So, on the whole, speaking as a freelance scribbler of work for pay, and an unabashed perpetrator of well-researched and at least competently written historical fiction, 2011 has not turned out too badly at all.
I managed to bring out an all-in-one hardbound omnibus edition of the Trilogy, and a second edition of To Truckee’s Trail – my very first historical fiction, through the Tiny Publishing Bidness … and the two-part prequel (Daughter of Texas and Deep in the Heart) to the Trilogy as well. Now, thanks to Chicagoboyz, I am exploring the means of getting a German-language translation of the Trilogy out there in the coming year … and meanwhile I have a commission to co-write a non-fiction book about a certain aspect of the Old West. This project tracks very well with my interests. As well, this paid project banishes the wolf from the door; removing it at least to the very bottom of the driveway, if not the length of the block.
I had very promising days at two local Christmas markets: the Weinachtsmarkt in New Braunfels, and Christmas on the square in Goliad, and am waiting for a bump-up in sales on Amazon.com for both the print and the digital editions. I have also made the Complete Trilogy, Daughter of Texas and Deep in the Heart available for Amazon’s KDP Select for the next three months it’s a lending library for Kindle owners who also sign up for Amazon Prime membership.
In January, I hope to be able to republish the individual volumes of the Trilogy in paperback through the Tiny Publishing Bidness, which will allow them to be priced more competitively at about two dollars less. Towards late summer, I hope to be able to get cracking on the next book of my own; a Gold Rush picaresque adventure, involving a herd of cattle driven to California from Texas in the early 1850’s. I’ve always wanted to write that kind of a story; this will be young Fredi Steinmetz’s venture into the California gold mines – this is alluded to, several times in passing in the Trilogy. I can’t really say much more about what will happen, but there will be bandits, vigilantes, gold mines, an eccentric Fenian and a runaway girl dressed as a boy … and as always, cows. Lots of cows.
And finally – because it’s Christmas – what is cuter than a small dog dressed as Mrs. Santa?
(Crossposted at my book-blog)