My Great Year

Local Author Reports on 2021, A Most Prosperous Year

Novel #2 for 2021 arrives on 12/30.

Nothing earth-shattering or tl;dr here, merely a note celebrating what turned out as one of the best years I’ve ever lived. I reached a level both of personal best in terms of my health and physical well-being, as well as business success at our little hippie shop Loose Lucy’s, which had its best single-store year in the 25 years we’ve owned it. And it’s not even over!

On the creative front, how does getting another poem accepted, bringing the last two Edgewater County novels into print, writing a memoir, and finally editing, designing and publishing another manuscript by the late Michael Sullivan sound?

How do I do it? I get up every day and work at it. But years like the last few don’t come along easily or often. This much I accept. As such, I’m looking forward to taking it easier in 2022.

Latest posthumous novel from Michael Sullivan, coming from Mind Harvest Press in February 2022.

That’s right—I’ll spend the year editing the memoir, working on poetry, and a few Mind Harvest Press editorial projects; the family business will occupy the rest of the time. I have long-neglected household and yard projects.

Doesn’t sound like ‘taking it easier,’ does it? Trust me, the emotional stakes will be much lower than the completion of the memoir on top of getting two heavily autobiographical works into print, which was the last intensive, months-long ‘run’ as a driven writer I wish to endure. Seriously—I don’t mind staying busy, but the days of enormous, emotionally-weighted novel manuscripts are behind me.

Legendary bad-ass original literary novel finally makes it to print. This alone would have made the year for me.

Now, I never thought it would feel good saying that—all I ever envisioned was the writing of them, the successful completion, the idea that my work could generate ideas and emotions at a distance in readers, a type of magic.

But here we are.

Well, I did it. It was great. But now I’m looking for something else.

As reported elsewhere on the blog, poetry is part of the change I desire, but getting it published remains a tiring slog. At least it’s a few clicks instead of endless envelope-licking and stamps. Many rejections to get that one piece accepted this year, but in my favor, the majority of them are encouraging. So I have that going for me, which is nice.

Whatever else is to come, however, I know I’ll look back on this fine year with warmth and reverence. Life has never been better for me here with the wife and kitties, our nearly thirty-year family business thriving, and a shelf of books to show for a few decades of toil and stress. ‘Grateful’ only scratches the surface. Blessings, serenity and success to all of you who continue on this journey alongside me. You know who you are.