I’m attempting something ambitious:  Writing a blog while talking to people.  Let’s see if I can avoid dropping my laptop on my foot.  Its old enough for that to hurt.

I am actually starting my blog this month in a venue that is new to me: A book fair in St. Louis, Missouri (United States).  It is unusual because I don’t typically have as my ambiance discussions regarding a plethora of novels on a cornucopia of genres.  This proves to be an interesting case study in exposing introversion to forced extroversion.

It’s everything you’d expect it to be if you understand introversion.

I will admit that I am less introverted than in the past, so I am not as drained conversing with people.  I find that asking the right questions allows you to avoid talking about yourself (or talking for that matter).   Then, the person you speak to can share abundantly, and you can listen and focus on the one person, rather than all the people that now surround you.  In the coming months, rather than write so much about myself (I’m boring), I will be writing a brief blog about a few of the writers here.  I want to feature all of them, but that would take me years to compile.

Instead, I will try to feature an author profile each month, probably a different day, maybe once or twice a month.  It’s hard to focus on what to do when people are tripping over themselves to get your book (Seriously? No, not seriously… But it is hard to focus).

While I would like to write about something other than me, I do have a few things to share this month (no really.  I do actually want to share this time), that I finally got to say in person:

I’m not 14 anymore

I know, many people may have wondered if I was still 14, but no, I am not.  I’m glad I could clear this up with everyone.

This novel is actually only Part I

This would’ve been a fun thing to point out to my editor if they weren’t already working on the second book.  I should point out that I’ve already tweeted quotes from it, since some may wonder what comes next.  You can follow me on twitter (@RB_Thurman) if you want to see more, but some of those tweets will need context, just FYI.

The first book is only half

I was tempted to have my first novel be the entire manuscript but like Tolkien (actually, I think his publisher made the call on this), I considered splitting it up might be better.  It would be unrealistic to present to my readers the idea that I write 200k words books on an annual basis.  Yeah… No.

But I also think that most people may not readily consider a new novel of that size from just anyone.  Even more popular recent series are in the range of 80-120k, and some are typically favoring shorter just to get the story out sooner.  I will also add that it is inherently cheaper to edit a short novel than a long one, for obvious reasons.  That didn’t help me, since I wanted them edited together, for the sake of continuity.

I’m sure that point makes some wonder ‘where is the other book?’  That’s a valid question.  The problem is editing.  I mentioned in a past blog I didn’t always finish what I start.  What I mean is that I didn’t always get all of the words into the book that were supposed to be there.  My editors were awesome. However, they would point out that some things were missed.  I think they would ask ‘What?’ or ‘WHAT???’ and I would realize I left something out.

But it is also a troubling sign when you have 7 iterations of your novel, and you send your editor the wrong one.  That’s not their fault; it’s just an expensive mistake.  And it also requires a second edit.  In case you’re wondering, here is a recent picture of my money tree:

Not dead, but not doing so hot right now.  Maybe too soon for the word ‘hot.’

Since this is about me, I’m sharing this because since I’m working on the second book, I’m changing the ‘Me’ in the ‘Me of the Month.’  Instead of a teen who was obsessed with visual arts and graphic design and happened to write a book, it will be an adult trying to figure out which way is up.  I can’t say I could provide that guy much insight on the matter (I’m really not that far removed from that timeframe). I’ll be adjusting my viewpoint as a result.

For example, being an adult and reading a kids’ in-depth perceptions of the world… is enlightening.  In the sense that when I read this book after it was lost for so long, I realized I had changed.  I wasn’t him anymore.

That was actually more jarring than being old.  Had I really changed that much?  I didn’t think anything had changed in my perspectives until that point.  Well, not dramatically, anyway.

But that’s the point.  The changes weren’t dramatic (well, most of them weren’t.  A couple was.  We’ll get to that later) but they came over a lengthy period of time. So long that I didn’t realize all the adjustments that got me to this ‘adult’ guy.

Enough about ‘me.’ Let’s look at ME instead.  The guy promoting his book in human form:

In the coming months, I’ll also be posting a short blog about most of the authors I was able to meet (I couldn’t meet all of them because there were just so many.  I did try, though).  Look for them in the coming months.

Arrgh, enough about any of me!

I guess it’s worth considering what remains. Especially after sharing so much at this event.  Next week, we’ll focus on there.

Thanks for coming to visit in St. Louis!  If you haven’t already, please like and share! You can follow on Facebook, Tumblr, and read excerpts from The Silent Invader @RB_Thurman (and follow!), in addition to the chapters I add here. If you prefer, you can also read my posts on Goodreads.  Your comments are always welcome below.  Also, sign up now to receive notifications for when the next blog arrives.