A Dramatic New Direction for My Writing in 2026
It’s been an exciting ( and super busy) Fall here at Dan’s Books. Most notably, I published two books in 2025: the novel Stoker Rules and The Pumpkinseed Necklace, a collection of my nationally published short stories from the 1990s.
I’ve also made the decision that I want to be a successful indie writer and publisher, and I’ve read several books and watched numerous YouTube videos to learn new skills and reduce my learning curve.
One big change is to change Stoker Rules back to a standalone book instead of first in a series. This was not an easy decision, but it serves my larger plan better. Also, if Stoker Rules really takes off with a lot more readers and positive reviews, then there may be sequels. We’ll see.
A very big goal now is becoming much faster as a writer. I’ve been reading books like 1000 to 20,000 by Rachel Aaron and 5000 Words Per Hour by Chris Fox so I can increase my word counts significantly. I am already seeing results in the form of writing lead-magnet short stories as giveaways for those who join my newsletter. One was a mini-sequel to Stoker Rules called “Salt Water and Second Chances,” and the second was completed just yesterday: “The Small Chair,” which will go to people who sign up for the newsletter after reading The Pumpkinseed Necklace.
“Salt Water and Second Chances” was my first experiment at writing faster. It’s circa 7,700 words and I wrote it in just five days. “The Small Chair” is the actual proof-of-concept: I wrote it in a sustained writing sprint yesterday, clocking about 4,000 words in about five hours.
I’ve built writing time around my day job as a hypnotist and if I can keep to the schedule I am creating, I should be able to consistently write 4,000 to 5,000 words a day five times a week. That means that I can write around 23,000 words a week on average. I only need to do that four times to complete the first draft of a novel! It still feels a little bit like science fiction to think I might be able to write a first draft in a month or so, but I know it’s within my grasp if I am prepared and disciplined. Othe authors do it and I can learn to do it, as well.
So my ambitious plan for 2026 is to write two or three full-length novels. I am also planning a multiple-novel series, and the remainder of 2025 will be devoted to developing systems and using those to plan, plot (Save the Cat Writes a Novel FTW!) and maybe even begin the series. I’m doing market research to find a niche in a genre that I enjoy writing, and that will sell well once published. Again, I am reading books like Write to Market by Chris Fox to achieve this goal. I am determined to succeed, and I am prepared to work hard to do it. And the best part of it is that it will be fun!
I am baking that into the process. I had a blast writing “The Small Chair,” which is my first fully dedicated short story in decades!
I hope I can count on you to join me on this journey. One good way to do that is to follow me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1MuR4v4wdw/.
If you have read Stoker Rules and/or The Pumpkinseed Necklace you have my deepest thanks. Please write reviews on Amazon! These can help me succeed even faster. The new year is barreling toward us, and I still have a ton of work to do.
I am up for it. I’ll see you on the other side!