The 2018 Year-End Wrap-Up

Well, 2018 wasn't my best year, but it wasn't my worst either.

I started off by releasing the e-books of A Modicum of Truth (Justice #2) in February and Sacrificed (Bloodlines #8) in March.

And if you're a regular reader of my blog, you know everything got put on hold shortly after Easter.

I kept writing though, as best as I could. The trade paperbacks for this year's releases came out in October and December respectively.

I made some money, less than every other year, but more than my first year. However, I was mainly coasting on fumes from previous releases.

So I'm concentrating on putting out a lot of books in 2019. I'm not jinxing myself by giving specific dates until the pre-order is up and running. (Yep, I'm going to try to stay ahead this year!)

- Hero De Facto is back from my alpha reader. I'll do another round of proofreading before sending it off to my formatter.

- Hero Ad Hoc should go to my alpha reader later today.

- The first draft of Hero De Novo will hopefully be finished before Hero De Facto goes on sale.

- A Matter of Death needs to be completed as well.

- Then if nothing else goes wrong, I'll finish the last three Bloodlines stories and the fourth Justice Novel.

I'm still looking at the possibility of another surgery, so I'm trying very, very hard to get ahead before this happens, if it happens.

I could wail and gnash my teeth over perceived failures like a lot of my fellow writers do, but I can't. I'm just happy to be alive and doing something I absolutely love--making up stories to entertain all of you.

Mya you all have an awesome New Year!

When Something Works...

One of my favorite versions!

Editing My Heart Out

Last Saturday, I wrapped up the copyediting on Hero De Facto and e-mailed it to my alpha reader's Kindle. Unlike a lot of other writers, I don't use beta readers.

Why? Because at that point the entire series is pretty much done in my head. It's simple a matter of setting it to bits and bytes for other people to consume. But I trust my process, and it/I manage to entertain a number of people.

I think that's where the fine line between overconfidence and underconfidence in writers lie.

There are those who haven't studied craft enough to understand why their story isn't doing well in the market. However, they think the piece is brilliant, and therefore, everyone else must be idiots.

On the other hand are the writers who want their piece to be brilliant, and they seek out third parties' validation in an effort to be deemed brilliant by those the writers esteem. It really doesn't matter to them if the story is readable by the general populace.

Want to know my secret?  I'm not looking for brilliance, though I write the best I can with every piece I create. I want to entertain. If one of my humorous adventures brightens your day, then I know I have succeeded.

So far, my alpha seems to be amused in the right places, and that's what I really care about as a writer.

Happy Boxing Day!

So did any on you get up early to hit the post-Christmas sales?

I used to do that, but after working at Hallmark for a few years, I'm so stocked up on wrapping paper and card I had to pack them into large boxes during the move. And now that the nieces and nephews are grown, well, I'm using less and less every year.

After a day where the entire DH family gathered under one roof, I was exhausted. And I mean EVERYONE from Papa to the littlest great-grandbaby and the brand-new grandpuppy Scotty.

So I'm finally awake. We've got plenty of Pepsi, coffee, chocolate, and cinnamon buns to fuel me. Time to get back to the writing!

Monday Movie Mania - Ralph Breaks the Internet

We didn't see the original Wreck-It Ralph when it was released. None of us were that interested because we were FINALLY laying hardwood in our family room. Eventually, we caught it late one night on cable and were pleasantly surprised by the story.

So when the sequel was released, DH was rather adamantly that we go see it. The reason probably has something to do with him being in the computer industry.


* * *


SPOILERS!!


* * *


PROS
1) The Disney Princesses were hysterical!

2) Twisting the hero into the needy, neurotic nutcase and the heroine into the one wanting their freedom.

3) Gal Gadot.

4) Felix and Calhoun adopting the other Sugar Rush racers.


CONS
1) Not enough Disney Princesses and Gal Gadot.


Overall, Ralph Breaks the Internet is a fun movie with a lot of jokes that will fly over most kids' heads. I give it  8 stars out of 10. 

Christmas Music!

Sometimes, the classics rule!

Happy Winter Solistice!

May light continue to shine in your home!

If You Didn't Make Your Yearly Goals

Now's the time a lot of writers are looking their goal sheet for this year and silently weeping into their whiskey.

A little grief is okay. Give yourselves a five-minute pity party, then toss back the rest of the whiskey.

First, look at what you did accomplish. Did you publish a book? Did you finish writing a book? Did you submit a short story to an anthology or magazine? How many words did you write? Was it more than one? A whole sentence? Paragraph? Page?

Then fucking congratulate yourself! That's more than some people do in a lifetime.

Where did you fall down? Furthermore, was it really a fall?

Sometimes, life has to take precedence over art. What if your parents, your siblings, your significant other(s), or your kids needed a little extra help this year? Or a lot? Setting aside your art for them doesn't make you a failure. It makes you a compassionate, caring human being.

Or maybe you were the one facing the life-changing event. If so, cut yourself some slack. If you're not healthy, physically and mentally, doing any kind of art is nearly impossible.

More likely though, you overestimated what you could do in a year. No shame in that, but make next year's a bit more realistic. Take a good look at what you did accomplish and add, say, ten percent. Or one percent. Or fifty percent. Just make it within the realm of possibility for you. Giving yourself unobtainable goals only destroys your self-esteem because there's no way to win.

Were my 2018 goals obtainable? Maybe, but cancer made sure I couldn't hit them.

That's okay. I'm alive. I'm healthy. And 2019 is a brand-new, glorious year!

Good luck to us all!

Monday Movie Mania - Aquaman

I can hear you now--"But-but Suzan! Aquaman isn't out until this Friday!"

Well, (a) you're right in that Aquaman isn't in WIDE release in the U.S. until Friday, and (b) no, I didn't illegally download it from a pirate site, nor did I go to China for their early release.

Warner Brothers teamed up with Amazon, Atom, and various theaters for a special preview at 7:00 p.m. on December 15th. And I couldn't wait to see Jason Momoa rocking his superhero shtick again. Because, let's face it, he makes Aquaman cool!


* * *


SPOILERS


* * *


PROS
1) The ultimate in casting choice (besides Jason) was Temuera Morrison as Thomas Curry, Aquaman's dad, though the rest of the choices were excellent. Seriously, Jango Fett as Dad is fucking awesome!

2) The Aquaman in-jokes, including, yes, Arthur riding a giant seahorse. (Trust me, it was way more awesome then it sounds.)

3) The King Arthur in-jokes. (Yes, the one from Camelot.)

4) The fact the writers stuck with the Silver Age characters and backstories (the ones I grew up reading) with only some slight alterations.

5) The same mix of adventure, quest, and romance as Wonder Woman without the negativity and angst of Zack Snyder's Man of Steel, et al.


CONS
1) The score left something to be desired, as in it was totally unmemorable. While specific themes have been developed and repeatedly used for the Trinity, once again, Aquaman got screwed.

I had a blast and I want to see it again. Overall, Aquaman earned its 10 out of 10 stars.

More Perverse Christmas Tunes!

This is one of my favorites, and yes, I am sick.