2022 - Year in Review

 

A challenging year, but I'm proud of the work I managed to create. On the publishing front I saw my work appear in fifteen published anthologies. That's one more than last year, which is actually more impressive than it sounds because for the last seven months of this year I also took a day job (because, as fun as it's been to write full time, it's not generating a liveable income just yet – I need to get some full books out there). Casual day work (mostly at night), but that's still anywhere between twelve and fifty hours a week not in front of a computer. Instead standing on my feet, destroying my arches, and making it hard to sit at a computer to write, needing days to recover from the pain. So, with limited time, I still got done what I did, and I'm proud of that.

I'm still pumping out short stories because it helps flesh out my worlds. With each new short, I discover something new about that world. It's a journey of discovery. With each new story, I'm also brought a little closer to having sufficient material to put out my own anthologies eventually. I have five anthologies for my fantasy world building up lists of published stories (six, if you include a flash fiction one). The first is probably ready to go, aside from waiting for the contractual exclusivity to expire. There's also a sci-fi one, but I think I've got a few more stories to tell there before that one's ready. Then there'll be a second era, and so on. There will eventually be straight horror anthology at some point, that's slowly filling its list. There's a steampunk one… one day. There are only three stories written so far in that world, only two of which are published. Also, there are two fairy tale stories that will populate an anthology of its own down the line. Of course, being the creative lunatic I am, I have completed the cover art for all these anthologies, and it burns my soul to not be sharing those images at this point. But it's far too comically soon for those cover reveals.

I have also been working on novels which I need to find a home for once I'm satisfied with them. (Again, I have totally done the covers because I don't do things in the right order)

Focusing on what did come out this year, I have released stories through; Dragon Soul Press, Cloaked Press, Zasra Press, Fiction Atlas Press, Black Hare Press, Iron Faerie Publishing, SFWG, and Crimson Pinnacle Press. I also have stories that have been accepted for publication that will come out next year. So, a huge thankyou to everyone who read my stories and decided they wanted them in their books.

So, thanks for the support over 2021.

-Barend3