First Draft of Cy Reed #3 is Done!

I finished the first draft of Cy Reed #3 earlier today. It’s tentatively titled Lost Canyon and clocks in at 404 pages. No idea on the publication date yet but I’m shooting for January 2014. I’d love to have it out sooner, but this book is going to require a little editing magic.

Today also marks the three-month anniversary of Ice Storm‘s publication. It wasn’t easy to get it out the door. On one hand, I was thrilled to put it behind me. On the other hand, it’s always hard to let a book out into the real world. I don’t have kids, but I imagine the feeling is  similar.

Anyway I didn’t have much clue how Ice Storm would do once it hit the market. Chaos sold reasonably well for a first novel but it certainly wasn’t a best-seller. Well, these past three months have been a wild run to say the least. I’m humbled to report Ice Storm has sold far better than even my wildest expectations.

I had my first real “sales breakout” on August 3 in the UK when Ice Storm cracked the Action & Adventure Kindle list at #84. I’m not sure where it peaked but it did get to #18 at one point and #483 in the overall UK Kindle store.

Ice Storm’s experience in the U.S. market has followed a different, but also exciting path. Since publication, it’s risen steadily in the overall Kindle rankings. It reached #7,864 a few days ago and has since settled back down to 11,478. I’m not sure if it’ll keep rising or not, but it’s been fun to urge it on.

Ice Storm

Ice Storm is Here!

Ice Storm is Here!

Ice Storm is an action/adventure novel and the second in the Cy Reed Adventure series after Chaos. It features all of the things you’ve come to expect from me…forgotten history, crumbling ruins, lost treasure, and strange monsters. If you like Indiana Jones or novels by the likes of Clive Cussler, James Rollins, Steve Berry, or Douglas Preston, then Ice Storm is perfect for you.

You can pick up an e-reader version at any of the retail outlets listed below as well as the paperback at Amazon.com (all outlets should be available in a few days).


 

Ice StormIce Storm by David Meyer

Deep in the heart of Antarctica lies a forgotten military installation. Deadly secrets are secured behind its doors…including the remnants of a decades-old plot to devastate mankind.

Disgraced treasure hunter Cy Reed is on the trail of an incredible treasure when a cargo ship mysteriously explodes. At the same time, a team of geologists makes an astonishing discovery that could rewrite ancient history. And a beast of impossible origins unleashes a bloody rampage across the ice.

As Reed unravels the mysteries behind Antarctica’s dark past, he begins to uncover a sinister conspiracy. Plagued by ferocious storms and betrayed on all sides, he races toward an inevitable clash that could salvage his ruined reputation…or unleash hell upon the world.

Buy Here:

Kindle * Nook * Kobo * iBooks * Smashwords * Paperback

 

Ice Storm by David Meyer

Writing Ice Storm: It’s Time to Pick up the Pace

The slow writing pace of my development hell book, Ice Storm, has finally gotten to me. So, I buckled down last night and ripped out 6,000 words.

Writing Ice Storm: It’s Time to Pick up the Pace!

My “open novel” experiment for writing Ice Storm, aka my “Development Hell” book, has been a rather brutal experience. Trying to rearrange and finalize a manuscript that’s undergone way too much rewriting is no easy task. A lot of free writers like to compare a novel to a dinosaur skeleton. The idea is that the story already exists inside one’s head. It just needs to be excavated. Actually, I think that’s a pretty good way to describe how my brain works. But for reasons I’ve talked about before, the Ice Storm excavation didn’t turn out so well. Thus, I’m sitting here with a jumble of mixed-up bones.

Up until now, I’ve been editing at a pace of 3,000 words per weekday and half that on weekend days. Ice Storm is about 90,000 words long, so it’s a five-week process. It’s hard enough to write a novel over multiple weeks. Editing that same novel over an extended period of time is just grueling. So, I picked up the pace yesterday. I edited 6,000 words yesterday, bringing my redraft to a word count of 63,000. I’m now in the last third of the book. If I can keep this up for another six days, my redraft will be finished. I’ll have to do another draft of course. And probably another one after that. That’s unavoidable. But this draft should put the bones in the right places. Then its just a matter of tidying up.

I created storyboards for two other novels yesterday. One is a science fiction book. The other is a paranormal tale. They don’t really fit into the Cy Reed universe. Well, the second one might. The science fiction story deals with some scientific theories I’ve written about in the past. They’re not particularly well-known but I find them fascinating. I might just take a crack at this one once Ice Storm is done.

Other Stuff

The Chaos paperback is now 10% off at Amazon ($12.56)! I see a few of you have taken advantage of the sale already. For the rest of you, act now before it goes back to list price. Other than that, I’m still thinking about making adjustments to my sidebar (that one on the right with Chaos in it). I might expand it to include international bookstores. And yes, the link to buy Chaos at Diesel (see sidebar) is STILL broken. Diesel has a revised version of Chaos but doesn’t seem to have posted it yet. I emailed Smashwords but haven’t heard back from them.

Cool Koalas!

Road Trip to New York City

I traveled to my old stomping grounds in New York City this past weekend for an epic engagement party. Yes, I’m still recovering.

Cool Koalas!

My Quest to Draw (Day 8): The topic is “Cool Koalas.” There’s something fishy about that guy in the foreground.

Ice Storm: Nearing the Final Stretch!

I took off Saturday and Sunday for the engagement party. But now I’m back on track with my “open novel” experiment for Ice Storm, aka my “Development Hell” book. I edited 3,000 words yesterday, bringing my redraft to a word count of 57,000. I’m guessing this will end up to be about 90,000 words, so that means I’m near the two-thirds point.

It’s been a difficult couple of days. The trip to NYC threw off my rhythm. And only editing 72 pages a week is taking its toll. Unfortunately, it’s unavoidable. Ice Storm needs special care right now in order to bring it back to life. A lot of little problems will remain after this draft is done. But the larger story is finally starting to come together in a cohesive fashion.

Hopefully, I can finish this redraft in the next two weeks. Then I’m going to edit it again, shooting for 120 pages a week. The goal will be to smooth out inconsistencies and add in any final creative chunks. Then I’d like to do a few read throughs in a more concentrated time period so I can see how the story flows. The more I work on Ice Storm, the more I see the problems with my old writing habits. Specifically, my tendency to rewrite early and often. For my next book, I’m going to spend more time upfront developing characters and the story. But when I start writing it, I’m not going to stop until it’s done.

Road Trip to New York City

Julie and I drove to New York City on Saturday morning. I lived in Manhattan from 2004 to 2008. So, I always have mixed feelings about going back. On one hand, there’s a part of me that misses it. New York has a way of getting under one’s skin. On the other hand, I wasn’t particularly happy there back in the day. I worked too many hours at a job I didn’t like. And I can’t help but think I’d do it all over again if we moved back.

Anyway we were there for a party celebrating the engagement of our friends Mahbubul and Kelly. I’ve known Mahbubul for more than 15 years (we were fraternity brothers) and Kelly for a little more than 15 days. So, it’s been a lot of fun getting to know them as a couple. We went to a bar and met up with a bunch of their friends, including a few more of our brothers. I don’t get together with these guys very often so we pretty much ended up talking all night. Good times.

We stayed until maybe 2 or 3 in the morning. Then we went back to Mahbubul’s and Kelly’s apartment. We drank some more and watched a spattering of television until finally hitting the sack somewhere around 5am. Julie and I woke up a few hours later. We got some bagel sandwiches and coffee before hitting the road. All together, it was a good trip. Exhausting, yes. But definitely worthwhile.

Drawing: Day 8 – Cool Koalas

I finished my 8th lesson from You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler last night. The topic was Cool Koalas. This was an interesting change of pace and my first attempt at drawing a living, breathing creature. It came out okay but I put way too much effort into the fur. Looking at Kistler’s sketches again, it’s apparent he makes the most of his lines. Overall, this was the the easiest lesson yet which I appreciated since I’m still recovering from Saturday night.

Other Stuff

The Chaos paperback is now 10% off at Amazon ($12.56)! I see a few of you have taken advantage of the sale already. For the rest of you, act now before it goes back to list price. Other than that, I’m still thinking about making adjustments to my sidebar (that one on the right with Chaos in it). I might expand it to include international bookstores. And yes, the link to buy Chaos at Diesel (see sidebar) is STILL broken. Diesel has a revised version of Chaos but doesn’t seem to have posted it yet. I emailed Smashwords so hopefully I’ll have an answer for the delay later today.

Advanced-Level Cubes (Day 7)

Festival Freakout: Recovering from a Food Coma

So, I didn’t get a chance to write a blog yesterday. Instead, I was shaking off the effects of a massive food coma. Ahh!!!

Advanced-Level Cubes (Day 7)

My Quest to Draw (Day 7): The topic is “Advanced-Level Cubes.” The bottom right drawing looks almost livable.
Almost.

Ice Storm: Days 14 & 15

The last two days constituted Days 14 and 15 of my “open novel” experiment for Ice Storm, aka my “Development Hell” book. I edited 6,000 words in total, bringing my redraft to 45,000 words. That means I’ve reached the halfway point.

I wish I could say I felt the wind at my back. Unfortunately, it’s the exact opposite. The last two days haven’t been particularly good ones. The words are coming slowly and I’m having trouble focusing on my story. I find myself doing a lot of wandering (yes, literal wandering!) and daydreaming and I keep getting distracted by non-Cy Reed short story ideas.

That being said, this isn’t unusual for me. I usually reel off 100 to 150 pages without any problems. Then I get antsy and start ripping apart my draft. Endless rewrites ensue. So, I’m determined to see this through.

Festival Freakout: Recovering from a Food Coma

I didn’t get a chance to post an update yesterday. Truthfully, I was still “hung over” with a food coma. Julie and I had met up with some friends at a local food festival. Basically, the area restaurants set up shop in the retail shops and hand out samples. Local musicians hang out on the sidewalks and everyone walks around town trying out the different items. Some of the food is pretty fancy and a few of the restaurants manage to outdo themselves every year. Anyway I ate way too much and got that dreamy, logy feeling Julie likes to call a food coma. By the time I got home, the food coma had taken complete control and it really didn’t pass until well after I woke up.

Drawing: Day 7 – Advanced-Level Cubes

I completed my 7th lesson from You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler last night. The topic was advanced-level cubes. Basically, the lesson built on the previous ones by adding arches and ramps to box-shaped structures. I worked a little more loosely than usual and for the most part, enjoyed myself. My perfectionism still seeps in from time to time though and I sometimes spend several minutes drawing and erasing just to get the right lines.

Other Stuff

No news to report here. Just the same old stuff. Namely, I’m still thinking about making adjustments to my sidebar (that one on the right with Chaos in it). I might expand it to include international bookstores. And yes, the link to buy Chaos at Diesel (see sidebar) is STILL broken. Diesel has a revised version of Chaos but doesn’t seem to have posted it yet. I may have to double check with Smashwords to make sure there isn’t another problem. Finally, the Chaos paperback continues to be on sale for $13.25 at Amazon. Get it and review it!

Day 5: Hollow Cubes

Amelia Earhart: Writing about her Lost Flight?

So, my web traffic exploded last Thursday. The reason? A sudden avalanche of interest in the possible discovery of Amelia Earhart’s long-lost plane.

Day 5: Hollow Cubes

My Quest to Draw (Day 5): The topic is “Hollow Cubes.” I thought the treasure chests turned out pretty good…now I just have to figure out how to draw some sweet-looking treasure to put in them!

Ice Storm: 12 Days, 36,000 Words!

It’s Day 12 of my “open novel” experiment for Ice Storm, aka my “Development Hell” book. I edited 3,000 words yesterday, bringing my redraft to 36,000 words. That means I’ve got about 54,000 words still to go.

I drew up a chapter from scratch yesterday. It’s written from the point of view of a scientist named Holly Whitlow. She’s got a secret deep in the heart of Antarctica, one that could get her into a lot of trouble. Initially, I hadn’t planned to do a whole lot with the chapter. I just wanted to reveal her secret and give her a quiet emotional moment. But I found myself inspired and turned out a pretty good scene with some emotional resonance. I love days like that…one moment I’m sort of going through the motions, the next I’m experiencing a creative outburst.

Amelia Earhart: Writing about her Lost Flight?

Last Thursday, my web traffic exploded. In case you haven’t heard the news, a group named TIGHAR announced it had discovered a sonar image that might be the wreckage of Amelia’s long-lost plane. I’ve been writing about Amelia Earhart’s doomed flight and TIGHAR’s various expeditions to find it for over a year now (in case, you’re interested, here’s my Amelia Earhart archive).

Anyway for the last couple of days, my Amelia Earhart articles have received lots of traffic. But it didn’t last. A lot of people visited my site and clicked around on the Amelia Earhart stuff. Then they took off, presumably to search for more information on her. I was tempted to do an update, Guerrilla Explorer style. But I decided not to go through with it.

When I started Guerrilla Explorer, I thought I’d see more overlap for stories about mysteries of history, lost treasure, and monsters. But I’ve noticed that audiences tend to be very distinct. Bigfoot hunters, by and large, don’t seem to care much about Amelia Earhart and vice versa. So, while an Amelia Earhart update might get me a few days of heavy traffic, it seemed unlikely to draw in regular readers. And honestly, I’d rather build a long-term audience who’s interested in my books and other creative endeavors than try to snag a bunch of short-term visits.

That being said, I’m thinking about starting a weekly series in the Guerrilla Explorer vein. This would be based on a fictional Guerrilla Explorer character, perhaps someone who would investigate the paranormal and lost cities in a very unique way. I still need to think this through, but it’s on my mind…

Drawing: Day 5 – Hollow Cubes

I completed my 5th lesson from You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler last night. The topic was hollow cubes and as you can see from my sketch book, it was mostly about drawing boxes and treasure chests. It’s amazing how the little things matter when drawing a picture. The inner line of the box and the inner lines of the treasure chest lid really make those drawings pop out of the page. By the way, when it came time to freewheel it at the end, I couldn’t figure out what to do. My drawings aren’t bad considering I’ve only been at this for a few days. But I haven’t reached the point yet where I’m taking the art into my own hands and adding my own personal details. I imagine that will come eventually, but for the moment, I’m basically just following instructions and trying to figure out the basics.

Other Stuff

No news to report here. Just the same old stuff. Namely, I’m still thinking about making adjustments to my sidebar (that one on the right with Chaos in it). I might expand it to include international bookstores. And yes, the link to buy Chaos at Diesel (see sidebar) is STILL broken. Diesel has a revised version of Chaos but doesn’t seem to have posted it yet. Finally, the Chaos paperback continues to be on sale for $13.25 at Amazon. Get it and review it!

My Quest to Draw (Day 4): The Cube

Ice Storm & the Dreaded Information Dump

I like to weave little slices of dark history into my novels. Unfortunately, that usually means one thing…the dreaded information dump!

My Quest to Draw (Day 4): The Cube

My Quest to Draw (Day 4): The topic is “The Cube.” The bottom right drawing turned out to be a bit of a mess!

Ice Storm: 11 Days, 33,000 Words!

So, here we are…Day 11 of my “open novel” experiment for Ice Storm, aka my “Development Hell” book. I edited 1,500 words yesterday, bringing my redraft to a grand total of 33,000 words. By my estimate, I’ve got 57,000 words left to finish. The work required a lot of research and I found it quite interesting. Of course, research is usually far more interesting to the writer than it is to the reader. And that brings me to today’s topic…the dreaded “information dump.”

The Dreaded Information Dump!

Here’s the deal. The primary goal of the Cy Reed series is to provide entertainment. But I also hope to shed some light on the secret events and ideas that have influenced our world.

I love history, especially the dark stuff that normally gets ignored in the history books. That’s why so many of my Guerrilla Explorer posts are along the lines of “Thomas Edison…Kills an Elephant?“. Another type of history I enjoy involves the struggle over ideas such as The Debate that Rocked the World? (also known as the Socialist Economic Calculation Debate). Many of these debates are little known. And yet, they’ve completely changed out world.

Well, I needed to write about one such debate today. And it’s a particularly dark debate, one that took place decades ago and whose ramifications are still felt in modern society. I loved researching it. But writing it was difficult. Truth be told, it’s hard to relay factual information in an interesting way. Most writers just dump the information into a chapter, creating an information dump. Then they wash their hands and move on to the next scene.

Information dumps are often essential. And yet, I think most readers skim over them, eager to get back to the main story. So, I try to spice up my information dumps by pitting characters against each other. In yesterday’s work, Cy Reed squared off with a guy by the name of Aaron Jenner. Jenner believes something…unusual. Cy is shocked and even infuriated by Jenner’s opinions. And yet, Jenner is able to defend his position. Neither side wants to give into the other one and thus an information dump is transformed into a battle of wills.

By the way, if you haven’t already done so, head on over to Thriller Central to check out my article, Writer’s Guilt. Thriller Central is a terrific site, devoted to thriller and adventure fiction. There aren’t a lot of sites like this one so make sure to bookmark it.

Drawing: Day 4 – The Cube

I completed my 4th lesson from You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler last night. It was about the cube and you can see the resulting page from my sketch book. This one wasn’t too bad but I kind of lost it at the end when I tried to sketch a box on end. I tried to widen the angles, to fit the visual imagery we normally expect from three-dimensional boxes. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out so well. This was a good lesson, especially since I was getting a little cocky after my success on Day 3. Now, I’m sufficiently humbled again.

Other Stuff

I’m up to 104 Facebook followers. Not that this is a huge deal, but it’s still fun to see that number grow. Also, I’m still thinking about making adjustments to my sidebar (that one on the right with Chaos in it). I might expand it to include international bookstores. And yes, that stupid link to buy Chaos at Diesel (see sidebar) is still broken. Diesel has a revised version of Chaos but doesn’t seem to have posted it yet. Finally, the Chaos paperback continues to be on sale for $13.25 at Amazon. Get it and review it!

Day 3: My Quest to Draw

My Favorite Authors: The Great E.W. Hildick

Who are your favorite authors? I’ve got a bunch of them. Today, I wanted to write a little about a man named E.W. Hildick. Read on to find out more!

Day 3: My Quest to Draw

Day 3: My Quest to Draw. The topic is Advanced-Level Spheres. I felt pretty stiff so this lesson took me a long time to finish. But I thought it came out pretty good…

Ice Storm: 10 Days, 31,500 Words!

Today is Day 10 of my “open novel” experiment for Ice Storm, aka my “Development Hell” book. I do half days on the weekend, so I only edited 1,500 words yesterday, raising my grand total to 31,500. That leaves 58,500 words left to edit.

Before I forget, head on over to Thriller Central to check out my article, Writer’s Guilt. Thriller Central is a terrific site, devoted to thriller and adventure fiction. There aren’t a lot of sites like this one so make sure to bookmark it.

My Favorite Authors: The Great E.W. Hildick

My cousin Erik texted me last night. He wanted me to know he’d seen a lady reading Clive Cussler at the pool today. For those of you who don’t know, Clive Cussler was my first foray into the world of grown-up literature. One day, I’m gobbling up Hardy Boys books. The next day, I’m poring over Dragon and Night Probe.

It got me thinking about the other authors who’ve influenced me along the way. There have been a bunch of them. When I was a kid, my favorite author was E.W. Hildick. I read his books over and over again. One of my elementary school teachers once required our entire classroom to send letters to our favorite authors. Naturally, I chose E.W. Hildick. He never responded. I’ve always been a little suspicious that she didn’t actually mail it. Or maybe that’s just me hoping he didn’t throw my letter in the trash!

E.W. Hildick wrote a series about a junior detective agency, It was led by a young redheaded kid named Jack P. McGurk. McGurk was sort of like a young, mischievous Sherlock Holmes (he once held a “clue hunt” in his backyard…the other kids spent hours picking up candy wrappers and other trash before they realized he’d tricked them into doing one of his chores). The cases were a lot of fun. Many of them were adult crimes brought down to the kid level. So, instead of a typical kidnapping case, Hildick would present a case about a kidnapped doll, complete with ransom note. Over time, the cases got more complex but they always maintained a sense of youthful innocence. That made Hildick pretty unique, especially since so many other kid detectives were battling killers and Nazis at the time.

A couple of years ago, I hit E-Bay pretty hard and now I own the entire McGurk collection including The Menaced Midget, which was never released in the United States. If you get a chance, check E.W. Hildick out. You won’t be disappointed!

Drawing: Day 3 – Advanced-Level Spheres

I completed my third lesson from You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler last night. It was about advanced-level spheres. Check out the photo to see my work. This one took me several hours to finish. Keep in mind I’m really just going through exercises now and doing a lot of copying of his drawings. Not that this is a bad thing. Copying is a pretty good way to learn how to do something.

Be that as it may, I’m still too stiff, too careful with my work. I erase a lot and do a lot of reshaping of individual spheres. It tends to slow me down big time. Anyway I hope to work that out of my system over the coming weeks. In the meantime, I start work on cubes today. I’m still a long ways from being able to draw out the characters and worlds I see in my mind. But I think I’m on the right track.

Other Stuff

I just gained my 100th Facebook follower (thanks Dena!). Good stuff. Also, I’m still thinking about making adjustments to my sidebar (that one on the right with Chaos in it). I might expand it to include international bookstores. I sell far more E-Books in Amazon’s UK store than at Barnes and Noble. I guess that shows how good Amazon is at targeting a book to the right audience. Unfortunately, the link to buy Chaos at Diesel (see sidebar) is still broken. Diesel has a revised version of Chaos in hand so hopefully, this will be fixed soon. Finally, the Chaos paperback continues to be on sale for $13.25 at Amazon. Get it and review it!

Ice Storm Hell: Things just got a Little Easier…

It’s Ice Storm Hell! Ice Storm, my latest novel in development, has been one headache after another. But last night, I finally caught some good fortune.

Day 2: My Quest to Draw

Day 2: My Quest to Draw. The topic is Overlapping Spheres. Those tennis balls look almost good enough to play with right? Right???

Ice Storm Hell: 9 Days, 30,000 Words!

Today is Day 9 of my “open novel” experiment for Ice Storm, aka my “Development Hell” book. Yesterday was a surprisingly good day. I edited some old stuff, wrote some new stuff. When the dust was cleared, I’d finished another 3,000 words. 30,000 words down, 60,000 words to go.

Until last night, I’d been dreading this week. To make a long story short, Ice Storm consists of six parts. Each part is roughly 15,000 words long. When I first mapped out an editing plan for Ice Storm, I decided my third part was largely unusable. So, I decided to eliminate it and redraft the whole thing. I wasn’t looking forward to making such a drastic shift from editing to writing and then back to editing again. Then I caught a break. I took another look at my notes and realized I’d been too aggressive with my story map. So, I reworked it last night. And lo and behold, I figured out a way to reintegrate a lot of scenes I’d planned to throw out. So, Ice Storm’s third part will need far less rewriting than I’d thought. Needless to say, I’m stoked.

Drawing: Day 2 – Overlapping Spheres

I also completed my second lesson from You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler last night. It was about overlapping spheres. Check out the photo to see my work. Essentially, there are three tricks to make a sphere look three-dimensional. First, you overlap it on top of a second sphere. Second, you make the closer sphere larger than the one that’s further away. And third, you place the first sphere lower on the page. Then its just a simple matter of casting some shadows and adding several layers of shading. All in all, this was a good lesson. I could definitely see the improvement in my spheres and thought I did a decent job drawing a pair of tennis balls (yes, those are tennis balls) to finish for the night.

Of course, it’s going to get harder from here. Probably a lot harder. And I can already see I’m going to want to go over these lessons again when I’m done to make sure I really know them. But I’m starting to think I might really be able to draw for real someday. Neat!

Other Stuff

This is kind of my wrap-up section to sum up non-creative issues. So, I noticed I’m at 99 Facebook followers. Join today and you can be #100! What else? Oh yeah, I’m still thinking about making adjustments to my sidebar (that one on the right with Chaos in it). I might expand it to include international bookstores. I sell far more E-Books in Amazon’s UK store than at Barnes and Noble. I guess that’s a testament for how good Amazon is at targeting a book to the right audience. Unfortunately, the link to buy Chaos at Diesel (see sidebar) is still broken. Diesel has a revised version of Chaos in hand so hopefully, this will be fixed soon. Finally, the Chaos paperback continues to be on sale for $13.25 at Amazon. Get it and review it!

Day 1 of my Quest to Draw...think Double Fine can do any better? Well, yes. Yes, they can.

Double Fine, Kickstarter, and Worldbuilding

Worldbuilding involves creating a world and populating it with people, history, ecology, etc. It’s normally the stuff of fiction. But a quirky video game company named Double Fine has taken worldbuilding to a whole other level. More on that in a minute…

Day 1 of my Quest to Draw...think Double Fine can do any better? Well, yes. Yes, they can.

Day 1 of my Quest to Draw. The topics included spheres, light sources, and shading.

Ice Storm: 8 Days, 27,000 Words!

Today is Day 8 of my “open novel” experiment for Ice Storm, aka my “Development Hell” book. My brain is constantly on the move so I often end up distracting myself during writing sessions. I’ll play some Conceptis logic puzzles. I’ll check email. I’ll browse the web. I’ll do anything but write. Usually, that’s not a huge deal. But lately, it’s gotten a little out of control.

Yesterday, I took a different approach. I started writing first thing in the morning. I also timed my progress. My average writing pace is 2 pages per hour. When I’m unfocused, it can take an hour or even longer to write a single page. But when I time myself, I work much faster. I can usually write 3 or even 4 pages an hour. And yesterday was no different. I wrote about 1,000 new words and edited another 2,000 words in 2.5 hours. Not bad. So, I’ve now got 27,000 words done with 63,000 words to go.

Today will be a good test of my ability to focus. I need to write a couple of new scenes. If I’m focused, it should pass with relative ease. If not, well, I don’t want to think about that.

Drawing: Day 1!

I also completed my first lesson from You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler yesterday. It was about spheres, light sources, and shading. You can see the results over there on the right. On the bright side, the apple drawings are probably the best pieces of art I’ve ever produced. On the not so bright side, the apple drawings are…probably the best pieces of art I’ve ever produced. Clearly, I’ve got a long way to go. But this early lesson gave me a lot of confidence and a few tools to add to my toolbox.

Double Fine, Kickstarter, and Worldbuilding

Double Fine is a mid-sized video game company. Last year, they raised $3.5 million via Kickstarter to fund an old-school adventure game called Broken Age. They also produced a documentary for backers showing how they actually made the game. Now, Double Fine has launched a new Kickstarter project called Massive Chalice. Since last night, they’ve raised about $0.5 million.

I loved the adventure game genre as a kid and spent many hours playing Police Quest, Space Quest, and the Indiana Jones games. So, I ended up backing Broken Age. And then a curious thing happened. I started paying more attention to Double Fine. I purchased The Cave and played it with my wife. I enjoyed the emphasis on characters and worldbuilding. So, I started looking into their other games. I tend to have very specific tastes, but I found myself being intrigued by games that fall outside my normal boundaries. True, they make good games. But it’s more than that. Their documentary opened up a whole new world to me. I got to see them work, make games, and interact with each other. There’s an old rule in fiction…intimacy breeds sympathy. It certainly worked in this case. The more engaged I became with Double Fine, the more I wanted to try their other games.

In effect, Double Fine used worldbuilding techniques to create a unique nonfiction world. In the process, they’ve turned me from a casual fan into an engaged one. In many ways, they’ve helped inspire this latest “open novel” experiment of mine. Hopefully, you’ll get to know me and like what I do here. And hopefully, you’ll decide you want to read my books too!

Other Stuff

See that sidebar? The one with Chaos in it? I’ve been thinking about expanding it to include international bookstores. My second largest store (after Amazon of course) happens to be Amazon’s UK store. Barnes and Noble is way down the list. So, I might shake that up a bit. Unfortunately, the link to buy Chaos at Diesel (see sidebar) is still broken. Diesel has a revised version of Chaos in hand so hopefully, this will be fixed soon. Finally, the Chaos paperback continues to be on sale for $13.25 at Amazon. Get it today!