Due to my health issues over the past 14 months, I’ve missed a lot of self-imposed deadlines. My next novel, Stone-Cold Heart, is releasing a full year after I originally planned.
I’ve mentioned before that I have a long history as a perfectionist. I’ve always had high expectations for myself and tended to beat myself up when I didn’t meet them. Not good.
Luckily, the older I’ve gotten, the better I am at recognizing the big picture, which often means adopting a healthier attitude. That adjustment has been extremely important for me this past year, or I’d have flayed myself alive for all my “failures.” *smile*
Slow Progress Isn’t a Failure
Of course, the truth is that slow progress is not a failure. Slow progress is still better than nothing.
Some words are better than no words. Click To TweetI’ve said this about NaNoWriMo for the past several years. While it’s great to try to “win” NaNo by writing 50,000 words during the month of November, I’m such a slow writer that I can’t always meet that goal.
Instead, I’ve taken the attitude that NaNo is a great time to feel the camaraderie and support from other writers while we focus on our writing—no matter how many words that works out to. As I’ve stated here before, some words are better than no words.
Slow Progress Adds Up
It’s normal to be frustrated by slow progress, whether we’re struggling to increase our word count, improve our writing skills, or lift our sales numbers. However, just like the Aesop fable, The Tortoise and the Hare, any bit of progress—no matter how slow—does add up.
Even 250 words a day will eventually create a novel, our learning curve will eventually become less steep, and our sales numbers…? Well, the only way to really fail is to give up.
This past year has been Exhibit A in the lesson that slow progress still moves us forward. Even though I felt like I wasn’t able to get anything done—ever—due to my health, today’s milestone proves that I was making progress.
Today, I get to share with all of you that the next novel in my Mythos Legacy series, Stone-Cold Heart, is available for pre-order. Yay! *smile*
Stone-Cold Heart Available for Pre-Order!
Stone-Cold Heart is the fourth full-length novel in the series and will release on May 10th! Like the other books of the series, this is a standalone story, and the whole series can be read in any order. (That said, some worldbuilding connections will have greater meaning if the stories are read in order.)
Proving just how slow my progress was with this story, Stone-Cold Heart was my 2014 and 2015 NaNo novel. (During my insane four-releases-in-one-year schedule of 2015, I never had the chance to finish the story after 2014’s NaNo, as I was in editing mode all year, so I couldn’t finish it until the following NaNo.) So, yes, this story has been in progress for two and half years. *sigh*
But all that work did add up over time and is finally coming to an end. And it all was worth it, as I now get to introduce these characters to the world. *smile*
Abandoned to his fate,
a shapeshifting gargoyle is trapped
until she sets him free…
A gargoyle betrayed by his soldiers…
After centuries of stone-cold death, Garrett discovers his legion has deserted him. Without their help, he’ll succumb to eternal sleep once more unless he can trick the woman who woke him into trusting him with her soul.
A combat veteran scarred inside and out…
Her last night in Afghanistan, Raquel Guerrero’s team fell victim to a suicide bomber, killing everyone but her. Now, despite her determination to never again let anyone close, her sense of duty compels her to help an endangered warrior survive.
Trust isn’t in their vocabularies…
A tentative truce frees them to investigate his regiment’s abandonment—and unleashes passionate temptations. But when the truth is uncovered, Garrett and Raquel’s fragile bond—and the healing power of love—might be the only thing that keeps them alive.
Available at:
Amazon | Apple iBooks | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | GooglePlay
(A print version is coming soon, and you can also add it on Goodreads!
Click here for the latest links.)
Stone-Cold Heart is currently priced at $2.99 for the pre-order sale. When it releases on May 10th, its price will go up to $3.99, so order your copy soon!
Want to grab some fun teaser quote images featuring Garrett,
my shapeshifting gargoyle who has to learn Raquel won’t be manipulated? *grin*
Check out the Stone-Cold Heart page!
And that’s it for the promo stuff for a couple of weeks, but maybe this tangible reminder that slow progress does add up to real results will help us all feel a little better. Thanks for joining me as I bask in the sense of accomplishment… Finally. *smile*
Do you ever struggle with slow progress? Are you able to see any progress as better than none? If not, what prevents you from taking that perspective? What frustrates you the most about your progress? What have you found that helps?
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