WHAT’S BEEN GOING ON
SHORT STORY NEWS
Things are moving ahead with my writing. My short story, Buford vs The Skunk Ape, has been acquired by Weird Tales Magazine https://www.weirdtales.com for their upcoming Cryptid issue. More info to follow when they announce a publication date.
My short story, Checked Out, will be appearing in the upcoming anthology, Dread Coast: SoCal Horror Tales from No Bad Books Publishing. It’s release date is 8/22/25. The release party will be at the Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore on 8/30/24 (time TBA).
I’ve finished the first draft of my latest Fix Larson short story. Now, I’ll let the construction dust settle for a week before I jump into the edit. Meanwhile, my first Fix Larson novel, Toads, Twins, & Tenacity is on submission with my agent, Cherry Weiner.
BoucherCon is fast approaching in September and I made my reservation this morning. This will be my first mystery convention with my agent. We’re hoping to meet with editors and publisher to introduce my Fix Larson series.
That’s the latest. Have a great week. I hope everyone is reading or writing something great (Maybe both).
CHEERS!
A NEW YEAR OF POSSIBILITIES
Like most people, I had New Year’s Resolutions. As for my writing, my goal was to work on my writing every day. That included getting up at 4:50 AM each weekday morning to write before getting ready for work. The month is coming to a close and I’ve kept my resolution.
The image above is all a white board of the current projects that I have out on submission. I used to only submit one project and wait for an answer. That’s a terrible way to get published. So, I worked and reworked several short stories and started sending them out. If one got rejected, I polished it up and sent it out again.
My private detective novel has been on submission by my agent since October. Any writer who has submitted a novel knows that it’s a long process of endless waiting. My agent sent my manuscript to a few markets and gave them gentle nags until Thanksgiving, when most publishers close down their acquisitions until after the first year. Two weeks into the new year, my agent started the process back up.
So, I’m staying a busy writer. I’m working on a short story for a charity anthology that will benefit the LA Fire victims. I’ve also got a short story that I’m working on that’s a retelling of Poe’s, Murders in the Rue Morgue.
One day, I hope to make these posts into a newsletter. Until then, only I and a few lost internet viewers will read it. If that’s you, thanks.
NOTHING IS INEVITABLE BUT CHANGE
I’m not going to get political on this post. But damn, what a crazy few months. Through it all, I’ve been pounding away at my writing. I’ve written more in the past few months than I have in years. Below are some bullet points of what’s been going on:
Finished edits on my debut novel, TOADS, TWINS, AND TENACITY.
My agent has submitted the novel to several publishers and we now play the waiting game.
Finished a short story using the detective from my novel and submitted it to Alfred Hitchcock magazine.
Finished and submitted a story about a Golem to a magazine.
Finished and submitted a short story to an anthology about an aging werewolf with onset dementia.
Currently working on a short story about the Florida Skunk Ape.
On the social media front, I’ve backed off my engagement on Twitter. It’s become way too toxic lately. I’ll keep my account so that I will maintain my name. However, unless things greatly improve, I won’t be posting much there.
I’ve opened up an account on BlueSky. You can find me under @jajensenbooks. So far, things are pretty chill there. I’m able to link up with other writers and subjects that I’m really interested in following. The platform is good at shutting down trouble makers. I hope it stays that way.
So, lots of irons in the fire for now. Hopefully, as my portfolio grows, so will my readers and connections. Here’s to hoping for a better 2025.
StokerCon 2024
I’ve had a full week to decompress from StokerCon, the Horror Writers Association’s annual convention. It was a whirlwind of activity since my local San Diego Chapter was in charge of putting on the event. After two years of planning, it turned out to be a bloody success and one of the HWA’s largest.
Between attending panels, volunteering, meeting with my new agent, and leading her husband on some tours of San Diego, I got to meet some of the best horror writers in the business. Whenever possible, a writer needs to attend as many author events as possible. The networking and learning you experience are essential to growing your career.
As you might have noticed, I mentioned a new agent. I’m now represented by Cherry Weiner. She’s a powerhouse in a small package. Her expertise has made my current novel 100% better. Keep an eye on this space for more news on future plans for my detective story, Toads, Twins, and Tenacity (A Fix Larson Investigation).
WHEN A LACK OF POSTS IS GOOD
I see it’s been well over a year since my last post. That’s actually a good thing. My writing life has never been busy as it was in 2023. I attended my first BoucherCon. Nothing stirs a writer’s soul like being among their peers and lovers of the craft. It was a crazy week of panels, parties, and networking.
2023 also saw a complete rewrite of my detective thriller, Guns, Grits, and Geckos. Thanks to the wise advice of a wonderful agent, I refocused the narrative and my main character and the story itself is so much better for it. I’ve finished the latest draft and am hoping that it’s ready to pitch. More to come as it happens.
My presence on social media increased also in 2023. I’ve connected with many readers and fellow authors on Tiktok, Twitter (X), and Threads. An author that wants to get ahead in the business can’t afford to stay on the sidelines.
Well, that’s it for now. I have my bookseller day job to get to and pay the bills that allow me to write. More soon.
NO NANOWRIMO FOR ME
First, let me start by stating that I’ve got nothing against NaNoWriMo. A few years ago, I participated as well. So, I wish all that participate the best of writing wishes.
Now that’s out of the way, let me tell you why I won’t be participating in NaNoWriMo.
Writing is a craft, a skill, an art. As with any work of art, one needs the correct tools to assist in completing the piece. With painting, an artist may use a myriad of tools to get paint to canvas. Brushes, knives, sponges, and even fingers are used to create the visual image.
The tools of a writer are limitless. First and foremost is our imagination. We create whole worlds out the firing of synapsis in our brain. From there we use the tools of media to bring the images to the visual. Whether it’s pencils, pens, computers, or wooden blocks of type, we use the tools that work best for us.
NaNoWriMo is just another tool for a writer’s art box. For many, this tool allows them to focus intense energy into getting 50k words committed to a project. By providing the structure of daily word counts and fellowship with other writers, many people have achieved their goal of finally writing the book that they’ve only talked about for so long.
For me, it’s a tool that works against my goals. I’m currently 65k into a detective thriller and things are going great. My biggest fault as a writer is wanting to get to the end. I begin a novel knowing where I want it to end. As I move along, I get so excited and caught up in the story, that I tend to rush things. I want to get it all out of me in one big rush and point at it and say, “Look! There it is!”.
However, that’s not a good template for writing detective thrillers.
I need to slow down and take time to build all of the layers. My time as a reporter taught me how to cut out the fat of the story. But, as with cooking, when it comes to writing a good novel, fat is where the flavor is at. True, you can add too much. Still, it’s got to be in there to provide the richness.
So, NaNoWriMo is not the right tool for my style of writing. If it is for you, great. Use the tools that work. Either way, I hope that November is a productive writing month for everyone.