So... I'm going to give traditional publishing another try. I've gone through my files, and I'm going to edit my... ahem, "finished" books so that they're presentable for agents. I don't think I can do it without an agent. I've resubscribed to Poets & Writers so I can access their literary agent database. Once I get off my ass and EDIT my first novel, Devil's Town, I can start submitting it... if I'm certain that's the one I want to circulate. As my first novel, written when I was a teenager, it's dated, and ill-researched. I guess that's all the more reason to give it a fresh look and try to bring it into the 21st Century.
I suppose I could try submitting something else... I have about four or five completed novels, but they all need a lot of work. My contract for Relic is almost up, but I don't think I want to try to pimp that one again yet. The Odic Touch could use a professional touch, but I'm happy keeping it online for now.
I would like to eventually publish everything I have written to completion, but not in its current state. That means, I have to "kill my darlings." One thing I have to cut is my use of non-verbals in dialogue-heavy scenes. I always thought it was a GOOD thing to describe the scene as two (or more) characters carry on a conversation. Nope. The dialogue itself is more important than the non-verbals, so I don't need them!
If I start with that... just go through every manuscript and delete everything but the quotations in a conversation, I'd probably go from novel to short story in an hour or two...
I have options. I could continue the indie path, which isn't lucrative nor likely to immortalize my name... or, I could edit like hell, track down agents, and do things the old-fashioned way. I think I'd rather be mainstream/literary than indie. And on that note... I guess I'll go face my fears and start hacking away with the old Editing Machete! Watch this blog for updates...