• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to footer

Rhonda Zatezalo

Author. Dreamer. Designer.

  • home
  • about
  • blog
  • Become a Patron!
  • Fiction
  • Vargen Universe
  • Non-Fiction
  • All work

News

Alignment of Focus

July 3, 2020 By Rhonda Zatezalo

It’s July 2020.  Wait, what?

My last blog said something about 2018 and now we’re halfway done with this year. Yeah, it’s been a while since I’ve been in touch. I had solid plans for 2019 with lots of focus on fiction, and less focus on non-fiction. Turns out, life presented opportunities to focus on non-fiction and it was a good decision

Flash forward to now and guess what? I’ve been able to focus on my fiction and have new work ready to show you.

So, how do you get your hands on the new stories? Patreon!

Cover image showing Boston street in 1919

Many people don’t know what Patreon is or why an author would use it. (I know, they’ve asked.) So I’m going to try and answer those questions now.

Patreon is a platform that creators of all types can use to deliver content directly to their fans. Patrons (aka readers) set up an account and receive early access, exclusive stories, and behind the scenes content for as a little as a dollar a month.

Why Patreon instead of selling stories on Amazon? (or Nook, Kobo, etc.)

Right now, the stories I’m ready to share aren’t book length. Some are flash fiction, some are short stories, and others are still works in progress. Short fiction doesn’t sell well on the ebook market, and you certainly can’t sell unfinished work.

I want to provide finished stories to my fans and get some feedback on the unfinished stuff. This is where Patreon shines. It offers features you can’t find anywhere else. As a Patron, you get direct access to creators. You can customize your experience to get involved as much—or as little—as you want. Like to give feedback on stories? Great! You can. Want to just read content? You can do that too.

The benefits to creators are awesome too. One of my main goals is to be published by a large publishing house. Publishing houses and magazines have specific rules for unpublished work vs. reprints. By keeping everything behind the Patreon wall, anything I share there is still considered “unpublished.” Which makes it more enticing to publishers.

I’ve finished a new Vargen story, complete with hand-drawn cover art. It’s a fun tale that follows a Vargen traveler to the city of Boston in 1919. What should have been a simple information exchange, becomes a sticky ordeal after an explosion floods the North End. This story will be part of an upcoming Vargen anthology, but in July you can get it through Patreon. 

So what do you get as my Patron? New stories every month in a variety of genres that you help choose, the ability to provide feedback, a monthly hangout with me, and a look behind the scenes into a writer’s life. I’d love for you to join me on this journey.

Become a Patron!

Filed Under: Fiction, News, Uncategorized

2018 Focus on the Positive

December 11, 2018 By Rhonda Zatezalo Leave a Comment

articles and covers of publishing credits

I’m not shy with my world views. Check my Twitter feed and you’ll see what I mean. As such, 2018 has been a hard year. The attacks on our environment, on people and our communities, they drain me. Looking through the wide-angle lens, it’s been a hard year to be empathetic and yet feel powerless. There have been a few brilliant wins, but so many losses.

Zooming in to a personal level, we’re privileged to have enjoyed many successes among the challenges.  I’m writing this recap of the year because it isn’t easy for me to look past the things I didn’t do and shine a light on the things I achieved. I’d like to start a tradition–just for me–of stepping into the new year focused on what I accomplished, rather than what I didn’t finish. So here we go. 

Non-Fiction

Though 2018 was supposed to be my year of fiction writing, I published more non-fiction articles for the welding industry than any previous year. In fact, in 2018 I published more pieces than the last three years combined, and all of my business revenue came from writing. I guess that makes me a professional writer, yeah? 😎

I’ve interviewed company CEOs, YouTube celebrities, and entrepreneurs who are building their dreams. I love meeting these wonderful people and telling their stories. An article I wrote about the basics of welding was named to the top 5 most read content of 2017 for The Fabricator website. A first for me. In another first, two different articles were published internationally, and one of those stories was published in three different magazines. This year I’ve enjoyed a lot of success with my copywriting. 

Fiction

On the fiction side, my brain keeps telling me I’m slacking, which is why this review is important. I’ve actually accomplished a decent amount this year. I’ve written and submitted five stories, two of which were short stories for anthologies. Neither were accepted, but I can honestly say that I know why, and I’m a better writer for it. Later in the year I submitted the longer of those two stories, Truth Revolution, to a writer’s workshop at WindyCon. More about that in a bit.

Three of those stories were flash pieces for the NYC Midnight Flash Fiction contest that I like to compete in every year. My genres so far have been romance, drama, and suspense. I say so far, because I still have a day before I find out if I made it into the final round.  (Fingers crossed!)

The story currently under consideration is a suspense story set in an actor’s dressing room. I wrote this one while at a convention and I have pretty high hopes for it. Of the three flash pieces, the drama story is closest to my heart. The point of view character is a senior woman dealing with dementia. I used to work with seniors in this situation, so this one fits the writer’s adage of “write what you know.” The necessary Guest came in 2nd place for that round. I’m looking forward to getting them all published, but this one specifically. 

The Book

Please do not annoy the writer, she may put you in a book and kill you.
One of my favorite mugs, a gift from my brother.

Many people ask, “How’s the book going?”  I finished a polished draft in August. The current working title is Unraveled: Book One of the Vargen Chronicles. I submitted a query letter and the first five pages to an online contest called Pitch Wars. Authors chosen from this submission package are mentored for two months by professionals in the book world to polish the manuscript and query package to submit to agents. 


I wasn’t chosen. In fact, I didn’t get a single request for the full manuscript. 

Yeah, so where’s the positivity in that?    I FINISHED THE BOOK.
After three years of world building, and revising, and whining, and hard work, the Pitch Wars deadline gave me a fixed time I had to finish by. There were days I wrote more than 5,000 words– proving to myself that I’m capable of that. While I would have loved to secure a mentor, I knew I just needed a deadline, and damn it I met it. And in the process, I found out what it feels like to be my version of a ‘real writer’. (Don’t look too closely at that. We all have our self-doubts. Remember that “professional writer” comment above?)

So where is the book now? Back in revisions. After the rush of Pitch Wars, I had to catch up on other work. I set aside the book to let it “rest,” a common idea for both writers and cooks. The announcement of winning mentees was in mid-October, and I had to set it aside until then. When September went by and none of my four chosen mentors had requested the full manuscript, I knew I wasn’t going to be chosen. But life was full, and I was riding the idea of being DONE.

I rode that high a little too long. 🙂 Then one night in November, I had an epiphany. I was trying to fall asleep, but my brain was rambling as usual. Then WHAM! I had an idea. I pondered that “What if…” for a bit, then had to get up and write it down. That idea has since reshaped the book. I’m working through plotting out the changes which I believe will fix my concerns with the story. I’m excited about the big change and all that it represents, even though it means I’ll have to rewrite many scenes and revise 90% of the book. 

Welcome to the writer’s life. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Travels

Sunset at the end of the shadowed road.
Heading home after one of our trips this fall.

Speaking of the writer’s life, my version includes conventions, traveling, and of course meeting other authors. We tried out a new convention at the end of June. Steve and I drove down to Chattanooga, Tennessee for LibertyCon, a smallish science fiction convention with an author’s track. Overall it was a good con, but as two progressives amongst mostly conservatives, there were a few times we felt of place. Any other year this wouldn’t even be noticed, but times are difficult. 

In August we made our annual trip to GenCon in Indianapolis. This year I volunteered with the Writer’s Symposium. I had a blast seeing the inner workings of that part of the con. What a great group of people. As always, the seminars and workshops were interesting, and useful to people at every level of writing. I always recommend GenCon and the Writer’s Symposium.

Steve had to travel for work to Mississauga, Canada in September and I went along. Mostly I stayed in the hotel and wrote while he worked. I love Canada, and it was great just being there. It’s so much easier being gluten-free there. 

Last month we tried another new convention. WindyCon is a smallish science fiction and writer’s convention in Chicago, practically in our back yard. Again, the networking was excellent. I love the smaller cons for this. They offered a writer’s workshop for a small cost. I would go back next year just for this, but the whole con was good. The month before, I sent my short story, Truth Revolution to the organizer. I revised it since the beginning of the year, but I knew it still wasn’t “done” so I used it as my workshop story.

That Saturday morning me and two other writers met with 3 industry professionals and an awesome moderator to go over our stories. Each of us writers got to share our feedback of the others’ work as well as receive feedback from all present. It was a great learning experience and the feedback I received on my story was very encouraging. 

Well… except for the one person who told me I know nothing of grammar and my very first task after the con was to go buy a grammar book published between 1965-75 and learn how to construct sentences. At first, I was completely shaken because I’ve always considered myself a bit of a grammar nerd. But by the time she was done speaking, I realized that, though my piece wasn’t perfect, she had more issue with my STYLE of writing. I asked an editor on the panel if my assumption was correct, and overall, he agreed. **whew!** It was a great reminder of how speculative art can be and how our backgrounds inform our opinions. I still have to polish the piece before I submit for publishing, but I think it will do well.

Our next trip will be back home to Michigan in January to celebrate a late holiday with family before attending a convention in Dearborn. We’ve been to ConFusion once before and it was excellent. I’m looking forward to it. 

Health and Personal Notes 

I started 2018 in so much pain I couldn’t sit at my desk to write. I’ve suffered from back and neck issues for years, but November 2017 started something new. By mid-December last year, I couldn’t type, sit at my desk, or sleep in my bed. It took three months of pain medication and physical therapy before I could do those things again. By March 2018 I was still seeing doctors about it, but luckily the neurosurgeon ruled out surgery.

Meg on her perch, and Hurley underneath, watching their version of TV.

I still have bad days where I can’t be at my desk long. The pets join me in the library on those days where I relax in the recliner with my Macbook. On a good note, I learned how to use dictation software, and when it benefits me most–usually for non-creative writing.  I also learned different ways to stretch and manipulate my joints when the pain gets bad. Of course, I should be doing stretches and such every day, but damn do I find keeping a schedule hard to do. 🙂

Anniversaries

On a personal note, this year is the 5th Anniversary. Of what? Two things actually. Five years ago, on October 13th, I married my soul-mate, constant companion, and love of my life. We’re still very much in love, and we support each other in the best ways. (Ok, we also enable each other in some of our bad habits, but all the best friends do, amiright?)

December 20th celebrates the 5th anniversary of my business. The focus has changed over the years, but it’s still going strong. I incorporated my business on my dad’s birthday in 2013. He’d be 78 this year but we lost him three years ago. I miss him. He always told me to chase my dreams. To be who I want. Hey Dad, I listened. <3

The Future 

What does the future hold? Submitting, publishing, and lots of writing. Plans include finishing revisions on Vargen One and getting an agent to sell the series. I’ll be working to get several of my flash pieces published in magazines. My plans also include publishing more blog posts, but they’ll be a bit shorter. 🙂  I started drafting a new space opera book this fall. I’d like to finish that and plot out the rest of the Vargen Chronicles. There is so much I want to accomplish next year. I’m working on a specific plan to achieve these goals. 

Several acrylic paintings.
A few of the paintings I’ve completed this year.

I’ve always had more than one hobby, and this year I focused on painting, jewelry-making, and collecting fountain pens. I finished several paintings and was brave enough to share a few on social media. I really enjoy painting. Neither painting nor jewelry-making are easy on my back or shoulders, but jewelry making is the hardest. It is very detailed work and puts a lot of strain on my neck looking down all the time. I can’t do it for long periods at a time, but I do enjoy it.  

Fountain pens have become my guilty pleasure. Writing long hand with a beautiful pen with a wide nib and snazzy ink is a lovely experience. I now own a couple very special pens, have found a pen store within driving distance, and even featured pens in one of my stories. I write stories on my Mac, and probably always will, but journaling is usually long-hand.

For the rest of 2018 I’ll be making plans, finishing a few projects—including site updates, writing two short stories for anthologies, and spending time with family. I hope your year has been full of blessings, and the new year holds many more successes, a lot of love, and much joy. Happy Holidays.

Cheers!
-Rhonda

Filed Under: News, Non-fiction Tagged With: News, Personal

New Fiction Coming Soon!

February 26, 2018 By Rhonda Zatezalo Leave a Comment

I’ve written a lot of new fiction over the past year. Many of the pieces have yet to be published. Last year was focused on writing and exploring my craft. This year will be focused on publishing. Of course, that still means I’ll be writing—more than ever—but now you’ll have more opportunities to explore the stories I’m creating. So where can you find them? Soon there will be several ways to get your eyes on my work.

lightbulbPatreon

Yes, I’m finally launching a Patreon Page. There, for just a dollar or more per month, you’ll have access to short stories, snippets, and flash fiction. At higher donations you can get access to my art, handmade jewelry, or get involved in the creative process. I’m still working through the details of the reward tiers.  I’m planning to launch at the end of March in celebration of my 42nd birthday. There will be a special free download for everyone who pledges in the first 30 days. If you aren’t familiar with Patreon, it’s based on the concept of artists having a patron to support their work. It allows for people to support multiple creatives, and for creatives to get their work out to many patrons. It’s a wonderful platform.

Email Newsletter

In addition to Patreon, I’ll be sending out a newsletter once a month with updates to current projects, personal news, and the occasional look at upcoming projects. The newsletter will be just to keep people updated as to what’s going on, but there might be an occasional story snippet or poll on an idea. Sign up here or in the pop-up box.

twitter iconTwitter

I’ve steadily moved away from Facebook towards Twitter. I find Facebook to be a decent place to check in with friends, but I’ve found a great community of writers and readers on Twitter. You can find me there @rhondazatezalo. I tweet about current events, stories, things I love and of course, my photogenic pets.

person readingAnthologies, Magazines, etc.

I currently have a few pieces of short fiction out on submission. I’ll know if they’ve been accepted for publication it the next month or two. If they are, I’ll let you know where you can pick them up via the newsletter or the website.

And just where is Vargen in all of this?

Coming.

Book one of Vargen is currently sitting with a developmental editor. It’s not yet finished. I want to make it the best story possible. Hence the editor. Some of you know this, but for the many that don’t, a developmental editor looks at the story as a whole piece and helps eliminate plot holes or continuity errors. They also help make sure each part of the story is being told from the right character’s point of view. I’ll working to finish up the novel in the next few months. Then I’ll be querying agents and who knows where things will go from there.

Wild Portal Child is loose in the world as part of the GenCon anthology, Missing Pieces. The eBook version will be part of the reward tier for my Patrons. If you can’t wait to become a sponsor of my Patreon page, or you just want the very first published version, you can pick up a copy of Missing Pieces Vol. 8 here. This is an affiliate link, which means I’ll get a tiny compensation if you buy it through the link. Otherwise all proceeds go to the publisher.

Follow Cheyaron (and Werner) from Wild Portal Child  as they find (or lose) their way to into Book one. I have a series of short stories planned for my Patrons. I may make the stories into a collection that can be purchased on Amazon, but that’s a long ways down the road.

Oh yeah, this blog…

I’d love to say I’ll be posting regularly from now on, but yeah, life gets in the way of my best intentions. I’ll post blogs when the mood hits me, or I have things to say, or when there’s news to share. I’ll try to remember to put a link in the newsletters about new blog posts. They will be pushed to both Twitter and my author page on Facebook, so if you follow in either place, you’ll know when there’s a new blog.

I’m still publishing articles for the welding industry and you can find the latest ones on the website. As I move to more published fiction, the articles won’t be featured as prominently on the site, but they will be there.

That’s it for now. I have a lot coming down the pipeline so stay tuned, sign up for the newsletter, hit me up on Twitter, and watch for fun and prizes that will come with the Patreon launch.

Cheers!

Rhonda

 

 

Filed Under: Fiction, News, Non-fiction, Projects, random

Footer

with gratitude

Writing is an exercise of creation, but publishing is one of vulnerability. I am profoundly grateful to my friends, family and fans for their support and feedback. I’m also grateful to the critics–you help me stay humble and strive for better work.

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

Stay in touch!



Copyright © 2023 · Crearies · Log in

 

Loading Comments...