, I had just enough people read the book and provide feedback to give me some much needed external confirmation. I am so grateful to those people.
What’s next?
I’ve gotta sell some books! It wasn’t financially insignificant to get to launch, and I’m hoping I didn’t take too big of a bath. But I believe in this book, and you’ll see that as I transition to sales mode. This part I don’t love, uncomfortable, but it’s happening. I really believe this is a great story that Ultimate players will love. And I’m hoping people from outside the game hang around long enough to appreciate the many reasons I give to keep reading.
So, is that it? Back to engineering?
If I’ve learned anything, it’s that this is what I love. I think it’ll be easy to see a fantasy story about college Ultimate, of all things, and think, what the hell is this guy doing? But I’ve loved this process. Stressed about it a little much. I’ve found myself way too occupied with it. I work out of enjoyment and love of the creation, spent many late nights and early mornings in the trenches. I’ve undoubtedly annoyed Grace with my passion for it. And I’ve found a great balance with bartending.
Nope, I’ve gotta do it again!
I think I need to spend some time with Resistance and see this story through. I would like to hammer out the rest in the next two months. Maybe a little lofty, but I like my goals ambitious. I’m publishing my first novel 6.5 months after starting. But I’d love to see that number go down.
Then? There’s plenty of meat on the bones for Spirit Foul 2: World Championships (pending). I’m engrossed in storylines I’ve been mulling over for a while now. If Spirit Foul 1 is a massive flop, maybe I’ll reconsider. But for now, the plan is to slam out another Spirit Foul book. I’m not done with these characters yet.
In my ideal world, 2023 is a multi-book year. Spirit Foul, Resistance novella, a small project or two I’ve been excited about, and maybe even Spirit Foul 2. Can I get it done before New Years? I’m not counting me out. I’ve learned so much over the last year, and I’m just getting started.
Legs feed the wolf. Love you all.
<3 Zack