Over the past month, I have been working on upgrading the technical infrastructure that powers my website and several other websites that I manage. While on the surface, this may seem like a distraction from my work on the book, it is an important step toward getting back to my writing.
While the spring coaching season is often very busy, I’ve also had some distractions to contend with that have made it harder to write. Since I don’t have a lot of news on the writing front, I thought I’d share some links to some of my work and a video that was sent to me.
Throughout most of January, I participated in the Under the Volcano writing residency in Tepoztlán, Mexico, which was an unforgettable experience that I will reflect on for some time. The remarkable people I met there inspired me to continue developing my craft.
This past month has been a good one. I was able to get some writing done and have finished seven chapters of my magical realism rewrite. I also started working on one of the new historical fiction scenes, and have been preparing for my writer’s retreat in Mexico.
This month’s update will be shorter, as most of November was occupied by my fall coaching job. Despite the hectic end of the season, I was able to get some writing done and prepare for my trip to Tepotzlán, Mexico.
I have some big news to share this month: I have been accepted to the Under The Volcano writing retreat taking place in Tepoztlán, Mexico, in January of next year. I’ve also completed four chapters of my magical realism rewrite.
It’s September, which means school and my coaching job have started back up again. Besides applying to the 2025 Under The Volcano writing retreat, I also started working with a productivity coach to help me as I rewrite the first half of my manuscript.
I didn’t get much writing done during the summer because my wife and I were traveling again! However, the print version of my article arrived, and I applied for a couple of writing workshops.
Once again, my spring coaching job took up much of my time, so I didn’t have the bandwidth to send out a newsletter update for May. Instead, I’m doing a combined May/June update. However, before I get into what I have been up to over the past two months, I want to share an exciting announcement.
This month’s update is shorter because the ultimate frisbee season is in full swing. However, I want to share a new direction I’m working on for my book and several novels I have been reading.
Even though February was technically shorter than March, this month has flown by. I ran a storytelling workshop for a group of Central and South American adoptees, worked on a series of blog posts, and explored a new direction for my book.
Despite February being the shortest month of the year, I got a lot done. I wrote a draft of my essay for the NACLA Report magazine, created a workshop on how to tell a personal story and was interviewed for two different audio programs.
It's been several months since my last author update, so today, I'd like to look back at 2023 and also talk about what lies ahead for 2024.
I was dealing with minor allergy-related health issues during the winter and wasn’t sleeping well. The good news is that I'm doing much better, and my sleep schedule is finally back to normal.
It's been several months since you heard from me. As some of you may know, I had a rough winter health-wise, but I'm happy to report that the worst seems to be behind me, and I’ve returned to my regular work schedule.
I had big plans for this fall, but unfortunately, I've been dealing with some minor health issues. It's nothing serious, but I have decided to take a few months off from the newsletter and content updates to focus on my health.
I forgot to mention in my last update that I was going on vacation in August. As a result, I didn’t have time to write a proper update this month. The newsletter will return in three weeks with another Beyond the Book post.
Over the past month, I queried three literary agents and took the most significant break from the book since I started the project in January 2016. Even though taking a break feels a little weird, it is nice to slow down and give the story (and myself) space to breathe.
Even after taking most of June to recover from an absolutely crazy spring, I still managed to make significant progress on my book. I met award-winning author Reyna Grande and spoke with an editor who works at a major New York publishing house.
I can't believe it's time for another Author Update. This past month has flown by. Between coaching two ultimate frisbee teams, client work, and working on the website for my book, I haven’t had much in the way of free time. All this to say, I don’t have a lot of news to share this month.
