Bodacious & Sundry #10: My Mostly Steampunk Year

I’m looking back at 2015 and thinking both that it went quickly and that it seemed to last forever. I came a long way this last year in my personal and professional life. This blog and my overall writer’s platform did as well, so here’s a rundown of my year.

Oh, and this is the fiftieth post in The Mostly Steampunk Blog since I began it in April! While this blog is technically the continuation of one I started in 2010, I believe it stands on its own.

Life

I went from working odd freelance writing jobs and needing rental assistance and food stamps to getting a full time copywriting job, being able to rent with no help, and becoming ineligible for food stamps. Better, my job allows me to work from home, so my son doesn’t need to be in expensive day care. This Christmas, I was finally able to get him a couple of big presents, while in years past I wasn’t able to spend much. I basically pulled us out of poverty, and that feels fantastic.

Mostly Steampunk

My blog has taken off this year. I started The Mostly Steampunk Blog on April 10 as an extension of two other blogs I had on Blogspot. Consolidating them into one made my life a lot simpler. Soon after that, I also consolidated my two websites. I had one for my writing in general, the one you’re on now, and for my upcoming novel, Bodacious Creed: a Steampunk Zombie Western. Here’s a piece of advice for all writers: keep one site. You can create pages for your separate books and worlds, but brand yourself and keep your life simple.

I’ve shared book reviews, steampunk news and art, updates on my own work and writing, and tips for writers. I also started interviewing cosplayers and makers in the steampunk community. That was big for me, as I can now say that I’m not just a lone steampunk, but a part of this wonderful group of people. I’ve interviewed Steamy Leia, Ariel Dixon, and Dude Vader, to name a few. I started interviewing makers after the show Steampunk’d first aired and I saw that some of my steampunk cosplayer friends were friends with some of the contestants. So far, I’ve interviewed James Neathery, Ave Rose, and Tayliss Forge. Right now, I have three sets of interview questions out to another maker, a writer, and an artist. Browse through the blog to see more.

Another huge accomplishment of mine this year: I finished the first draft of Bodacious Creed: a Steampunk Zombie Western. You can see the word count for it in the sidebar. It came to nearly 140,000 words, my longest novel yet. I’m taking some time away from it before I edit it, but I’m eager to get back to it.

I also started The Mostly Steampunk Newsletter and added two freebies to it for subscribers: my Bodacious Creed prequel story, The Obstructed Engine, and eight of my fantasy short stories in a collection called Legends of Years Gone By. Subscribe if you enjoy steampunk, fantasy, or both.

Finally, I started The Mostly Steampunk Podcast. I’ve put out two episodes so far, both featuring my son, who enjoys participating, and you can watch those on my YouTube channel.

I participated in the first Virtual FantasyCon on Facebook, and eight day event featuring writers and artist. I was even on two video panels. Steve DeWinter interviewed me for this Author Spotlight on his YouTube show, Old Dog New Tricks, and we talked for a good fifty minutes about, you guessed it, mostly steampunk. You can find the the panels and that interview in this blog.

So yeah, I’ve come a long way in 2015, gained focus, solidified my brand, and really had a fun year.

What are my goals for 2016? Well, soon, I plan to get my Patreon going, and you can become a patron if you’d like to directly support my blog and podcast, for as little as $1 a month. I don’t have extras yet, but when I do, they’ll probably take the form of exclusive videos. I also plan to revise and polish up Bodacious Creed and to publish it in July or August with a big launch. I’m going to write several more prequel stories leading up to the release, and those will be free for my newsletter subscribers. After that first Creedverse novel is out, I plan to get to work on the sequel. I did leave plenty of room for one, while still wrapping up the story. I love that I’ve created this rich steampunk wild west setting with so many story possibilities.

I'll keep interviewing steampunks, sharing interesting news, giving writing tips, and much more.

How was your year? Did you get a lot accomplished? Feel free to let me know in the comments!