I cleaned up Draft 2 a bit since the previous blog post but froze it there and created a document for a potential Draft 3. Along the way I decided I wanted a cover to focus the project, and wound up creating such a good one that I seem to have prodded myself to someday publish Zarreich. It’s really up in the air; Draft 2 can’t be published but I’m not sure what will follow.  Yet the cover seems to compel me. There are actually two draft covers; I bought two images, but the first (highway to city, iStock.com/bulgac) is better–though the second (brown city, iStock.com/mppriv) probably more accurately conveys what the city of Zarreich looks like:

I still don’t know whether to feel proud that I pulled “the real novel” out in Draft 2 or whether this is some idiocy I should be ashamed of! Would I want anyone to read Draft 2? I do need some time to consider whether I should attempt a Draft 3, a true reboot. A few interesting ideas for changes have arisen in the past few days, but it’s time to let this thing lie fallow awhile and see what subconsciously unfolds.

I see Zarreich as something that might develop and emerge, though I have the responsibility to make the right decision on whether to publish.

copyright 2024 by Michael D. Smith

Zarreich – Character Images