The Karate Kid
Last month I started by talking about how much I was looking forward to my trip to Japan. This month I can confirm that Japan was wonderful. There were definitely some hiccups; the work part of the work trip was frustrating and unfulfilling, and also due to a misunderstanding of laws we weren’t able to rent a car for the month in Okinawa. As a result, I did an awful lot of walking during the month!
I was fortunate in that the area of Okinawa we were in was very, very walkable, which was an exciting change from America. For longer distances we relied on the taxi system, which was very affordable. We stayed near the Miyagi coast, which was beautiful.
Then there is the food. First, during my layover in the Haneda airport in Tokyo I had a bowl of ramen that was better than any bowl I had ever had before. In Okinawa we had a local shop that was better than the Haneda airport. The best part? That bowl in Okinawa, that handily beat any bowl of ramen I’ve had in America, was a little over seven dollars.
Needless to say I ate a lot of ramen.
The rest of the trip I had karaage, soba, yakiniku, Kobe wagyu, takoyaki, and of course, sushi. And so much more. We also ate at some burger places, where I had some of the best fries and the best onion rings I’ve ever had. And the burgers were awesome too! Shopping at the konbini and Japanese grocery stores was so fun too. I could talk about food in Japan for ages.
Tokyo was an experience. It’s so much bigger than I expected, even after studying the map! I took time to go see the moving Gundam in Yokohama, and also spent a fun evening in Shibuya with two of my best friends in the world.
I get to go back to Japan in May as the second part of this work trip. This time we’ll have a car, so I’m hoping to see a bit more of Okinawa!
Tokyo Drift
March was a busy month. The first two thirds of the month I was in Japan, so between work and exploring I was exhausted. That said, I still managed to do some fixes for Pallas Found, including starting two new chapters! I’ve been debating on whether or not to change the title and move the “Pallas Found” title to the third book. Nikki says I should.
Speaking of titles, I still don’t have a good one for the short story. I submitted it for critique without one. I’m decently happy with where the story is at, though I’m sure that there is a lot of room for improvement too. I also started tweaking a second short story to send to a future critique session.
I’ve also started the “Story So Far” section, though it’s frustrating. The worst part of querying for me was writing a good synopsis, which is exactly what this is. I suspect I’ll need another three or twelve passes before I’m happy with it.
During April I’m hoping to finish up the extra chapters for the sequel and incorporate the rest of the critiques and suggestions from my Alpha readers. Once those chapters and edits are done, I’ll make a call for Beta readers with the hope of a quick turnaround. That is also when I’ll start doing the front and after matters and formatting. Oh and design the cover!
At this point I’m going to admit that I am definitely not going to make my idealized release month of May, ha ha. I’m giving myself some time and soft aiming the release for September.
Goals Update:
This is my sixth newsletter! I’m officially halfway through the first year of this newsletter. I just hit 36 subscribers, so I’m a little behind. I’ve also not been pushing or advertising it much as I should. To be fair, life has been a jerk lately.
Please, if you can, share this newsletter to your friends and family!
Thank you so much for following and reading! Don’t forget to subscribe, like and comment. Let me know what you want to see more of from this newsletter! Engagement is crucial. I look forward to posting throughout 2024!
Congrats on 6 months babe! So proud of you. Someday we'll celebrate in Japan together. <3