New Project

My self-imposed Hal Spacejock 5 deadline goes something like this:

• November 2008, write 50,000 words for NanoWrimo (done)
• December 2008, finalise the plot outline (more or less done)
• January-March 2009, write missing scenes, fine tune plot, repeat
• April 09, submit draft to editor, lots of rewriting & revision
• May-June 09, finish/polish the final final and hand it in
• November 09, Hal 5 release (and NanoWrimo 2009 for Hal 6.)

A week ago I came up with an idea for a new writing project, which is currently top secret. I mentioned it to my publisher and I've already started working on it.

My goal is 750 words per day, starting yesterday, which will continue until the first draft is complete. This won't delay Hal 5, because the new timeline looks like this:

• January-March 2009, write missing scenes, fine tune plot, repeat AND write new project.
• April 09, submit draft to editor, lots of rewriting & revision AND work on new project.
• May-June 09, finish/polish the final final and hand it in AND work on new project.
• November 09, Hal 5 release (and NanoWrimo 2009 for Hal 6.) AND work on new project.


See how easy it is? And people wonder how I manage to keep on top of everything.

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)

Merry Christmas

I'm taking a really quick break from tidying and cleaning to type this, so forgive my brevity. I just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a very happy New Year.

We're expecting 20 guests for Christmas lunch & dinner tomorrow, a family event we've hosted for the past 12 years or so. After the brain-straining NanoWrimo November my wife and I spend the whole of December attending to household repairs, painting, spring cleaning and so on. On balance, I think I prefer the writing ...

Now the turkey is ready, we have two full gas bottles for the BBQ, the veggies are all peeled/chopped/diced & sliced and the house looks as tidy as it did LAST December. (Better even. I finally hung some of the kids' artwork.)

Between Christmas and New Year it's my eldest daughter's 14th birthday, which seems to have been planned over two days this year, and after the New Year celebrations I'll be back to the writing.

Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys a very Messy Christmas, and I hope 2009 brings you much joy and happiness.

Cheers
Simon Haynes

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)

2008 Aurealis Award Finalists

The 2008 Aurealis Awards finalists have just been announced, and Hal Spacejock 4: No Free Lunch is one of the five shortlisted SF novels:

• K A Bedford, Time Machines Repaired While-U-Wait, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing
• Marianne de Pierres, Chaos Space, Book Two of the Sentients of Orion, Orbit
• Simon Haynes, Hal Spacejock: No Free Lunch, Fremantle Press
• Kim Westwood, The Daughters of Moab, HarperVoyager
• Sean Williams, Earth Ascendant, Astropolis Book Two, Orbit

Winners will be announced at the Aurealis Awards ceremony at the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts in Brisbane on Saturday 24 January 2009.

Full details here, including the complete list of finalists in all categories.

(I don't expect to win but I'm very happy to be a finalist. The Aurealis Awards mean a lot to me.)

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)

New interview up

Rusty Lime recently interviewed me about writing, the Hal books, and the relative merits of the C64 and ZX Spectrum.

And don't forget the chance to win a set of four Hal Spacejock novels on the Ebooks Just Published blog. (I can only see five entries at the moment, which means there's currently a 20% chance of winning a prize worth a hundred bucks or more. With odds like that it's surely worth entering? The prize includes worldwide postage, too.)

Simon Haynes is the author of the Hal Spacejock and Hal Junior series (Amazon / Smashwords / other formats)