Morning Java



Agesilaus II of Sparta.

 Here I sit at my desk at work.  My boss is on the road today.  I have a few tasks to complete, but nothing all that time-consuming or immediate.  So, of course I open Word, and choose one of my many ongoing writing projects.  This morning it is my Sword & Sorcery novella/novel (I'm aiming for 40-50k, but it could end up being shorter).  I set my old iPhone 3G, which serves as an iPod right now, to playing epic soundtracks (currently Troy).  I place my fingers on the keyboard, stare at the screen like a sprinter waiting for the shot, and then...nothing.

So, when the words have a hard time getting started, what do I do?  I blog!

From my last post, you know that things have been hectic lately.  But, this week things have managed to slow down a bit.  With school being done for a week, and my next class promising to be pretty low-stress (I don't even have to buy any books, as all of the reading will be from the online library and in "handouts"), I have put academia out of my mind a bit.  Not completely, though.

As some of you may know, one of my long-standing projects is a biographical novel about Agesilaus II of Sparta.  He was an interesting character in that, despite being born with a deformity (usually a death-sentence for a Spartan infant), he was spared, and eventually sent to the agoge, even though he was the son of the king.  He excelled in his training and is regarded by the ancient historians Xenophon and Plutarch (among others) as being an extremely just and competent ruler, once he assumed the throne from his brother, Agis.  And yet, his rulership coincided with the downfall of Sparta, from which it would never rise to power again.  Thus history often lays the blame for this at Agesilaus' feet.  Whether that is justified or not, is irrelevant, as that is how history has been recorded for millennia, and is only now starting to change.

Anyways, my initial idea was to write about Agesliaus' youth, of which there is virtually no record.  It seems such a natural fit for historical fiction, as I can make most of it up, as long as the results coincide with recorded history.  However, for a previous class, I did a research paper on this very subject, extrapolating a probable outline of his youth based on what we are told about him, what we know happened during his early life (as in, the Peloponnesian War), and what life for a Spartan was like during that period in history.

I got full marks for the paper, and have even self-published it as a Kindle for $.99 (it's listed on my author page linked above, if you're interested).  This got me to thinking about possibly doing his story not as historical fiction, but as a work of academically researched nonfiction.  I already have a decent start.  I could basically expand on the various points I bring up in my paper until I have about 80,000 words.  Seems simple enough, right?

It's just an idea right now, but I am going to seriously consider it.

In the meantime, I will continue to dabble in my fantasy and science fiction stories, and see where it all leads me.

After I finish my coffee, of course.

Exhausted!

Normally people use three-day, holiday weekends as a time to relax, set aside the stresses and worries of everyday life, and just take things easy.  But not us!  Nope.

On Saturday, we went house shopping.  We looked at five properties, located all over the area.  Interestingly, each one was more appealing than the previous one.  In fact the last two were each damn-near perfect for us.  So, we are submitting an offer this week on #5, with #4 as a back-up.  The house we are trying to get is a pretty big one, with three bedrooms, a pretty modern kitchen, a brand new deck, and two porch rooms that have been converted into living spaces.  And it has a basement that is in really good shape, but I like it because the walls are sealed rock, and with the proper decoration, it could be easily made into a medieval dungeon!

Aside from all of that excitement, I spent a large amount of time on my term paper.  The final product was less-than-perfect, and if I had it to do over, I would have spent more time on the details.  Yet, despite finding a bunch of citation flaws, my professor gave me 24/25 points.  Which gave me a 95.4% in my class!  Yay!  Now it's a week off before I start History of Pop Culture on June 3rd.

In other news, my daughter graduates high school on June 10th, and we will be driving out to Las Vegas to see her graduate, and then bring her back here.  I think there's something cool about the fact that she graduates on the 25th anniversary (to the day) of my own high school graduation.  We're all very excited for her to come back here and help her get started on her adult life.  Her high school experience has been pretty rough (thanks largely to her mom), so we are looking forward to helping her put all of that behind her and starting fresh.

Then there was the normal Memorial Day weekend things like eating too much, and enjoying some good beer.

All in all, a busy weekend.  I'm exhausted, but feeling pretty good now.

Feelings on Self-Publishing

Yesterday, news hit Facebook that Amazon has purchased the rights to certain characters from various TV series (mostly female-oriented ones, from what I read), and will soon be allowing writers to self-publish fan-fiction based on those characters, for profit.  Reactions were all over the place, but among the writers I know, it was a universal grunt of disgust. 

However, a few people were downright enraged by the idea, and expressed their well-thought out grievances accordingly.  What it boiled down to was that this move on Amazon's part was a money-grab based on stroking the egos of wannabe writers who have not "paid their dues" in the publishing industry.  Admittedly, I was a bit hurt by this sentiment at first.  Until I got to thinking about it.

For me, self-publishing has been a journey.  A way to get my works out to potential readers, and get some feedback that will help me become a better writer.  If I can make a bit of change on the side, cool deal.  And although I would love to write a runaway success with millions of copies sold, that's really not the point.  To understand my view, you have to look at the publishing industry as a whole.

Right now, it's tough to get published.  I mean, I think it always has been, and if you get published by an established publisher, or even in a respectable magazine or anthology, that has always been generally viewed as you paying your dues.  You suffer numerous rejections, you work hard to please an editor who shows interest, you cater to their desires for your story, occasionally changing things you would rather not change; all for the sake of being published.  This is the way it has always been, and the way it still is, as far as I can tell.  In fact, I would wager that things are actually tougher today.

The heyday of print fiction magazines are long-gone.  And even their electronic successor, the e-zine, has seen better days.  There just aren't enough paying markets to support the growing number of people who wish to be published authors and writers.  Self-publishing in the pre-eReader age was minor, and relegated to "vanity presses" who didn't do much more than grant your technical wish of seeing your name in print, but for a steep price.  And even though those presses are still working, the eReader boom has probably curtailed some of their influence.

With places like Amazon and Smashwords, all you need is a story, a bit of knowledge about formatting, and a method for making a cover image, and BOOM!  You're a published author.  The problem is, these stories have no oversight.  no editor making changes, or pointing out mistakes and plot-holes, or shoring up crappy writing.  In essence, most self-published eFiction is nothing more than a rough first draft with a cover image slapped on it.

But, those of us who are smart recognize this, and take action accordingly.  Personally, I make sure I act as an editor as well as a writer.  My fiction is short, and it's not hard to see the plot holes, the bad writing passages, and the rough mistakes so common in writing fiction.  With short formats, I can go back and correct those easily, and publish a more-or-less polished product.  So far, it's worked, as my stuff has been generally well-received (I have yet to get less than 4 stars on any one of my stories at Amazon).

To me, this is just another way of "paying my dues."  I am learning how to write better stories, how to use different voices, how to work outside my previously-narrow comfort zones (such as dialogue and gender).  In short, I am learning my craft.  And one ideal I intend to stick to is that I will only self-publish short works.  Longer works will need a dedicated editor.  Someone with no personal investment in the story beyond making sure the best product is presented to the public.

So, to my writer friends who were outraged, be it known that I agree with you 100%.  Fan-fiction for profit has no place in the self-publishing industry.  But, that being said, let's hope that more people than we think will use this opportunity to grow in their craft, and not just use it as a place to find false-validation.

Publication Day!

I am proud to make two announcements today.  First, my collection of short stories, With a Silken Fist, hits Amazon and Smashwords this morning.  This volume collects three stories of fantasy female action (no, not that kind of fantasy action); Pekra, Severance and Blood from Sand.  It should be noted that, even though the former two are still available separately, their versions in this volume have been edited and expanded.  Additionally, I have added an introduction to each story talking about how it came about.

My second announcement is that I have finally figured out Smashwords, and three of my best works are now available there; With a Silken Fist, Blackskull's Captive! and The Orc Way.  So, for those of you who have been chomping at the bit to take part in my literary genius on an eReader other than Kindle, now is your chance!

Links to both of my author pages are above.  Thank you and happy reading!

Crises

Right now I am having a "crisis of professional faith" of sorts.  As you should all know by now, I am in a Masters degree program for a MA in History, with a focus in Ancient and Classic Cultures.  After this weekend (assuming I pass my current class) I will have seven classes left before I reach that goal.

But then what?

A MA in History, when combined with about five bucks, can get me a Happy Meal.  And that's about it.  I can't move into teaching, because I need to have specific teaching credentials or a PhD (either way, even more school).  And there isn't a whole lot of call for people with that sort of education anyways.  So, I am here, racking up student debt, all for a piece of paper that says I am intelligent and well-read, but with no special skills.  My most marketable skills are those that I have gained from fifteen years working in the trenches as an office-monkey and cubicle commando.

Oh, but I have writing skills.  I can spin a good yarn, so I'm told.  But, with recent rumblings in the publishing industry, there isn't much of a positive outlook on that.  I know professional writers, with multiple novels under their belts, that are having to take second jobs just to make ends meet.  Writing has become a devil's choice.  You either write for commercial success, or you write for personal fulfillment, hoping that others want to share in that.  It seems a very rare few can have it both ways these days.

Then there's my day job.  I work for a great government department, whose primary purpose is to help families with children cope with the realities of a depressed society, family dysfunctions, and unforeseen unemployment.  My boss is the best boss I have ever had.  I get a lot of freedom to do my own thing, as long as I keep up on my work tasks.  But, on the downside, I make about 20% less than my lowest-paid private-sector contemporaries.  Add to that the fact that I have yet to get a raise in the past two and a half years, and in fact have seen my take-home drop so my governor can point to black ink on a ledger.

I'm not bitter at all.

I know I usually try to be upbeat and positive here.  But sometimes...

I'll try to be more positive later, after I process all of the crises my life is handing me.

New Blog!

In an effort to focus my blogging efforts, and avoid mixing my chocolate with my peanut butter, I have created a new blog strictly for games and gaming (as in tabletop RPG’s). I know some of you probably only come here because I occasionally wax poetic about my favorite hobby. And I will completely understand if you abandon this blog in favor of the new one...  *puppy dog eyes*

For those of you who don’t game, you will now be spared my ramblings about that hobby. This current blog will remain my forum for sharing choice slices of my delusionally epic life, as well my thoughts and efforts on the craft of writing.

So, for you gamer dudes (and dudettes…do any ladies even follow me here?), please head over to Wishful Gaming and follow me there as well. Nothing says you can’t hang out in both!

Literature and me

Note:  This post may offend your literary sensibilities.  If it does, I am sorry for that.  My opinions on certain books and authors should not be construed in any way as a judgement against those who enjoy them.  We all have our individual tastes.  Sometimes they overlap, and sometimes they don't.

So, this past weekend my daughter saw The Great Gatsby in the theater, and totally loved it. Which brought the subject of “literature” up between my wife and me. And during the discussion, I came to a conclusion: I’m not a “literature” guy.

I consider myself reasonably well-read and literate. I can read, comprehend, and define the merits of the “classics” with the best of them. But, I simply don’t enjoy them. Therefore, unless required to for some class, I don’t read them.

In my early college career, I often pondered why we have to read them at all. I never liked Dickens, wasn’t really fond of Twain or Hemingway, and for the longest time I couldn’t understand Shakespeare to save my life. Well, today I still avoid Dickens like the plague, and I haven’t read Twain or Hemingway in years. But I get Shakespeare a bit better now, mainly because I have learned how to read him (though I still don’t really like to, as plays are supposed to be viewed not read, in my opinion).  I can certainly see their literary merits and value.  But, these works just don't do much for me.

So, when discussing literature with anyone who is knowledgeable on the subject, I often find myself on the “unenlightened” end of the conversation. There is a whole laundry list of classics that I have never read, and probably never will: The Great Gatsby, War and Peace, Les Miserables, Moby Dick, to name but a few. Even some of the “adventure” fiction of the past kind of doesn’t do it for me, but I will probably still try to finish them. Books like The Three Musketeers (as well as Dumas' other works) and The Last of the Mohicans. Both of which I have started, but never finished.

I guess when it comes down to it, I’m pretty simple-minded. I don’t like a lot of excessive detail, or the focus being on anything other than the plot and the main characters. I don’t care much for “high brow” literary language, and am kind of turned off by heavy-handed political and social commentary, unless that is the whole purpose of the story.  Even some of the books I have enjoyed have pushed the boundaries in that regard (like Starship Troopers).  Also, if the book has more than 300 pages, it better be a damn exciting read.

For me, “classic” means Edgar Rice Burroughs, Robert E. Howard, Jack London, and if you want to get really poetic, Beowulf, and the Eddas (though some of them are hard for me to get into as well). I love fantasy and science fiction the most, but a good mystery is always fun.

That is not to say that I shun all "classic" literature.  I really enjoyed Treasure Island, and Orwell's 1984 is one of the most relevant and provocative books ever written.

Generally speaking, when I read fiction (and as a History major, even some non-fiction) I want to hear a story. I want to feel like I am there. That the narrator is relating the story by highlighting the best parts, and keeping me interested. I want action and suspense, and a good dose of danger is always welcome. I want dialogue that I can hear as clear as if I were standing there listening to the conversation. I not only want the characters to be relatable, but the language in which their story is told to be as well. I don’t want to be preached at heavily, or given a lesson (unless that is the point of the book, of course).

In short, I am still 15 years old in some ways, and I have no use for your snobby works of art. Entertain me, or go home.

It is finished...

After months of false starts, starts and stops, and downright procrastinating, I am finally done.  I have finished my 10k Sword & Planet story for Scott Oden's anthology.  The last 2700 words were written this morning.  By my count, there are now five complete stories in his hands for this, with at least a few more on the way (hopefully).  No word on whether it will be a print book, an ebook, or both.  Either way, I feel elated.  I always do when I finish a story.

Now that that one is done, I am kind of milling about mentally for what to do next.  I have no stories that have anyone waiting on them.  Well, aside from the various sequels that people keep wondering when I am going to write.  I should probably work on one of those.  But then there's a few longer projects, including a S&S novel (aiming for 40-50k on that one).

Of course, there is the 13-page paper on Social History due in a week and half.  Yeah, I should probably get going on that...

The weather was crap this weekend, but yesterday and today have been beautiful.  Walked both days at lunch, and I'm feeling pretty good about myself.  Hoping to get my punching bag hung up tonight so I can give that a go.  The kids have been stressing me out lately, and I could use the aggressive release.

Yesterday I got on a kick and looked into dressing up as Jack Flack for Wizard World.  The hardest part will be the gray leather jacket.  I asked my wife about making one (she sews and is looking at making her own costumes), and she said she might be able to do it, if she can find a decent pattern.  It's basically a Panzer jacket design, with zippers, and superfluous pockets.  The rest is pretty normal clothes that I already have, or can easily get.  I even have a beret, though I'd need to find a suitable flash.  I'm just wondering how many people would recognize who I was supposed to be...

Of course, all of this thinking about Jack gave me an idea for a new writing project.  But, I think I'll keep that one under my hat for now.

Questions and Ponderings

Friday's game was decent.  Most of it was travel time, with a good RP encounter in a sacked village that involved a group of Were (think tall wolf-men) of questionable allegiance.  They had helped in one way, but hindered in another.  Created some tension, and put the party in an interesting predicament.  Ahnuld didn't get to do much besides help investigate a temple to his god that was spared destruction for some reason.  However, next session promises to start with a roll for Initiative.  Sweet!

I also recently started a Facebook page for my Orc RPG.  Invited a bunch of friends and posted a download link to the playtest version.  It's more or less a complete game.  I just need to fine-tune the rules, and make any changes that playtesting comes up with.  Then it will need illustrations and artwork, and it will be pretty much ready to go.  Not sure how I will sell it.  Probably offer it as a PDF, but I might also do Print On Demand through Lulu or someplace like that.  We'll see how that goes.  First things first, though.  I need people to play it and give me feedback.

Earlier this weekend, Charles Gramlich asked me on Facebook where he could review my latest story, Blood from Sand.  And I honestly didn't know how to respond.  It is currently not available in any format, so there is no Amazon or Smashwords page to review it on.  I suppose he could review it on his blog, but what about people who read the review and wonder where to get the story?  Right now the plan is to re-publish the story, along with revised versions of both Pekra and Severance in a collection showcasing some of my better female protagonists.  That will happen in just under two weeks, after Severance gets out from under Amazon's KDP Select program.

I'll have to ponder that for a bit more.  In the meantime, I am down to one more discussion topic and a Term paper for this class.  So, my next couple of weeks will be focusing on that.  Probably won't get a whole lot of writing done, but that's nothing new.

I did start something that I am hoping to keep up with, though.  I have a tall bookshelf in our room that has been relegated more for clothes than books.  However, I cleared a shelf off so I could put some books there a while back.  Yesterday I organized the shelf with books that I would like to read over the course of the next year.  There's some new stuff there, some relatively new stuff, and some classics.  It's all various genres and lengths, but the main portion is Fantasy and Sword & Sorcery.

The first in queue is Orcs: Bad Blood by Stan Nicholls.  The direct sequel to the first Orcs trilogy, Stryke and the Wolverines are pulled back into conflict.  I had started reading it a while back, but had to set it aside (no doubt for school reasons).  So, when I picked it back up yesterday, I started right where I left off.  After just a couple of pages it all started coming back to me, and I am once more right in the thick of the story.

Had a good Mother's Day yesterday.  Made breakfast, went to church, had lunch at Red Robin, chilled at the house and watched The Dark Knight Rises (finally), and then just lazed the rest of the day away.  Michele says it was a great Mother's Day.  And, as long as she's happy, I'm happy.

Doc Savage

Doc Savage is one of those characters that I have never read much of, but I am totally enamored of the character and his concept.  The books by Lester Dent are numerous, and I have a few of them.  However, Lester did not have a very refined writing style, and some of his writing is almost painful to read for me.  That being said, he had a knack for creating great characters, situations and plots.

Doc Savage has been a staple for several mediums for decades now.  He started in the pulp magazines, but has also been seen in comics off and on.  He even had a major motion picture.  I have yet to watch that, though.  I have a copy on my computer (since it's actually kind of hard to find on video), but every time I have started watching it, the campiness of it all just makes me cringe.  In recent years several attempts to get a new movie made have started and stalled.  At one point in the late 90's (I believe) Arnold Schwarzenegger was attached to star.  That could have been cool, I think.  But then, he made Twins.  And really, Julius was Doc Savage, without the experience.

Which brings us to today.  I just read an article announcing that Shane Black, fresh off his success with co-writing and directing Iron Man 3, is planning for his next film to be Doc Savage.  For those who don't know, Shane Black is the screenwriter responsible for Lethal Weapon and The Last Boy Scout, two of my all-time favorite action movies.  But he has been involved in much more than that, even taking a turn at acting in the first Predator, as the ill-fated Hawkins (the one with the glasses who kept telling pussy jokes to Billy).  So, with that pedigree, I am pretty optimistic about a Doc Savage film in his hands.

Whcih, of course, brings me to the idea of casting.  Who should play Doc Savage? 

Dolph Lundgren

Ok, let's face it, he is riding a high wave of popularity right now.  So, he has the name recognition.  He's also huge, he can fight convincingly, he's actually a pretty good actor (IMHO), and he has the square-jawed, tough-guy looks necessary for the character.  He even has a Masters in Chemical Engineering.  Dolph practically is Doc Savage already!

Any way they do it, I'm sure it will be a fun movie with Shane at the helm.

Game Day!

This is probably the best representation of my character,
Ahnuld, Barbarian/Fighter/Favored Soul.

Finally, after weeks of having to postpone, we are set to get back to our D&D game tonight. Our intrepid adventurers have found themselves in Norway, on their way to a secret island that appears on no map. Why? To find an ancient and powerful sword that may turn the tide in the war against the powers of darkness.

That’s assuming we don’t get distracted at the mall.

I love my group, but sometimes they get a bit obsessive over buying provisions and spending our copious amounts of gold, all in the name of planning for every possible contingency. So much so that we have had several sessions that were little more than RP’d shopping trips. As the resident barbarian warrior, you can imagine that the extent of my RP during this is “Roll to see if I’m getting drunk!”

And don’t get me started on when they have the Cleric NPC commune with his god in order to ask 10 yes/no questions…

Regardless, I still enjoy the game, and the camaraderie. But this does get me to thinking about how gaming worked in the past. “Old school” if you will. I kind of miss the days when the DM would simply hold up his copy of the module we were going to go through, or read his background text for his homebrew adventure, and then say “Create a 1st level character according to the Player’s Handbook.” Nice, simple and straightforward.

Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy games that are non-traditional, or don’t follow a published module. But sometimes I just want to roll up Ulric, human fighter and former member of the King’s Army, and have him meet his party in the Red Dragon Inn. Only to be dragged into a grand adventure that takes us to points far and wide, and dungeons deep and dark.

I guess I shouldn’t bitch (which, really, I’m not doing right now). Any game is a good game at this stage in life. Oddly enough, this lack of game over the past few weeks has made it abundantly clear to a few of us how much we enjoy the whole experience. And how much we miss it when it doesn’t happen.

In other news, tomorrow is Free Comic Book Day. I am looking forward to my annual Atomic Robo comic, as well as all of the neat stuff other companies put out. In addition, tomorrow is also Star Wars Day (“May the fourth be with you”), so maybe tomorrow afternoon we will celebrate by watching The Empire Strikes Back.