Edge of Magic update

I’ve decided to stop serializing The Edge of Magic and pull it from my site. I’ll keep writing it, but serializing my first novel in public was a fool’s game, and my hubris has been given its due. Perhaps I’ll serialize something once I’ve actually learned how to write novels, but there’s still so much I need to learn and it’s hard to do it well in public.

My plan now is to finish the book (including at least a couple good rounds of editing) and, if I’m not utterly ashamed of the result, release the completed novel on my site later this year.

For the few who were reading it: I’m open to having more alpha readers, so if you’re interested, let me know.

What I’ve learned so far

• The way I write, I need a better plan before I start drafting the book. Far more detailed worldbuilding, a cohesive plot, clearer characterization, etc. — a really good outline with scenes that move things forward.
• That said, outlining gives me a literal headache every time I do it. Not sure what’s up with that.
• At any given point, there are so many possibilities, so many choices. Having a clearer structure will help those choices support the novel instead of veering off on tangents, so things actually happen for a reason.
• Next time, I think I’ll only have one POV character. Juggling three while also trying to learn how to sustain the weight of the story over the course of a novel is…difficult.

The good news, of course, is that I’m learning a lot about writing novels, far more than I expected (cf. hubris). Still a lot left to learn, but the progress is visible.