Ashes & new fires

I'm walking away.

Leaving the black dogs behind in the blackened ashes of old schemes and failed ambitions.

Walking toward Jericho.

No, I'm not sure exactly what that means. Maybe nothing in the grand sweep of time. But maybe something more. Yeah, that's the mood I'm in.

It's not a bad mood. Not a dark mood. More of a reflective one.

My New Year starts Tuesday. My birthday. Another year of life. More failures. More adventures. More successes. More life.

What more could I ask from this world?

What more could I want?

I feel the breath of a changing wind. I feel the ghost of wings on my shoulders. I feel my world open up.

But what does that mean in practical terms?

Well, it means this: Creations 2013: 40 Ways to Look at Love has launched. And that anthology is my creation in many ways. I'm proud of how it looks. I'm proud of my short stories -- two of which are romances! And I'm proud of my poems. I've started to make a little money from it as I've sold the copies I purchased. Not much money, but that little bit of income seemed to open me up a bit. Suddenly it seemed like I could make money from writing. I could complete a project and have people enjoy it. I made my first sale, and I held that little bit of money, and I felt something ... loosen in me. Weird, eh?

And it means Murder by the Mile will be finished this year. Probably by the end of September. I had hoped I would have it done by my birthday, but that's not going to happen. But finally ... finally I believe ... I know I can finish the book. And I can finish it this year.

Undying: Poems of Fantasy and Science Fiction might even be finished this year. Poems have started to present themselves to me at odd times. I had a great time working with Wendy on "Highlands" and might even have convinced her that poetry can be fun. Or at least presented that possibility to her.

This week, I will work on:
- Murder by the Mile.
- Undying.
- Household chores.
- Publicity for Creations 2013.
- And so on.

Oh, yeah, there's a birthday in there, too. Happy New Year!