What's next for Gischler? Good question.

In two weeks (give or tale a few days) I will have wrapped the current novel I'm working on, a thriller for Macmillan.  I'm working with the same great editor for whom I wrote STAY.  It's been awesome.

But ...

I'm looking forward to wrapping it up so I can pivot to the next project.  I'm contracted for a comic book thingy, so I'll be working on that obviously, but I need at least one more project and can't decide between a few choices ... all of which I'm excited about.  Part of me wants to juggle all of them, but I took my lumps learning a guy can get burned out trying to do too much too fast.  And old man Gischler needs his sleep.

Some of these things are "wait and see" projects ... meaning that I'm excited about them creatively, but I'd need to wait and see if they actually turned into anything.  For example, I had a nice call with a producer about a week ago, and she suggested I write a TV pilot to show as a sample.  I'm keen to try this, but it's not the sort of thing that'll put food on the table ... I mean, maybe down the road, but not immediately.  Another filmmaker and I have hatched a plan to come up with an idea that can be shot on an ultra low budget but still look like a "real movie" ... as opposed to something middle school kids shot in the backyard with smartphone cameras.  I'm writing a page here and there.  I'd love to get on a roll and finish the thing.  But again ... a "wait and see" project.

So ... yeah.  I want to work those things into my schedule.  I'm excited about them.  But I also need to pay the mortgage.

Obviously, I need to be working on a novel, and at the moment, the main chunk of my enthusiasm is still for the fantasy genre.  Part of me wants the clean slate of a whole new world and cast of characters, and I already have an awesome idea and three chapters.  But the Ink Mage books have reached a lot of readers, and I'm equally excited to return to the World of Helva for more adventures.  I invested a good bit of creativity thinking up the system for the tattoo magic, and I feel there's more there to be mined.

So.  That's what I've been stewing on.  I guess I'll know in about 2 weeks what I've decided.

Or think up nine new ideas and try to write them all and explode.