Tag: Kindle Vella

Dear Kindle Vella: It’s not you, it’s me.

I fell in love with writing serially until I didn’t. For me, the lack of regular feedback made it difficult to feel motivated to post. But that’s my fault.

One of the first decisions I made this year (aside from my “Late Start” post) was to remove myself from Kindle Vella and admit that it’s not the right platform for me. I enjoy writing serial fiction. I loved discovery writing with it and coming up with interesting cliffhangers in each episode. The problem is that to make the platform viable, I need to be a much more consistent writer. And more prolific.

Perhaps I need to be a better writer, as well, with a better idea.

When I first started, I was surprised by the bonuses Amazon handed out, and for a couple of months, it felt like I was really earning some money with my writing. But I still didn’t keep up with the pace and found that with each episode that went without comments or feedback, without a sense of people actually reading my story, the little bit of bonus money wasn’t enough to keep me writing. I may have dreams of supporting myself with my writing, but money has never been the motivator for me. 

I’m like an old Chevy in the winter, hard to start, but put me at the top of a hill and I’ll keep going.

So, my specific goals for January are: Getting the first Season of Wound revised and extended a bit to be published as the first novella in the series. Finishing up Art History and getting that ready to be published as well, because the sequel, Lacrossed Lovers is just itching to be written. Both of those titles will be released on Kindle Unlimited (at least at first). I’d like to finish up a couple of short stories and post here, and I need to hop into my new weekly flash fiction as well (I’m adding another tier just for that. Stay tuned!)

I have no idea what I’m going to do with Just a Blue Moon Phase. I like some of the characters, but first-person present is not something I enjoy writing.

In other words, I’m trying to align my practical goals with my year-long theme of “FINISHING!” I’m even writing this blog post nearly a week early! Go me!

How do you take your big ideas and break them down into workable goals? I could use all the suggestions!

*swish* (⊃｡•́‿•̀｡)⊃━⭑･ﾟﾟ･\*:༅｡.｡༅:\*ﾟ:\*:✼✿

Wound Season 2 Finished – phew

I originally started writing Wound back in 2021 to try out the new Kindle Vella platform. I’d been posting some other stories (The Shape of Us and others) with other venues and enjoyed the process of writing an episodic story. While I’ve had some qualms about the Vella platform (no one knows about it, the top stories rarely change) the biggest issue has been my inconsistency with publishing. I’m the Togashi Yoshihiro of Vella authors. Though, without two beloved franchises and a large fan base. I’ve just got the intermittency down pat.

But this week I wrote the last three episodes of Season 2 (ep. 48-50), and the last episode will be live on November 10th – this Friday. Boy, am I happy.

The trouble was episode 47. There was a lot I already had written about Paul’s experience in the Town Hall, and some of the most important dialogue I’d already worked out, but I couldn’t’ see how I could move into nor out of that episode. It was as dark to me as it was to Paul, though he can see in the dark now, so whatever Paul, you jerk!

Then I realized that I could use that to my advantage and, as Dean Wesley Smith says, just “write into the dark.” It didn’t matter what I wanted to happen, or how the next scene would start. I just needed to write the next sentence and let the characters figure it out.

It worked–because of course it worked. It’s even worked for me before and it works every time I re-remember that this is what writing is about. Not plotting or scaffolding or snowflaking, at least not for me. Writing has to be fun and scary and unknown.

I dove in and let Paul tell me what to write. I fought with him a bit here and there, mostly to get him angry, but then we went somewhere I didn’t expect, someplace not on my story GPS. It scared me. And because it scared me, it scared Paul. Good!*

So, if you’d like to read Wound, all 50 episodes so far, I’d love to hear your comments. Season 3 is bubbling up in my head right now, but I’m not going to let it stew too long. I’m gonna jump right in and drown.

*Don’t worry about Paul. He’s an ass, but I love him and will celebrate and torture him as much as possible.