One month into the baseball season, and the New York Yankees are in first place. The starting pitching has been pretty spot on, the offense has really produced, and Aaron Judge is on his way to becoming baseball’s next big star. It feels like everything is the way it should be, meaning everyone’s pissed at the Yanks for ruining baseball. Oh, how I love summer.

After a month of not eating bread (mostly) and despite an injury taking my workout from me, I’m down a total of 12 pounds from my starting weight. I already feel it in my clothes and I feel a bit lighter on my feet. And for those of you naysayers and joy suckers who say it’s just water weight… no one asked you, sit down, and shut up. Haters.

During my last month of carb-limitation, I developed an affinity for zucchini noodles. My spiralizer has seen way too much action this month.

Today is the start date for my newest project, Urban Legend, about a city that must deal with a masked vigilante that turns to killing crooked cops. Given today’s political climate, and the much-publicized relationships between some cops and their communities, I find this to be an interesting thing to tackle. That, and I’ve always had a fondness for superheroes. Anyway, Urban Legend is the first of a trilogy, which makes it the first thing I’ve done where I plan on sequels. So, there’s that.

I’m jumping into an edit of Open, which I hope to have ready to release later this year. It follows a married couple who, after a traumatic event in their relationship, find comfort outside their marriage in an effort to become closer. I’ll work on a more compelling back cover blurb.

A friend of mine is letting me beta his soon-to-be-released short story anthology, A String of Pearls. It’s the follow-up to his previous anthology, Moonlight Serenades. You want to get that book; it’s centerpiece novella, Clown Town is one of the most effective pieces of noir writing I’ve ever read. More details on Pearls when it releases.

Last thing: I like the summer months. I’m a huge fan of warm weather and the attitude it brings. Usually, that would mean a slowdown in production for a month or three. Not this year. I’ll talk about that later.

Anyway, happy May, you guys!

#2017 #fiction #goals #Spring #warmweather #writing #weightloss #newprojects