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It’s been a strange five months.
On New Year’s Eve, I sat down and recorded some thoughts in the moment about the year that was…and the year ahead. In that recording, I said, “I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do in 2021 with Not About Lumberjacks, but I do want to do more with it.”
I mentioned submitting my novel, A Magic Life, and expressing a bit of concern about what would come next if nothing happened while querying agents. While there’s still a possibility of an agent catching up on their inbox expressing interest in the book, I’m now done with commercial submissions. For short fiction, I have this site—and with more novels covering the story started in A Magic Life, I will likely release that here as well, making Not About Lumberjacks the exclusive home to all my fiction.
I sounded rather ambitious on that New Year’s Eve recording—going as far as saying I hoped to release eight stories in the current year, season, whatever it is we call my November to November cycle, here. With only two episodes released so far, I don’t think that’s gonna happen.
There is a new story ready to record, and I like it quite a bit. It’s a story—not surprisingly—touching at least thematically where I am right now when it comes to work and writing. It’s a story about death, acceptance, and finding the things that mean something to you, despite the struggles of the drudgery of days. There’s a musical aspect to it that I need to figure out, but I’d love to have it ready by the end of the month.
After that, I am not without ideas. Now that I’m vaccinated, I resumed the annual writing retreat I do with a friend. In preparing for the long weekend earlier this month, I looked at a file of story ideas I keep. I have 73 ideas waiting.
Granted, some of them have a thematic overlap, while others may never see the page, but I am not going to run out of ideas any time soon. It’s more a matter of making time to record and putting episodes together. With Not About Lumberjacks now seeming to be my main focus, I hope to get regularly moving on sharing stories, here, again.
Most of this update are things I think most people who follow me and the show know about, but there’s something new knocking around my head. I’ve had a good handful of people suggest I start a Patreon account for Not About Lumberjacks over the years. I always rejected that idea because I never wanted money to be tied to the stories I write and share.
But on the writing retreat with my friend, and in talking with people in recent weeks, family, friends, and fans have made it clear they want to help out, financially. All said they don’t expect any pledge to be connected to story output—they just feel I should be paid for the time I put into the show.
Looking at it that way, it’s something I’m open to. I have wanted to share more behind-the-scenes glimpses at my process and things I’m up to. So videos, blogs, updates like this one and the New Years Eve chat, and whatever else comes to mind would be the reward for support.
The Patreon thing is still just a collection of thoughts right now, but I also know I’d want everything open to everyone making a pledge. Whether someone offered a dollar a month—or twenty—they’d all have access to everything.
If you’re like me, when supporting someone online, it’s a thing done because you appreciate their work and efforts. Exclusive perks are nice, but I know some people (myself included) only have so much in their budgets.
So that’s what’s been up with me. I’m interested in hearing what you think, so leave a comment or email me at NALStories (at) gmail (dot) com if you’d like. That’s NALStories—all one word—at gmail.com.
Until next time: by mighty, and keep your axes sharp…
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