I’m Creating a Critique Group… Are You?

Sometimes all it takes to find a critique group is asking: Hey! Wanna swap?

Projects Update. Now With Script!

Tis me, eating Birria Tacos at a local taco joint.

Life in quarantine has been a trip. A TRIP. Since June 1 of last year, when I officially locked myself down and separated myself from the unwashed masses (to do my duty/due diligence) I finished the apoc spec fic novel Corpus Paradisum, edited it, started and finished the portal scifi novel Cirrus Kingfisher, and also edited it, the sequel portal scifi novel Stratus House, and wrote two short stories (scifi Interlinkt and horror Red Fruit, Black Root). If I were a professional novelist, with a life of writing novels for my income, I’d be doing just fine. It’s a blast. I love it. I’m gearing up to jump into my hard edit of Stratus House.

If anyone is interested in what I’m writing nowadays, I have the website set up to show my writing wares, as it is, but still no agent/publication. Fingers are crossed, though, as Red Fruit, Black Root has been on submission for over a month and a half with no rejection. You might see it in print soon!

The Differences Between Podcasts and Audiobooks

Let me tell you a little story. I grew up in the midwest. I grew up in a medium-sized industry town in the middle of Illinois. It was a place where the majority of people worked blue collar at the plant or were businesspeople or whatnot. The writing scene–the creativity scene–practically didn’t exist. Granted, we had a great liberal arts college with all sorts of brilliant professors, but those doors were closed to me growing up.

Despite coming from a long line of engineers and farmers and accountants, I found my niche in writing. I needed a way to communicate my creativity, so I wrote my thoughts down. In seventh grade, I wrote a story that involved all my friends. Five friends doing awesome things. Kinda like Animorphs (if anyone remembers them). In 8th, I won the city competition for two-page story. In high school, the relationship with my first girlfriend suffered due to my love of writing.

I also played every sport you could imagine, was heavily involved in Boy Scouts, and acted in plays: all of which attributed to my well-roundedness. Being extroverted also helped me connect with just about everyone. I’m an unconventional writer in many ways.

Enter podcasting. Enter video blogging. Enter audiobooking. It shouldn’t surprise anyone when I looked at the possibility of reading my own stuff–or creating a storytelling podcast–and said, “Hell yeah. I can do that.”

V-Blog: Audiobookish

The best way to keep word count to a minimum? V-Blog!

Reading, Writing, Video Blogging, Hiking, and Podcasting, a Whodunnit Thriller

Taken at Carondelet Park.

I recently made two major changes to my life. One, I had the good fortune to catch the eye of a phenomenal woman (who I call Orchid, on here), and Two, I began pursuing alternative ways to keep my work from overwhelming me. I can’t write while I work: no access to a computer, a desk, or anything resembling a stable surface. I can’t read while I work: too little time, too much work to do, and the job is rarely finished until I’m driving down the road and onto my next one.

So what did I do? I listened, and in more than one way. My coworkers have been bugging me to buy a bluetooth earpiece so we can talk while we work, and Orchid mentioned how much she enjoys listening to podcasts on her long drives to and from work (1/2 hour each way, if traffic cooperates). I bought the bluetooth with two things in mind: socialization with others and listening to music/podcasts.

Podcasting has changed the way I see almost everything.