Coming 20 June
Category: Uncategorized
New phone!
We’d decided it was time to upgrade our phones and went with the Google Pixel 8a. We’ve had really good luck with this brand over the last few years and see no reason to change to anything different. The camera is supposedly even better than the previous iteration, so I figured I’d try it out by taking another shot out Spare Oom window looking north. Looks nice to me!
For the most part I don’t see too many differences but then again I’ve mostly been fiddling with the settings and deciding which apps can stay and which I’ll most likely get rid of eventually. [I mean, do I really need six food-ordering apps when I really only use three of them?] I would like to get back into the habit of taking more pictures again — I mean, other than shots of our two ridiculous cats — and maybe start using the sound recording app again.
And what am I doing with my old phone? Well, I’m planning on using it as an e-reader for the most part. Delete most of the apps on it but keep the Dropbox, Hoopla and B&N apps. Or maybe even continue using that as a camera as well? Who knows?
Third time’s the charm…?
Hmm. I’ve been plowing through this one scene in Theadia for the last two weeks and it’s taking FOREVER to get through. There’s so many things wrong with what’s ending up on the screen that I’m having second thoughts about keeping what I have so far. I know the problem: it’s a tense scene with a lot of important information that comes to the fore, but the execution of the scene is absolutely atrocious. There’s tension there, but it’s the wrong kind. And the whole scene is from a single person’s point of view and she’s so passive in it that I keep forgetting it’s her scene.
I think the issue here is that I’m still not entirely sure how the scene should unfold. It’s an important scene that needs to be there, where multiple story threads lead up to this moment, but the weave is weak and unstable. [Yes, I’ve been using this particular crafting metaphor a lot with Theadia. There is a reason for it.] What I need to do is map it out again. I did that for Take Two, and to be honest, I probably should have followed my instincts when it was clear this version didn’t quite resonate with me either.
So. What do do? I’m going to cut the entire thing again. Take Three. (Take One did the exact opposite and did a lot of telling-not-showing, which didn’t work either.) As always, I’ll paste this current version into my Outtakes file where I can use it for reference for the next attempt. Hopefully third time’s the charm, yeah?
Where is our intrepid novelist?
This moment? At Bobo’s Bubbles Laundrette on Earl’s Court Road in London, waiting for his laundry to finish.
Vacation is treating me well. Lots of walking and pubs and museums. And I have things to do and talk about upon return. See you soon!
We’ve arrived (and to prove it, we’re here)
Hi there! Remember me? That writer guy who used to blog all the time?
I’ve come back to the blogosphere after a hiatus of two and a half months, and from here on in I’ll be posting once a week on Thursdays. Why once a week? So I don’t repeat myself and so I can spend more time working on long-delayed projects! Yay!
So — what’s new? What’s been going on? What have we missed?
- I dropped In My Blue World a few weeks ago as a Smashwords e-book on March 2nd, and though sales have been slow, I’ll still get one or two unexpectedly every now and again. Still learning how to self-promote here, kids!
- I made an appearance at FogCon in Concord this year. I fear I dropped the ball multiple times here, as I screwed up filling out the panelist forms and also had a reading that was too late for me (I duffed the whole thing, being overtired, and I’m still mad at myself for it). On the plus side, I did notice a number of people picked up my freebie cards over the weekend, so there’s that!
- I’ve started revising Diwa and Kaffi — YES I FINALLY HAVE A TITLE FOR IT — and I plan on taking this slow and steady, as I’m planning on submitting this one to a pro publisher.
- I’ve started doing my daily words again, which means I should *hopefully* have a new fresh project to work on down the line.
Do I have anything planned for the immediate future? Yes! All sorts of fun things. I’m hoping to be a lot more multimedia this time, actually. More Drunken Owl music experiments. More story ideas. More visual arts. The road is clear and I can’t wait. (Wish I could be more clear about this, but right now it’s all in demo and planning stages. You’ll know when I know, heh!)
Glad to be back!
In My Blue World book release March 2nd!!
Zuzannah is not your typical magical girl.
Diana Meeks had planned to spend a few relaxing weeks camping in the hills above town with her sisters Katie and Allie, and Katie’s boyfriend Greg. But this will be no ordinary vacation.
On the trail to their cabin, the air is suddenly split in two by a blinding light and the blade of a katana, and a young woman spills through the tear, fainting from exhaustion.
Zuzannah is a girl from a future world where the powers of magic are an everyday occurrence…and where her pursuer has amassed most of it for his own nefarious ends. Zuze is committed to stopping him at any cost, and has crossed the weave of time in a desperate bid to regain her own strength and search for help…
…and she’s found it in Diana and her sisters. But are they up to the task?
In My Blue World will be released as an e-book via Smashwords on March 2nd!
Returning to the Blogosphere…sort of
[Posted originally at Dreamwidth, my personal blog. Reposting it here (with slight editing) as an update.]
Yes, folks! I’m still here among the living. I’ve been spending all this time focusing on finishing off In My Blue World (which I’m FINALLY going to drop in March! Wooohoo!) and preparing myself for the revision work for Diwa & Kaffi (yes, I’ve decided that’s going to be the title until further notice). I’ve also been enjoying the extended semi-hiatus from the internets, focusing more on offline projects and personal things. It’s been long delayed and much needed.
I’ve been tempted more than a few times to return to the blogging schedule that I’ve held over the last couple of years, but I’m holding off. As much as I truly enjoyed it, it would often drain me. I ended up repeating myself on more than a few occasions, often without realizing. Some days I’d have all kinds of things to talk about, but other days (especially near the end there) I was really straining to come up with semi-original content.
But I also wanted to move on. I’ve been blogging about writing and music for years now, some years more consistently than others, and after a great personal banner year of music collecting and novel writing, I felt it was time for me to shift my focus. It’s like when I talk about the YC years: I absolutely loved the schedule that afforded me the time to relax and improve my writing, but that could only last for so long. I may be a creature of habit and want to stick with that sort of thing for years at a time, I’m also a creature of wanting to shake things up. I also love the idea of starting a completely new lifestyle, whatever it may be. I get to a point where I realize I’ve gone as far as I can with what I’m doing, and I need to move on. There’s varying reasons for that — I’ve exhausted my interest, I’ve moved on, my tastes have changed/shifted, and so on. Sometimes it’s a deeply personal thing, sometimes it’s just an ephemeral thing.
(Speaking of which, I could go on about how hard it is to shift to that new lifestyle while attempting to shed old habits, ideas and so on, but I’ll save that for another entry.)
I’m still a music-collecting geek and a writer, and I highly doubt those two things will be changing any time soon. But what I’ve realized over the past month and a half is that I still have a long way to go if I want to make the changes I do want to make. Sliding back into old habits and schedules will not help me, as again — I can be quite the creature of habit. I’m going out of my way NOT to return to things like that, as it’s the only way I’ll be able to get to where I DO need to be.
That said, I’m making a brief re-entry into the blogosphere with Welcome to Bridgetown, as I have some books coming out this year as well as a few appearances at local conventions. These new entries will most likely be unscheduled but I’ll make them timely. Otherwise this blog will remain on semi-hiatus until I decide what I will do with it.
In the meantime, I’ll be making more steady (and more personal) appearances at my Dreamwidth account. Thanks again for hanging around for so long!
Fly-by Updatery
Keeping all sorts of busy on my hiatus here. The Day Job has its ups and downs (I won’t bore you with the details on that), I’m on the hopefully final revision go-round for In My Blue World, I’ve been doing some cursory reading of the Apartment Complex story in preparation for its revision, and on top of that, I’ve been doing a bit of self-reflection. Oh! And I finally bought a second electric guitar; a Gretsch Electromatic for those playing along. What that particular toy, I’ve been recording some lo-fi Drunken Owl demo ideas using my phone. So yeah, I’ve been busy, but not overly so.
As much as I miss blogging, I’m kind of glad I’ve taken this time off, especially now that I’ve got some important projects I’m working on.
So what’s coming up? Good question. I’ll be at FOGcon from March 8 – 10 over in Walnut Creek. I’m looking to be on a few panels and maybe even a reading (I’ll be reading either something from In My Blue World or the AC story). If you’re going, stop by and say hi!
I’ll also be at BayCon from May 24 – 27 down in San Mateo. No plans for readings/panels for that yet, but I’m hoping to make that a thing.
Other than that…? I’m floating around on Twitter every now and again, but I’ve been kind of quiet online otherwise. I’ve been sticking with the music streaming, sticking with personal conversations with friends, and essentially keeping a low profile. And that’s how I’d like it at the moment.
Again, not sure when this hiatus will end, but I’m hoping it’ll be sometime later this year!
I’m not the type to run in circles
Oh hey! Long time no post. My self-imposed blogging hiatus is over for now. I’ve managed to get caught up with Day Job stuff, I’ve cleared my mind of a few things, and I’ve relieved a lot of stress that had been building up. Glad to be back in the fold again!
I’ve been thinking a lot about what’s coming up for 2019. I have two books on the schedule: In My Blue World should be dropping (hopefully) by February or so, and the Apartment Complex (still no title yet??) by the summer. After that…? Good question. I actually have no novel plans on the back burner. Even Mendaihu Universe Book 4 has been put aside for the moment (primarily because I don’t have much of a focus on it at all). I’ve had a good run since 2015 when I dropped A Division of Souls on y’all. Two further books in the Bridgetown Trilogy, and three more in quick succession over the last few years. Six books completed and readied for release in four years. That’s not bad at all.
But what about 2019? I have no novels, no projects on the boards. No ideas that are currently grabbing my attention. It’s the weirdest feeling, actually. It’s definitely not the same as the dry years of 2006-2009, frustrated the need to write and held back by lack of words and ideas. No, this time it’s different. It definitely feels like a well-earned vacation.
Which means that 2019 will be focusing on the personal. Things that I’ve delayed for far too long. Sure, I’ll still write. I’ll still blog. But I think I’m going to take a break from keeping it set at 10 all the time. My old habits and processes work just fine for me, but a lot of them I just don’t need anymore.
Read new books. Learn new creative abilities. Get rid of old habits. See the world in different ways. Become a part of something new. Look forward. Change.
No idea how it will all turn out, but I think it’s about damn time.
One More Shameless Plug and an Offer!
HEY THERE! One more shameless plug here at Welcome to Bridgetown to let you know that my new book is still on sale for ONLY A BUCK FIFTY at Smashwords! It’s available in all formats including Nook and Kindle. Today’s the last day of the sale, though, then it’s going back up to the insane price of $2.99. Go get it before it’s too late!
You can download it crazy quick by following this link right here.
WAIT A MOMENT! AN OFFER, YOU SAY?
Yes! I know some of you readers out there are also bloggers (and some of you are even GoodReads members), so I’ll lay it out: interested in a fun, quick read about the shenanigans of a bunch of teenage rockers in the 90s? Love reading music bios that reveal all the sordid secrets behind the fame? Interested in doing a review either on your site or at GoodReads?
Let me know by commenting here or emailing me directly at joncwriter (at) yahoo dot com (with the subject line ‘Andersonville’) and I can hook you up with A FREE COPY OF THE E-BOOK, whichever format you need! All I ask in return is that you provide a review, either at GoodReads or on your blog. Doesn’t need to be anything long-winded — even just a starred rating will do!
Thanks for reading!
Welcome to Bridgetown 