A few posts ago, I described a short story I was working on titled The Dance of Death. It is an experiment in mixing modern fantasy with the Chinese martial art fantasy. It is still being rough drafted. However, I am moving it to a lower priority to finish at this time. The reason for this is two fold.

The first reason is a feeling I have about the story. While rewrites are used to bring the story more to life, I feel like it is a slab of clay lying motionless and lifeless as an ancient golem. I know that I am not putting my best effort into it, so after nearly ten pages I am putting it on hold to try again soon.

The second reason is that I have felt my muse become impassioned with writing a short story called “The Indebited.” I will blog on this story soon. However, let me say at this moment that while it is a Science Fiction story set in the not too distant future, it is a story fitting the times we live in today.

Meanwhile, next week I will be working on later drafts of “The Tower.” I have fought the temptation to attack it again with my editing pen so far. I want it to sit so I can look at it with fresh eyes and apply feedback from some people I ask to secretly read for me. Once I finish my rewrites next week, I will be sending it to an editor for one final review before submission. This may slow the submission process down, but I feel professionally that an author should use an editor prior to submitting. I just have not with my last two stories due to deadlines.

Thank you for reading and please visit www.davidalanlucas.com for updates on the short stories, novels, and blogs that I am writing.