It's been four years since I started up Feeding the Silence. At the time, I found that my primary means of talking to the world was via a blog. First was Infinity Ranch, of course, and when it seemed I couldn't keep my mouth shut for very long, along came Feeding the Silence. As you'll notice, the post count has dipped pretty severely from that first year.
Is it because I don't have as much to say? Doubtful. I'm still as full of opinions as always, although when you've been blogging as long as I have you start to repeat yourself. The more I tried to make sure I was saying something original and meaningful, the more things slowed down. Make of that what you will.
Having said that, I've also been doing a lot more off-the-blog writing. Fiction is just more fun than real life, and at least there I control what happens to people. The worlds I create in my head might not be any more just than this one, but they're a little more interesting. I hope.
When I started writing fiction, I did it just to do it. I wasn't thinking at the time, "I'm writing a best seller! Look out George R.R. Martin! Let's get Hollywood on the phone!" To be honest, I wasn't thinking anything at all, aside from, "can I really do this?" After some successful NaNoWriMo years, I had to start wondering what I was going to do with these books I've been writing.
Long story short - I've decided to publish them myself.
Technology has changed the way books are published and distributed. It's given me a chance to do it on my own terms in my own way. First up, in March, will be a collection of short stories. If that goes well, things will snowball from there.
Which is all to say that, going forward, I'm not going to worry so much about the stuff I've been writing about here. I'll keep blogging, but probably with a focus more on artistic and cultural things. And my own writing, of course.
So, the silence has been well and truly fed. Thanks to everybody who stopped by.
If you're interested in my newest adventure . . . follow me.
Showing posts with label announcements. Show all posts
Showing posts with label announcements. Show all posts
February 3, 2015
January 9, 2014
New Year, New Tune
In spite of the title of this post, this song has actually been percolating since April of last year, but I just got around to finishing it. It originally had a different (more macabre) title and was going to wind up going a completely different direction. Such is the life of music.
If "Wombats In Estrus (Parts 1, 2, and 3)" sounds awfully silly, that's because it is. One of the great benefits of writing songs without words is that song titles can be just about anything (see, Zappa, Frank and National Health, among others, for some wonderful examples). I jotted down the title sometime last year becsuse it reminded me of King Crimson's "Larks Tongues in Aspic." Given the history of that tune (4 parts spread over three records), it seemed to fit what this piece became.
"Wombats . . ." is based around two notes that spawn the bass lines, chords, and the melodic bits. It wasn't planned that way, but it turned out pretty well. Part 1 (heavilly indebted to OMD's "New Stone Age") is more synth-poppy, while Part 2 is more ambient and spooky. Part 2 includes samples from Freesound (193818__geoneo0__four-voices-whispering-6-wecho by geoneo0) and a Sony collection called Rabbit Asylum (The Stuttered 00's), which is as weird as the name suggests. Part 3 was originally it's own separate bit, but I thought it tied things together nicely (the drum pattern is indebted to "Astonomic Club" from Air's soundtrack for Le voyage dans la lune).
Equipment wise, this tune relies heavily on two of my older bits of kit, the Korg M50 workstation and the Alesis Micron virtual analog synth. There's also some (virtual) Yamaha CS80 in the midsection and, of course, some (virtual) Mellotron in Part 3. The final melodic bit in Part 3 is from the Nord Lead 2X. None of that matters to most of you, but somebody might find it interesting.
So, enjoy "Wombats In Estrus (Parts 1, 2, and 3)"!
If "Wombats In Estrus (Parts 1, 2, and 3)" sounds awfully silly, that's because it is. One of the great benefits of writing songs without words is that song titles can be just about anything (see, Zappa, Frank and National Health, among others, for some wonderful examples). I jotted down the title sometime last year becsuse it reminded me of King Crimson's "Larks Tongues in Aspic." Given the history of that tune (4 parts spread over three records), it seemed to fit what this piece became.
"Wombats . . ." is based around two notes that spawn the bass lines, chords, and the melodic bits. It wasn't planned that way, but it turned out pretty well. Part 1 (heavilly indebted to OMD's "New Stone Age") is more synth-poppy, while Part 2 is more ambient and spooky. Part 2 includes samples from Freesound (193818__geoneo0__four-voices-whispering-6-wecho by geoneo0) and a Sony collection called Rabbit Asylum (The Stuttered 00's), which is as weird as the name suggests. Part 3 was originally it's own separate bit, but I thought it tied things together nicely (the drum pattern is indebted to "Astonomic Club" from Air's soundtrack for Le voyage dans la lune).
Equipment wise, this tune relies heavily on two of my older bits of kit, the Korg M50 workstation and the Alesis Micron virtual analog synth. There's also some (virtual) Yamaha CS80 in the midsection and, of course, some (virtual) Mellotron in Part 3. The final melodic bit in Part 3 is from the Nord Lead 2X. None of that matters to most of you, but somebody might find it interesting.
So, enjoy "Wombats In Estrus (Parts 1, 2, and 3)"!
December 5, 2013
What I've Been Up To
Hello again, gentle reader(s). In case anybody's wondering where I've been and what I've been up to the past couple of months, here's the info.
Largely, things have been quiet here at FTS because I haven't had a lot to say about what's going on in the world. There's only so many times you can look at political bullshit going on in the world and say, "is't that some political bullshit?" The powers that be provide us with lots of said excrement, but its not really worth talking about.
For the past month I've largely directed my creative energies toward National Novel Writing Month, as usual. This year was different because my project for Nano was a sequel. The Endless Hills is book two of the trilogy that began with The Water Road back in 2009. That tome, along with last year's project, Moore Hollow, are both to the point where I'm ready to do something with them, but I'm not sure what that something should be.
When I started writing fiction in earnest several years ago I never really gave any thought to what would happen when I had a "finished" product. I didn't do it to find a new career or seek stardom, although it would be nice for people (aside from my lovely, supportive, and insightful wife) to read the stuff. To the extent that I started with short stories the process there is pretty straightforward - finish story, polish 'til it gleams, submit it directly to magazine/website/anthology. No muss, no fuss, but plenty of rejection.
Speaking of short stories, I've joined an online critique group, Critters, that caters to writers of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. The deal is that in return for reading and critiquing the work of others, they do the same for you. I've found it extremely helpful, particularly reading what other people are writing. It forces you to think critically about a story, what its trying to do, how it might do it, etc. That really carries over to your own writing. The feedback I've gotten on a couple of short stories has been very helpful.
I also got a chance to take in my first West Virginia Writers conference up in Elkins. It was a good chance to hang out with like minded folks and learn some good stuff. It certainly won't be my last.
But back to publishing novels, which is a whole different story from shorts. If you want to publish with one of the big houses, you need to get an agent first. That means sending queries and manuscripts out all over the place and hoping they connect. If you are interested in working with a smaller press you can submit directly to them, but the query/manuscript process is largely the same (frustratingly, just about everybody does it a little bit differently). Either route will give you what most people think of as "real" publishing - an editor, cover designer, layout specialists, and all that. It's the gold standard.
On the other hand there's the increasingly respectable avenue of self publishing, particularly in electronic (Kindle, etc.) format and particularly in the sci-fin/fantasy ghetto in which I live. The author retains completely control (and a bigger cut of sales), but you have to either contract out all the work a publisher normally does or do it yourself, which opens up all kinds of potential problems. In addition, marketing primarily electronic books seems like a real effort. All in all, I'm not sure I'm up for it.
Regardless, any decision on which way to go (or to go one way with one book and another with the other) is put off until the first draft of The Endless Hills is done. It's a bit more complex than The Water Road. That book only had two main characters with stories that paralleled each other. This one's got about eight "main" characters, many of which converge at one point, but many others don't. Lots of plates to keep spinning!
Musically, I've got a song in the can that needs mixed and given a new name. The working title is too stupid, even for me. It starts out heavily indebted to OMD's "The New Stone Age," but then goes in a different direction. I've also embarked on a cover of "Kashmir," so we'll see how that goes.
That's it. Regular service (or semi-regular, at least), resumes next week.
Largely, things have been quiet here at FTS because I haven't had a lot to say about what's going on in the world. There's only so many times you can look at political bullshit going on in the world and say, "is't that some political bullshit?" The powers that be provide us with lots of said excrement, but its not really worth talking about.
For the past month I've largely directed my creative energies toward National Novel Writing Month, as usual. This year was different because my project for Nano was a sequel. The Endless Hills is book two of the trilogy that began with The Water Road back in 2009. That tome, along with last year's project, Moore Hollow, are both to the point where I'm ready to do something with them, but I'm not sure what that something should be.
When I started writing fiction in earnest several years ago I never really gave any thought to what would happen when I had a "finished" product. I didn't do it to find a new career or seek stardom, although it would be nice for people (aside from my lovely, supportive, and insightful wife) to read the stuff. To the extent that I started with short stories the process there is pretty straightforward - finish story, polish 'til it gleams, submit it directly to magazine/website/anthology. No muss, no fuss, but plenty of rejection.
Speaking of short stories, I've joined an online critique group, Critters, that caters to writers of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. The deal is that in return for reading and critiquing the work of others, they do the same for you. I've found it extremely helpful, particularly reading what other people are writing. It forces you to think critically about a story, what its trying to do, how it might do it, etc. That really carries over to your own writing. The feedback I've gotten on a couple of short stories has been very helpful.
I also got a chance to take in my first West Virginia Writers conference up in Elkins. It was a good chance to hang out with like minded folks and learn some good stuff. It certainly won't be my last.
But back to publishing novels, which is a whole different story from shorts. If you want to publish with one of the big houses, you need to get an agent first. That means sending queries and manuscripts out all over the place and hoping they connect. If you are interested in working with a smaller press you can submit directly to them, but the query/manuscript process is largely the same (frustratingly, just about everybody does it a little bit differently). Either route will give you what most people think of as "real" publishing - an editor, cover designer, layout specialists, and all that. It's the gold standard.
On the other hand there's the increasingly respectable avenue of self publishing, particularly in electronic (Kindle, etc.) format and particularly in the sci-fin/fantasy ghetto in which I live. The author retains completely control (and a bigger cut of sales), but you have to either contract out all the work a publisher normally does or do it yourself, which opens up all kinds of potential problems. In addition, marketing primarily electronic books seems like a real effort. All in all, I'm not sure I'm up for it.
Regardless, any decision on which way to go (or to go one way with one book and another with the other) is put off until the first draft of The Endless Hills is done. It's a bit more complex than The Water Road. That book only had two main characters with stories that paralleled each other. This one's got about eight "main" characters, many of which converge at one point, but many others don't. Lots of plates to keep spinning!
Musically, I've got a song in the can that needs mixed and given a new name. The working title is too stupid, even for me. It starts out heavily indebted to OMD's "The New Stone Age," but then goes in a different direction. I've also embarked on a cover of "Kashmir," so we'll see how that goes.
That's it. Regular service (or semi-regular, at least), resumes next week.
November 30, 2013
I've Been a Bit Busy
Ahem.
50,317 words for November. If it's predecessor was any indication, there's about 85,000 words left to go before a first draft is done. Nonetheless, it feels good to set a goal and meet it.
More details on this project, and others, in a few days.
Until then, hooray for me!
50,317 words for November. If it's predecessor was any indication, there's about 85,000 words left to go before a first draft is done. Nonetheless, it feels good to set a goal and meet it.
More details on this project, and others, in a few days.
Until then, hooray for me!
August 19, 2013
I Am Not Dead
So, hey, everybody – what’s up?
It occurred to me over the weekend that it’s been more than a month since I posted something here. So I thought I’d just pop my head up to say that I’m not dead. I haven’t been set upon by a marauding horde of art snobs or what have you. I just haven’t had much to say that’s blogworthly lately. That and I’ve been expending my creative energies making music and writing (well, polishing) fiction.
I’ll be back, at some point, when I find something about which I can’t keep my virtual mouth shut. Until then . . .
It occurred to me over the weekend that it’s been more than a month since I posted something here. So I thought I’d just pop my head up to say that I’m not dead. I haven’t been set upon by a marauding horde of art snobs or what have you. I just haven’t had much to say that’s blogworthly lately. That and I’ve been expending my creative energies making music and writing (well, polishing) fiction.
I’ll be back, at some point, when I find something about which I can’t keep my virtual mouth shut. Until then . . .
May 13, 2013
Bloggus Interuptus: Matrimonial Edition
Friends, you may remember that last year the lovely lady K agreed to marry me. The time for us to make good on that promise is upon us! And we just bought a house! So, I’ll be stepping away from FtS for the rest of the month.
See y’all in June!
See y’all in June!
December 4, 2012
The Narrow Margin
I’ve done NaNoWriMo* five times now. The goal of NaNo, of course, is to produce 50,000 words in a month, either as a complete novel or as the sizeable beginning of one. In prior years when I’ve won, I came to December knowing that, while NaNo was over, the draft wasn’t. One pushed on to over 85,000 words, another to 135,000 (another still crashed and burned shortly after NaNo ended).
Going into NaNo this year I knew it would be a bit different. My project for this year, Moore Hollow, began as a short story idea that quickly spiraled into something bigger. I figured it would be complete at about the 50,000 word mark, but didn’t quite realize how close it was going to be:
. . . by 306 words! And that came only after I went back and punched up a scene with a little more detail. I actually considered calling it complete just shy of the 50,000 mark. It still would have been a novel, for SFWA purposes (which makes 40,000 the Rubicon), but I’m glad I went back. I think that scene works better now.
So what is Moore Hollow about, anyway? It’s about a British investigative journalist, fallen on hard times, with family ties to West Virginia. He heads down into the coal fields to investigate a story about a local election in the early part of the 20th Century in which, well let’s just say, some strange things occurred. What he finds out and, more importantly, what he does with that information, is the heart of the book.
Is it any good? Hard to say. I should have a better idea when I whip through the second draft early in 2013.
* AKA National Novel Writing Month
Going into NaNo this year I knew it would be a bit different. My project for this year, Moore Hollow, began as a short story idea that quickly spiraled into something bigger. I figured it would be complete at about the 50,000 word mark, but didn’t quite realize how close it was going to be:
. . . by 306 words! And that came only after I went back and punched up a scene with a little more detail. I actually considered calling it complete just shy of the 50,000 mark. It still would have been a novel, for SFWA purposes (which makes 40,000 the Rubicon), but I’m glad I went back. I think that scene works better now.
So what is Moore Hollow about, anyway? It’s about a British investigative journalist, fallen on hard times, with family ties to West Virginia. He heads down into the coal fields to investigate a story about a local election in the early part of the 20th Century in which, well let’s just say, some strange things occurred. What he finds out and, more importantly, what he does with that information, is the heart of the book.
Is it any good? Hard to say. I should have a better idea when I whip through the second draft early in 2013.
* AKA National Novel Writing Month
October 31, 2012
Check Your Calendars
Yes, friends, if you’ll look to your monthly time keeping tool of choice, you’ll see that it’s almost November. In addition to the thankful end of the interminable election campaign, that also means it’s time for . . .
That’s right, November is National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo, during which intrepid souls like myself attempt to produce a novel (or at least the first 50,000 words of it). This will be the fifth year I’ve taken part.
Which means that, like last year, Feeding the Silence will essentially go dark for the month. Focusing on the novel writing last year got me to the NaNo goal of 50,000 words, even though the project cratered shortly thereafter. As it happens, the idea I was working on last year was really more of a short story thing than a novel. I still need to go back and salvage the good parts.
Ironically, this year is flipped around, with my NaNo project being something I originally tried to flesh out as a short story. I think it will work much better in a longer format, so we’ll see.
What’s it about? Let’s just say it plays on the idea that, historically, many West Virginia elections have involved the participation of the dearly departed. But that’s just the underlying idea – we’ll see how it all pans out.
Wish me luck and I’ll see y’all in December!
That’s right, November is National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo, during which intrepid souls like myself attempt to produce a novel (or at least the first 50,000 words of it). This will be the fifth year I’ve taken part.
Which means that, like last year, Feeding the Silence will essentially go dark for the month. Focusing on the novel writing last year got me to the NaNo goal of 50,000 words, even though the project cratered shortly thereafter. As it happens, the idea I was working on last year was really more of a short story thing than a novel. I still need to go back and salvage the good parts.
Ironically, this year is flipped around, with my NaNo project being something I originally tried to flesh out as a short story. I think it will work much better in a longer format, so we’ll see.
What’s it about? Let’s just say it plays on the idea that, historically, many West Virginia elections have involved the participation of the dearly departed. But that’s just the underlying idea – we’ll see how it all pans out.
Wish me luck and I’ll see y’all in December!
October 16, 2012
It’s All About Tunes
A few weeks ago I mentioned reorganizing my online musical life, shutting down the old account at ACIDPlanet and consolidating things at Soundcloud. At the time, I took down all the tracks I had up at Soundcloud, in order to put them back up in the proper format and running order.
Yes, I’m that pretentious.
I’ve taken the cream of that crop and organized them into a new “set” (think of it as an album, if you wish) called Working Title. Unlike the two ADICPlanet sets, which made use of premade loops as well as my own stuff, these tracks are all my own. Here’s the set as it exists now:
Over the next couple of days, I’ll upload two more tracks to round out the set. I’m really happy with them, as they’re completely different from one another and both came from concrete ideas in my head, rather than just growing out of fortuitous doodles.
Speaking of reorganizing, it’s been a while since I showed what the studio setup looks like these days (click here for a bigger view):
For the gear heads, here’s what you see in that picture, from left to right:
Up tomorrow – music inspired by a skittering little bug!
Yes, I’m that pretentious.
I’ve taken the cream of that crop and organized them into a new “set” (think of it as an album, if you wish) called Working Title. Unlike the two ADICPlanet sets, which made use of premade loops as well as my own stuff, these tracks are all my own. Here’s the set as it exists now:
Over the next couple of days, I’ll upload two more tracks to round out the set. I’m really happy with them, as they’re completely different from one another and both came from concrete ideas in my head, rather than just growing out of fortuitous doodles.
Speaking of reorganizing, it’s been a while since I showed what the studio setup looks like these days (click here for a bigger view):
For the gear heads, here’s what you see in that picture, from left to right:
- Alesis SR-18 drum machine
- Korg M50 workstation (bottom) w/ GFS Greenie Classic fuzz box
- Alesis Micron virtual analog synth (top)
- Korg Kaosilator synth
- Zoom R-16 digital recorder
- Peavey KR-1 amp
- M-Audio Axiom-61 MIDI controller (bottom)
- Nord Rack 2X w/Boss PH-2 Super Phaser (top left)
- Moog Minitaur bass synth (top middle)
- Berhinger MIDI controller (top right)
- Gateway computer running ACID Music Studio and various software synths, including GForce Minimonsta and M-Tron and virtual versions of Korg’s M1, Wavestation, and Polysix synths
Up tomorrow – music inspired by a skittering little bug!
July 29, 2012
Sorry Ladies . .
. . . I'm taken:
The wonderful and lovely K has agreed to spend the rest of her life with me. I am, understandably, a happy man.
The wonderful and lovely K has agreed to spend the rest of her life with me. I am, understandably, a happy man.
July 23, 2012
Bloggus Interuptus
As you’ve no doubt realized, things have been a little slow ‘round these parts the past few weeks. In large part, that’s because I’m nearing the end of the second draft of The Water Road (which has sprouted several thousand more words in the process). I’m pushing to finish that and turn around to immediately begin a third draft, the hard red-pen-in-hand phase.
As a result, I’m going to step away from the blog for a few weeks, at least until that process is well underway. Plus, I’ve got some other business to focus my attention on in the next couple of weeks.
Be back soon!
As a result, I’m going to step away from the blog for a few weeks, at least until that process is well underway. Plus, I’ve got some other business to focus my attention on in the next couple of weeks.
Be back soon!
December 1, 2011
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner
Wait, what? Where the hell did the last month go?
Oh, right, National Novel Writing Month. Well, hey, guess what . . .
Yes, I managed to hit the 50k mark in thirty days. Slow and steady, too. My daily output only dropped below 1400 twice and never topped 2000. I was right in the 1600-1800 per day sweet spot. I really does add up after a while. Final total was 50,278 words for the month. So, hooray for me!
Alas, the damn thing's not done, yet! Probably another 15-20k in the works, which I'll have to pound out in December. Then put it away and return to an older project for a rewrite. Hey, at least I've got plans.
As for blogging, regular service resumes on Monday. See you then!
Oh, right, National Novel Writing Month. Well, hey, guess what . . .
Yes, I managed to hit the 50k mark in thirty days. Slow and steady, too. My daily output only dropped below 1400 twice and never topped 2000. I was right in the 1600-1800 per day sweet spot. I really does add up after a while. Final total was 50,278 words for the month. So, hooray for me!
Alas, the damn thing's not done, yet! Probably another 15-20k in the works, which I'll have to pound out in December. Then put it away and return to an older project for a rewrite. Hey, at least I've got plans.
As for blogging, regular service resumes on Monday. See you then!
November 1, 2011
Bloggus Interuptus (Novelus Writus)
Last year, I bailed on National Novel Writing Month, aka NaNoWriMo. But I had a good excuse – K and I took a trip to St. John in the Virgin Islands to celebrate our fifth anniversary (pix here, if you’re curious). It would have been unseemly to take on the task of writing every day while we were away, and impossible to make up for lost time when we got back. But I’m back in the game this year!
This will mark the fourth time I’ve done NaNoWriMo. In 2007 I crashed and burned about 60% of the way to the 50,000-word target for the month, although I expect to revive that novel in a different format someday. I “won” in 2008 and 2009, although neither novel was finished during the month. 2008’s effort is now moldering in a box in my closet, after a second draft convinced me it was shit. 2009’s effort, which is considerably more epic, is set for a second draft in early 2012. I kind of like it, so I expect I’ll push through the polishing it needs. This year I’m taking on immortality and what I might do to people who are and aren’t really cut out for it. We’ll see how it goes.
All of this is a longish way of saying that I’ll be otherwise occupied this month, so there won’t be any updates at Feeding the Silence. See y’all in December!
UPDATE: Track my progress . . .
This will mark the fourth time I’ve done NaNoWriMo. In 2007 I crashed and burned about 60% of the way to the 50,000-word target for the month, although I expect to revive that novel in a different format someday. I “won” in 2008 and 2009, although neither novel was finished during the month. 2008’s effort is now moldering in a box in my closet, after a second draft convinced me it was shit. 2009’s effort, which is considerably more epic, is set for a second draft in early 2012. I kind of like it, so I expect I’ll push through the polishing it needs. This year I’m taking on immortality and what I might do to people who are and aren’t really cut out for it. We’ll see how it goes.
All of this is a longish way of saying that I’ll be otherwise occupied this month, so there won’t be any updates at Feeding the Silence. See y’all in December!
UPDATE: Track my progress . . .
October 17, 2011
Behind the Scribbling: “The Last Ereph”
Over the weekend, the final edition of The Absent Willow Review went live, which includes my short story, “The Last Ereph.” You can read my story here. Be sure and check out the rest, too. Some of them look pretty good. Thanks again to the AWR folks for publishing my story, and my condolences on going out of business.
That said, I thought I’d provide a little bit of background on that story.
I actually started this story out the old fashioned way, longhand. I took a pen and notebook with me to ProgDay in 2010, figuring that the rustic setting and downtime between sets would provide some good inspiration. Why I didn’t think to take my netbook, I have no idea. My handwriting is legendary in its awfulness and my hand cramps up after a few lines. Regardless, it jotted down about the first half of things in the shade at Storybook Farm, appropriately enough. The rest came together at home, with invaluable editorial assistance from K. Any particularly brilliant turn of phrase is probably due to her. Thanks, honey!
The inspiration for the story came, oddly enough for an atheist, from some sympathy for a dying religion. I read an article a while back in the New York Times about Zoroastrianism and how it was on the verge of dying out. Now, the Zoroastrians were monotheists way before it was hip, worshiping one god in Persia before even the Jews came on the scene, must less the late arriving Christians and Muslims. That being said, they should be legion, yes? Not anymore. From what I remember from the article (caveat – I could have it completely wrong), Zoroastrians don’t prosthyletize, don’t claim an exclusive in to the truths of the universe, and don’t frown on things like intermarriage with folks from other faiths.
What I took away from the article was that the Zoroastrians were disappearing because they were open minded and non-confrontational, which really struck me as kind of a shitty fate. So I decided to write about it. In the universe of “The Last Ereph,” people belong to “cult houses” like people today belong the churches. They’re more philosophical than religious, although there are those about (I guess – maybe we’ll find out sometime later?). The semi-hero, Kol, stumbles into a decrepit house of a cult with only one remaining member. Will it stay that way? You’ll have to read it to find out.
As for the perhaps most critical question, asked by my parents: “how do you pronounce ‘ereph’?” I have no idea. That’s one of the beauties of writing fantasy – I get to make up words and not give a damn what they sound like out loud. I’ll leave the film/television/audiobook adapters to worry about that. And individual readers, of course.
That's it. Enjoy!
That said, I thought I’d provide a little bit of background on that story.
I actually started this story out the old fashioned way, longhand. I took a pen and notebook with me to ProgDay in 2010, figuring that the rustic setting and downtime between sets would provide some good inspiration. Why I didn’t think to take my netbook, I have no idea. My handwriting is legendary in its awfulness and my hand cramps up after a few lines. Regardless, it jotted down about the first half of things in the shade at Storybook Farm, appropriately enough. The rest came together at home, with invaluable editorial assistance from K. Any particularly brilliant turn of phrase is probably due to her. Thanks, honey!
The inspiration for the story came, oddly enough for an atheist, from some sympathy for a dying religion. I read an article a while back in the New York Times about Zoroastrianism and how it was on the verge of dying out. Now, the Zoroastrians were monotheists way before it was hip, worshiping one god in Persia before even the Jews came on the scene, must less the late arriving Christians and Muslims. That being said, they should be legion, yes? Not anymore. From what I remember from the article (caveat – I could have it completely wrong), Zoroastrians don’t prosthyletize, don’t claim an exclusive in to the truths of the universe, and don’t frown on things like intermarriage with folks from other faiths.
What I took away from the article was that the Zoroastrians were disappearing because they were open minded and non-confrontational, which really struck me as kind of a shitty fate. So I decided to write about it. In the universe of “The Last Ereph,” people belong to “cult houses” like people today belong the churches. They’re more philosophical than religious, although there are those about (I guess – maybe we’ll find out sometime later?). The semi-hero, Kol, stumbles into a decrepit house of a cult with only one remaining member. Will it stay that way? You’ll have to read it to find out.
As for the perhaps most critical question, asked by my parents: “how do you pronounce ‘ereph’?” I have no idea. That’s one of the beauties of writing fantasy – I get to make up words and not give a damn what they sound like out loud. I’ll leave the film/television/audiobook adapters to worry about that. And individual readers, of course.
That's it. Enjoy!
October 12, 2011
A Musical Interlude
Apparently, the long holiday weekend has drained my blog-fu for this week. So here's a quick ditty I whipped up a couple weeks ago to tide you over until next week.
Friday Night (and My Baby's In Another State) Blues by Infinity Ranch
Friday Night (and My Baby's In Another State) Blues by Infinity Ranch
August 29, 2011
Coming to a Viewing Screen Near You
I'm very happy to announce that one of my short stories has found a home.
"The Last Ereph" has been accepted for publication by ezine The Absent Willow Review in their November 16, 2011 issue. Is the story of a thief on the run and the dying cult in which he seeks refuge, set (as they say) a long time ago in a land far far away. I'll got into a little more detail about it when it goes online in November.
Appropriately enough, this story was written largely by hand in a notebook on the lawn at Storybook Farm between sets at ProgDay during Labor Day weekend last year.
If you're keeping score, this is my first "sale," the first thing I've convinced total strangers to try and get people I don't know to read some of my fiction. So I'm pretty fucking pleased, just at the moment. The first of many? We'll see!
"The Last Ereph" has been accepted for publication by ezine The Absent Willow Review in their November 16, 2011 issue. Is the story of a thief on the run and the dying cult in which he seeks refuge, set (as they say) a long time ago in a land far far away. I'll got into a little more detail about it when it goes online in November.
Appropriately enough, this story was written largely by hand in a notebook on the lawn at Storybook Farm between sets at ProgDay during Labor Day weekend last year.
If you're keeping score, this is my first "sale," the first thing I've convinced total strangers to try and get people I don't know to read some of my fiction. So I'm pretty fucking pleased, just at the moment. The first of many? We'll see!
May 1, 2011
Programming Note
As I've got a massive brief due this coming week (two trials plus sentencing issues!), blogging will cease until I've recovered from that experience. Until then, place nice.
January 1, 2011
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