Medusa, Historical fiction, South Africa, and other thoughts

Medusa!
I revised my Medusa book for Capstone press. It's Medusa's side of the story--with my Greek mythology obsession, it was a FUN book to write. It's moving fairly quickly through the editorial process, but I still don't know when it will be out on the market. I really like how the story turned out.

I think it will be in 2013, which means, at least, that I have had a publication in 2009, 2011, 2012, and maybe 2013. That also means I gotta get CRANKING on revising Slider's Son so there's a chance it come come out by the end of 2014!!!  I've also got some tips that this is not such a bad time for historical fiction as the last few years. Don't know if that's true or not, but I want to go with that thought! I have a three-day weekend. Maybe I can dig in and get something done. I've written so little this year since school started. It's easy to get disheartened, but at least I have great classes and students.

I'm teaching The Power of One in my South Africa Humanities class. I have been wondering for several years why the author Bryce Courtenay moved to Australia for the rest of his life. I JUST found out, doing some research, that it's because while he was a teenager, he started a school for Africans. Blacks were NOT supposed to learn to read under Apartheid, and he was labeled a communist as a result, and exiled from his country at age 17. Holy smoke. No wonder I love this guy. He just died three months ago. I'm sad I didn't make a pilgrimage to go meet the man. -->

Back to the grindstone. 

Another rejection

Slider's Son garnered its second rejection this week. "Not enough historical detail" is what Calkins Creek said. George is baffled by that (maybe more than I am, even), so he's going to ask them what they meant by that. In the meantime, I'm going to spread in some more Depression-era details into the manuscript. I was mostly concerned with the character in the small town and making his life real. Guess I'll try to make the national news come home to roost more than it does already.

I have some ideas. I'm going to add some of them this weekend.

I wish I could get a book right the first time. Or second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth. Wonder what it means that I have to revise at least TWELVE times before anything gets published.

It mostly means that I should do nothing but write and maybe I'd get a book done WAY faster (and be with my kids, and be with friends, and ride my bike, and play with Freya--oh, yeah, and teach and grade papers).

Oh, well. I'm heading out on my bike to THINK in a few minutes.

Slider's Son

So, finally, finally, finally, with weddings and all the other stuff going on in life (oh, and there's full-time teaching and paper-grading, too), I FINISHED editing Slider's Son. It's as good as I can make it until some editor tells me what he/she wants me to do with it.
I like the story. A lot. I sure hope some editor snatches it up fast, so I can have a book coming out in 2013.

This is the story of a 12-year-old boy growing up in North Dakota on the tail end of the depression. All he wants is to be a major league pitcher. His dad is the county sheriff, and there's a murder in town... Lots of things get in the way of his dream...
I'll keep you posted on how this manuscript does.