Hello, all. I am alive, believe it or not. I am still trying to get into the groove of consistently writing both blog and novel. I am hoping to get some feedback about a pattern I have been noticing lately. I will have a good writing day (the words come steady and my back doesn’t hurt as much) and I pound out the 1500 with no problem. The next day becomes a different tale. I struggle to get out even half that amount and my back bugs me. Never fails me that I’ll have a  good day followed by a bad day or two (Tuesday is completely my fault, I acknowledge that.  Today?  No good reason) followed by a so-so day. Is it a matter of habit or just that I need to plant my rear in a chair and just crank something out?  More than likely the latter, one would assume.

On other news, FandomFest is coming here and I am a day away from (hopefully) getting the VIP tickets. I procrastinated in getting the tickets and I hope I am not too late. Since they’re advertising the event on the radio, I am hoping it is a good sign. Gillian Anderson is going to be there and I am getting a new camera for the event… not that I need a new camera or anything like that. The last time I went and used my phone’s camera the pictures of Bruce Campbell looked horrible. Since then I got a new phone and will have VIP seats. I am also taking the Friday off to attend all three days. God willing, next year I will be there as a vendor hawking my wares.

Nothing new here, to be honest. Trying to keep everything together as best I can without melting in the summer heat.  Hope your weather is a little more tolerable.

Sincerely,
Seething Apathy

I know that I have been away for a while, but I assure you that I am still alive. I’ve been trying to get 1,500 words done a day on my novel, so I’ve been doing that first thing in the morning, and after that I have only enough time to get a shower, lunch and get dressed for work before I head out the door. So, I think I am going to work on the blog in the evening, when I have so much more to say… or we’ll see how this works in the long run. So far, I have been fairly good about it, only had a couple of days that I couldn’t make the whole 1,500. I’ve even managed to finish a whole chapter and my mind is still working on the character in parts (I had a really good idea about her), so I have a lot of high hopes about this novel.

On some other writing news, I got my hands on a copy of Photoshop 7 and I still have the books when I thought I could handle learning it so long ago… and I think I am going to try it again. I’m hoping that through sheer chutzpa I can figure how to use it. No guarantees, but who knows? Maybe with some trickery, I could finally become something of a half decent artist. I mean, I learned to write from practice and reading books about it (seriously, no formal training at all – just reading and writing is all I’ve done), why not this? I still have some manga books in the back room, so I can try that. After all, the worse that can happen is that I show people a picture and tell me it’s a wonderful house… and then I tell them it’s supposed to be a woman. Well – OK, humiliation is the worst that can happen and I can live with that.

As far as things over here go – there has been little to mention. Just trying to get the novel finished by the end of September and I am trying to start up correspondence with a pen pal from Canada. Other than that, there is nothing really big going on. Oh, as some people may have notices – the hyperlinks in some of the past entries have been a little hit or miss… especially with .gif files. I got that taken care of – from here on out, every blue link will take you somewhere interesting and not just the Internet shrugging its shoulders and saying ‘I have no idea‘. Go on ahead and try them out.

Well, I should head off to bed, so I can get up and see just how clever Tyro can be under the most desperate of circumstances without any spiffy ushabit powers save stubbornness and memories of other people. Have a good morning, all.

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy

Good morning all! I went to sleep last night at 3 AM and woke up at 7 AM. Since I can’t get back to sleep right now, I am going to do this, try to finish up an act in my outline and see what happens with the rest of the day. The Tiny Tina DLC comes out today… and my prepaid Xbox subscription happens to run out at the same time. Nice. I guess I’ll have to wait until I get paid to get it and try to avoid as many spoilers as possible. Yeah – good luck with that, I know.

I am still working on Tyro’s outline and I will finish the first Act today. I got about 85% of it done on Saturday and a little yesterday. The first act is four chapters long and (spoiler) and will end with Tyro getting some of The Great Book imprinted in her mind – setup in chapter 2 and 3. So, if I can really put my nose to the grind stone and hold off reading my favorite
Tuesday
web comics until work, I should get this act done. I like how everything is turning out in my head. Tyro is taking a different look to her from the earlier versions I had of her. I’ve got a good feeling about this one. I should – I’ve been working on her since ’97. I wonder if I should put up pictures of the people I have cast in my head for the series? Too spoilerly? We’ll see. First, I need to finish the outline. I also need to review Pixar’s Guide to Writing as I am writing the outline just to see where I can make some unexpected choices.

Yesterday was crazy slow, so I am not looking forward to today. Tuesdays tend to be more hectic (pro-tip, if you have to call into a call center for customer service, pick Thursdays or Mondays) for me, but at least it’s the last week of the month, so it’ll be a little slower…until it’s my break time of course. Well, it could be worse and they’d have me working the whole six hours. I could do that, but I would much rather get my fifteen in at the halfway point. I just wish they’d hurry up and close the shop down like the rumor says they’re going to do. Seriously, if I am there at Christmas, I will be stunned. I’ll also probably be on a suicide watch at that point as well. We’ll see.

Oh – I tried a service on my Blu-Ray player called Crackle. It’s fairly decent – it has The Dresden Files, which looks like it gets close to the series without going over (I recommend the books highly). I see some movies that look interesting and best of all – it’s free. There are some self-serving commercials, but really – they’re only 30 seconds at best and easily ignored. Check it out.

Well, I should get to the outline. I hope y’all have a good day.

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy

Good morning, everyone. I am awake as what some would call an early hour, whereas I am calling it ungodly, but I can’t get back to sleep, so I am going to go on ahead and get an early start to the day. At least it’s Friday and I am getting everything ready for the weekend lockdown to finish the outline. This is going to be a good weekend. I might even get finished early; if I do I am going to go see a movie. It’s a wide open weekend for me and I am happy to be productive.

Speaking of the Tyro outline – the only reason why I am doing this is because I/O Error is pretty much dead in the water. I turn it on and look at the screen with no idea what to do next to get to the next big scene. So, I am just going to move on and hope that something will strike me and I get back to ripping up The
Shepherd. I/O Error isn’t a tent pole series. It’s more of a ‘this is a neat idea; let’s see where this goes’ novel. I don’t want to be known primarily as a horror writer. Actually, if I had my druthers (whatever a druther is, I doubt I have many of those) I would want to be known as a fantasy writer. Right now, I would much rather be known as a successful writer – which I am working on when I can. Really.

I got all my banking taken care of – the woman was friendly, answered all my questions and was rather attractive (seriously, don’t they hire ugly people for banking jobs?). Today, I get to brave the Pits of HR and get everything reset to the new account. I am not going to cancel my NetSpend card, but I am going to use it to maintain a subscription to The Colbert Report and start my MLB subscription on iTunes and give Netflix a chance to impress me. If anyone who is reading this can tell me what’s good on it, it would be greatly appreciated. Next time I get paid, I am going to get the tickets for this and see some of my favorite actors there. Yes – there will be pictures. A lot of pictures. Since I am getting the VIP pass this year and a better camera, I am hoping to get a couple shots of the actors and actresses that don’t look like they were taken through a cat-filter lens.

Well, I apologize for another short blog, but I had to fix my PC and take a quick look at the Fandom Fest prices. I hope y’all have a good day.

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy

Well – this is no more. Apparently lawsuits were a-brewin’ and the owner of the site decided to pull it rather than go to court. So, now if I want my Art Bell fix, I have to find some old downloads I have or look for other streams that I can access. I am not happy. I like the Art Bell Show. I discovered it when I first started working third shift lo those many years ago. I like the paranormal and the fact that Art Bell never judged or called someone a crackpot – if you were on the show as a guest or a caller, you got the compliment of his full attention. There are rumors that he might return, but so far nothing has come of it. I will press on.

This weekend is going to be an outlining marathon. No cooking for me, so the local restaurants are going to get a fresh influx of cash. I want to have this outline done before Monday so I can hit the week running with 1,500 words a day (meaning I’ll have the manuscript done by the first of September). I might even get this whole finished and out the door by the beginning of the year. It would be nice to get a project finished, I have to admit. I just need to buckle down and work. This means I’m going to have to lock myself away in the office when I first wake up in the morning to work. I’ll have to save up for an artist, but that shouldn’t be a problem thanks to deviantart.

I am currently fleeing my current banking situation and have found a place where to put whatever money I get from work or from this little thing (I hear it’s pretty good). I’ve also taken to looking at office chairs – yikes. That might be a little bit of a long way down the road thing… along with a desk. Of course, I am going to need a match before I get the office together.

Sorry that this particular post is a little short and late, but the clock has been no friend of mine today. I promise that tomorrow will be a little more involved.

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy

Hello all – I have been having weirdly vivid dreams as of late (taking silver out of someone’s veins while they’re still conscious… anyone have the number to Dr. Freud?) and headaches in the morning. The headaches I can understand as being caffeine withdrawal and that can be easily fixed. The dreams? Nope, not going to try to venture into that beyond the work stresses bleeding over into my subconscious. I’m hoping to be able to remember more of them over the coming nights – you’ll never know when you’re going to get a good idea? Speaking of headaches… time for my caffeine fix of the hour.

The outline for Tyro is coming along and I am going to try something new in how I am approaching the tale. This blog has a very good article about the 5 act structure. Anyone interested in story telling (novelist, playwright, screenwriter, the time you were *this* close to sleeping with that famous person, and other types of fiction) should take a look at it. For those of you whose Internet time is at a premium, let me sum up (courtesy of filmcritichulk.wordpress.com [note: all caps is his idea, not mine])

• ACT ONE – INTRO + STATE OF PRE-EXISTING CONFLICT
  
• ACT TWO – THE CONCEIT AND PUTTING AT ODDS WITH PRE-EXISTING CONFLICT
  
• ACT THREE – THE TURNING POINT
  
• ACT FOUR – THE SPIRAL/ESCALATION OF CONFLICT
  
• ACT FIVE- = CLIMAX/CONCLUSION/RESOLUTION
  

You may be asking yourself what’s the big difference between the five act and the traditional three act structure? Simple: The five act structure allows for more detail in the story telling. Again – I also want to say this: act structures are not to be slavishly adhered to like the directions on a medicine bottle. In the end, it is what works best for you in telling your story. I like the 5 act because it gives me a clear idea as to the path the story takes. Now, notice that I didn’t say that each act had to be a certain number of chapters. If your first act is a sentence, then so be it. The ultimate idea here is that the 3-act, two-plot-point structure is somewhat limiting. In writing the outline for Tyro’s first novel, I am using the five act structure and it’s helping me get everything lined up. Whatever works, baby.

I am happy that today is Wednesday – the last couple of days at work have been treacherous to say the least. I think this weekend, I am going to do a little house-straightening (no – not arson. Arson is for house cleaning, straightening is much different in that it involves work) and throw myself into the outline and try to have it done by Sunday evening. No Xbox, no movies – might even forgo the Saturday Spam lunch for something in a bag that can be carried home and dinner will be thoughtfully provided by Papa Johns. I am certain that if I put my back into it, I can finish the outline in a couple of days and the novel in maybe two months if I write every day. Try to get back to the idea of treating this like the career I want it to be and not a side-gig.

Speaking of which…

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy

Hello, all – as you can tell by my post title, I am having a bit of a problem getting comfortable:

Now I bang my knees on the keyboard on top of having a sore caboose…I didn’t know writing would be fraught with such hazards.

I am considering getting an office chair…which means I would have to have an office.

Does anyone have a match I can borrow?

So…maybe during the weekend I can try to get this house straightened out a little bit and make it more useable as an office space. I might need more than one match then. Well – maybe not this weekend (I am going to go see this), but maybe over the course of next week I will try to get the room cleared out and reset a little to be more of an office and less of a ‘cast-off depot’. I might even get a new desk. I might even get an office. I might even get a secretary. But first, I might cut and burn away some things.

To writing – I am working on the outline for Tyro and it’s coming a lot faster. It might be the enthusiasm I have for this particular novel series. This is going to be one of the ‘tent pole’ series – the one I am really going to focus on… not to say that any of the other works are going to get less or more attention, but…the tent pole series are the ones that I feel the strongest about. The Ushabit Trilogy and the Spooksayer series (if I can get the first one finished) are the ones I really like. Most of the other one-shots are good, but they’re just a means to an end – like Ed Wood pitching “Plan 9” to the church to fund their Bible movies. Which reminds me, I should also work on the smut at some point. As expected – the schedule idea I had doesn’t really work for me:

Really? I know there are drugs to handle this, but I’m new to the neighborhood.

I think I’ll just do what’s best for me – working on something until I become disenchanted and switch to something else. It worked for Asimov, or so he said… then again – he has a book in every section of the library. I’ll get one in before I die.

Well – other than that there is nothing new here, so I should get to the outline. Hope y’all have a good day.

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy

Since I cut the cable I need to have a digital antenna so I can watch live TV (especially football in the fall). Yesterday, I went to Best Buy to see about how much a digital antenna would be (answer: about $30-$60) and whether or not it would work (“Sure, you’re close enough.“). So, when I get paid I’m going to get the antenna and get back broadcast TV. This is not the reason why I’m shaking my fist at Best Buy and getting odd looks. Just because I finished sooner than I expected, I thought I would look around at the computer section… you know… daydreaming. I saw the ChromeBook – an interesting little thing.

It was across a crowed tabled aisle when I saw it. It sat there, winking at me and saying ‘hey, sailor’. I floated to the table to pick it up. Light, responsive to my slightest touch, it was everything in a tablet that I never knew I wanted. I got my federal rebate a couple of weeks ago – the money that the government deigned to give me – and I had about $300.00 left over after doing a couple of house repairs. Luckily for me, I didn’t have it with me or I would be writing on how much I love my new tablet.

Do I need a new tablet? No, not really. I have a laptop, a PC and a net-top and Kindle Fire and an oft-ignored Nook Color. It’s got the same operating system as my smart phone and the same memory size. I don’t even need a ChromeBook (I have some reservations about something that requires a constant Wi-Fi connection to work), but I have to admit I was giving it a lingering gaze. I’m just a gadget-slut. I do need the antenna. I don’t need the tablet.

But I want it. I want it so bad I’m counting down the days until I get paid. Since this is the cable payment check, I am going to have a little bit more than normal, so the tablet (and the ChromeBook if I am feeling adventurous) is within reach. I also need to set some money aside since I am getting ready to switch banks. Something odd is happening with my messages from NetSpend – I am not getting them. I really don’t know what my balance is without getting on the computer… which I could do right now. Hey – I still have money! I am going to still join a real bank. I’ll just use the NetSpend card for reoccurring subscriptions.

Lest anyone here think I have gone completely off my rocker – I have begun outlining Tyro’s first novel and it’s going great. I have to admit that I like Scrivener. For a writing program, it’s fairly simple to use and it allows me to keep everything together and at my fingertips. It’s worth the $40.00 I spent. Too bad they don’t have a version of it for Android.

Well, off to do other things. Have a good day everyone.

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy

Hello, all – this Monday was a little rough for me. The plumbers had to come in and replace the toilet at 9:00 AM. So, not only was I having minor panic attacks, but I was also running on a few hours of sleep. When they left and I came down, I decided to take a nap and I had an odd dream. I am surprised I remembered it.

I was driving in my car to work on a particular stretch of highway (I-65 S for those of you playing the home game) by the airport. I was zipping along at a good clip – I know it was a dream because there no police pulling me over. This is a three lane highway and the lanes on either side were at a standstill. The lane I was in was barely occupied. It was just me zipping along. When I passed the airport, I saw something that looked like a toll plaza, but there was a chain-link fence on the other side. This is what was stopping the cars in the other two lanes. Ahead of me there were two other cars. I slowed down and eventually stopped. On the other side of the fence, there was no road, but what looked like a sea of lava within the confines of the road. On the other side it was the same landscape: the overpass, the clearings and the buildings were all there and unchanged. Just the road ahead of me was lava. The attendant there on the other side of the fence grabbed a big hose and started to spray the lava. The lava hissed, steamed and eventually cooled. He unlocked the gate and the cars ahead of me started to travel on this road. I followed, but a lot slower than what I usually travel. The road was bumpy and unmarked, but I still travelled it. When I came over the large hill is when I woke up.

I am following the schedule, so when I am done here it’s off to work on I/O Error. I am trying to get this novel done so I can go on to the next one-shot. As far as the series, I am going to go on ahead and start Tyro’s series. I’ve gotten some really good ideas about it, and I am amped up to start the big series. This is the one that I hope will put me on the map as it were. It’s a really good series (or it is in my head) and it’s one that I am very passionate about. I hope that passion will show itself in the work. I have to admit: Tyro is probably the closest thing I will ever have to a daughter.

As far as the smut goes, I did finish one (As Kinky as We Get) and I was working on another one when the week ran out (Appealing – spoiler, this one is based off a fantasy I have). I’m going to go back to it later on. As far as the smut goes, I want to have a three month buffer (6 stories – I plan on releasing them twice a month) to work with. I hope everyone has a good day. I should get to work.

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy

Well, the plumbing in the house has been acting wonky and since I came upon a windfall, I figured I would use it to get the bathroom fixed. I am not going to go into the details, but this is costing me a lot of money (charging me for the water coming in and going out? Stay classy, City) over the long run, so I’m going to try to stem the flood as it were. I hate to admit it, but so far this house has been a money sink. I’m still considering arson as a financial tactic, but we will see what happens. I am so happy I have some pain killers left over from the time I was sick – maybe they can take the edge off of having the plumber here. You’d think that as often as one shows up, I would have this many problems… but, no. A stranger comes in and I have to be peeled off the walls.

Smut continues, but it’s coming a little slowly as the week ends, so I am going to organize myself for a big push to finish one piece on Saturday before I head out. I might even be able to get both finished – one is at the half-way point and the other one is heading for an act change. I might even work on one a little bit when I get off of work today. I’ve got another couple of ideas, but they need to be fleshed out (ha-ha) before I commit them to the screen as it were. I’m kinda worried that there is only so much depravity I can claw my way through before I run out of saleable ideas. Oh…wait…I have Wikipedia. Never mind, then – let the smut flow. As you might be clicking on that link and thinking this, I am gambling that there are a couple of people out there thinking this and they’re going to tell their friends. Besides – I should try to do things that interest me, which will reflect on my work. Did I mention that I am a jaded, bitter middle aged, world weary person? Sorry, I should have put that in the bio.

The plumber is here, so I am going to get myself a shot of rum and wait patiently as he fixes (hopefully for the last time) the bathroom. I am still committed to having this house torn down and rebuilt once I either hit the lottery or sell enough books. Smut-ward, ho!

Sincerely,

Seething Apathy