Daily Update: Camping Day Three
The sun and I have never really gotten along. When I was a kid and in the sun all day (and never without sunscreen) I would tan a golden color that my favorite daughter now does. Now if I don’t slather on sun screen on an hourly basis I turn a n interesting shade of pink that will start to itch and then I know it’s too late.
Today I am a little itchy and a nice shade of red. I will do my best to avoid the sun but I’m confident that I will darken a little more.
The wife is getting some spray sun screen and I will do my best to spray and slather as often as possible as we will be spending a good amount of time at the beach.
I had a crazy dream last night that had me as the star as my dreams often do. I was in an insane asylum. They thought I was insane as they do at these places. My neighbor had his wife living with him but ninjas came and killed his wife. I tried to explain this to the attendants but they threatened to lock me away.
Before I could escape, three ladies that looked as much like old hags as any old hags have looked gave me a test with some tiny sculptures that they claimed I made as a kid. I knew the work was far too good for my uncoordinated hands and before I had arranged them all in the box I smashed them all and escaped.
I found musket upon stairs trying to tell the person in charge that ninjas were trying to kill me. He didn’t believe me and they killed him. I was back on the run.
I found a white.backhoe and started digging a hole next to a white, picket fence when the white ninja found me. I smashed and hurried him. The person with me said “I’m glad that’s over.” But I had to explain that just because they appear dead doesn’t mean they are dead.
Once again I was o. The run.
Then the Millikan’s son got up, stumbled around the tent and nearly fell on me. I was face down in my pillow so I misses the entertaining fall, but still got a good laugh out of it.
Today will see more camping fun. I am off to go take more pictures of ducks.
Until Tomorrow!
Woo Woo!
Daily Update: Camping
Last night and today was a camping trip. Having far too much fun to say more at this time. I did get a pic of a duck though.
Until Tomorrow!
Woo Woo!
Daily Update: I’m not the world’s fastest writer
Before I get into today’s daily update, let me first say that today marks the 15th anniversary when I said “I do” to my wife. I love her as much today as I did when we got married. Probably more. It’s been a long time that we’ve been together and we’ve been through so much. I think that’s one of the reasons I’ve been so eager to re-write Of Gnomes and Dwarves. As I’ve said many times this is the first book I wrote. My wife (girlfriend at the time) was the first person to read it. Something about having he read my words and give me her feedback really spurred me on to believe that I can actually do this. Of course there was always the getting a job and doing regular work that prevented me from doing something I’m passionate about, but I’ve tried to make as much time as I can for my writing. She had always supported me and enjoyed it when something of mine saw publication.
I love you baby!
So as the title of this one suggests, I’m not the fastest writer. Yesterday was filled with challenges. Before I started work I wrote my daily update, a movie review, An Unorthodox Writing Tip, and a book review. I posted those throughout the day. My favorite daughter had a volleyball practice right after school. She has all week. I haven’t attended those because I’m usually finishing up work.
Work yesterday drove me mad trying to get everything ready for a major release. I had to make sure I had some database work done and ready. I had to bring my favorite daughter her bag for volleyball. I bought the wife a card and 15 roses (one for each year don’tchaknow). I had offered to interview Mr. Plested for his Get Published podcast because he’s got a book (Mik Murdoch) coming out in August. I had my major release of a large project I’d been working on that ran into trouble and went later that it should have (due to client issues not anything with my code).
Even with all that going on and working until 10:30PM last night I still found 45 minutes so squeeze out 1900 words in Of Gnomes and Dwarves. Yesterday’s total word count was 4694. I was stunned when I realized how busy my day was.
And to top it all off. I’m sick. I won’t bore you with the details, but it’s painful, my head is throbbing, the weather is messing with me big time. I’m not a happy camper physically, but nothing can take away the joy I feel about having gotten so many words written. I know all this will need some good editing, but the story is moving along nicely. I’ve gotten the pacing down so that it’s not break-neck speed right out of the gate and I feel that I’m keep the original intent of the story with its elements of humor, drama, and character interaction.
One of my biggest peeves about D&D related stories is that you either started with a party and off they went on grand adventures, or they met at a tavern, started drinking, and went on an adventure, or they needed to save the world. My story doesn’t do that. At least not at first.
As I’ve said I’ve got a plan for these books. The first is just the beginning and you’ll be able to see a lot of threads that I intend to clean up as I go along in the series. As fast as I’m getting through the words in book 1, the story is just starting to get moving. There’s so much more that I need to pack in there that this will be a good book. Not too long, not too short. I’m shooting for 70,000, but I think it’ll go beyond that. I might bump my goal up to 90,000 and see where it lands.
There’s a lot to get done today. There will be camping this weekend. With all the words I’ve put out in the last couple of days I’m currently 30 days ahead of my annual goal. You don’t know how good that feels. Words are coming easier and easier the further along this year goes. If you’re a writer and not writing daily, I ask you one thing: Why?
I’ve got packing to do for camping, food to buy, words to write, pictures of ducks to download (I should be able to see some while I’m camping) so…
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Book Review: Flash Gold
I’ve read some stinkers in my years. With the glut of ebooks out there and so many people forcing free ebooks and eshorts into my hands these days, it’s easy for one to get lost in the shuffle.
But every once in a while…
As a Reader: I was in the mood to read a novella. I had seen this one out there for free and grabbed it up about a month or so ago. I was in the mood for some short steampunk and decided to give this one a shot. I had just gotten done with two other free ebooks and when I say done I mean I wasn’t even halfway through when I decided they weren’t worth the effort.
Then I started Flash Gold. Right of bat I was sucked in. Our hero was in trouble and needed to find a way out of it. People were out to get her. Yes, her. Been a while since I’d read a female protagonist done well so I kept going. My intention was to just read a little bit and go to sleep. I’m glad this was a read because I didn’t get back to sleep.
Unlike some stories I’ve read where the steampunk is window dressing, Flash Gold keeps it right there in the forefront. The technology of the Yukon is just as much a character as anyone in the story. From automotons to airships to steam powered dog sleds (minus the dogs). Even the mystery of what exactly is Flash Gold.
I got done with this one and immediately went out and bought the sequel. I know it’ll be as much fun as the first and I’m curious to see where Lindsay is going with this one. Check her out over at (http://www.lindsayburoker.com/).
As a writer: I hate it when I’m reading a book and I see the ending coming after page 1. That did NOT happen with this book. I really enjoyed not only Lindsay’s writing style, but her pacing and build up as well. We’re thrust into her world and kept there following our main protagonist all the way.
I liked the strong female protagonist. Her father is gone and she’s left to her own devices protecting the secret of Flash Gold. This made for great confrontations with villains and a race that she needed to win. My only complaint is there is so much story to tell here that I was sad once I got to the end. But it was a free ebook and I’ve already got the sequel lined up in my queue to read.
Recommendation: This is a free ebook and not just any free ebook. This one will be a gateway that will lead you into more of Lindsays work with no financial investment. It’s a fun, light read that you will get through quickly because so much happens in such a short period of time. Do yourself a favor and grab this one. You won’t be sad that you did.
Movie Review: Battleship
A lot of good and bad things have been said about this movie. What did I think? I think it all started with a chicken burrito. *Warning: Potential Spoilers.
As a viewer: I went into this movie with very low expectations based on reviews. I wanted to see the movie because it looked like fun, not because it looked like I might learn something. I knew it was going to be a generic alien invasion story and little else. It didn’t have all the build up that the Avengers had as it was based on a board game I used to play as a kid. The only part I was disappointed in was that the tag line from the old commercials wasn’t included. You remember the line. “You sank my battleship!”
The movie starts us out with our main character getting into trouble trying to get a chicken burrito for a girl he’s trying to impress. Hijinx occurs and the bad brother is in trouble once again. His brother forces him to join the Navy or move out of the apartment they share. You can guess what happens.
We also get to see some satellite dishes pointed to the stars and sending out a “Hello” to the nearest neighbors on a habitable planet. Ok. I’m fine with that. Obviously, because of the previews, they come down to say hello. There are a lot of fun scenes where the alien fires weapons that look like the battleship pegs and the stick into the ships and then ‘push’ down and explode. I got a good laugh out of them including that. I also got a good laugh out of them using the tsunami buoys to track where the aliens were. They didn’t show up on radar so this grid of buoys allowed them to ‘see’ where they were at. So they called out letter and number coordinates to track where they would fire. I also liked this clever inclusion that tied back to the game.
No surprises in this movie. Just a fun, alien invasion movie like in the good old days. I enjoyed the nod to the retired Navy personnel as well as their being used to help fire up the old battleship and head out to fight the aliens. If you’ve never been on a battleship, they’re HUGE! Big old gun. Heavy plating. Everything is analog on those suckers. They’re fun ships.
As a writer: Let’s get this out of the way first. Bad boy turns his life around to save the world. Very tired trope. Been done a million times. I’m just glad they didn’t go on and on about his past and what he needed to do to redeem himself. It wasn’t needed, but added a little humor to the film. If it weren’t for that, none of the characters in the movie would have any dimension at all. They’re all pretty much interchangeable with any of a thousand other characters. Many are there for cannon fodder and when you’re talking about an alien invasion movie, that’s to be expected.
The plot, what there was of it, was pretty tight. No real loose ends. The character development isn’t so much that our main hero needs to change as much as he doesn’t really have a choice. He’s forced into a situation, saves the world, and is right back to being himself. At least as best as we can tell at the end of the movie.
Nothing special to see here. It’ a movie to entertain. Little else.
Recommendation: This isn’t a movie that will change your life. It’s going to give you a couple of laughs, some good eye candy with great special effects, and a half-way decent story. Unlike many movies I’ve seen that have no real plot at all, this one does a pretty good job. If’ you’ve got $10 burning a hole in your pocket and are tired of seeing the Avengers for the 37th time this week, take a break and check out Battleship. Go in with the expectation that it’s not going to blow your socks off, and you’ll enjoy it.
Daily Update: More words than you can shake a stick at.
Had another great writing day yesterday. I’m hopeful for another repeat performance again today, but I’m not sure if it’ll happen or not. Why?
My favorite daughter had volley ball practice (two 2 hour sessions).
I’ll be doing an interview.
I have a major release for work tonight.
I need to get things ready for camping this weekend.
If I can squeeze in a little writing time, I’ll be happy. Maybe I’ll get lucky. Who knows. I do need to get a new Unorthodox Writing Tips written and up. I had written five weeks worth some time back and those have run out. I need to take a fiction break and write a few more so I don’t have to stress about those. I need to get a couple book reviews out. Speaking of reviews…
Recently I had listened to Rendezvous with Rama. It’s a great concept, but he story is told with large data dumps and paper cut-outs of characters. The only real substance is the actual concept. So I’m onto Rama II. I remember reading this book when I was younger (I think 15 or 16) and I had liked it at the time. I’m listening to it on audio now. I’m a couple hours in an… nothing has happened yet. When I say nothing I mean there was a nearly 45 minute data dump on the Earth’s history to get us to that point in the story. Based on my experience this is most likely what Clarke added to the story. He’s great at data dumps and huge amounts of ‘telling’ a story. So far I don’t like any of the characters. There seems to be a great attempt to make them more than what they are. I’m bored with it. Seriously bored. To the point where I most likely won’t finish the story and I doubt I’ll continue on into books 3 and 4.
If you’ve made it through Rama II and the subsequent books, am I giving up too soon? Should I skip ahead? Will the books get any better? I hate books that dump information and drag the story on. So far 100% of what I’ve gotten through so far has added nothing to the story so I feel I’ve wasted my time. This book is suffering from bloat.
Sorry, just had to rant there for a moment. I think I’ll move on to another book before this one lulls my brain to sleep and starts to affect my writing.
Little tangent there. Sorry about that.
Oh, some curious news. I saw I had gotten a couple of hits when I mentioned Jay Lake in a post. My post about censorship. To his post today over at (http://www.jlake.com/blog/) he mentions a post he might not put up or will be censoring. This after I noticed someone came to my page after searching on Jay Lake. Curiouser and curiouser. Did Mr. Lake find my post? The world may never know.
HEY! Quick maintenance question. I have everything set up so if you are subscribed to the blog via email and reply to the email you get it should be adding a comment to the blog. That doesn’t not seem to be happening. If you’re getting these posts via email and have replied, I’ve never seen it and it didn’t post a comment to the blog. If you know how to fix this, please get a hold of me and let me know. I’ve already looked online and everything suggested to have checked in the options I’ve done. So color me confused.
I’ve got work to do and duck pictures to download.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: It’s difficult to stop a moving train.
I will be writing as much as humanly possible again today. You can count on that. My word counts for the past few days (blog posts and fiction) are as follows: 1532,2629,1926,2572,2038,3714,3134. I hope to get over 2000 yet again today. I’m on a roll and it feels GREAT! Words are falling out of my head. I’m adding new scenes. I’m a writing fool I tell you. I’m nearly 25 days ahead of my annual goal. This will make vacations a lot easier as I won’t be stressing about not writing fiction each day (I will still attempt to blog daily).
I’ll be interviewing Mr. Plested tomorrow for his own podcast. I’ll be recording Golden West this week. I’ll be recording lines (audition lines) for J. Daniel Sawyer. I’ll be recording an episode of Unorthodox Writing Tips. I’ll be busy as I can be and loving it.
The way Of Gnomes and Dwarves is falling into place makes me very happy. Everything about the new plot lines, the character development, making it fresh and easy to read, I’m just enjoying it all. The original was roughly 60,000 words and it lacked in so many ways. The new version will likely be 90,000 or better, but it’s not feeling bloated as I’m writing it. It’s feeling like a real book. Like an actual epic fantasy story should feel. It’s difficult to describe, but I’m just so happy with the words and I can’t wait to share them with the world.
What are my plans for this story?
Glad you axed. (little plun there, Willie has a big axe and he isn’t afraid to use it).
I’ll most likely be self-pubbing this one. I’ll get a professional cover done. I’ll look at getting the insides professionally laid out. I’ll get great editing for it. I’m going to do this one right. I’ll be reworking Astel sometime this year also. Mostly just getting the editing done better and leaving it out there.
Why am I going to do this one on my own? Because I have so many plans for this one. I plan on writing a lot of books in this universe. Short stories. Character descriptions. I’ll be getting art work done. I’m going to have a lot of fun with this one. I’m going to do this one better than I did Astel (which I kind of let fall flat, sadly). I’ll also look at doing the audio and getting that up on podiobooks once the ebook is out and ready for consumption. This way as people listen they’ll be able to find the book.
I’ll tell you this now, once you get into the story, you’re not going to want to wait and see what happens next. No, really. It’s a fun and fast story. Just you wait and see.
I’ve got some other regular world things to go and do. We’re going camping this weekend. I need to pick up a surfboard and mount it for my favorite daughter’s old middle school. I need to order a new mouse.
OH! New Mouse! I’ve made up my mind. I’m going to get the M.M.O. 7. This was the one I thought might be too pricey, but I figure I spend all day sitting at the computer, why shouldn’t I have a really good mouse? Yeah. Why not? It’ll help me download pictures of ducks faster so I can finally write that duck post and people can stop asking me what this obsession I have with ducks is all about.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: Like a new pair of socks in an old pair of shoes.
I’m not a fan of putting anything on my feet. I’m barefoot unless I need to go outside and even in the coldest of weather I’ll be wearing flip flops. I really don’t like having my feet confined. If I do put anything on my feet, I love the feel of new socks. It doesn’t matter if they’ve been washed once or a thousand times. Old socks suck. On the contrary, I love the feel of an old pair of shoes. New shoes are tight and confining. The make my feet feel tired after wearing them for a short time even if I’m wearing new socks (which doesn’t happen often).
But when I slip on a brand new pair of socks and an old, broken in pair of shoes, my feet feel happy. It’s one of the only times when they’re confined that they have that level of comfort. Any other time, if you see shoes on my feet, I’m unhappy. My feet have this need to be free.
So what’s all this about socks and shoes?
I’ve put on a new pair of socks. My writing have changed/evolved/grown over the past 25 years of putting words down on paper. I’ve learned how to tell a story. I have a fairly good idea what works and what’s on shaky ground. I need help from time to time, but my stories and characterization have gotten stronger. When I put down words it’s like slipping on a new pair of socks in that I’m comfortable in what I’m doing.
What about the old pair of shoes? Well, Of Gnomes and Dwarves was the first book I wrote. It’s gone through many iterations, multiple false starts, and more pain ans suffering learning how to write than I care to talk about. But it’s my pain and the characters in the stories haven’t really changed much over the years. They still run around inside my head killing ogres, trolls, goblins and orcs. That’s what they do. It’s what they did. They’re my old pair of shoes that I can throw on any time no matter how ratty they look and be happy with them on my feet. They’re so comfortable that I can walk for miles.
I’ve been writing new words in Of Gnomes and Dwarves. Not only that, I’m adding new scenes. I’m cranking out words like I used to. I’m 5 days in and I’ve written 9500 words thus far. The best part, I’ve cut out a lot and put in so much that those 9500 words don’t even have me getting the first two main characters to meet (that’ll happen in the scene I’m working on and I’m excited about it.)
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m always excited to sit and write. I love putting words down. I have a passion for writing or I wouldn’t have committed to making it a part time job. I would have instead done something else. But Maus, Willie, Reeg, and Dorg are fun characters. Being that I’ve written the first four books (which will serve as nothing more than plot outlines at this point) I know what’s coming up next in vivid detail. I can make references to characters that won’t be introduced until books 2 or 3. I’m adding a level of detail that the world never had before. Sure the characters were fun, the story was a good one, but the writing overall was weak and needed to be greatly improved.
I’m making those improvements. I’m having so much fun being back in that world. I can’t wait to get into chapters where Maus and Willie… well, you’ll just have to wait. Just be happy in the fact that this is a fun story and will be a blast to read.
One of the things I’ve done that I didn’t think I was going to do. My stories were so short in the early days, that I had a story teller. His story had a prologue, interlude, and epilogue. So he would have three chapters per book that would follow his story and my plan was to complete his entire story arc over the entire run of the books. I’m not sure I’m going to include him at all for several reasons. The main reason being that my writing has changed so much that I can now take the same storyline and tell a much richer (i.e. Longer) story with the same story line without adding a lot of bulk that will make the story feel bloated.
For now, my brain is tired. My Favorite Daughter is having two volleyball sessions on Tuesday (today) and Thursday. I’ve got a major code release Thursday night. I lost one of my best programming helpers (Kiran, if you’re reading this, I miss you) and I’ve got so much work on my plate. I need to go to bed, read for a little bit, and then tackle tomorrow.
I didn’t have a chance to get more duck pictures downloaded so I haven’t written that duck post just yet. Soon. Very Very soon.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: Censorship
There comes a time when people need to learn about censorship. I’m not talking about networks bleeping out the naughty words on The Soup. I’m talking about people who “put it all out there” and will rant and rave ad nauseum. I know I have a tendency to ramble from time to time, but I’m not going into TMI mode and telling you about my bodily functions, the weird lump I found on my leg, or any number of ailments I might be suffering from. Sure I’ll tell you when I’ve a headache from my sinuses filling due to foul weather, but I’m not going to go on and on about what’s happening to me physically. That’s not where you’re here for.
You’re here for the ducks and I know it. (soon enough)
When I write, there are certain topics I won’t touch just because I’m not comfortable writing about those topics. That’s just how I’m wired. I might talk about these things with my friends, I might read about them, I might watch youtube videos about comedians talking about those topics, but it’s like roller coasters. Just because I enjoy them doesn’t mean I’m going to go and build one. I enjoy a lot of the media I take in, but when it comes to the work I produce I have an internal censor that won’t let me write certain things.
Why?
Am I afraid my mom would be embarrassed if her son wrote erotica? If you read my mother’s day post you know my mom can make sailors blush so no, that’s not a reason.
Am I shy? No, not really. If you’ve ever met me you know I’m not shy about going up and talking to almost anyone. That certainly isn’t my problem.
Am I a prude? Oh, if you saw my reading shelf you’d find Rigor Amortis on there. No, I’m not a prude. (I will review this book one day soon)
Am I just too weak to write about those topics? Heavens no. I don’t look at avoidance of a topic as being weak.
I think it boils down to having a different vision for my work as a whole and though some topics might entertain some people, I just have no desire to write them. When I’m done with a story I look at where it went and it tells the story I want to tell. It doesn’t plumb the depths of what I choose to avoid. My mind censors itself and only the story comes out. It’s nothing that I consciously avoid, it just doesn’t happen in my stories. I don’t have sex, I don’t have swearing. Those things, for me, just have no place in the stories I’m telling. If ever I felt a story I was working on needed something like that, I don’t know if I’d tell that story at all. Like I said, I do see a place for that, but not in my work.
When I write a story I like to think that anyone could read it and get something different from it. I try to add layers in there and when you read there’s more than just what you’re looking at on the top of it all. So if you’re a younger reader, you can enjoy the tale as told. If you’re an older reader and follow along with the many plot lines you’ll see certain threads that will lead you down a path and make you wonder where I’m going with all of this.
When it comes to what you read on these pages or in one of my short stories or even in my novels, my internal censor is busy at work making sure that I don’t produce something that can’t be consumed by anyone. V&A Shipping is about an inter-galactic beer run, yet has been calling “mini-van safe”. That’s just how I roll. I want you to be able to come here and be confident that I’m not going to suddenly have this rant that will make you wonder why you came here in the first place.
I had a point to all of this (and not just the on the top of my head). I guess I’ve been reading a lot of blog posts lately and some of them delve into topics I just wouldn’t delve into and others take on topics of controversy that I don’t feel I need on this site. John Skalzi did this with a post and eventually had to turn off the comments to his blog post because of all the internet trolls posting comments that he got tired of removing. Sure this brought in a lot of traffic to his site, but at what cost? Did he gain a new reader from all of that? To that end, had Jay Lake gained new readers with his in depth chronicling of his cancer?
I don’t know.
Will I gain new readers and followers when I don’t post topics that are overly personal or extreme in the controversy they could cause?
I don’t know.
Time will tell.
That is not to say that I won’t have a thought provoking post from time to time. I mean, ducks can really get the wheels turning.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
Daily Update: What a weekend
Yesterday started with going off to the park. We had planned on playing softball. We didn’t have enough players for two full teams, so with multiple soccer and volley balls laying around, we decided to instead play some kick ball. I got a nice little burn, but these things happen. After that we went to the Millicans’ house so we could see their oldest girl off to Prom. She looked beautiful and her date/boyfriend was also dressed to impress. We ended the day having carne asada at my brother-in-law’s house where most of the kickball players congregated.
We didn’t get home until after 9PM, but I still managed to sit down and knock out 2000 words on Of Gnomes and Dwarves. It feel so right to be back in this universe. I had a couple pauses as I renamed a couple locations, but it’s definitely time to write this story.
Today I was awake at 7AM. I’ve been waking up early lately. It’s weird. But I decided to use the time wisely and cranked out 1300 words before I hopped in the shower, rubbed my achy muscles (some I haven’t used since the last time we played softball three years ago) and took my favorite daughter to volleyball practice. Her ankle hurt a little but she’s doing much better now. It’s great to see her playing instead of just helping.
We relaxed for a bit and headed back to the Millicans’ house and the boys went to go see Battleship. A fun movie that I will review tomorrow.
I’m glad I got my words done this morning so I don’t have to worry about getting them done. It felt good and I’m already adding new scenes that the original didn’t have. Scenes that will make the story feel more complete. I always knew the book lacked something and as I said before, I now know what it was lacking.
I’m now coming up on the 4000 word mark with that story already. It’s just flowing off my finger tips and it feels great. I don’t need to think too hard when it comes to these characters. They’ve been in my head for so long it’s like catching up with old friends.
My brain is tired. Lots of food has been eaten this weekend and my brain just wants to go to bed. That’ll happen soon enough.
I’m sad I missed the eclipse, but I will see many pictures all week long I’m sure.
Speaking of pictures, I need to find more pictures of ducks and I’ll get that long awaited duck post written.
Until Tomorrow!
WOO WOO!
J.R. Murdock 