Year 5 of an Indie Writer, Week 17 AKA The One With Video

Well, I'm trying something different this week. I'll let you see for yourself.

Wading Into War - Author Read

Eighty years ago today, a private investigator named Benjamin Wade knocked on a door…and was met with bullets. What he does next and how he got there is recounted in the book WADING INTO WAR.

Starting today, I am reading the entire book on my YouTube channel. I have an introduction and the first five chapters ready today. Tomorrow will be the next five, and Friday, I’ll finish out the 18-chapter book.

I’d appreciate some views and comments. This is a first for me, and I discovered I enjoyed it. This won’t be the last story I read, nor will it be the last video I make.

Hope you enjoy.

Here’s the Introduction.



And here’s Chapter 1.

Avengers: Endgame - The 2020 Summer Movie Season Kicks Off This Week

If you've read my post about the summer 2020 movie season--AKA we're basically not going to have a usual one--I suggested we build out own. I developed a list of movies that came out in years ending with five or zero, thus a nice and tidy anniversary number. Other than The Empire Strikes Back (21 May) and Back to the Future (3 July), I'm still making my own schedule, but there is one exception.

Avengers: Endgame came out a year ago this week. It, along with Infinity War in 2018, was and remains one of my favorite movie-going experiences. The crowd reaction, the anticipation, the talking about it afterwards. It truly was a unique phenomenon.

So I'll be re-watching it this Friday evening. Yeah, it'll be at home with just the family, but I want to remember just how awesome that movie was. Then I'll follow up with some of those YouTube clips of audience reactions to help remind me and everyone just how great it is to sit in a darkened theater and experience a movie with a bunch of other people.

I miss theaters and look forward to returning.

Build Your Own Summer 2020 Movie Blockbuster Calendar

A year ago this week, all of us who loved big-budget action movies and Marvel movies were all chomping at the bit and counting the days before the premier of Avengers: Endgame. It was never a question of if the Avengers would defeat Thanos. It was how. Then, on 26 April 2019, we got our answer.

Endgame kicked off the 2019 summer movie season and it was a pretty good one. Over the years, comic book movies and super-hero movies served at tent poles to the summer season. There was more than one year in which I'd mark release dates on the family calendar hanging on the fridge for all to see. The summer movie season is my favorite season of the year.

In 2020, however, it's a different story. Many of the films have been pushed back already. Wonder Woman 1984 got bumped to August. Christopher Nolan's Tenet still hangs onto its mid-July date, so maybe it'll stay. But most of the others will be fall or December movies. Because nothing quite says Merry Christmas like a Top Gun sequel.

What's a movie goer to do?

I've been thinking it over in recent days and I've come up with an idea: Build your own summer movie blockbuster season.

This is 2020, so the some anniversaries--ten years or five years--are easy to calculate. The biggest movie I was already planning to re-watch was The Empire Strikes Back (on VHS!), which turns forty next month. The other obvious one is Jaws which is forty-five in June. Back to the Future is thirty-five this year. Curious, I paged through the various "Movies in [fill in the blank year]" lists and compiled a list of movies that were released in the summer months going back all the way to 1975. I chose 1975 because I can actually remember going to the cinema that year. And I only selected years ending in zero or five.

I'll post the list at the end of this piece, but my guiding idea was movies I'd actually seen. There are a few exceptions, noted with an asterisk. Those are films I've come to watch but didn't at the time of release.

A couple of Disney films popped up. The Apple Dumpling Gang is, perhaps, the first film I saw in a cinema because I have distinct memories of it. Oh! Heavenly Dog and The Last Flight of Noah's Ark are, I hope on Disney+.

The one oddball is 1980's The Kidnapping of the President. That title stopped me and, it turns out, the film stars William Shatner. That's enough for me.

I honestly haven't made my own list yet, but, as I wrote at the beginning of this post, there will be one exception: Avengers: Endgame. I've only seen it twice and, well, having seen those recent posts where someone synced up audience reactions to a couple of big moments in the movie, I want to revisit again. So, already on the calendar for next Friday, 24 April, is Endgame.

Why do this? Well, to build anticipation. I'm no medical professional, grocery professional, or any other kind of worker whose job is deemed essential and has to venture out into the public day after day. My part in this great Coronavirus year of 2020 is to stay home, stay healthy, and stay out of the way.

So I'm manufacturing a movie release schedule to build up excitement to re-watch some old favorites. And, no: I'm not jumping the gun on them. If there's a movie I haven't seen in a long time that originally was released in June or July--say, Jaws or Inception--then I'm waiting until those dates (or the nearest approximation).

Call me odd, call me weird (which my wife does frequently), but I'm looking forward to it. I'm also looking forward to returning to a theater when it's all safe to do so. I love movies, and I really love watching them in a theater.

Here's the list, broken out by year and then by month. Enjoy.


Summer Movies for 2020

1975
Jaws - June 20
The Apple Dumpling Gang - July 1

1980
The Empire Strikes Back - May 21
*Airplane - July 2
The Last Flight of Noah's Ark - July 9
Oh! Heavenly Dog - July 11
*The Kidnapping of the President - Aug 15 (Prime)

1985

A View to a Kill - May 22
Rambo: First Blood Part II - May 22
Fletch - May 31
The Goonies - June 7
Cocoon - June 21
*Pale Rider - June 26
Back to the Future - July 3
*Silverado - July 12
Teen Wolf - Aug 23

1990
Back to the Future Part III - May 25
Total Recall - June 1
Dick Tracy - June 15
Die Hard 2 - July 4
Ghost - July 13
Presumed Innocent - July 27
Darkman - Aug 24

1995

Crimson Tide - May 12
Die Hard with a Vengeance - May 19
Batman Forever - June 16

2000
U-571 - Apr 21
Gladiator - May 5
Mission Impossible 2 - May 24
Chicken Run - June 21
The Patriot - June 28
X-Men - July 14
What Lies Beneath - July 21
Space Cowboys - Aug 4


2005
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith - May 19
Batman Begins - June 15
War of the Worlds - June 29

2010

Iron Man 2 - May 7
Toy Story 3 - June 18
*Knight and Day - June 23
Inception - July 16
*The Expendables - Aug 13

2015

Avengers: Age of Ultron - Apr 13
*Mad Max: Fury Road - May 7
Tomorrowland - May 8
Inside Out - May 18
*San Andreas - May 27
Jurassic World - May 29
Ant-Man - June 29
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation - Jul 23
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. - Aug 7

2019
Avengers: Endgame – Apr 26


**BY DATE**

APRIL
U-571 - Apr 21
Avengers: Age of Ultron - Apr 13
Avengers: Endgame – Apr 26

MAY
Gladiator - May 5
Iron Man 2 - May 7
*Mad Max: Fury Road - May 7
Tomorrowland - May 8
Crimson Tide - May 12
Inside Out - May 18
Die Hard with a Vengeance - May 19
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith - May 19
The Empire Strikes Back - May 21
A View to a Kill - May 22
Rambo: First Blood Part II - May 22
Mission Impossible 2 - May 24
Back to the Future Part III - May 25
*San Andreas - May 27
Jurassic World - May 29
Fletch - May 31

JUNE
Total Recall - June 1
The Goonies - June 7
Dick Tracy - June 15
Batman Begins - June 15
Batman Forever - June 16
Toy Story 3 - June 18
Jaws - June 20
Cocoon - June 21
Chicken Run - June 21
*Knight and Day - June 23
*Pale Rider - June 26
The Patriot - June 28
War of the Worlds - June 29
Ant-Man - June 29

JULY
The Apple Dumpling Gang - July 1
Airplane - July 2
Back to the Future - July 3
Die Hard 2 - July 4
The Last Flight of Noah's Ark - July 9
Oh! Heavenly Dog - July 11
*Silverado - July 12
Ghost - July 13
X-Men - July 14
Inception - July 16
What Lies Beneath - July 21
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation - Jul 23
Presumed Innocent - July 27

AUGUST
Space Cowboys - Aug 4
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. - Aug 7
*The Expendables - Aug 13
*The Kidnapping of the President - Aug 15 (Prime)
Teen Wolf - Aug 23
Darkman - Aug 24

Year 5 of an Indie Writer: Week 15 AKA Dublin, Rockford, Prine, and Apollo 13

I'm willing to bet that my week went something close to yours. I spent every workday in my writing room doing the day job. I watched some news, but only about an hour a day. I watched a few TV shows. I spent lots of time with the family. And that was about it.

You?

I thought so.

Without much variety and few exterior stimulation, there's not a lot of change day to day. Now don't get me wrong: I am not bored. I do not have cabin fever. I am content to do what I can to flatten the curve. And, as I'm not a medical professional or a grocery store employee, that means staying home. I'm doing my part, as are so many of us. Frankly, it's inspiring to see everyday folks doing what they can to combat this virus. It should be a moment of pride for all of us.

Give yourself a round of applause. But I also have some crime fiction-related material.

Dublin Murders

My wife read all the books by Tana French and loved them. When she heard a television series was being made, she got very excited. When she learned said series was going to be on STARZ, she sighed. We subscribe to a few streaming services, and she was willing to wait to see Dublin Murders at some future date.

Well, STARZ came through. The network offered it's content for free for about a week, and we eagerly jumped on the eight-episode series which combines the first two French novels: INTO THE WOODS and THE LIKENESS.

Taking place in 2006, Rob Riley (Killian Scott) and Cassie Maddox (Sarah Greene) pick up a case about a murdered teenaged girl. They don't want another child murder case but Rob's driven to solve this one. Turns out, the dead girl was found in the same set of woods a notorious 1985 crime also occurred. The 1985 case involved three younger teenagers who went into the forest but only one came out. This story line corresponds

Rob was that boy, but he's hidden his identity. Now, as the lead detective in 2006, he strives to find the 2006 killer at the same time as he digs into the events of 1985, most of which he can't remember.

Cassie has her own issues stemming from the deaths of her parents when she was a child. Her own demons haunt her, and play directly into the B Mystery, which is the subject of THE LIKENESS. This one involves her going undercover to find who killed a young lady...who looks just like Cassie.

Okay, so the A Mystery plot is pretty good and I found it quite compelling. I enjoyed the camaraderie between Rob and Cassie...until they both started acted in a manner that seemed unlike themselves. And it really put me off. The B Mystery plot I almost didn't care for. The deeper into the B Mystery we got, the more irritated I became. I would've preferred just doing INTO THE WOODS.

And then there was the ending...

Have you seen Dublin Murders? What did you think of it.

John Prine

Up until the singer/songwriter got sick with Coronavirus, I wouldn't have been able to pick him out of a lineup. I don't think I've ever consciously listened to any of Prine's songs.

Unfortunately, Prine died from Covid 19 this week. And then I started reading the remembrances from all over, including Jason Isbell's piece in the New York Times and that of James Taylor. Seth Godin listed lots of song lyrics on his blog, and that got me to YouTube. I started listening to Prince's songs. I listened and then I kept listening. My wife, who knows Prine and his music, had me listen to multiple versions of "Angel from Montgomery."

I loved everything I heard, and he had a great way with lyrics and spinning his tales. I'll be listening to more of his music in the weeks ahead.

Do you have a favorite Prine song?

The Rockford Files

Yesterday, I had a day off and, after lunch and my daily games of backgammon and Yahtzee with the wife, I pulled out my DVD set of the first season of The Rockford Files. I watched the first two episodes, and boy did I enjoy them. The clothes. The cars. The rumpled coolness of James Garner. The big heart. That theme song.

What I really liked and appreciated is how Rockford would think his way out of every situation. He reminded me of Donald Lam from the Erle Stanley Gardner Cool and Lam novels. And the humor was at times subtle and obvious. Really enjoyed both episodes.

I have memories of the show being on back in my childhood, but I don't remember ever sitting down and watching the show. I was probably too young for it. Cut to my adulthood and I never sought out the show. Now that I have the complete first season, I'll be watching it...and then finding future seasons.

Apollo 13 at 50

Today marks the fiftieth anniversary of Apollo 13's launch. Monday marks the anniversary of the accident in space while next Friday is the date of splashdown. If you haven't done it in awhile, you should check out the movie. If not, there will be likely be articles published.

Take a moment and remember what the expertise of all those involved fifty years ago did to get those astronauts back home safe. Remarkable.

Year 5 of an Indie Writer: Week 14 AKA Keeping Calm and at Home

Second full week of physical distancing. For me, this is my third week of working from home. I know there can be a lull or a blurring of days. So far, here at the house, we've avoided that. Part of the reason is our appointment television. When you want to tune in to the new episode of New Amsterdam or The Curse of Oak Island (one of my wife's favorite shows), it helps to know what day it is. Also, I've taken to marking the days on my wall calendar with a big red X. Lastly, my watch tells me what day it is, so there's that, too.

This'll be the third weekend under Houston's stay-at-home order. In order to make the weekend days seem different, we have a different schedule. Naturally, I don't work and my son doesn't attend school. But he and I have taken to driving around--without getting out--and listening to an album. He's discovered quite a lot of music and, since his tastes run similar to mine, it's good to get out and drive.

Our occasional Friday Night at the Movies has been set in stone. Last weekend, we caught Damien: Omen II. Boy, that's 107 minutes I won't get back. Last night, we finished the trilogy. My son is expanding his viewing of classic horror films and now those are off the list.

Reading

I usually read on one of my two ereaders: the Kindle and the Kobo. I like them for different reasons, but I really love the obvious: I can browse on them and download samples. I especially appreciate both devices linking with my local library. I'm still reading Jedi Twilight by Michael Reaves. It's a PI story set in the Star Wars universe.

I also downloaded the Comixology app for my older iPad so now I can keep reading comics albeit in a digital form. I'm partial to trade paperback collections and I picked up the first set of DC's Starman (1994). I've heard good things and now's the time. I'm also working my way through the first volume of Master of Kung Fu. I bought this last year at Houston's Comicpalooza. Really enjoying this.

Music

Now that I'm WFH, I have my collection of CDs readily available to me. I'm rediscovering some albums I haven't heard in forever. This week's highlight: Ska Island. It's a 1997 compilation from Island Records and it is fantastic. I'm not sure why I haven't spun it in a long time, but I've listened to it every day this week. Here's the link.

Writing

Through all the turmoil, I'm still writing and creating. I do it every morning when I wake up. With zero commute, I actually have more time. But I keep the world at bay and never check the news before I get in my daily words. No sense messing with the mojo.

The website project I had always intended to launch this year is still progressing. I want to get more of it finished before I make it public, but the idea of it is even more applicable in this new environment. I'm not sure what we're going to call the After Times (Post-Covid; Post-Coronavirus, etc.) , but it'll be different. Hopefully, the website I'm creating can find an audience.

Well, this isn't a long blog but it's a snapshot in time. Hope you are staying safe and healthy and doing your individual part and staying at home. You may think it's no big deal because you are one person, but if we all do it collectively, we can save lives and help our health care workers.

Until next week...

Year of an Indie Writer: Week 13 AKA Be a Historian

Well, how's everyone doing?

So far, my family has heeded the local directive to stay home and stay safe. It seems like such a small thing, but it's really something giant.

Consider voting. It's our duty and honor to vote, but when we do it, the action itself is small. Here in Houston, we have voting machines that include a scroll wheel. Back in the day, I'd go with my parents into those voting booths with the curtains and the levers. No matter how we do it, casting a vote is a small, simple action on an individual level but can have sweeping power when counted all the other votes.

The same is true for our various stay-at-home orders. My family of three is safe here in the house. The virus--we hope--is outside and we are inside. I've only ventured out last weekend to go to the grocery store and the hardware store. That's it. As of last night, we've eaten take out only twice, both times on Fridays. That's now become the thing we look forward to doing.

We took some extra precautions last night with the food: we used our patio table as a staging area. We emptied the Italian food out of the to-go containers and into clean plates from inside. The plastic containers remained outside until I used a plastic grocery bag to take them to the outside trash can.

I'll admit: it was a little weird going into the restaurant. It was bustling and busy, but I just didn't want to touch anything. I didn't. I had my protocol in place: credit card already removed from my wallet, my own pen, plastic gloves, and a paper bag in the car on which to set the food (and throw away later). Overkill? Nope. Not in this environment.

The New Normal

Speaking of environment, this is still a writing blog and I do have a few writing things I read this week.

Kristine Kathryn Rusch published the second of two business-related post on what she is calling The Waiting Game. In these posts, she discusses how we writers can weather this black swan event and emerge on the other side ready to face the new normal. Because that's what is going to happen: there won't be the old normal. There will only be post-Coronavirus normal. It's best we prepare for it.

Speaking of the new normal, yesterday, writer Kevin Tumlinson published a fantastic series of tweets on his Twitter account (@KevinTumlinson) about the new normal. In his series, he posits that YouTube is well positioned to become the go-to location for on-demand entertainment. Most of us already know this, but not as many writers are there. Our own Beau Johnson does his posts via video on Fridays. Ironically it was something I had considered in 2019, but pushed aside for reasons I can't remember.

Anyway, back to Kevin's thread. Just read it. There is lots of good information in here, and it really makes you think differently about the future.

Be a Historian

The historian in me continues to be fascinated at some of the parallels that 2020 is reflecting. The obvious is the Spanish Flu of 1918-19. Another is The Battle of Britain, 1940, as the folks in England hunkered down every night for nearly three months and endured the constant bombing.

But another is the sacrifice folks made who survived the Great Depression. For most of my 51 years, I looked back at those times with awe and reverence at how everyday citizens survived the greatest economic disaster of the Twentieth Century.

One of the things that lets us know what life was like back in history are personal letters and journals. When I conducted research for my Masters thesis, I studied the 14th Texas Infantry in the Civil War. A key document was a journal of one of the captains. It gave me a first-hand account of camp life, and even provided me with a title.

I encourage everyone to keep records of this time. Write a daily journal, or jot down your thoughts and fears and expectations and the little things you are doing now to get through each day. Save emails in a special folder. I've already got my "Coronovirus" folder in gmail. Write it all down to help you remember.

I used to ask my grandparents what it was like in the Great Depression and World War II. Those questions started in the 1980s, forty years after the fact. Sure, their memories were fine, but imagine if they had kept a journal.

Decades from now, it'll be our grandkids who ask us what it was like to live through 2020 as the Coronavirus inexorably swept across the world. All the events we haven't experienced yet might color our memories. Now, those future memories are real life.

Write them down and remember.

Stay safe, my friends.

Year 5 of an Indie Writer: Week 12 AKA Control the Contollables

I’ll admit something: I often write these posts with little reference to real world. I’ve always thought folks who read the posts here at get enough of the real world, so why inject it here?

Not today. I do have writing comments, but I’ll get to them later. Let’s talk about what’s happening.

Coronavirus Is Changing the World

I’m a historian and I always look at things in the long span of history. It’s why many things that irritate me don’t surprise me because we’ve likely seen it before. Back when this virus started, my wife asked if it would get over here. I said of course it would. If the 1918 Spanish Flu could reach American shores with only boats and trains, the 2020 Coronavirus would have a much easier time with planes thrown in the mix.

Now, we’re all hunkered down in our homes and apartments. Many of us are losing our jobs. When this whole thing started for us Americans, I likened the Wuhan portion to the start of a war, the invasion of Poland, for example that initiated World War II. This week, however, I’ve taken on a more nuanced viewpoint: this is like the Battle of Britain in 1940.

For months, England was bombed by the Nazis. Nightly, the population spent time in bomb shelters, praying the bombs wouldn’t fall right where they were. They carried on their lives, but it was different, challenging, and seemingly forever. What ironic timing I started listening to Erik Larson’s new book, The Splendid and the Vile, about that very event.

Eventually, however, the bombs stopped falling. There was an end. The Allies persevered, but things had changed.

Things will change in 2020 as well. As much as we want this hunkering down to end, what we really want is to know what happens next in the story of human history. Ain’t that the truth. I opined to the family that the ‘words of the year’ might be ‘flatten the curve.’

But that got me to thinking about New Year’s Eve 2020. Nine months away. What’s it going to be like then? Will this be over, or will Phase 2 be in full swing? Boy, do we want the answers to that, huh?

Controlling the Controllables

On the writing front, I’ve posted here about controlling the controllables. That is, we can write, edit, format, and design a book all we want right up until it’s published. After that, a book belongs to the world, and readers will make up their own minds about the book.

The same thing applies here with our current crisis. The sheer enormity of the situation can almost paralyze us into non-action or, worse, destructive action. I can’t fathom what doctors have to do on a daily basis in Italy. I can’t imagine needing medical supplies but having none. I can’t comprehend some of the numbers and data I see on the news.

If I were to let it get to me, I’d probably cry every day. I did, once, mainly because my son is a high school senior and his memories will be of staying home and away from his friends, likely no prom. Graduation is iffy. It freaking sucks.

But I had a moment of clarity one morning as I said my daily prayers. I think it was Tuesday, the first full day I worked from home. I am not a doctor or a medical professional. I’m not a decision maker, a restauranteur, or a guy stocking shelves in the grocery store. I’m just one guy—a son, a husband, a father, a friend, a co-worker—who is in the same boat as everyone else. The best thing, the absolute best thing I can do for me, my family, and my community is to do my part.

To control what I can control, and that means staying put.

I listen to the mayor and the police chief as they talk about local directives. I listen to the state and national leaders. I monitor the news, but do not obsess over it. Nor do I check it frequently. One reason is that it can be so depressing. Another is I have a day job at an oil and gas company. Talk about double anxiety.

That moment of clarity I was talking about? Well, here it is: my whole life has prepared me for what’s to come. I am who I am today as a result of every single decision I made from the time I could make them until today. Did I ever think I could work from home? Not really, until I discovered I could in 2011 and learned how to be even more productive. Did I ever think I could stay optimistic in times like these? Yes, because I had family members who showed me how. Did I ever think I could write a book? No, until I did, and I did it word by word, chapter by chapter, day by day, until the words ended up as a book.

Day by day is the only way we have to deal with our situation. You are stronger than you can possibly imagine. If you can simply get through a new day, count your blessings and do it all again the next day. It ain’t easy. In fact, it can be damn hard. But it’s not impossible. A thing is only impossible when you haven’t done it yet. After that, it gets so much easier. Well, how about more straightforward. Life isn’t exactly easy nowadays.

Control the controllables. Works for writing books. It’ll work for the year 2020.

The Secret Weapon for Creatives: Keep Creating

I promised something writing related, so here it is.

I’m writing a story for an upcoming project. It’s one of my Calvin Carter, Railroad Detective, stories set in the 1880s. I’ll admit all this real-world news killed the imagination for the first part of the month.

But this week, something changed. Maybe it was the work-from-home environment where I don’t have to commute and, thus, have more time prior to work time, but I found myself getting through this story in chunks.

And man oh man, did it feel good to write those words! For a little bit each day, I got to escape to the 1880s and stand next to my characters as they figure out how to stop a hijacked train.

So, you writers or creatives out there: keep creating. Keep writing. If nothing else, you’ll escape.

Stay safe. Stay calm. Stay focused on what you can do to help.

That’s my message to you this week.

Year 5 of an Indie Writer: Week 11

Well, it's been a week.

I'm not going to spend much time about the COVID-19 virus because it's all over the news and sometimes, we need to step away from the news. Just for a little bit. It's good to put some distance between the constant news scrolling across our screens or the various tweets on Twitter.

This is Spring Break down here in Houston and my wife's birthday. I took two days off from the job. One day was spent here in town, having a nice brunch, catching a showing of "The Invisible Man," and ended with some excellent sushi. The other day involved us traveling to Alvin, Texas, to visit the antique mall, a lunch at Killen's BBQ in Pearland, Texas, and a Half Price Books stop. Found HELLBENT, the third Orphan X novel by Gregg Hurwitz. I love finding books you want out in the wild.

Both days had me away from the news and social media for large swaths of both days. It was a nice break, especially when we tuned back into the news and seeing our new reality set in. I'd recommend it from time to time. Remain vigilant, of course, but you don't have to be vigilant 24/7.

The two-day break wasn't the only good thing this week.

Between Stories

Over on his website, Steven Pressfield had a timely post. It stemmed from a question: What to do between books.

His answer: there should be no 'between books.'

Why? Because it kills your momentum. Pressfield paraphrases the bodybuilder Jack Lalanne: every day we miss, it is that much harder to start writing again.

Boy, ain't that the truth. I started writing a new story for an anthology this week. Yay! The opening scene was pretty easily penned in one session. Yay again. Chapter 2 not so much. I know what I am going to write--mostly--but the words didn't flow as smoothly as when I was writing every day.

But the good news was the words came. And it felt good to be writing again, especially this week.

I started on 11 March, which was my grandfather's birthday. I aim to keep the momentum going.

For both things: writing and in creating breaks from the news.

Year 5 of an Indie Writer: Week 10 AKA Organic Growth and Contingency Plans

I started the week thinking I'd write about one thing. I ended the week with a cautionary tale

Organic Growth

My son is a fan of a particular franchise. He makes videos about it, sharing them, and watching videos taken by other fans.

But he also takes a break from active fandom. For the latter part of each year through February, he doesn't devote much time to watch videos of other fans or much of anything. He sets a date for his new season to start, and he hit that mark this week.

On 1 March when he started up again, he marveled at how many more views his videos had received during his time away. He was really happy that viewership rose without him uploading new content. His subscriber list also grew.

"That's organic growth," I told him. "It's the kind of thing all creatives long for."

I asked him more questions about his videos. Turns out one seems to be a catalyst. It's an adjacent video, one not directly related to the franchise, but one that melds two franchises together. (I know I'm being vague, but he didn't want me to name drop him.)

His one, out-of-the-ordinary video actually got him more interested viewers. It also brought it viewers of that other franchise who watched, liked what they saw, and watch more of my son's videos.

In other words, his back list brought him more subscribers, more fans. Now, this year, as he makes newer videos, he'll be able to grow his fan base.

But I was struck by that one franchise-merging video. For him, that was the one of the key drivers to earn more viewers. I got to thinking how a writer might do something like that.

I'm still thinking, but the possibilities are exciting and nearly endless.

Oh, and I can't help but wonder if he's onto something in taking a break from a beloved franchise. His excitement built up until his new season started, making it all the more sweeter.

Contingency Plans

I'm thinking the vast majority of us writers--both traditionally published and independents--do not make our money solely from our writing. For those of us in this group, we have day jobs that serve as the primary means of our income, leaving the book business as a side hustle.

That's where I am. I love the book business, but for me, it's the second thing I do. By day, I have a job.

And, after this week, I still do.

Every company goes through a reorganization from time to time, and my company's doing it now. Well, just my team. I am incredibly blessed and fortunate to have maintained my position. I've been on the other side before and it ain't pretty. Most recently, in October 2017, was without a job. I thought I'd get tons of writing done with all the free time because, really, how much time could looking for a job take?

All of it. Looking for a job is a full-time job. Not only that, but it drains the mental energy, too.

Some of that dread seeped into my mind this week before I was told I would stay. It naturally got me to thinking about the side hustle. At the present time, it's not a lot of money. I get nearly all my joy in the writing of the tales. The icing on the cake is where others read them. But I really do enjoy readers who read and share my books.

I have lots of ideas about improving my discoverability, but up to now, I've not acted on them. After this week, and after the example of my son's franchise, maybe it's time to start.

Year 5 of an Indie Author: Week 9

Welcome to Leap Day. It's an extra day for the year, and an extra day to prepare before the new month starts tomorrow.

I might have mentioned this before, but as consequential New Year's Resolutions can be, New Month Resolutions can also be helpful. I tend not to think of them as resolutions. Instead, the starts of new months are opportunities to begin a new project or, in my case, re-start a stalled book.

The Benefits of a Fallow Period 

I started the novel as part of NaNoWriMo and I made excellent progress. But I hit a snag in December and stopped writing. I didn't think much of it. December is a time for Christmas movies and books and TV specials and music. Besides, I told myself, I'd just pick up the tale on New Year's Day.

Didn't happen.

Again, I shrugged. I had just stared a new-to-me book--Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz--and I decided to read more than write. I'd get back to my own book soon enough.

That didn't happen either.

Then, I started to wonder why I didn't jump back on the book. I started to edge towards chastising myself for not writing. I stopped short. There was a reason I wasn't writing, and I decided to ride that wave.

When February started, I thought I'd get back to the book. Didn't. I kept reading, moving on to The Nowhere Man, the second Orphan X novel, and added the first few issues of the famous comic book series MASTER OF KUNG FU. I enjoyed reading and, frankly, enjoyed not writing.

But as late February took hold, I began to feel that pull. It felt good. To get myself back on track, I re-read my manuscript, and two things happened.

One, I read the story and enjoyed it. I saw the better writing, could see my progress as a writer from where I was five years ago. I actually smiled at more than one part.

The second thing was I saw what got me off track. I read and edited as I went. I made an outline on paper, keeping notes of things to fix. By the time I got to where I stopped, I knew exactly what I needed to do to course correct this book.

And I can't wait until tomorrow when I jump back on the book and move forward.

Clive Cussler

This week, the world lost a great writer.

I came to Clive Cussler late and via his Isaac Bell series. I knew about Dirk Pitt and his adventure series, but only read a book or two. Maybe only one. I think I've read one or two of the other series as well.

Isaac Bell, on the other hand, well, I'm literally listening to the latest book, Titanic Secret, when I learned of Cussler's passing. I love the Bell series and the historical settings.

I'm not the only one who loved Cussler's books. Millions of readers have loved the adventures Cussler pens. This week, as word of his passing spread over the internet, I enjoyed reading what Cussler meant to these readers. What really made me smile was reading how Cussler was the author lots of dads read.

As a writer, however, I grew to appreciate and study how Cussler structured his books. I listened to almost all of them--narrated by the excellent Scott Brick--but I would constantly take notes. I would realize how excited or tense I was during certain passages and then go back and study those passages to figure out why.

For me, reading a Cussler book was not only an adventure, it was an education.

Rest in peace, Mr. Cussler, and thanks for all the stories.