This post comes live from where I do my best writing. Everyone needs a writing cave. Unfortunately, mine is a red chair parked in Panera with an endless supply of espresso.

Since The Mason List went to the editor, I often get these questions. Are you going to write another book? Have you started writing another book?

The process of writing my first novel was a learning experience. I used the platform from NANO (National Novel Writing Month) for the first draft. I went into NANO with the following concepts.

A love story of a boy and girl who live on a ranch. The girl is poor and lives on the charity of this rich family. Instead of being the typical story, make the poor girl hate the rich family.

That was all I knew when I started NANO which may surprise those who beta read it.  Everything spiraled into The Mason List as I logged into NANO each day to hit my 1700 words per day. I wrote from the cuff. It was intense but it pushed me to put words on paper in abstract fashion. I didn’t think about elaborating. I just moved forward through idea after idea. The concepts came out of thin air with little depth to each scene. This gave an initial shape to the story.

When I reached the 50,000 word mark at the end of the month, I saw a lump of clay which had the resemblance of a story. I spent the next two years shaping that lump into what is currently being edited for release. I learned the hard way on what worked for me and what didn’t in the writing process.

So the answer to the question is yes. I am writing a second novel. It’s called Red Dirt Claws. I have taken a different approach with the second book. I have written excerpts out of order. Spur of the moment at times. Some very light scenes and some very deep. Most of it consists of dialogue between characters. With each exchange, I get a little better grasp on the characters. I get to know the characters as they get to know each other. I know. Sounds like a strange concept but it seems to work. I hope this approach cuts out on the many rewrites I did for The Mason List.

After collecting all my sporadic writing over the last few months, I have an approximate 26,000 words rough draft. I plan for this novel to be much, much shorter than The Mason List. I’m aiming for 80,000. The Mason List is what I call the epic love story that is also New Adult/Young Adult. Red Dirt Claws is more the classic New Adult story. Moving forward, I would like Red Dirt Claws to be ready for the editing process when The Mason List goes live to the world in a few months.  Here’s to hoping and not holding me to this time line.

That’s the writing update coming live from the red chair.

Writing Song of the Day: Band of Horses – Detlef Schrempf (Acoustic Live from the Ryman)