Horror Classes & Scary Goals
Six years ago this month, I set a scary goal for myself: write a commercially viable novel by the time I turned 50.
I’m pleased to share that I’ve completed that novel and am celebrating my 50th birthday this month! Along the way, The Butcher’s Apprentice has won local and international recognition, and I’ve attended almost a hundred writing classes, lectures and workshops. I’ve been welcomed into numerous writing groups, and have connected with generous creative mentors. While it’s thrilling to have a tangible manuscript that might one day appear on a bookshelf, to be clear, publishing was not the stated goal. If that happens, I see it as icing on the birthday cake! More importantly, I’ve establishing a regular literary practice and built my confidence and skills to write into the next 50 years. And, I’ve already started the next novel.
Today I’m in the early stages of querying literary agents while simultaneously revising and refining the manuscript. These next steps are a little frightening! Or, maybe it’s just the spooky season adding to the suspense. I’ll let you know how it goes.
In honor of Halloween, and fueled by my genre-fiction obsessions as the days get longer and darker, I’ve been taking horror writing classes. The next one I’m attending is The Anatomy of Horror. It’s an online, 3-hour class through Grub Street on Saturday, October 29, 2022. I’d love to “see” you there!
Here are a few others that caught my eye, hosted by some of my favorite writing centers:
Seasonal Read
If you’re in need of some scary-fun reading, I highly recommend Rachel Harrison’s Such Sharp Teeth. It’s a superbly crafted, propulsive, modern werewolf tale.
Thank you for following along on my writing journey! I’ll be heads-down the rest of the year with various writing projects, but I’ll see you back here in 2023 with more writing class recommendations and updates on The Butcher’s Apprentice. I appreciate your support and wish you happy reading and writing.
