Matthew S. Rotundo's Pixeltown

A quick 8300 words on “The Winter Palace” rewrite brings Magic Meter to that most magical of places:

And that’s that.  I think this little bird is ready to leave the nest.

I gotta be honest, folks:  I like this one a lot.  Like, a lot a lot.  Of course, given that I’m the worst judge of my own work, you should take that with a rather large block of sodium chloride.

A final snippet:

At the secret door, rock in hand, she hesitated, torn in an agony of doubt and fear.  She was only a little girl.  How could she be expected to do this?  It was so wrong . . . and at the same time, it had to be her, and no one else.  She had climbed thornfruit trees, had braved the catacombs.

And for my next trick . . . um.  I don’t know.  Need to think of something.  If anyone has any ideas, do let me know, will you?  Thanks in advance.

Write Club update:  A tier one bounce from an agent on a novel query.  Response time, 26 days.

On to the Next Big Thing.  Whatever that may be.

Business travel and a metric crapload of familial obligations last week = meager progress on the rewrite of “The Winter Palace.”  But such progress as there was, I submit forthwith for your approval:

OK, I’m not really asking for approval.  It’s just an expression, folks.  Go with it.

Anyway, hoping for better progress this week.  As always.

Your snippet:

“The Nayeed—”  Jessica stopped herself before she said anything more.  She’d been on the verge of asking if it was true that the Nayeed had built the Winter Palace, but Father would demand to know who had told her that.  She licked her dry lips.  “Father . . . are the Nayeed all liars, like the snakes?”

Father exchanged a glance with Mother.  “They . . . one must be careful with them.  They do not love northerners.  But not everything they say is a lie.”

“Not like snakes, then?”

“No, not like snakes.  But you still stay away from them, all the same.”

No updates for Write Club.

And I’m gone.

Finished my read-through of “The Winter Palace,” made my notes for the rewrite, and have actually embarked on same.  There’s even a new Magic Meter to mark the occasion.  See?

Most of the revision work on this one needs to be done at the beginning, and even that isn’t really all that much.  Truth is, I’m pretty happy with the story.  It needs only a few tweaks, methinks.  If you’ve been reading these progress reports of late, you’ll know that comes as a refreshing change of pace.

Of course, it might still be so much moose drool.  Occupational hazard, that.

Your snippet:

“It is a great secret.  You must promise not to tell anyone else.  If the king’s soldiers ever learn of it, or even your wise father, you would never be allowed to play there.”

“I promise, Gan.  I won’t tell anyone.”  She would have no trouble keeping the secret, since he was probably lying, anyway.

Write Club updates:  A couple of form bounces from agents on novel queries.  Response times, 10 days each.

Back to the word mines . . .