The Pilot Butte Inn was haunted.

It's time to pick the next book to write.

I'm thinking of writing the third "Lander" book; Cobb and company;  called Ghostlander.   Basically, I'm thinking in terms of a haunted Pilot Butte Inn, in a world where that local icon was never torn down.  (Hey, it's my world, I can do what I want.)

I'm old enough to have actually been in the Pilot Butte Inn, though only as far as the lobby.  I remember it looming over the street.  So I think I can try to capture a sense of it.



I've had an astonishingly productive year -- really 16 months.  From September, 2011 until now, I've been writing just about every day, with short breaks.

However, I'm starting to worry that I'm getting diminishing returns.  The last two books have been problems.  It's not that they are bad books, it's that they will need extensive rewriting.  In both cases, I felt it was better to finish the books -- get the framework finished -- than not finish.

I'm fearful of the first book I don't finish -- that it will become a pattern.

I also think I've slipped on my work process, which was so effective for awhile.  I'm getting quota of 2000 words on most days, but I'm doing it a very time wasting way.  I sit around all day near the computer, taking constant breaks on the internet and TV and other time-fillers.  12 hours yesterday.

What was doing earlier was writing early in the day, and THEN thinking about the writing for the rest of the day.  That seemed much more productive and also allowed me to do other things.

Freedy Filkins, Death of an Immortal, Rule of Vampire, Led to the Slaughter, Wolflander, and Blood of Gold all came out pretty much the way I wanted them; most of the writing was complete in the first draft.  I'd like to recapture that if I can.

Of course, the first book, Faerylander, was a complete mess for most of the time I worked on it, though I think I've got a good book in my hands now.

Deviltree is what it is.  (I wrote it 30 years ago.)  Sometimes a Dragon (also written 30 years ago) was improved, but still needs a spark or two.

The Reluctant Wizard isn't bad, but needs to be fleshed out.  Spellrealm and Deeptower are going to need some major polishing.

Yeah, that's a lot of books.

Hopefully, Blood of Gold will be ready in the next month or so, completing the Vampire Evolution Trilogy.  

Then I hope to get Led to the Slaughter ready, sometime in late spring.