Draft Complete!

And I think this draft is considerably better than my previous one. I had around 35 people finish that first version of The Engineer's Craft, and the feedback was generally good. Something that happened this time that didn't happen with The Alchemist's Lot as much was people asking if they could read The Engineer's Craft a second time when I finished—I imagine because Bartus' story is a bit deeper than Edric's, which is more of a one-time adventure thrill (for now). 

To keep you up-to-date on the editing process, this is what's coming up: 

1. Wait for 2 to 3 people to finish reading the new draft, just to make sure that it holds up and is ready to send to agents/editors. I sent it out on July 7th to a small batch of people, and have already gotten some mid-read responses. One person started it on Monday and by Thursday was already halfway through (around 65k through what has become a 130k book). Another person started it just this past Sunday (three days ago) and is five chapters in. This is a good trend, as one of my editorial emphases was to improve the pacing and urgency of the first half of the book. On the first draft, most readers took a few weeks/months to get into the story, and then once they hit either chapter 5 or 7 they would binge to the end. I talked to one friend who reads a lot who I cornered after she finished the book, and asked her questions about why the beginning took so long until I understood what was wrong. I learned a lot from that conversation, and it looks like that translated into my edits. Fingers crossed I didn't ruin the pacing of the ending. 
2. Send queries out to agents in batches of 8 to 10. I have a few in mind right now—one who I really want to work with, so I'm somewhat hesitant to send it to him in the first batch. I'll probably do two practices batches with agents I'm not so invested in, and see where it goes. If I get a few bites there, I'll send it on to him and see what he says. 
3. Continue sending queries and decide on my next project. I'm currently waffling between writing my next book (A History for the High Prelate) or going back to edit a previous book (The Alchemist's Lot). I've been going on walks in the morning, and my imagination seems to split evenly between these two projects; one morning I'll be thinking about scenes I want to change or add to The Alchemist's Lot, and the next I'll be thinking about intrigue at Taridam. I think the wise thing to do would be to rewrite The Alchemist's Lot. First on my list is to come up with a different title, however. I never felt strongly about the current one, and I don't want two of my early books to have the same formatting for their titles. I also want it to feel more alchemist-y, so a title like "Coriander and Rue" (that's just an example). Something with plants, but also theme. "Rue" will probably be somewhere in there, given its dual meaning. Too good an opportunity to miss. 
4. Send my book to more early readers! If you're interested in reading an early draft of The Engineer's Craft, I'll include a form below that you can fill out. Once I receive your email, I'll send you a link to the book files and you can read at your pleasure. Additionally, if you want to check out my nonfiction writing, I'm posting semi-regularly about writing on Substack. 

I'm excited to continue this journey towards publication—I don't know that I've mentioned it before, but I have a truly good feeling about The Engineer's Craft. Not just the story, not just the quality of the writing or the themes. I feel like it has legs to move out into the publishing world. 

When that happens, I'll be sure to let you know.