Tracking Progress on The Sigma Initiative
Don't Miss a Thing
In the Beginning...
February 2011
...there was a boy with an impossible ability, and a girl who wondered why. The girl had no experience and the boy had no story, but the idea never died.
First Full Draft: Finished!
October 2018
How many years has it been since I first dreamed up my main characters? Too many. But hey, I finally finished a full draft. Up to this point, I have typically ducked out of a draft at around 20k words, and once, I even made it to 60k before realizing that it was a pile of rubbish. Now, though, I can say I made it through an entire draft. Let the editing begin...
Submitting to Agents
June 2019
I've officially submitted to my first round of agents! Nine to start... ready to rack up the rejection letters until I find the perfect fit.
A Dead End
September 2019
I scrapped it. I scrapped the entire first draft. I cannot afford to look at it again unless I've happily finished the book. There were unreconcilable flaws, so I must try again with a fresh slate.
Encouragement
November 2019
This fall has been rough. I have been torn apart by my classmates and my professors take no interest in my work. I almost gave up on being a creative writer. And then Markus Zusak.
Begin Again
January 2020
I finally got up the courage to restart The Sigma Initiative. The fall was a low point for me emotionally, but I think I'm ready now to begin again. Even if I felt that my writing in general was unsuccessful in terms of content, my craft has improved exponentially, and I learned a lot about the way people respond to tone, tension, and character likability. Let's have another go at it.
A Novel Writing Class
February 2020
Up to this point, in college, I have taken countless writing and literature classes, but none of them have focused on the mechanics of a novel. They have primarily been about big ideas and beautiful prose, which are important, but I struggled to write anything meaningful in my short stories when faced with the pressure of pleasing so many young, ideological and activist-minded peers. This class, though, I hope will be different. We will see how the prologue and the first three chapters of the The Sigma Initiative are received by my professor and classmates...
Success!
March 2020
They liked it! They really, really liked it! Several of my classmates commented on the deftness of my prose, the likability of my characters, and the confidence they felt in the quality of the rest of the book to come. Even my professor wrote me a glowing letter in response to my work. This draft might just work. It might just be the real deal.
My First (Post?) College Job
March 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has just kicked into full scary gear, so I am now finishing college back in my parents' house. Which is not conducive for either my studying or my writing. Oh, and by the way, my employer offered me a full time position as a technical writer, website manager, and social media specialist.
I Graduated College!
May 2020
It's been a fast, furious haul, but I graduated a year early, and theoretically I'll have more time to write. When I'm not working full time, car shopping, apartment shopping, being a good daughter, sister, friend, girlfriend, adult...
Scrapping Again
August 2020
So, there's this contest that circulates the top three submissions for each genre among industry agents and publishers, and winning manuscript samples are auctioned among movie and TV studios... I entered it, but it meant staring my outline square in the face and realizing I needed to cut the five most recent chapters. No biggie, right? Except that those five chapters were all I accomplished for The Sigma Initiative this summer...
Revamping the Website
October 2020
The beauty of being an author is that it's a multi-faceted job. Not only do you create art, but you're also responsible for releasing it to the world. A website is a good place to start. Welcome to the new and improved home of The Sigma Initiative.
I Have a Writing Buddy!
October 2020
When you're trying to write a book, it can be incredibly discouraging when the few people you share it with never open the document. For the first time, someone is as passionate about my project as I am, and even better, she has her own book she's writing as well. Now it's a race to keep up with each other and improve both books!
Not Meant to Be
November 2020
You know that contest I mentioned a couple items ago? Yeah, I was not selected as a finalist. I shouldn't have expected to be, but a part of you always hopes that maybe, just maybe, this will be your big break. It wasn't mine, but this was probably for the best; the manuscript would not have been ready in time anyways. My plan is to finish the manuscript and scout agents the old fashioned way until I find myself in a similar position still next year.
Disengaging for a Moment
January 2021
Looking back at the year, I have to come to terms that I did not meet my goals for the year. I had had the goal of finishing The Sigma Initiative second draft by the end of November, and to have an agent by 2021. Neither happened. I found that my day job and personal life kept me busy, and I went two 3-week breaks between chapter output towards the end. But if I take a kinder perspective, I can realize that this draft is turning out better than I had been able to imagine it, and with the creation of my social media platforms and website, I have the tools to start sharing it with others (even if I am still tentative to use these tools). I hope you are as excited for 2021 as I am!
Second Full Draft: Finished!
January 2021
I did it. In a crazy race of inspiration, I finished my book. A second time. And this time, instead of hoping it was better than I thought it was, I am confident that it is, for the most part, accomplishing what I had wanted it to. I still need to fix up Chapter 10, but otherwise, it is in good shape to begin the next phase of development. Cheers to an exciting draft and to being one step closer to releasing this story to the world!
Yes, I Started Writing Book 2
February 2021
Wait, but you're not done with line edits! You haven't even started making the changes to the digital copy! WHAT ARE YOU DOING JUST FINISH THE FIRST ONE. If that's your initial reaction, fear not, dear reader! Writing and editing use two different parts of the brain, so by working on several different aspects of my work, I'm more productive with both. Besides, I couldn't resist. Just because Book 1 ended doesn't mean the story did, and as the author, I don't have to wait until Book 2 comes out to know what happens next ;)
Brutal Honesty Makes a Book Better
March 2021
I finally finished line edits and got real with one of my first readers and writing buddy: This draft has some issues. But they're manageable and not entirely crippling! Just need to rewrite a handful of chapters, many more paragraphs, even more sentences, fix many, many words... And let's not even start on the content fixes. But hey, at this point in time, I'm confident that this draft is not only salvageable, but in some parts, publishable.
Off to the Beta Readers!
May 2021
It's been a long haul, folks. To be real with you, this past year has been difficult, and it's taken a toll on my mental health. But, despite the adversity, I managed to finish my edits and have finally taken the step to send my manuscript out to a slew of absolutely amazing Beta Readers. Wish them luck as they navigate The Sigma Initiative, and keep a lookout for the next update about last edits and agent hunting!
Slow and Steady Wins the Race—Eventually
October 2021
I love my beta readers. Even when they're slow. Like, really slow. But thorough! I've been excited to hear the things they like about the book, their confidence that not only is it worth writing, but also worth reading. That it's thought-provoking and exciting and that there are moments that are truly delightful. But... 5 chapters of content needs to be boiled into essentially 3, and then enough new content for a 4th needs to be added in there... and the parts that get exciting need to be longer... I have some work to do! The project persists.
No Mentors For Now
May 2022
I finished the aforementioned edits! But I'm hesitant to apply the DONE stamp for reasons you can guess at if you have read any part of this tracker. I wish I could find a mentor, but woofta, while you get what you pay for, it's expensive. I tried throwing my hat in the ring to be matched with a mentor through AWP, but no luck. I will keep moving forward and see how querying goes.
Querying
July 2022
At this point, I've only received a couple responses, and both of them have been 'thanks, but no thanks'. No problem. Check on my emotional state after 50 of these rejections, and maybe we'll talk then :)
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But seriously, the way I see it, the more time it takes to get a positive response, the more time I have to tweak the first book as the second book adds context. It will be a more complete package this way!
I Got Married!
August 2023
Yes, it was a gorgeous day, and yes, I am so excited to be wed to the kindest, smartest, bravest, and most inspiring man I know. It was a big life event in which we were both very invested, so writing and querying did take a back seat. Now that we're settling into married life, I'm giving my writing another go. I'm thinking about this series a lot, and as my greatest advocate and my most brutal critic, my spouse will be my confidant and advisor on some big decisions for the story.
You Guessed It... I Scrapped Another Draft
October 2023
It's been a while, but I haven't given up! I did give up on another draft, though. I seem to have the unfortunate ability to write a bad idea all the way through and not realize why it's bad until long after I've "crossed the finish line". In the case of the draft I scrapped, there were several bad ideas propping up the one good idea spurring the series, so I asked myself the really hard questions: Is this character completely unnecessary? Is one of the main character's qualities hijacking the plot? What happens if one of the characters is no longer a friend, but an active enemy to the main character? By answering these, and many other difficult questions, I think I've set up this next draft to be far more successful. Check out the updated Prologue (Oct. 2023 Version) to see how my new approach is even changing my writing style for this draft.