Oh, dear.

I haven’t updated this blog since February. I’m so, so sorry. But now I plan on signing on at least once a week.

I am in the midst of rewriting War Mage. I’m stuck on the first part, “Act One” according to a handy-dandy book “90 day rewrite”. You’re supposed to take the rewrite in manageable chunks and do it there, not do line editing like I’ve been doing.

90 Day Rewrite is using The Anatomy of Story as its basis, which I think is one of the best books on story and preparing a “hit” that I’ve read. It’s mostly for screenwriters, but it’s really good for writers.

Personally, I don’t care much for the 3-act structure. Most of the writing books I’ve read talk about that. It talks about Act 1 being a quarter, Act 2 being a half, and Act 3 being another quarter. If that’s the case with my story, On page 50 should be the end of Act 1.

And lo and behold, it is.

Act 3, however, does not start where I want it.  The ending is way too short, I already know that.. Which means, I think, I need to add more stuff.  I was going to add another subplot. I’m not sure where to put it.

My goal is to finish the rewrite by May 15. Then it goes to my beta reader and editor. The goal it to publish in December, but it might end up being February of next year. Which is fine.

I am also restarting the Grimaulkin book, probably as a series. I’m writing it in the style of a memoir with magic and straight up dialogue. I’ve renamed his brother, made his siblings much older, and started in media res.

I leave you with this, a picture close to home. My son is taking up photography, and I’m proud of his picture taking ability.

After I win NaNoWriMo tonight, I’m heading off on a 2 week trip to Florida.

Have a good holiday!

This is my new logo.  I love it, and it’ll be on my business cards once I get the cash to get business cards.

This is my book cover.  The book has just been sent to the publisher.  We’re hoping to get it published and out there on October 1.  I need a few copies for myself, to sell to the people at work.

Marc Ducrow did the artwork for the book cover and the logo.  If you have a chance, and need graphic art done for your book or logo, contact him.  He’s on twitter @MarcDucrowart

I’m puttering along on War Mage, and decided that I’m going to have to publish these out of order.  I’m going to call this one “Homecoming: a War Mage novel” and it will be 2nd in the order of the books, but first to be published.

Something like this was done with the Repairman Jack series.  Books were published out of order.  I suspect that putting them in order will be a challenge for the reader.

The other option is that I start the series with this story, and have him go back to Afghanistan, and continue the series there.  I could do short stories of when he first starts with the team.  In this book I state that he never worked with the Marines, but the Marines are going to be the ones who have the dragons.

Of course there’s going to be dragons!

I think I’m going to have this artist do the work.  I have a picture and position in mind,   I just need to come up with someone that he looks like.

It seems my muses don’t like me sick.

I have been feeling out of sorts for the past month, sleeping a lot, even falling asleep at work.  My writing has suffered.  I can’t focus.

Today has been the worst so far.  Dizzy, joint pain, earache, waking up at 3 a.m…called into work this morning which is the first time in years.  Hopefully I will get some amoxicillin and then go on with my life.

But why so tired?  Why so out of breath when I do the simplest things?  Why so dizzy?  Do I have to pass out in order for anyone to do anything?

Sorry.  Will write about writing next time, I promise.

Amazing what an extension cord can do for your life.

My bed is on the opposite side of the room where the electric plug is.  The light I have in the room doesn’t light up near my bed.  So you would put a light near the bed, right?

Except there’s no plug.  Well, now, with an extension cord, there is!  Let there be light to read by!

So now I don’t have to rely on Kindle to read the books I have.  And boy, do I have a ton.

For fiction this time around, I am reading Infinity, by Sherilyn Kenyon.  It’s kind of like my book, but my main character’s gay.  And my book is told from a first person, not third person limited.  My character also is the victim,  not the bully.  Okay, so it’s not like my book.

For writing, I am reading a book about shame, about how it’s different from guilt.  I am changing the end of my book, because guilt and remorse are things that Grim does not feel toward the end of the book.  He’s changed – from the bullied to the bully.  And bullies don’t feel shame, guilt, or remorse about what they do to people.

Whether that unhappy ending sells is another story.  I have an agent I’m going to send a query letter to.  At the moment, I’m polishing up the query and plan on sending it out as soon as it’s critiqued.  Which hopefully will be next month.

After a slow and depressing start (i.e. no words until Day 11), I’m caught up to par for the most part.

Today, day 16, 26, 237, 400 words short of goal.  I should get them done before I go to bed.

I’ve just started a new blog, and I plan to make it daily.

characterquest.tumblr.com

Was going to put it on Blogger, but nobody goes there anymore.

It’s my offering to the writing community.  Questions about character.  Just one question, not a stupid list.  Do all your characters or just one.

Hey, I gotta put my name out there somewhere.

Should I brand it?  “characterquest” sounds like a great name for a brand.  Or has it been done?

It’s on twitter, unfortunately.  And when I google it, it’s a Christian development group. HAHAHA!

Sorry.

I just registered my pseudonym “Jake Logan”.  He’s on twitter, faceook, and yahoo.  He’s going to direct the character quest, I think.

“How can someone who brought so much laughter to everyone be so depressed?”

I heard this from one of the people I work with, and I had to do a double take.  How could she not know?  The more you try to make people laugh, the more depressed you actually are.

I know this from experience.

Most writers find it a lonely experience, something that they have to do alone, single-handedly, weaving words into pictures.  They take the images in their minds and try to put them to paper, so that the rest of the world can see how beautiful it is.  Sometimes the rest of the world doesn’t care.

That’s when we get depressed.

I have staved off depression by not sending my items in, by “polishing” everything up again, by rewriting from almost scratch.  I tossed out 10K words because I realized that I wasn’t starting in media res.  That’s where I like to start.  Exposition will come with time, and forcing myself to write the required 800 words a day has brought me new practice and insight in exposition.  I used to just do dialogue.  Now, I need to fill in the space.

I am a little depressed about Robin Williams.  He was a great actor, great talent, always funny.  But deep down was the black dog.  All comedians have one; it’s what makes them so funny.  They talk about how drunk they were when they did something, how high, how dysfunctional their family was, how dysfunctional THEY were – all dark and sticky stuff, when brought to light, scares us into laughter.

Writers need to do this too.  Writers need to get the dark and sticky stuff and throw it onto the page.  I’m on meds, and I can’t think the dark and evil thoughts I used to.  I cringe from horror now.  My demons are pretty, cute, handsome, and sexy.

May he rest in peace, though I doubt it, because a lot of people will be trying to get a hold of him to make them laugh again.