"No New Thing Under the Sun"
"No New Thing Under the Sun"
Highlighting big changes for the first half of 2024
Hey, y’all!
The ironic tension betwixt the title and subtitle of this newsletter is intentional. In case you wondered.
It was about a year ago that I came out of a short-lived break from serialized stories, in which I only published a quick flash fiction piece each week.
Since then, I’ve serialized Zshurii’s story, published the Len novella, started Delfii’s serial, and more. All amid the arrival of a pair of wee hobbitses. Some of the things I’ve tried during my initial foray into author life have turned out better than others. Many a lesson has been learnt. Finally, I’ve settled into a vision of what I want to write (or rewrite) next, and for whom; what platforms and endeavors I want to dig into or let go of; and what writing pace this season of my life can accommodate.
It’s time to slow down—for real—so I can regroup in the rest of life, avoid burnout, and respect y’all as readers and supporters. Here’s what that means for you:
All current, free and paid subscribers have been made complimentary paid subscribers for the next six months. This is partly my way of thanking you. What’s more, for the next several months, my writerly focus (behind the scenes) will be re-rewriting the story I’ve already published, Len the Wanderer’s. The new editions [coming in 2025] will feature different narrative styles and be aimed at different audiences. They’ll also include corrections and additional chapters I didn’t have time to write last fall.
The ebook of the novella Dustsong: Len the Wanderer, will soon be free to all subscribers. I’ll make a post when it’s ready. [Update: here’s the post!] If you were one of the amazing folks who purchased the ebook already: 1) You can download the free version, in which I’ve made a few initial corrections. 2) When the new editions of the book are ready later this year, you (not everyone) will receive them for free.
New weekly content here on Substack will now include Worldbuilding Wednesday articles about the Vaporous Realms story-world (for paid and complimentary subscribers) and Flash Fiction Friday snippets (for everyone). The paid / complimentary articles will include bonus content like full previews of original Vaporous Realms illustrations we’ve commissioned.
I won’t publish any more books [excepting tabletop resources], such as the new editions of Len’s story, until the sequel (Kaelii’s novella) is also ready to publish. I consider it my responsibility as an author to prove I can deliver on the storyline I started. For that reason, I’m pausing Delfii’s story where it’s at. I’ll restart the serials here with Kaelii’s story once I’ve written a good bit of it.
You might notice things labeled and organized differently around here. I’ve added new categories to the navigation bar in the browser version. And I’ve finally settled on titles for the various versions of each story I’ll publish going forward: Songs for PG-rated serials written in a conventional way for audiences young and old (Legends for the book versions) and Chronicles for PG-13-rated serials written in a somewhat old-fashioned, Tolkien-esque way (Tales for the book versions). Thanks to the Brothers Krynn and company here on Substack for inspiring me to re-embrace that style, which I grew up reading and enjoying.
The Vaporous Realms website is moving here to Substack in the near future. [Update: mission accomplished!] Additional content, including links to books and other products, will pop up here as a result. I’ll let y’all know when this Substack officially becomes www.vaporousrealms.com.
I will be continuing as planned with my new Editor vs. the Machines website, which offers self-editing tips and individual help for writers and editors.
All this will help me avoid overpromising and underdelivering. It means I can create from a healthier, more sustainable place than I’ve been doing. But I’m as eager as ever to keep bringing the Vaporous Realms to life here on Substack! Thank you for being part of it.
Look for the first of the new weekly content (worldbuilding and flash fiction) this week. Bless y’all!
—M. B. Heywood