For the first time in at least a year, I have made a writing submission. I’m glad I did it. I’m working hard at reviving my creativity and planning the time in my day for it.
It’s not easy to put yourself out there and wait for judgement. I admire people that have developed a thicker skin than I have.
It was a very small risk, small reward submission, but it went.
As I stated on social media – back in the game!
Writing scripts – the list of what I want to say when starting off a video – is now a thing.
I suppose I’ve been doing that for quite some time actually. I never really thought about it when I was playing in my friend’s game and he was twitch streaming it all. It was just our little group doing their thing. Then I started running my D&D game. That was when I realized that I was making little things to say at the start of each session. I’ve never thought of it as “script writing” really, but I suppose that’s exactly what it is.
Until now (and maybe still beyond now) I’ve been physically writing down the things I want to say using a color coded piece of graph paper and sort of reading from that. Even when I write the words, the things I say don’t always line up with what I wrote. Sometimes that works, sometimes I “out clever” myself and screw up what was a funny written line. Of course, recording live, it’s not like I can just say “cut” and do it again. We’re live, and getting ready to play.
Our little videos are not production pieces (clearly).We don’t have makeup, wardrobe or sponsors. Nor do I expect we will have those at any point in our lives. It’s not what we’re trying to do. We’re trying to get a group of friends together and have fun.
So, I’ll keep writing my little intro bits but maybe I’ll make them electronic and post them up along with the videos of my game sessions. We’ll see. This is a learning process. It will take time for me to figure it all out.
This job sucks. Yes, I needed something. Yes, the rent was due. No… no, I should not have been in such a rush to grab the cash. I should have read the fine print in that contract.
Success at last. It was a challenging transition, but the poncho men had a foothold in this world. The continued to meld, one by one into the alleyway. Soon they would be legion. Soon they would remake the colors of this world.
It was a warm day, but not a hot one. Carrying the bag of tools, the mapping equipment and the supplies was an effort, but not an extraordinary one. The quest had almost become routine. Almost.
Endless searching. They couldn’t say that anymore. They’d finally found it.
Now they could step through.
I have come to discover that writing in any form is a struggle. Yes, I know – all the writers and creative types I know just collectively said “duh”. I get it, but sometimes saying it (or typing it) helps with the reality of making a change.
I am a writer that runs on inspiration. Long haul work is extremely difficult doing that, and finishing something the size and scope of a novel is exactly that – a long haul. I suck at that.
I’ve been chipping away at the edges of writing for many years, but what I have been doing is clearly not working, nor is it getting me the result I desire. I need to finish more, but in order to finish more I need to actually create more. I can’t sit and wait for inspiration or the ever elusive (thought to be mythical) ‘free time’.
So – I’m going to be squeezing things in. Maybe the edits won’t be great. There will be grammar and spelling issues. I can’t edit if it’s not created. The secret story in my head will never go anywhere without trying to record it in some form.
There you go – I squoze it myself.
She had seen the old movies, heard the old stories. Working alone, in the desert with all the parts she could scrounge she would create her own gateway. The power was not there right now, but it would come. She was Noah for the modern age. She had faith. She would travel, she would survive.
The right light was the key. The creator dabbed a brush, then flipped the next creation off the dock. As the page touched the water it transformed, dropping another creature into the mix. “Perhaps more gray for the next one. Maybe more teeth?”
Love, Death & Robots
This was originaly published in the June 2022 edition of Watch The Skies.
I went back through the list of shows that I have recommended in the history of these articles and was stunned to see that I had not brought up Love, Death & Robots. I don’t know how this has escaped previously, but no longer.
Love, Death & Robots is an animated series, but this is very specifically aimed at adults. The creators original intent was to have something similar in nature to the animated film Heavy Metal (from 1981). Do not for a moment think this is a children’s cartoon. It is NOT. It is brutal, sexy and mind rattling in varying degrees throughout. Netflix loaded up the first season of LD&R back in March of 2019. There were 18 episodes for the series, each coming in with a viewing length under 20 minutes. The second season of 8 was released in May of 2021, and the most recent season of 9 episodes launched just last month (May of 2022).
The stories for these animations all come from some of the best writers in modern science fiction, fantasy and horror. Names like, Bacigalupi, Asher, Scalzi and Sterling. There’s even an episode showing a story written by Harlan Ellison. These stories carry weight and have real punch in such a short time frame. The set up to the closure, if there is any, come right at you. The first two seasons each won an Emmy. The story telling is only rivaled by the pictures that accompany the stories.
IF you dislike ‘cartoons’ for some reason, I challenge you to watch these and NOT become a fan of animation. The art, the shear beauty of so many of these works will make you question how they were created. Admittedly, they are not all hyper realistic, but even the goofiest stories are well animated. The colors, the smoothness, and the pure vibrancy of even the darkest pieces still amazes me. I have some that I re-watch for the story and many that I re-watch just to see them. Just to experience their beauty again. I don’t believe they needed more marketing, but the third season has actually done something neat to accompany all this art. There were some clues hidden in certain episodes of the third season. If you followed the clues, you’d find your way to some computer art from the show. The hunt, and the clues have continued on various social medial platforms since the third season was released.
I highly recommend this show. You should definitely be watching.
Check out the trailer for season three here:
As a writer one comes to understand that the words laid out may, or may not, find a home. Sometimes the moment of inspiration that hits amuses or delights you but fails to connect with anyone else. It happens. Keep writing, keep putting words together and hoping to not just turn them into salad.
Some time ago I saw a call for submissions to a ‘course catalog’ for a horror based university. As stated above, it amused me and I had sudden inspiration. My submission was rejected (without any real notice) and that’s just fine.
I was bumping around that aforementioned debris pile that is my notes on writing and found that submission. It’s never going to be publishable anywhere else – so I’ll drop it out for you here. Hopefully you’ll find them amusing too.
From the course catalog:
Established in 1613 by academic and occult pioneer, as well as failed vintner, Fenrick Oglebutt, through trans-chronological fallacies and a lust for knowledge, Nafallen University has become one of the foremost centers of learning on all matters from the mundane to the mythic.
Located in beautifully desiccated Crisp, Texas, Nafallen University is dedicated to bringing its students the best in education, career opportunities, and fulfilling student lives from any university in current existence.
Nafallen University offers a hands-on and practical approach to education, with in-person, virtual, and astral courses offered at all levels of degree tracks.
Within this tome, enterprising students who wish to expand their minds and power will find courses offered for the current semester. Course descriptions are provided by the professors themselves, ensuring an honest appraisal of the material.
Here are the courses I submitted. I think they would have been a fine addition.
School of Architecture
ARC 212 – MASONRY II
PREREQUISITE: Poe; Amontillado
Gain additional skills and practical knowledge of masonry wall systems. Active interpretations of heat applied flashing, mortar selection and weep vent installation. Gain knowledge of residential construction inspection timing, effects of climate on drying time and STC (sound transmission classification).
Purchase of additional materials may be required.
ARC 135 – ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN AND GRAPHICS
Explore the fundamental issues of spaces, perception of spaces, scale and habitation. Emphasis is placed on ordering principles, pattern recognition and figure ground relationships. Build on graphical representation with an emphasis on observational symbology, aesthetic color choices and drawing presentation.
STR 301 – ADVANCED STRUCTURAL SYSTEMS: ALLOWABLE STRESS DESIGN
Prerequisite: Euclidean Geometry, Plasticity
Combine classical thermodynamics with plasticity and high yield functions. Allow the numbers to flow and discover numerical dissipation and pliability factors. Blocking, buckling, transient and steady state response combined with temperature creep. Emphasis on temporal stability and consistency. Galerkin meshfree imposition of boundaries and domain limits explored. Calculate how much your structure may flex under varied circumstances.