For the first two weeks of June, my family, in-laws, and I were out of town, on vacation. We drove down to the Knoxville, TN area--more specifically, Pigeon Forge, TN. My in-laws rented a cabin--a very nice three-story, five-bedroom monstrosity--that overlooked the Great Smoky Mountains.
It was truly relaxing.
Wi-Fi at the cabin was spotty at best, which meant I didn't get much writing done--oh, who am I kidding, I didn't write at all. I did get a lot of reading done, along with visiting relatives and seeing the sites. Absolutely no regrets. I feel like relaxing times are needed to recharge the creative batteries.
Now that I've been back for over two weeks, the third novel in the Shadowkill Trilogy is nearing completion. I have over 63,000 words written so far. How much is left? I plan on finishing by next week--crossing my fingers. I started this third book on March 19th. The original goal was to finish by May 19th, but with planning for the trip and our son's high school graduation, writing took the back seat a little. I still wrote up until the day we left, but it was less and less.
Again, no regrets.
Friday, June 30, 2017
Friday, June 23, 2017
Fun and Games - 5 Favorite Rock Albums / Happenings In The Outhouse 23-June-2017
Some writers listen to music while they write. Depending on my mood, I do. And what I listen to varies. Honestly though, I don't listen to music. From my Amazon author page: (my) genre interests are as expansive as his musical tastes--from classics like Mozart and Beethoven to heavy metal like Poison and Metallica.
I grew up listening to country music--honestly, there wasn't much else, so it was a bit forced upon me--but when the 1980's came along and I was in high school, I became a huge fan of heavy metal/hard rock.
I thought of my top five rock albums--sort of a collection of what I would love to have with me if I found myself stranded on a desert island (and either an endless supply of batteries or some unusual power source to boot). One caveat to this list is that I love all of the songs on these albums. These are, and in no particular order:
1) Poison - Open Up and Say . . . Ahh!
Note: this was the very first hard rock album I ever bought.
2) Motley Crue - Dr. Feelgood
3) Metallica - Metallica (better known as the Black Album)
4) Skid Row - Skid Row (their first album)
Note: this album has an interesting history for me. I read a lot of heavy metal magazines, from Hit Parader to Metal Edge, and one band that kept popping up was Skid Row. Then I finally brought down and bought it at the local Ben Franklin store. Holy cow! From the first song, I was hooked!
5) Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction
There are others, of course, but these five are the main ones. Others added to the list are Def Leppard's Hysteria, Tesla's The Great Radio Controversy, Bon Jovi's Slippery When Wet, Aerosmith's Pump, Megadeth's Countdown to Extinction, and so on.
I grew up listening to country music--honestly, there wasn't much else, so it was a bit forced upon me--but when the 1980's came along and I was in high school, I became a huge fan of heavy metal/hard rock.
I thought of my top five rock albums--sort of a collection of what I would love to have with me if I found myself stranded on a desert island (and either an endless supply of batteries or some unusual power source to boot). One caveat to this list is that I love all of the songs on these albums. These are, and in no particular order:
1) Poison - Open Up and Say . . . Ahh!
Note: this was the very first hard rock album I ever bought.
2) Motley Crue - Dr. Feelgood
3) Metallica - Metallica (better known as the Black Album)
4) Skid Row - Skid Row (their first album)
Note: this album has an interesting history for me. I read a lot of heavy metal magazines, from Hit Parader to Metal Edge, and one band that kept popping up was Skid Row. Then I finally brought down and bought it at the local Ben Franklin store. Holy cow! From the first song, I was hooked!
5) Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction
There are others, of course, but these five are the main ones. Others added to the list are Def Leppard's Hysteria, Tesla's The Great Radio Controversy, Bon Jovi's Slippery When Wet, Aerosmith's Pump, Megadeth's Countdown to Extinction, and so on.
Friday, June 16, 2017
Check Your Attitude / Happenings In The Outhouse 16-June-2017
It disheartens me when I hear people say, "OMG, 2017 absolutely sucks!" Or, replace 2017 with 2016. I've heard it all before. The only thing that changes is the year.
Today's post is about one's attitude and how your attitude affects your life. One can always find something bad . . . if that's all they're looking for.
Let me tell you right now, 2011 freaking sucked for my family and I. But there were lessons learned and events that have a profound affect, even to this day.
In January 2011, within two days of each other, our van was taken away for repossession and we received foreclosure papers on our home. I wasn't even a month into a new leadership position at my job and already things took a turn for the worst. Fast forward a month, the van was back and the house was no longer in foreclosure land.
But wait! There's more!
On April 11th, my wife was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). She spent the bulk of 2011 in Rochester, MN, at the Mayo Clinic. I took over 20 trips down to visit her. Around Christmas, a good friend of mine was complaining and being all bah-humbug. And he had absolutely nothing to complain about! He didn't go through anything like what our family went through. Now, I could've acted like this too.
But I didn't. I was thankful my wife was still around and healing. Fast forward to today, she's still not 100%.
I came across a YouTube video my sister-in-law put together after a benefit in May 2011. I watched it numerous times years ago, but it had been a while. Watching it again, and seeing all of the people present, brought back a host of emotions.
One of those emotions was thankfulness. I was thankful for all those who helped. I am also thankful for all that happened in 2011.
Today's post is about one's attitude and how your attitude affects your life. One can always find something bad . . . if that's all they're looking for.
Let me tell you right now, 2011 freaking sucked for my family and I. But there were lessons learned and events that have a profound affect, even to this day.
In January 2011, within two days of each other, our van was taken away for repossession and we received foreclosure papers on our home. I wasn't even a month into a new leadership position at my job and already things took a turn for the worst. Fast forward a month, the van was back and the house was no longer in foreclosure land.
But wait! There's more!
On April 11th, my wife was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). She spent the bulk of 2011 in Rochester, MN, at the Mayo Clinic. I took over 20 trips down to visit her. Around Christmas, a good friend of mine was complaining and being all bah-humbug. And he had absolutely nothing to complain about! He didn't go through anything like what our family went through. Now, I could've acted like this too.
But I didn't. I was thankful my wife was still around and healing. Fast forward to today, she's still not 100%.
I came across a YouTube video my sister-in-law put together after a benefit in May 2011. I watched it numerous times years ago, but it had been a while. Watching it again, and seeing all of the people present, brought back a host of emotions.
One of those emotions was thankfulness. I was thankful for all those who helped. I am also thankful for all that happened in 2011.
Friday, June 9, 2017
What Sacrifices Are You Making To Achieve Your Art? / Happenings In The Outhouse 09-June-2017
In mid-May, Steven Pressfield wrote a rather interesting post titled "Warriors and Mothers."
I highly suggest reading it first before we go on.
Done?
Okay, let's go.
In this post, Pressfield talks about what sacrifices mothers make when they're pregnant. Typically, they may stay more at home while others seem to be out and about all the time--or, at least, they give that perception.
This got me thinking of my college years at Bemidji State University. I wrote (and finished) my first novel while in college. There were many nights where I was up until two or three in the morning, hunched over my Brother word processor, cranking out page after page. Now, this novel (which as yet may or may not see the light of day) was just over 1,000 pages when I was done. Yes, you heard correctly. 1,000 pages. And, with roughly 250-350 words on a page, depending the amount of "white space," this horror novel was . . . yes, 250,000 to 350,000 words. A quarter-million word horror novel. When I hear that most nowadays are around 75,000, this one was incredibly long.
But I still worked at it.
I learned how to write.
And finish.
I made sacrifices. When I had friends who were going out to the bars 3-4 nights a week and were involved in multiple activities, I limited my activities outside my little dorm and worked on my art. But the friends who were truly friends knew what I was doing, and encouraged me to do it.
As a side note, the second novel I ever wrote and finished was also of the horror genre, and I will guess to be close to 400,000 words. This one may see the light of day in a year or so as I am considering breaking it up into a short series (probably 4-5 books). But, more on that at a future date and time . . .
I highly suggest reading it first before we go on.
Done?
Okay, let's go.
In this post, Pressfield talks about what sacrifices mothers make when they're pregnant. Typically, they may stay more at home while others seem to be out and about all the time--or, at least, they give that perception.
This got me thinking of my college years at Bemidji State University. I wrote (and finished) my first novel while in college. There were many nights where I was up until two or three in the morning, hunched over my Brother word processor, cranking out page after page. Now, this novel (which as yet may or may not see the light of day) was just over 1,000 pages when I was done. Yes, you heard correctly. 1,000 pages. And, with roughly 250-350 words on a page, depending the amount of "white space," this horror novel was . . . yes, 250,000 to 350,000 words. A quarter-million word horror novel. When I hear that most nowadays are around 75,000, this one was incredibly long.
But I still worked at it.
I learned how to write.
And finish.
I made sacrifices. When I had friends who were going out to the bars 3-4 nights a week and were involved in multiple activities, I limited my activities outside my little dorm and worked on my art. But the friends who were truly friends knew what I was doing, and encouraged me to do it.
As a side note, the second novel I ever wrote and finished was also of the horror genre, and I will guess to be close to 400,000 words. This one may see the light of day in a year or so as I am considering breaking it up into a short series (probably 4-5 books). But, more on that at a future date and time . . .
Friday, June 2, 2017
Remember To Keep Learning / Happenings In The Outhouse 02-June-2017
Last week, I mentioned that our son graduated from high school. I also mentioned that his choir teacher had gave him some valuable advice, in front of his classmates, their parents, and other members of our town.
"Remember to keep learning."
One should never stop learning.
Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, and their team at WMG Publishing have created a very affordable set of courses for writers. I'll tell you this right now, I will be starting my way through these courses.
Based on an article Dean did in April, I am also going to try my hand at learning how to do covers myself.
Back in my college years, while I was involved with the Tae Kwon Do school at both Bemidji and on campus, the late Grandmaster Spencer Brandt and his wife Cindy taught a weekend seminar to a small group of students who were interested in running their own school in the future. I attended this seminar (there was less than 10 students present, if memory serves correctly) although I never did start a school. One of the instructors was a tax accountant. I learned more from him than most other "money" books I've read since.
My Mom, since I was a very young age, ran her own business: she was a daycare provider. And a successful one to boot. Anyway, around tax time, my parents always got hit with a massive tax bill. They never talked about money much with me, but I knew this was a strain on their finances. When I advised them what I had learned from the seminar, they couldn't believe it.
So, they called their accountant.
They discovered there were deductions they could've taken. All they had to do was tell her (the accountant).
But how can one know what to ask if you didn't know it existed?
Needless to say, my parents got a new accountant, who taught them much more about taxes. They were flabbergasted at the amount of deductions they could've taken, if only they were taught.
Remember: always keep learning.
It's the way I run my indie writing business: I keep learning.
Always.
"Remember to keep learning."
One should never stop learning.
Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, and their team at WMG Publishing have created a very affordable set of courses for writers. I'll tell you this right now, I will be starting my way through these courses.
Based on an article Dean did in April, I am also going to try my hand at learning how to do covers myself.
Back in my college years, while I was involved with the Tae Kwon Do school at both Bemidji and on campus, the late Grandmaster Spencer Brandt and his wife Cindy taught a weekend seminar to a small group of students who were interested in running their own school in the future. I attended this seminar (there was less than 10 students present, if memory serves correctly) although I never did start a school. One of the instructors was a tax accountant. I learned more from him than most other "money" books I've read since.
My Mom, since I was a very young age, ran her own business: she was a daycare provider. And a successful one to boot. Anyway, around tax time, my parents always got hit with a massive tax bill. They never talked about money much with me, but I knew this was a strain on their finances. When I advised them what I had learned from the seminar, they couldn't believe it.
So, they called their accountant.
They discovered there were deductions they could've taken. All they had to do was tell her (the accountant).
But how can one know what to ask if you didn't know it existed?
Needless to say, my parents got a new accountant, who taught them much more about taxes. They were flabbergasted at the amount of deductions they could've taken, if only they were taught.
Remember: always keep learning.
It's the way I run my indie writing business: I keep learning.
Always.
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