Yes, it’s a cliché title, but it gave you an idea what to expect, didn’t it?
You may have noticed a new structure here on the Station. Particularly, the publishing of a single chapter in multiple parts.
This may seem strange given the fact that previous series had their individual chapters all in one station. Sure, some of them were short, and their sections were classified as “parts” (or other metaphorical titles) rather than “chapters.” However, there were other series such as “Treasured Pair” with chapters that were well beyond two thousand words long. That is beyond the average word count for a station. Yet, they were still published as one station.
So, what gives?
Did people complain they were too long? Was it because I felt they were too long? Different target audience for the ongoing series, perhaps? Or am I just dragging out the content? Giving myself less work?
Well, yes. It’s a blunt way to describe it, but I am pacing out the stations slower.
With good reason.
Allow me to take this moment to address the situation.
I am writing a novel. Not the novel I’m currently publishing on the Station. A different title that may be familiar to longtime travelers of the Station. The story titled, “Of A Flower.”
I’ve been working on this novel for quite some time now. Before the conception of the Eighteenth Station, in fact. It was part of a larger project before, and now that the academic side of that project is over, I decided to focus on the writing once again. The goal is to finish the final draft before the end of 2019.
The story has proven to be a huge undertaking. The plot is not easy to write. It requires considerable research and extensive world building. There are many ideas I want to convey. Additionally, there are several emotions I want to elicit from the reader not just for the story’s sake, but for the artistic vision.
Finally, I have high expectations for its quality. To give a sense of where the bar is set, I intend this to be my breakout novel.
Given the amount of time and effort it takes to achieve that goal, I am left with two options:
I could slow down the amount of content I publish every week. Or, I could publish my drafts on the station as weekly posts. I’ve done this here and there, however, as I stated before, I don’t want the station to become a Google Docs revision history. That’s not the perception I want for the Station. I want to keep the content fresh.
I may still post a few drafts every once in a while. Other than that, the two projects will stay separate until the novel is finished. This means I will be working on two stories at the same time, on top of the other work I must do to sustain my expenses. In this early stage of my career, I am not experienced enough to work on two creative writing projects with the same granularity. Perhaps, one day I may be able to, but that day is not today.
Thus, for now, I must spend less time writing here. I am addressing this not just because I felt that the quality of my writing lately has been unacceptable (along with the fact I am experimenting with an alternative form of my writing style). I also felt that, given the level of transparency I started this Station with, it was important for me to update all of you on the change of structure and what it means for the next few months.
To be clear, I will still publish every Friday at 20:00 UTC-5. The trains will still run. That is one record I am stubborn to keep. But if not the frequency, then the quantity must be adjusted. I appreciate all of your support for this tough transition, and I will be sure to keep you all updated going forward from here.
That’s all for this announcement. Thanks for reading, and have a good evening.
— taikode