Shaun Meeks's Blog - Posts Tagged "canadian-writer"
Shutdown First Draft
This weekend, I finally finished the first draft of my new novel, Shutdown. It took longer than I would have liked due to invites to so many new and cool anthologies. I tried to steer clear of some of them, but what can you do when you get cool opportunities to write stories for some amazing people and amazing collections. Some of these include anthologies by Ellen Datlow, William Cook, The Horror Zine, Michael Bailey, Adam Millard and Chizine. Also there is one that I am still working on for an anthology of stories that take place after Clive Barker's Nightbreed/Cabal.
Regardless, the first draft is done, 93,000 words so far. The book is a strange mix of horror, sci-fi and thriller and moves pretty fast paced. I am hoping to get it polished by the end of this month then ship it over to my editor. She is a tough one that doesn't pull punches, and that's what I need. Once that is done I will start sending it off to publishers that have already contacted me with interest in it. I was hoping to have the book out by the end of the year, but it may not be ready until 2014. If that's the case, there will still be a new release by me this year, a collection of short stories called Dark Reaches. That will be out for the holiday season this December.
I look forward to releasing the novel and seeing what everyone thinks. Once the polish is done on it, I will quickly start work on my next book, The Gate at Lake Drive, which is the the first book of the Dillon Monster Dick series.
Regardless, the first draft is done, 93,000 words so far. The book is a strange mix of horror, sci-fi and thriller and moves pretty fast paced. I am hoping to get it polished by the end of this month then ship it over to my editor. She is a tough one that doesn't pull punches, and that's what I need. Once that is done I will start sending it off to publishers that have already contacted me with interest in it. I was hoping to have the book out by the end of the year, but it may not be ready until 2014. If that's the case, there will still be a new release by me this year, a collection of short stories called Dark Reaches. That will be out for the holiday season this December.
I look forward to releasing the novel and seeing what everyone thinks. Once the polish is done on it, I will quickly start work on my next book, The Gate at Lake Drive, which is the the first book of the Dillon Monster Dick series.
Some updates
It's been a while since I posted any sort of work update, so here I am to do one. Right now I have quite a bit in the works and ready to come out. Between now and the end of December I have four releases due out. My story Perfection Through Silence will be in Fresh Fear, which is edited by William Cook. My story Despair will be in Someone Wicked, which is edited by Weldon Burge and JM Reinbold. My story Give Me Convenience will be in Miseria's Chorale, which is edited by David Nell.
I will also be releasing my third collection, Dark Reaches at the end of December-early January. This one will be featuring 16 stories. A fair bit are new ones, while others are collected from anthologies I have appeared in over the last year. There is also a little hidden something in it for those that like to hunt around. This one is currently in the editing process, and should be ready pretty soon.
On top of that, I am still waiting on release dates for three other short stories and the final release date for my new novel, Shutdown.
And with all that going, this month I am taking part in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I had to start this one from scratch and as it stands I have finished 20,000 words in 7 days. Not too bad. The novel I am working on is The Gate at Lake Drive and is the first novel in the Dillon the Monster Dick series. If I can keep the pace up that I am currently on, the book will be ready for editing by the end of November. And it seems as though that will happen. This is the first novel I have ever written that seems to be writing itself. It is full of monsters, demons, quirky townspeople, shady salesmen and burlesque performers. It's strange, cheesy, scary and funny. A bit of noir and a a whole lot of strange.
And as I do that, I have started to put together my forth collection, Salt on the Wound, and I am writing five new short stories for different anthologies that seem fun. Better yet, they pay well; always a good thing.
There are a few more little bits of exciting news here, but they will have to wait until things are confirmed. Can't wait to share it with all of you.
I will also be releasing my third collection, Dark Reaches at the end of December-early January. This one will be featuring 16 stories. A fair bit are new ones, while others are collected from anthologies I have appeared in over the last year. There is also a little hidden something in it for those that like to hunt around. This one is currently in the editing process, and should be ready pretty soon.
On top of that, I am still waiting on release dates for three other short stories and the final release date for my new novel, Shutdown.
And with all that going, this month I am taking part in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I had to start this one from scratch and as it stands I have finished 20,000 words in 7 days. Not too bad. The novel I am working on is The Gate at Lake Drive and is the first novel in the Dillon the Monster Dick series. If I can keep the pace up that I am currently on, the book will be ready for editing by the end of November. And it seems as though that will happen. This is the first novel I have ever written that seems to be writing itself. It is full of monsters, demons, quirky townspeople, shady salesmen and burlesque performers. It's strange, cheesy, scary and funny. A bit of noir and a a whole lot of strange.
And as I do that, I have started to put together my forth collection, Salt on the Wound, and I am writing five new short stories for different anthologies that seem fun. Better yet, they pay well; always a good thing.
There are a few more little bits of exciting news here, but they will have to wait until things are confirmed. Can't wait to share it with all of you.
Dillon is back!
After a bit of an absence, Dillon the Monster Dick returns in book 2 of the series, Earthbound and Down. The book continues where The Gate at Lake Drive left off. Bringing back old characters and introducing you to new ones, Earthbound and Down has the same humor, horror, and bizarre world the first had.
From the back cover:
Around the city, kids are going missing and the police are at their wits end to come up with any sort of clue as to who or what might be involved. Despite his beliefs, the lead detective involved listens to a friend and contacts Dillon, someone claiming to be a monster hunter. Dillon listens to what the detective says and agrees to help. Lucky for them.
Not so lucky for Dillon.
While he's normally game to hunt down any strange creature that might've found their way to this world - even a giant Hellion bent on consuming the planet - he is unprepared for what lies in wait for him. Despite how strange his job is, there are still rules even a monster detective must follow, but to ignore the situation might only put more innocent lives at risk.
Unable to ignore his feeling of duty, Dillon forgoes the rules and joins forces with the detective and an old friend to find the monster who is stealing kids and the master who is controlling it.
Happy New Year
2020 has been a strange one for me, and I'm sure fpr most of you as well. It has not been the most productive on my end. My latest collection, From Nightmare, Dreams was set to be released in summer of 2020, but when the summer came, it just didn't feel right. This year the world had so many more important voices that needed to be heard than my own, so I decided to wait. And I waited, and waited.
Now, as the year changes, I want to start off 2021 with a bang. By the end of January, the collection of new and old stories will be released. I have wanted this out for so long, and seeing it coming out after a pretty nasty year, I think is a great way to wipe the dust of 2020 off and start fresh. The book has quite a few never before published stories, as well as some fan and critic favorites (And Midian Whispered Its Name, Red Velvet, In the Sun, and Dead Bill to name a few). As always, there will be some hidden surprises as well.
IFWG Publishing is also set to release the next Dillon the Monster Dick book, number 4 in the series called Heads, You Lose. This was also supposed to have come out in 2020, but again, what can you do? Originally I had an idea to do 7 books in this series, but I think now, to keep it fresh, there will be only 6, with A Touch of Death currently in the works, and then Dillon At the Gates of Madness to round out the series. That's the plan at least, but who knows if things might change before then.
I had also started a Patreon in late 2019 and had thought it was a great idea. I had no idea what 2020 would bring, but a little after Covid hit I put the page on hold. During the protests, I didn't think it was a place for a writer to be charging people to read relatively unimportant things. Like I said, there were more important voices that needed to be heard. Not that I had many subscribers anyway, which is why I had a funeral for my Patreon account and buried it. I doubt I will ever revisit it again. It was more work than it was worth.
I have written a few stories this year and plan to start submitting again. If you've read this far, i hope the New Year is good to us all. I hope there will be a sense of normalcy instead of the sense of dread that has been looming. Stay safe. Be well. I hope we can all see each other soon.
Now, as the year changes, I want to start off 2021 with a bang. By the end of January, the collection of new and old stories will be released. I have wanted this out for so long, and seeing it coming out after a pretty nasty year, I think is a great way to wipe the dust of 2020 off and start fresh. The book has quite a few never before published stories, as well as some fan and critic favorites (And Midian Whispered Its Name, Red Velvet, In the Sun, and Dead Bill to name a few). As always, there will be some hidden surprises as well.
IFWG Publishing is also set to release the next Dillon the Monster Dick book, number 4 in the series called Heads, You Lose. This was also supposed to have come out in 2020, but again, what can you do? Originally I had an idea to do 7 books in this series, but I think now, to keep it fresh, there will be only 6, with A Touch of Death currently in the works, and then Dillon At the Gates of Madness to round out the series. That's the plan at least, but who knows if things might change before then.
I had also started a Patreon in late 2019 and had thought it was a great idea. I had no idea what 2020 would bring, but a little after Covid hit I put the page on hold. During the protests, I didn't think it was a place for a writer to be charging people to read relatively unimportant things. Like I said, there were more important voices that needed to be heard. Not that I had many subscribers anyway, which is why I had a funeral for my Patreon account and buried it. I doubt I will ever revisit it again. It was more work than it was worth.
I have written a few stories this year and plan to start submitting again. If you've read this far, i hope the New Year is good to us all. I hope there will be a sense of normalcy instead of the sense of dread that has been looming. Stay safe. Be well. I hope we can all see each other soon.
