That Expansive, In-Between Projects Feeling

So I just realized that I'm done writing Dreamhearth. (No, really. That "I'm still involved with this project" feeling doesn't wear off quickly.)

Done. And it's still June. Barely June, but still.

Why is this huge, Jaguar! Because I typically schedule my writing in seasons. This is distinct from my publishing schedule; they are on concurrent tracks, but they don't necessarily map to one another. My publishing goal is at least three books a year. My writing goal is a book every four months. Most years I tell myself "three books a year is enough," but I almost never stick with that... it's just a way to keep myself from overworking if I'm actually overworking. Most years I don't overwork. A thousand words a day will get you a book in four months, if you write Jaguar-length books, and a thousand words a day is tedium but not hard work.

So, this year. In spring of 2017, we got "Who is Willing."

In late spring of 2017, we got In Extremis.

And now in summer of 2017, we've got Dreamhearth.

We're at three now--published and written--and the year's only half done.

Now, it's typical for me to schedule what I'm working on for the entire year in January, so my 2017 project schedule puts PG Book 6 (In Ruins) in my winter project slot. I still intend to write it as my winter project, which would wrap up that series either late 2017 or Spring of 2018 (recalling that the publishing and writing schedules are not necessarily mapped to one another).

But that gives me an entire season (and a half!) to do ANYTHING ELSE. Something unscheduled! Something EXTRA!

This moment here, where I think "I could pick ANYTHING!!"... it's so GOOD. It's like walking into your favorite store with a budget big enough to pick anything you want but you don't know what yet.

I have so many projects I could run with.

• Coracle is six chapters in. I could finish that.
• The story of how Sediryl ended up in the Alliance is three chapters started. I could pick that up.
• I could do something no one wants to buy but I want to finish, like the sequel to A Rosary of Stones and Thorns.
• I could take a stab at the Faerie Farmer, also about three chapters in.
• I could polish off some languishing short stories, like the Jokka short that takes place after the events of A Bloom in the North, or the sequel to the Peltedverse short about Isidore Wyatt.
• I could finish up editing the Alysha novel that slots in between "Who is Willing" and Either Side of the Strand, which is finished but in need of lots of rewriting.
• I could get a head start on next year's schedule by writing Dreamhealers 4 (the last book to fill out that series, falling between Dreamhearth and "Family"). 
• I could do something ENTIRELY NEW that I haven't thought of yet. 

I could even do nothing! I won't though. I get bored too quickly. >.>

Anyway, while this "I could do anything" feeling can make me restless and anxious if it persists too long, right now it's fantastic and I wanted to share it with you. 💖

(And of course, if something excites you, tell me about it! Maybe I'll choose it. Lol. :) )