I finished the first draft of The Apocalypse Corpse yesterday. I feel nearly dead myself.

It was the most intensive, feverish writing experience I’ve had yet, as I wrote around 80,000 words, or just under 300 pages, in three months (I started the book Jan. 1). I was hoping to have a first draft done in six months, so I’m happy and surprised to have managed a draft so quickly. And burned out.

It’s a very rough draft, and I imagine it will take at least another three months to polish the next draft, fill in the plot holes, etc. And then, me being me, I’ll want another half dozen drafts to polish things some more before I send it off to the agent. But the good news out of all this is you should be reading a new book from me sooner rather than later.

Oh, what’s it about you ask? I don’t want to talk too much about it at this point, so I’ll just say it involves a repo man with amnesia, a billionaire who made his fortune off the Chernobyl accident, a beautiful hit woman, and a mysterious, dismembered body. Actually, it features lots of bodies. And body parts. And people losing body parts. Just another fun Darbyshire novel. Although I warn you now: this one is slightly weird.