What I’ve Been Up To

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With The Water Road trilogy wrapped up I figured this might be a good time to check in and let folks know what I’m doing, writer wise. The TLDR version – cranking through some short stories and trying to plan the next big project.

Short Stories

After the epic feel of The Water Road I decided to dig back into my bag o’ ideas and work up a couple of the shorter ones. This isn’t to suggest that returning to short stories is a way to “take it easy” or some such. Building worlds and characters in a few thousand words, versus hundreds of pages, can be a challenge in its own right. It’s a different discipline in the writing world, but one that’s very rewarding.

The first of the new stories is “To the Sound of Birds.” It was inspired by some very odd noises I heard during an autocross years ago. Animal noises, of a sort, coming from the woods across the street from the venue. The idea came to me then and I’d kicked it around for a while before I got a chance to sit down and finish it. I’m about to try and find it a home and let it loose upon the world.

The other isn’t quite finished, but should be in a week or so. It’s called “The Miracle at MarvoMart” and is about a guy who gets in over his head with a good thing that turns very bad. This one, too, came from an idea that occurred during an autocross – more precisely, during a bathroom break. I never set out to write a story set largely in a public men’s room, but that’s where I’ve ended up!

Aside from those two, I’ve also pulled out and polished a story I wrote a while ago in which the main character is this little girl:

MaiaTalkstoYou

Along with her two feline companions (at the time the story was written). It’s about what the animals get up to while their people aren’t around. It involves dragons and a whole unexplored world under the house. At one time it was going to be a series of stories, but I never got past the first one. An anthology popped up that I thought this story would be good for, so I sent it in. We’ll see if anything comes of it. Don’t worry, it’s for grownups – they curse and such.

I’m also working on one final story in The Water Road universe, set between The Endless Hills and The Bay of Sins. It would explain why, when two characters meet in The Bay of Sins, they are not particularly fond of one another.

The Next Big Thing

As I’ve said before I’m having a hard time figuring out what my next novel project will be. I have a lot of ideas, but none of them have roared up and demanded to be written right the fuck now (at least not yet).

One of the issues is that before I even think about ideas there’s a preliminary question to answer – should my next project be a standalone novel or the first in a new series? Some ideas lend themselves better to one or the other, but there are pros and cons to each choice. A stand alone novel probably sees the light of day sooner, but a series gives me the opportunity to really dig into a new world in detail. Until I make that decision, it’s hard to know where I’m headed.

As far as series ideas, the main one would be a several volume steampunkish fantasy set in a global superpower that’s slowly falling apart. I’ve done a lot of background work on it, so it’s probably the most “shovel ready.” Another series idea is to expand the universe of my short story “The Last Ereph” into a common setting for a bunch of unrelated stories. Finally, there’s a trilogy about the nature of magic I’ve been toying with.

The stand alone ideas are more wide ranging. For one thing, they include a couple of ideas that fall solidly into the science fiction category. I’ve written some short sci-fi, but my longer projects have all tended toward fantasy. I’d like to change that, so that might be a deciding factor. One of those idea is more serious, philosophical, and somewhat relevant to the current political climate. Another is more of a fun, planet-trotting adventure. As for fantasy ideas, one that I’m keen on doing (at some point) is my version of the standard fantasy quest, although it has a neat twist at the core of it (or so I think).

So that’s where I am. At least right now as I post this. From here on out – who knows?

Water Road Wednesday – Rand McNally Edition

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Just when I thought I was done, then keep pulling me back in!

I’ve had more than one reader ask about whether there are any maps of Altreria, the land that’s the setting for The Water Road trilogy. Strictly speaking, in terms of something I’d be happy putting in the back of a published book – the answer is “no.”

However, in the spirit of sharing my work and showing how I do things – I’ve dug out a couple of hand-made maps from my notes. These are what I used to keep myself oriented in the world of The Water Road. At least at the beginning.

In the spirit of Michael Feldman, three disclaimers:

First, these are crude, hand drawn, and simply photographed. They’re not great quality, but I never expected anybody aside from me to see them. Judge accordingly.

Second, place names and such are noted in my horrific hand writing. Enter at your own risk (although I’ll be happy to translate, if asked).

Finally, I made these before I even started The Water Road and while I added to them on occasion afterwards, I didn’t change things on the map to match the text. As an example, “Port Keneally” became “Port Jaray” in the books (Keneally just didn’t feel right, when push came to shove – sorry, Mike).

With those disclaimers, here we go . . .

A map of the continent of Altreria itself:

AltreriaMap

A few highlights. The long blue ribbon running across the continent is, of course, The Water Road. The two north-south tributaries are the River Innis and the River Adon. The Guildlands are west of the Innis and the Kingdom of Telebria is to the east of the Adon. In between is the Confederation of the Arbor. North of the rivers are the Badlands. The little speck of land in the Bay of Sins is the island city of Tolenor. South of The Water Road, of course, are the Neldathi mountains.

And here’s a different view of the Neldathi mountains, with the great circuit of each clan drawn in:

NeldathiMap

For those scoring at home, here’s how the numbers match up to the clan:

  1.  Dost
  2. Haglein
  3. Chellein
  4. Volakeyn
  5. Mughein
  6. Kohar
  7. Akan
  8. Uzkaheyn
  9. Elein
  10. Sheylan
  11. Paleyn

This one also gives you a better idea of the names of the mountain ranges and Islander cities. Yes, many of them are named after musicians. Albandala, the city Antrey founds in The Water Road is somewhere near the Hogarth Pass.

Weekly Read: The Collapsing Empire

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I don’t think this is unique to me, but it’s at least unusual that my entry into the realm of John Scalzi fan began not with his books, but with his blog, Whatever. I was a regular reader there for a few years before I started working through his ever expanding bibliography.

What’s more unusual is that, for the most part, I don’t care for Scalzi’s most well developed universe, the Old Man’s War series. I read the first book and liked it well enough, but military sci-fi has never been my favorite corner of the genre. I’m much more into Scalzi’s stand alone work, from The Android’s Dream to Redshirts to Lock In. Which is to say I was stoked when I heard Scalzi was opening up another space opera series.

The Collapsing Empire has, at its core (or “Hub,” I suppose) a terrific idea. Humanity is spread across a multitude of worlds (Earth not being one of them, anymore), thanks to a faster-than-light McGuffin called “The Flow.” The Flow works . . . well, nobody is really sure why it works. But it does work, like a hyperspace equivalent of the jet stream or ocean currents, carrying spaceships along at post-light speed and making interstellar travel possible, if a pain in the ass.

Since people can only go where The Flow takes them, there are certain routes of travel. All lead to a planet called Hub, where the titular empire is headquartered. On the other end of the travelled galaxy is End, a sort of Australia (they send the troublemakers there) that, also, happens to be the only place where humans live under the open sky. The problem, as the book begins, is that The Flow is starting to fail. The bigger problem – most of the empire has no idea about it yet.

This is all background, against which a few stories play out. There’s a new emperox (not a typo – it’s a gender neutral imperial title) trying to figure out her new life. End is experiencing one of its periodic rebellions, although this one might actually stick. And someone is trying to inform the powers that be about the problem with the Flow. All of this is interesting, but none of it seems like a fully formed story.

That is The Collapsing Empire’s biggest problem – it’s not a complete story. Even in the context of a series (of which this is the first), it’s not too much to expect an individual volume to actually have some resolution. This doesn’t, really. In the end, it feels more like an extended, epic prologue or a backfill sequel than it does a novel of its own.

Which is a shame, because until you realize that the end is coming and there’s no way things are going to even try to wrap up, The Collapsing Empire is a fun read. Scalzi’s characters are well drawn and interesting. His great creation in this book is Lady Kiva, the “owner’s representative” on a ship that has to deal with The Flow and the rebellion on End.* She’s quick of wit, free with the word “fuck,” and willing to sleep with just about anything that moves. Think of her as Captain Jack Harkness’s long lost more vulgar cousin. The new emperox, Cardenia, isn’t developed quite as well, but her desire not to do the job sets up an interesting story going forward.**

Which brings me back to my complaint – this is all setup. It’s interesting setup. I’m definitely on board for the next book in the series, because I want to see how all this starts to shake out. But I’m left wanting more right now, something a little more solid and whole.

Still, I’m hooked. That counts for something.

* Bonus fun note – the ship names are great. A pair of sister ships are called the Yes Sir, That’s My Baby and No Sir, I Don’t Mean Maybe.

** Bonus fun note – the emperox has access to a “memory room,” in which she can summon the computer-generated simulacrum of any prior emperox. The discussions she has in there are all the better for the simulacra knowing just what they are.

CollapsingEmpire

Let’s Play the Feud!

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I’m currently reading Authors In Court: Scenes from the Theater of Copyright, which uses a handful of case studies to track the development of copyright law since its introduction in England via the Statute of Anne in 1710. I haven’t even gotten through the first case yet and already I’m entertained. To anyone who thinks folks way back when were more civilized than modern, crass, digital folks, think again.

That first case involves Alexander Pope, English author (and second most quoted writer in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, according to Wikipedia – behind only Shakespeare), and a contemporary publisher named Edmund Curll. They’re in the book because, eventually, Pope sued Curll for publishing some of his letters in which, Pope argued, he retained the copyright. But things got ugly long before that.

Curll and Pope were very different people. Pope was a country gentleman, an elite. He was a writer, but he didn’t do it for a living (heaven forefend!). Curll, by contrast, was a scrappy businessman, doing anything he could to make a buck. He developed a reputation as a low-rent publisher, becoming (among other things) the first publisher in England to be convicted of obscenity.

What set the feud alight was a book Curll published called Court Poems, which purported to contain works by Pope (among others). The poems were scandalous and Pope was upset, either because he or a friend was designated as the author of some of them. Rather than just send a nasty letter, Pope got even in a much more emphatic way:

shortly after the book appeared, Pop contrived to encounter Curll at a tavern in Fleet Street. There, under the pretense of sharing a glass of wine as a sign of reconciliation, Pope dosed Curll’s drink.

Said dose was an “emetic,” a word which sent me scrambling to the dictionary. Long story short – it’s something that makes you puke.

Poisoning a professional rival so that he puked is a pretty dick move. But Pope wasn’t done:

A few days later, adding insult to injury, Pope published a comic pamphlet couched in the sensationalist style of a Grub Street production, a style not entirely different from that of, say, a modern supermarket tabloid. Titled A Full and True Account of a Horrid and Barbarous Revenge by Poison on the Body of Mr. Edmund Curll, Bookseller, Pope’s undated pamphlet, identified only as “by an Eye Witness,” reports on the tavern episode and then veers off into malicious fantasy as the stricken Curll, convinced that he is dying, makes his last will and testament.

In the end he is spared from death by “a plentiful foetid Stool.” Pope still wasn’t done, writing two more pamphlets expanding the fantasy and, eventually , devolving into anti-Semitism.

Future chapters involve Harriet Beecher-Stowe and J.D. Salinger, among others. I wonder if they taunted their rivals with bodily fluids (and tales thereof), too?

They might, given that the Pope/Curll feud is just one of many in literary history that went beyond simple sniping at each other. For example, Gore Vidal once compared Norman Mailer to Charles Manson – so Mailer punched him at a party (leading to Vidal’s retort – “once again, words fail Norman Mailer). Hell, Mario Vargas Llosa punched Gabriel Garcia Marquez in 1976 and neither ever explained why (although this article suggests it was over a woman and, therefore, isn’t really a literary feud at all) .

Of course, writers being writers they’re more likely to lash out at each other with words rather than fists. Playwright Lillian Hellman sued critic Mary McCarthy after McCarthy said that “every word she writes is a lie, including ‘and’ and ‘the.’” Hellman got the last laugh, dying before the suit could be heard. Salman Rushdie responded to John Updike making fun of a name he used in one of his books by suggesting that Updike “stay in his parochial neighbourhood and write about wife-swapping, because it’s what he can do.” Finally, after Colson Whitehead gave a book by Richard Ford a particularly nasty review in the New York Times, Ford spit on Whitehead at a party. Whitehead shot back that this “wasn’t the first time some old coot had drooled on me” and that other critical reviewers (there were a bunch, apparently) best “get a rain poncho, in case of inclement Ford.”

If nothing else, feuds tend to be good for business. Pope and Curll, certainly, made hay out of their beef. Maybe what I need to do is go honk off some famous author and start a heated back and forth! Yeah, that’s the ticket!

pope-and-curll

Adios to the Hex

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Here’s a bit of technical for you – the 2018 World Cup is already underway. Has been for months. What we normally think of as the “World Cup” – such as the event in Russia next summer or the last shindig in Brazil – is actually the World Cup “finals.” They only take about a month. The process of getting to the finals takes over a year, winnowing the field down from 210 countries to a relative handful.

One of the neat things about the process is that FIFA allocates slots in the finals to each confederation, but let’s each confederation figure out how to fill its allocation. Europe, for example, divides up into groups, with the winners advancing and some number of second-place teams matching up in playoffs for the other spots. South American, by contrast, puts everybody in one group and plays a true round robin tournament (easy to do when you only have 10 countries). Most other confederations use some group structure to do away with a number of nations over two or three phases.

CONCACAF – the federation that covers North America, Central America and the Caribbean – works that way. Two rounds of preliminaries produce six teams that battle it out in “The Hex” – ten games, home and away. The top three go to the finals, while the fourth has to playoff against someone else (from Asia, this time around) to get in. The bottom two go home. While the region isn’t the toughest as far as talent, the 10-game format still makes for a great combination of slim margins and long hauls. Witness 2014, when Mexico had to claw back into fourth place and win the play off to get to Brazil, or the current Hex, where the US is barely in fourth place after laying goose eggs in our first two games.

Sadly, The Hex is almost certainly dead. Last year, when FIFA announced that the World Cup finals would expand to 48 teams (from 32) in 2026, everybody was fairly certain that would be the case. All the extra spots would call for a massive reorganization of qualifying the world round. But now, with FIFA announcing the allocations for 2026, it’s official – there’s no point having The Hex if six teams will qualify for the finals from CONCACAF.

I’m not sure whether the expanded World Cup finals will be an improvement over the current setup. The bloated European Championships last year included an awful lot of dull group games, although the knockout rounds were better. And I’m all for letting more people get to the biggest dance in the world (sorry, March Madness). But it will undoubtedly depressurize qualifying, at least in most confederations.

So, adios to The Hex.

Hex

The False Unity of Opposition

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I had a thought on election night back in November, as we slowly crawled to the fact of President Trump. I wished I’d blogged it back then, but I’ll just have to ask you to trust me about this.

The thought, as I sat there and contemplated Republican control of both houses of Congress and the White House, was this – can the “party of no” go from playing opposition to actually governing? Recent events suggest they may not.

Since the passage of the Affordable Care Act (aka “Obamacare”), Republicans have pledged to repeal it. It was a promise Trump embraced enthusiastically during the campaign. If there was one clear thing Americans could expect a united GOP power structure to do, it was to gut Obamacare. Last Friday, House Speaker Paul Ryan withdrew the proposed “repeal and replace” bill, rather than watch it go down in flames on the House floor. Democrats only had to smirk from the sidelines.

What the hell happened? How could a party so unified in the past about a goal fall apart so quickly?

Because being the opposition helps creates a false sense of unity among those doing the opposing. Think about it – so long as the only thing a group has to do is say “no” to some outsider they don’t have to deal with their own internal divisions.

Make no mistake – during the Obama years, the GOP was the opposition. While they controlled both the House and Senate (for varying lengths of time), it wasn’t enough to override a veto, if it came to that. Measures with bipartisan support were possible (if vanishingly rare), but true GOP proposals were dead on arrival. Hence those 54 votes to repeals of the ACA, none of which actually accomplished anything (aside from being red meat for fund raising).

That’s not quite true – it papered over the differences in the party itself. After all, when the default position is anti-whatever the other party wants, it’s easy to stick together. It doesn’t matter why you take that position, only that you do. That one group of reps are coming from a deeply ideological direction and a second from a  more moderate one is irrelevant so long as they both arrive at the same result.

There’s an old saying that pure democracy is two wolves and a sheep voting on what’s for dinner. While we can assume there’s at least two votes not to eat the wolves, we might not assume there’s the same support for eating the sheep. After all, one of the wolves could be a vegetarian.

So now, I suppose, the question is – how long before the GOP wolves finally figure out how to eat the sheep.

Democracy_f59523_1766271

Water Road Wednesday – Thank Yous

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The first time I had something called The Water Road in my (virtual) hands was the fall of 2009. The book was my NaNoWriMo project that year, my second “winner” (the first is in the back of my closet, probably permanently). The process started some time before that, what with character sketches and some basic world building.

But the very first thing I remember writing was a Neldathi creation myth. It poured out in a very un-fantastic place.

Every year my office and our Federal Defender counterparts in the Northern District of West Virginia put on a two-day seminar for private attorneys who handle court appointed criminal cases. We alternate hosting and in 2009 the Northern District hosted up in Morgantown. Through the day and a half of the seminar (on breaks or during sessions that didn’t really apply to me), I sketched out this story about the Maker of Worlds and how she created this world in which I was going to tell this story.

Naturally, I had to account for the titular river, as fantastic a thing as there is in The Water Road universe. It was not born of a pleasant impulse:

Eons passed before the Maker of Worlds remembered her watery creation with the one continent upon it.  In the time that had passed, The Land had become full of life.  Not only animals and plants, but intelligent beings, who lived together in communities and created a society.  The Land was rich and plentiful, but its inhabitants still found things to fight about.  They constantly warred, on upon the other, seemingly without end.  When the Maker saw what had become of her world, she was depressed.  And she was angry.

In her anger, the Maker of Worlds lashed out at her creation.  She drove a single finger into the soil on the east side of The Land.  Then, she drug it across the entire breadth of The Land, changing it forever.  In the wake of the Maker’s finger came Great Basin Lake and The Water Road.  To the south of the river, great mountains heaved up from the soil, all the way south to the cold southern seas.  To the north, The Land cracked and two great rivers were formed as water rushed into the fissures.  The far north, beyond the reach of the waters, became barren, dry, and unhospitable.  The people of The Land were likewise shattered, north and south, divided by the The Water Road into Neldathi and Altrerian.  Many multitudes died.

Much as I enjoyed pulling that together, I knew it wasn’t part of the story itself. It was essentially a note to myself – something I didn’t intend anybody else to see. But it started something inside me, lit a fuse that wasn’t going to go out. It got so insistent that when the final session wound up I plopped myself down in a big chair in the hotel lobby, pen in hand and a legal pad, and scratched out:

It had been ten years since Gaven had been confronted by an angry Neldathi with a gun.

I didn’t get much further than that (I was months away from NaNo), but I’d crossed the Rubicon. There was no going back after that.

All of which is a roundabout way of saying that I never really thought I’d be here, looking back on eight years of work and being “done” with The Water Road. So I wanted to take care of one last piece of business, to acknowledge everybody who helped me get here. Thanks . . .

Firstly, to my family, friends, and coworkers who put up with a “writer” in their midst, who asked supportive questions and never made me feel like I was wasting my time chasing a silly dream.

To the members of West Virginia Writers, Inc., the Absolute Write Water Cooler, and KBoards who are quick with their advice, encouragement, and support. Great writing may be mostly about talent, but being a great writer means recognizing that those others out there who do what you do are allies and colleagues, not rivals.

To Empire Books & News in Huntington, West Virginia, who support local authors not because they’re some kind of odd curiosity that draws gawkers, but because they have great stories to tell, too.

To my copy editor, Claudette, who plowed through all three books of The Water Road, helping them be the best, most professional products they can be.

To the fine folks at Deranged Doctor Designs who did the covers for The Water Road trilogy. I get compliments on them almost everywhere they pop up.

And, of course, big thanks to readers who have told me how much they’ve enjoyed these books. That’s the greatest reward a writer could hope for.

Finally, to my wife, Kelly. When we met I was someone who had  a few ideas and thought, maybe, I could write something, sometime. Back by her voracious reading habit, she’s pushed and supported me through all this, providing valuable, honest feedback and sharing in my happiness at getting this all done. I love you, sweetie.

On to new things!

Author Interview – Yawatta Hosby

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This time we talk with Yawatta Hosby, who wants to tell you about the things that go thump in the dark.

Who are you? Where are you? What kind of stuff do you write?

Hi, I’m Yawatta Hosby, a sassy leo, a quirky INTJ, a creative soul. I like keeping people on their toes, which gets me into trouble sometimes ha ha. I live in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia, and I write dark and creepy stuff. The monsters in my books are always human.

For those who don’t know the lingo, what’s “INTJ”? And how do you think that impacts your life as a writer?

INTJ means I’m very introverted, always in my head. I’m curious about everything and go out of my way to explore all answers. I like to think outside the box, and I’m always seeking the truth. INTJ means I’m a determined strategist.

Being this way definitely impacts my writing. It makes me write in a straightforward way, perhaps too fast paced. I’m not emotional, so I rely on my critique partners and beta-readers to let me know when my scenes lack emotional drama or when a character is acting too calm during a situation when they should be upset, depressed, happy, etc.

Tell us about your most recent book, story, or other project.

I published Twisted Obsession, which is a dark suspense novella. Miki traps his ex, Finia, into having a baby with him. The more she refuses to love Miki, the more he lashes out. He believes Finia is the perfect woman and Jahlin is the perfect son. He’ll do anything necessary to get his happy ending.

Twisted Obsession - High Resolution

In what genre do you primarily write? Why did you choose that one?

I primarily write in the horror genre. I chose it because it’s fun to scare myself. I get inspired by my fears, so I can relate to my characters. I absolutely love slasher films like Wrong Turn, Scream, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The more bloody gore, the better. When I write my stories, I always think in terms of what I’d like to see on the big screen.

I always have a hard time defining “horror” as a genre – what does it mean to you? Where’s the dividing line between fiction about bad people doing bad things and horror?

To me, horror means the book scared me to death. It gave me chills or it disgusted me (in a good way). The dividing line between fiction about bad people doing bad things and horror is horror will bring out the fear in you. Horror will give you nightmares or force you to keep the lights on. Fiction about people doing bad things can be suspense, thrillers, or crime fiction. It’s scary or creepy, but it doesn’t really go there in terms of being offensive or frightening.

When I watched The Strangers with Scott Speedman and Liv Tyler, I had nightmares for two weeks and was afraid to answer the door if someone knocked. The Strangers is horror. Fear with Reese Witherspoon and Mark Wahlberg was an awesome movie. Mark played an awesome villain. In fact, he creeped me out, but I didn’t have nightmares afterwards. I’d label Fear as suspense, a movie about people doing bad things.

Tell us briefly about your writing process, from once you’ve got an idea down to having a finished product ready for publication.

I have two notebooks–a book of observations and a story ideas one. Whenever I get an idea, I write it down. I usually work on multiple WIPs at once. I’m addicted to notebooks, so each story gets written in its own notebook. I don’t attempt to type anything in Google Docs or Microsoft Word until I write ‘the end.’ This helps me stay in writing mode, turning my inner-editor off.

After my story is typed, I revise it. Then, I get feedback from critique partners. I keep making rounds of edits until I’m satisfied after listening to beta-readers and an editor. My first two books I had a line by line editor. With Twisted Obsession, I took a chance with a developmental editor. She was worth every penny, making my book a creepy one to the max.

What did your developmental editor did that surprised you or really make you say that was the right decision?

My developmental editor Monica loved my Chapter 29 of Twisted Obsession. Some of my beta-readers had urged me to change the ending, but Monica said what happened to the son had to be done. She suggested I add scenes to make Miki a even more vile, creepy, demented villain. Monica really pushed me to keep the dark and twisted mood throughout the novella.

Author

Who is the favorite character you’ve created? Why?

My favorite character is Rae from my debut novel, One By One. I felt so bad for her. She watched killers torture her parents right in front of her face. Ten years later, her brother asks her to visit their vacation home, seeking closure. She’s depressed and withdrawn at the beginning of the book, but learns to toughen up and fight back towards the end.

What’s the weirdest subject you’ve had to research as a writer that you never would have otherwise?

The weirdest subject I’ve had to research was if there’s a death penalty in Ireland. I have a story idea where a little girl grows up to find out her dad was a serial killer. He’s not dead like her family told her. He’s actually rotting away in prison. It makes sense why she has certain urges.

So? Do they have the death penalty in Ireland? I think I know the answer, but . . .

Ha ha, they don’t have the death penalty in Ireland anymore. I believe it was abolished in 1964.

What’s the one thing you’ve learned, the hard way, as a writer that you’d share to help others avoid?

Writing takes discipline and hard work. You have to set a writing schedule and protect your writing time. Trust me, the people in your life will test you! I’m a fast writer, finishing a first draft within a month and a half. But, I’m a slow reviser. I lack motivation during this stage. Maybe because it’s a lot of pressure to get the pacing and flow of the story right. I urge writers to find motivation when creating projects. Writing doesn’t have to be a lonely activity.

Do your schedule your writing so that you write for a specific amount of time or do you try and reach a certain quota each day?

I schedule my writing so that I write for a specific time. I find that I’m more productive in multiple fifteen minute increments throughout the day.

If you won $1 million (tax free, to keep the numbers round and juicy), how would it change your writing life?

That would be grand! I’d quit my 9 to 5 and write full time. I’d travel the world to become a traveler blogger for a while, then I’d share my short film scripts with local actors, or anyone interested in the production side of things to direct my own films and put up on YouTube. Hopefully small indie projects would help land me a staff writing position for a popular tv show. Once I got tired of LA (if that’s even possible!), I’d buy a vacation home in Maine so I could focus on writing novels.

I’d go to writing conferences and wrifing retreats. Since I’m shy, I’d pay for a writing buddy to go with me. Somewhere in this fantasy, I’d focus on creating comics and graphic novels too. If only money could buy more hours in the day ha ha.

What’s the last great book you read or new author you discovered?

I really enjoyed Homesick by Richard Simms. He had a way of bringing his characters to life with their narrations. A family moves into a house with a dreaded history. A history that repeats itself. A history that shows no mercy.

What do you think you’re next project will be?

My next book will be the sequel to One By One. It’s called Six Plus One. In the first book, Detective Brown vows to keep his daughter, Alta, safe. He can’t keep that promise. Alta and her friends take a road trip to Green Bank, West Virginia. The quiet town with no WiFi known for its satellite used to find signals from extrasserials. Filming their alien-centric web series in the woods should be an in and out situation, but a killer has other plans in mind. The crew of Aliens R Us disappears–not from the town’s legend.

Yawatta Online

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Water Road Wednesday – The Bay of Sins Is Here!

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Today’s the big day – after several delays (sorry about that), the saga of The Water Road trilogy is complete:

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The Bay of Sins is now available from Amazon in both eBook and paperback form! For just 99 cents!

In fact, for the next few days, in celebration of the trilogy being complete, you can get each volume for just 99 cents.

The one that started it all, The Water Road:

TWR Cover

The follow up that tackles the costs of war, The Endless Hills:

TEH Cover (1800x2700)

Each just 99 cents!  They’re not likely to be this price again for a very long time.

Next week – final thoughts on an 8-year journey.