Updates, New Books, and a Win for the New Year
It’s 2024 and this Virgo is very ready for a fresh new year! I’m planning to make it one full of bookish adventures, of course. My resolutions include selling more stories, hitting the book convention circuit, and publishing the long-awaited (especially by me!) sequel to NASCENT WITCH.
At this point in my writing career, I can say that while I have the best of intentions, I also have the busiest of schedules and basically no brain left by the end of each week. As a result, I often forget to talk about good things when they happen to me. And with 2024 arriving so suddenly—at least, that how it feels from where I’m sitting—I find that I can’t move forward without mentioning some highlights of 2023.
This past November, ELECTRIC TREES was announced as the winner of the 2023 New York Author Project, a regional division of the Indie Author Project competition. I was not expecting this win at all; in fact, my supervisor at work finally had to tell me to stop repeating over and over again that I wasn’t going to win! I just really didn’t think a strange, speculative collection that takes readers from light into darkness would have mainstream appeal. I’ve never been so happy to be wrong! I feel especially honored because this is an award supported and run in large part by library organizations. It’s pretty amazing to be recognized by people who are not only readers, but colleagues in my other field of work, as well. This win is keeping me excited about writing in the new year, and I’m very grateful to have it as a motivator.
I also published a new novella last year called SEASON OF THE WITCH. The story is set against the backdrop of two sister towns called Mire and Ember Hollow, both of them full of (you probably guessed it): witches. I’ve written a few short stories also set in the sister towns, and I’m actively sending them out to markets to see if I get any interest. Whether or not I do, you can expect a companion collection to follow the novella, full of strange stories that involve the witches and other magical folk who live in Mire and Ember Hollow.
I should say that this is a separate world than that of NASCENT WITCH. If you’re here because of Sela and Sable, though, never fear: their sequel is very much in the works and progressing along nicely. As I told my newsletter subscribers recently, I will not publish any other book-length work until FAMILIAR TERRITORY is out in the world. And that’s more than a resolution: it’s a New Year’s promise!
As for this year, I’m very excited to be participating in my first ever author event at a convention that I happen to really adore. Boskone, presented each February in Boston by the New England Science Fiction Association, is a gem of a sci-fi/fantasy conference that allows for conversation and connection between content creators and fans. Part of that happens in the Author Alley, where I’ll be from noon until 4 p.m. on Saturday, February 10. I’m so excited to have this chance to interact with readers, especially at the same convention where I’ve gotten to meet my most beloved childhood authors, Bruce Coville and Jane Yolen. It’s also the first time I’ll be hand-selling my books, so I expect to learn a ton about that aspect of the author experience!
Additionally, I’m happy to report that I’ve sold an experimental flash piece to a market that’s new to me, which is always a wonderful feeling! “Until You Can Float” will be published by Intrepidus Ink, a place for stories about the bold, the brave, and the intrepid. It will appear later this month.
That’s it from me for now! But expect more updates, because if my instincts and my New Year’s tarot reading are both right, this year is going to be a very full one in which my books keep me busy. And I can’t complain about that!
I hope the beginning of your year has been happy and full of good omens for the days to come,
Melissa
Melissa Bobe 