Grief And Creativity / Happenings In The Outhouse 29-Jan-2021

Throughout 2020, so many people rallied about how much 2020 sucked.  I'm not disagreeing with them.  But as I've stated before, this seems to be the theme every single year.  So stop calling 2020 a dumpster fire--your mindset is a dumpster fire.  You just need to put out the fire.  True, 2020 had some troubling moments with the pandemic and all, but we've rallied before and won.  Keep your heart where it's supposed to be.

That being said, I want to discuss creativity and grief.  More specifically when it comes to the creative process, but it can also bleed over into other areas of your life too.  I've touched on this before, last year.  Here is a blog post from last year.

I am a huge fan of Weird Al Yankovic, and have been since I was a kid.  So when the opportunity came for me to see him in concert, at the Chester Fritz Auditorium, on April 12, 2004, I jumped at the chance.  But something tragic happened on April 9: Weird Al's parents died in an accidental carbon monoxide incident at their home.

My heart went out to him as I knew my hopes of seeing him live were dashed.  But much to my surprise, the show went on.  He did a beautiful tribute to them in the middle of the concert.  It was an amazing show.

Years later, I read about how he dealt with his parents sudden passing.  Instead of cancelling any shows, including the night it happened, he went on.  And I must say, if there was any misstep in his performance, I certainly didn't see it.  The show was incredible.

Grief can take a toll on creativity.  I've been there, got the T-shirt, and then some.

Any form of stress can take a toll on creativity.  Not denying that.  But there are times when your creativity is the perfect outlet to help you along.  And if you can't, that's okay too.  Take a break.  Focus on something else for a while.

It's okay to grieve.  There is no timeline on it.

Not now doesn't mean not ever / Happenings In The Outhouse 22-Jan-2021

Prior to my wife's passing in January 2020, I started to say no to a lot of things.  I could have had a to-do list a mile long when it comes to writing, but at the end of the day I knew they weren't going to be done.  I then had a not-to-do list.

Also, in 2019, I started at leave three novels and stopped.  At the moment.  I'll get back to them, but at the moment I wasn't in the right mindset.

Saying "not now" doesn't mean that you'll never get to them.  You're just delaying doing it.  No sense having so many things on your to-do list that you get bogged down.

Manage your time well by creating a list of things that are important.  If I look ahead and see troubles with doing something, I'll put them off.  Remember, putting them off for now doesn't mean that you'll never get to them.  You will.

One Year In The Books / Happenings In The Outhouse 15-Jan-2021

One year ago today was the last full day of my sweetheart's life on earth.

The details are something I'll wait to write about, but even to this day I remember so many events that led up to my being called at work, my leaving, the texts with loved ones, and so on.

It was a difficult day.

But, unfortunately, not unexpected.

Tomorrow, of course, will be the anniversary of her passing.

These are all memories that I cherish.  Not to dwell on in doom and gloom, but to honor our time together.

49K and counting / Happenings In The Outhouse 8-Jan-2021

I'm past the 49,000 word mark on the latest thriller.  I'm still holding off on sharing the title as well as what it's about.

To tease it a little, think the Netflix show The Keepers meets Dexter.

Sort of.

I am well past what many writers call the messy middle, where writers get stuck and stop writing.  With a thriller, there are many things going on at once, so there were times I didn't know what was up or down.  I had to go back a few times and write everything down, every lead and piece of evidence, until I could clear them up.

It's been fun.

And it's been therapeutic.

But more on that later.

For now, back to writing . . .

Legal issues and traditional publishing / Happenings In The Outhouse 01-Jan-2021

Take a moment and search the following on your favorite search engine browser: Alan Dean Foster and Disney.  Then do a little reading.  It's quite the rabbit hole.  Don't worry, I'll wait . . .

Done?  Good.  What are your immediate thoughts?  Distain toward the house of mouse?  Head-shaking toward an author who has written much in universes they didn't create (and still writing) and they should just move on with the money they've been given?  Indifference to both sides?

Keep in mind, this is just one author who is being messed over by traditional publishing.  I've read other articles where there are numerous others in this mess too.  When you peel back the layers of the corporate onion, this is what may happen when companies are bought and sold like cattle on the market.  Not everyone benefits in a positive way.

Now, first and foremost, I'm not an attorney and I sure as heck don't play one on TV, so I won't lay out all of the legal issues at play here.  That being said, the conglomerate involved in this should be absolutely ashamed of themselves--my opinion, of course.  Your opinion may differ.  Nothing screams corporate greed more than this--and I, for one, am a fan of capitalism, but this is just plain shitty.  Again, just my opinion.

When I told my youngest daughter what was done to Mr. Foster, she asked me, "What if Disney wanted you to publish a story?  Would you do it?"

Good question.  A challenging one too.  My answer: it depends on the contract and the money attached to it.

Go back to that same search engine and, this time, look up: friends (plus) residual checks.  One of the top hits states that the cast of the TV show Friends make several millions of dollars each year in residuals, from reruns.  Then, when you look at other TV series, even some of your favorites, the cast members in those do not share in the same residuals.

Why?

Answer: it depends on their contract.

My point in all this is simple: those who are in control seems to hold most of the money.  Keep as much control of your own work as possible.  If you want to license it away, educate yourself get proper legal advice.