Wednesday, September 23, 2009

To Scratch and Scribble Part 6

We've all done it. We've jotted, we've scratched, we've scribbled. While some take the humongous plunge of creating entire worlds all by themselves, others are more inclined to have training wheels set before doing anything too big.

After my first novel debacle, I decided to try and train my brain to recognize good ideas. I've found TV shows and movies that I liked or have come to like and watched them. I was obsessed. Then I stumbled upon Fanfiction.net.

Here is a site that takes everything you love about tv shows, video games, movies and anime and tells you to make up your own story or episode and share it with others. Millions of people were doing this when I discovered it in 2001. Have a different ending in mind for The Shawshank Redemption? Have at it. Feel like you could've written a better plotline for Indiana Jones? Go for it! Or maybe you're one of the many people who have their own draft of Scream 4. You'll find it on this site.

If writing is all a matter of exercising that literary part of your brain, I believe that writing fan fiction truly helps.

On that site, I wrote two fanfiction stories for one of my all-time favorite games: Silent Hill. It was the best. One story, involving an author traveling to the haunted town to write a non-fiction book, evolved and became more fluid as I wrote. I got nine chapters up. It was 14,000 words long. I ended it on a real nail biting cliff-hanger when Jack(the protag) and his friend Dan(someone who is trying to escape the town) have just read a secret incantation which brings the other haunted world to the town. They are sitting in Jack's previously beaten-up car with a zippo as their only form of illumination. The last line of the story went something like this:

The glow from the lighter flickered away. We were left in darkness, listening to the howls of the screeching demons. They were ready to feast.

And that was where I left it. On a cliffhanger. Haven't gone back to it since. Because, dear readers, that was when my brain started thinking for itself. Stories were forming all on their own. I became overwhelmed by the amount. But I stand by what I said. Try fanfiction first. It really helps to take stories in different directions and find out what may be on the other side.

What fanfiction have you tried? Would love to hear them.



"There's a time and place for everything, and I believe it’s called 'fan fiction'." ~ Joss Whedon


Sunday, September 20, 2009

Are You (Tweet)ing Kidding Me?

Yes, it has finally happened. I am now on Twitter. I'm not going to update every five minutes but I will let you know my progress on the future books that I work on. I'll also have funny little tidbits, y'know, the usual stuff.


You can find me here:

Tweetin' my books.

There will also be a button link on the right of my page soon.

Friday, September 18, 2009

For What It's Worth



(From the back cover)

It began with a handful of objects and became the short story collection not to be missed. Come to a place where the infamous Glock Block is just around the corner. Where your former selves run wild and fires become invisible to the human eye. In an age of hit men, crooks, specters and average Joe's; everyone has a story to tell and nothing is what it seems. Be prepared for a mischievous grandfather clock. Come to know Mr. Horace Grant, the loan shark who once had a heart of gold. Maybe you will be able to find some mirth in a depressed rhetoric teacher or perhaps you will unravel the mystery of the Poe Transporter. Whatever the case may be, everyone finds out their destiny and proves just how much they’re worth.


Told you it was coming out today. It doesn't have a ISBN code yet, but I plan on purchasing one for it. There's just a choice of what kind of ISBN I want.

But I couldn't pass up showing you guys where you can find it. Right now it is exclusively sold on Lulu.com

See if you can buy it.

Click the line below.

Buy The Book Here

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Mover, Shaker, Book-maker

When I first posted the release date of my short story collection, I thought I gave myself enough time. The reality was I gave myself a good amount of time but didn't take into account the actual production of the book.

I consider myself computer-savy, able to learn things quickly. But I gave myself too little time to toy around with the book-making process. There were things that I had to become familiar with first.


What the flip is a PDF? Why does my document look warped when I upload it? How do I make the page numbers appear exactly where I want them? How do you make a wrap-around cover? These were things I would come to toggle with as the days progressed. It's not all that bad. Once you get the hang of it, it's pretty neat.

With Lulu, I found a way to not only release my work and make the transition from writer to author, but it also gave me a chance to see what it feels like to be in a publisher's position. They want their product to look and feel professional. That's what I'm going for, too.

But the big announcement of this post is that, since everything is done with the production of the book, it should be released no later than Sept. 18th. Mark that one down on your calender. I'm excited. Hope all of you are.

~R.S.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Elisa Lorello is Stepping Up

In June, I had the privilege of interviewing Elisa Lorello. She is the author of Faking It. So far, her sales are doing well and her second book may be just around the corner. She published via lulu.com which is also the publisher I'm planning to use. They have a blog on that site as well. I found that they did their very first video author interview with Elisa Lorello. I applaud her drive and I hope her book continues to do well.

I first started reading my copy of Faking It in an ebook format, then bought the paperback copy. I finished it in about a week and a half.

I am pleased to say that this novel is "a classic, fresh, charming, comedic blend of romance and rhetoric. This book can’t fake it’s heart."

I really enjoyed it.

Here is the interview.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Rushing The Gun



Hey everybody.



I know I said that the book would be out on Sept. 2nd or 4th but now things have changed. I recently quit my old job and have been, for the past three weeks, working at a brand new one. My old job was very part time. This new one is full time. So, with all the hours I'm working, even though I recieved the final edits, I have to push the release back at least two weeks. Sorry. Don't mean to make all of you wait.



I was rushing the gun. I thought I could handle these edits no problem and do everything in one day. That is not the case. I planned two months ahead of time to publish this new book. The second month was reserved for the editing process. It only goes to show that no matter how organized you are, you will encounter delays. But it's not such a bad thing. This will give me a chance to stretch my legs for a bit. I can look over 50 pages a day and be set.



I take writing seriously, as you can tell, and I want to go over the manuscript a few more times to polish it and make all the necessary corrections. If this book is going to come out, I want it to be good. I want it to be publisher quality good. Hell, I want it to be an experience. So be patient a little while longer and you'll soon be holding in your hands a crisp new copy of my first book. Thanks so much for following this blog. I'll let you know when the new release date is set.


~ R.S.