Imagine you’re in one of those restaurants with pictures of famous people on the walls actually signed by the same famous people. Lots of big shots trying to look like big shots and lots of little shots also trying to act like big shots.

Imagine me in such a setting. What am I wearing? Ummm…how about I’m dressed like a gangbanger (I just finished an Elmore Leonard novel). So kewl corn rows, a red bandanna, and I point my gun sideways because it looks cool.

Okay, I’m in a t-shirt and jeans.

I’m pitching my story to the imaginary agent.

“Go,” he says I know I have approximately 10 seconds.

“I’ve got mad rhinos, Crucifiers, a man with no face, the Butcher of Taurin, and the secret of Folloman Finn.”

“You’ve got a rhino?”

“That’s right, a rhino.”

“You’ve told me what it’s got…but what’s it about?”

“A Troubleshooter, a demented killer known as the Butcher, a Far Plains Drifter, and a chick who is a whole lot more than a chick. And they’re all trying to screw each other.”

I don’t know how it would go after that.

I reached 22,500 words today. So progress is being made. About 2/3s of the way through Chapter 2. Chapter 2! And here I was thinking I could jam this into a short story.

Originally, I thought this novel would probably reach around a 100K word count. I’m now thinking 125K…but then after editing, probably 110K.

I’ve been working just over two months on it…so about 10K a month, so I should be finished around Christmas. I have a feeling I’ll be finished earlier than that, however. The house took considerable time resources — with that out of the way, I’m pretty much free to work on this novel.

I’d like it finished by November 1st. Timed for the World Fantasy Convention.