Life Updates, Website Updates, etc..

Or why my 30s are looking great so far

So far my 30s are looking great. Lots of new things on the horizon, writing career starting to pick-up, and I've met some fantastic people while working at the bookstore. Yet, despite how well things are going for me, I've always been terrible at celebrating my successes, so here is an attempt to correct my past mistakes.

Writing Updates

Earlier this year I was accepted into the Novel in a Year Program by Story Studio Chicago. It's been a blast so far. I've learned quite a bit about the craft, met some incredibly talented people, and overall just enjoy writing as part of a group. The novel that I'm working on is about a quarter of the way done, and I anticipate that it will be fully finished come this year, then I'll have to worry about finding an agent, publication, and all that other stuff.

As of last month I was accepted into a winter writer's workshop by Forge Organizing. In that six week program I'll learn from some of the best on how to craft and pitch for publication. The workshop is aimed at organizers and such, so I'm very excited for the people that I'll meet there as well.

And finally, I have a novella in the works that I plan on self publishing later this year or the next. I've already found an editor, and I have a working title and cover that will be unveiled soon.

This upcoming year I plan on writing much more for the public (you all). The past few years I feel like I've been toiling away in secrecy, working through various novels and short story collections. But going forward, I plan on writing more essays, book reviews, and even self-published works for all to see. So stay tuned.

Website Updates!

As you may have noticed, I've moved the newsletter from substack to my own personal domain, ricardoplouis.com. As a subscriber/reader, there's no real functional difference. I mostly did this so that I can consolidate all my writings, newsletters, and press releases. Feel free to stroll around and let me know what you think.

What's Next?

I recently picked up this book from Kinokuniya, the largest Japanese bookstore in the state, called Butter, a novel on food and murder. It's excellent thus far and I plan on sharing my thoughts here when I finish.

Thank you for reading all the way up to this point, for folks celebrating, hope you have a happy holidays. For the rest of us, I hope you get the rest you deserve. Adios