Fellow readers and enablers of my writing obsession,
Big news from the writing trenches, where I’ve been living like a hermit who occasionally emerges to eat and complain about word counts.
Riding a Pale Hobby Horse: First Draft Complete!
The first draft of Book 2 in The Adventures of Dirk & Felix is officially DONE! All 27 chapters, every ridiculous rhyme, every P.O.O.P.E.R. moment of peak absurdity, and every terrible decision Dirk makes (there are many).
I’ve now begun the read-through to polish the chapters like a like a goblin polishing his collection of dried mud until it sparkles like gemstones.
Star Maps: Mission Accomplished
After a busy weekend of playing space cartographer, I’ve completed the star map for the “Out of the Cold” universe! Every system is named and has a purpose, and I now know exactly where everything is in relation to everything else.
No more making things up on the fly. No more “uhh, that planet is... over there somewhere.” I have COORDINATES. I have TRAVEL TIMES. I have a spreadsheet that would make a starship navigator weep with joy. Well, not really, but I have some pretty images of the map.
Outer Rim Systems:
Frontier Inner Systems:
Frontier Middle Systems:
Now that I know where everything is in space, I can finally begin brainstorming the outline for the David Carter military sci-fi short story. Turns out knowing the location where your space battle happens is actually pretty important. Who knew?
The Status Report
Here’s where things stand:
Riding a Pale Hobby Horse: First draft complete! Second draft prep in progress
Out of the Cold star map: DONE (with travel distance and system roles)
David Carter short story: Ready to start outlining now that space exists properly
My sense of accomplishment: Surprisingly high, actually
Second novel for Dirk and Felix is getting closer to release, just after the New Year!
Connect With Me
Website:
https://perrinmiller.com/
Published Books:
Death, Taxes, & Other Certainties (Amazon)
Out of the Cold (Amazon)
Leave a Review:
Reviews help more than you’d think, and I read every single one while alternating between grinning and panicking.
What’s harder: finishing a first draft or admitting how bad your first draft actually is? Discuss.
P.S. My star map has 80+ star systems. EIGHTY. I may have gone overboard. But it’s done, and I refuse to feel bad about it.
