The latest edits on Famished: The Commons were delivered to Apocalypse Ink Productions as of Friday, December 27.

Despite the effort, it was a truly rewarding experience.

What did I learn in the process?

I improved my sense of tense. I watched many, many educational videos online and subscribed to podcasts such as Grammar Girl in an effort to improve my technical chops.

Deadlines are a must. When I have a deadline, work is easy. Without it, time starts to escape me. I’ve determined my first required deadlines for Famished: The Ranch: a full set of character descriptions and a story outline, due by February 2.

Tea and darkjazz. At least for Famished: The Commons, I got a lot done thanks to music like The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble and Zoe Keating. And keeping a steady stream of green or blackberry tea let me forget how cold it was in my writing studio.

The Shiny New Idea. By November, it was clear that I couldn’t keep up any side projects while I attacked this deadline. While I tried to keep blog posts coming, I shelved all other art and writing projects until the day I delivered. That was the most frustrating part of the process, but in some ways the most interesting – I kept a list of all the ideas I wanted to be working on, and reviewed it on New Year’s Day to select my next obsession.

At times, it was a chore. At times, I wanted to quit.

In the end, it was worth the effort.