Day #325: Doomed to Fail? Write It Anyway

One of my big mistakes as a young writer was conservatism. I held back a lot. I would have a book idea, but if I didn't think it was marketable, I would not write it. I was worried that I would write 100,000 words that would end up hidden in a drawer. When I wrote short stories and essays for my college classes, I kept the metaphors to a minimum. I didn't bother with eloquence. I got straight to the point, as I do with most of these blog posts. And I used lame verbs like "GOT" (See previous sentence.)

I must have believed that my creative energies were finite. That if I wrote brilliantly in an essay, I would run out of brilliance when it came time to write a novel.

Because of this flawed strategy, my writing style became sparse, more like Hemingway than Charles Dickens. More William Carlos Williams rather than William Shakespeare. My words are economic, which is good, but they are rarely poetry.

If I went back to relive those college years, I would have put passion into every paragraph. Yes, I would have written many more failures than I already have... But I would have taught myself so many more lessons.

Day #324: Book Dream (Number Two)

I have had back-to-back vivid dreams. That's rare, and weird, and fun.

In last night's dream, I was reading a picture book written by Stephen King.

Day #323: Book Dream (Number One)

We are visiting family in Washington state. Since I am on winter break, I am actually sleeping in, unlike my normal work schedule which gets me up at the crack of dawn.

For some reason, I dream more often when I sleep late. So, on Sunday morning, whilst I slept until 9 am, I had a strange dream, one that seemed like something that could become a picture book.

Have you ever seen the show Raising Hope? Well, I dreamt I was watching the final episode of Raising Hope, and the family of quirky characters discovered that they were living in the middle of a conformist dystopian society. And since they were so quirky, the society decided that it needed to capture and brainwash the all American family. However, these characters were too resilient. The brainwashing didn't work, and so to return to their "normal" lives, they had to lie to the brainwashers.

Right now, you are probably thinking, this does not sound like a children's book. True. But something about the dialogue in the dream inspired me. In the dream, the mother character (played by Martha Plimpton) looked directly at the camera (or perhaps I should say directly at my mind's eye) and said, "The eighth lie is Shelia." Then she pointed to a woman who was apparently nothing
 but a living lie. 

For some reason, I really like this idea of The 8th Lie... Or, more to the point, I like the notion that 
there are a series of lies and each one has been ranked. 

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this idea, but perhaps it's the seed of an idea. 

Day #322: Reflecting on Resolutions

I didn't have an elaborate lost of New Years Resolutions for 2015. I wanted to take more photos; record more of my family's life. (I failed at this, so I will be putting it on my list mext year.)

I also hoped to publish Camp Omigosh (which I did -- however, my marketing on that project has been incredibly lackluster.)  I also wanted to create something new (which I did, though it's not finished yet, quack quack.)

My other goal was to increase my online presense, and I chalk that up as another failure. Sure, I've been blogging... But it's rather personal, and probably very boring to anyone besides me and my mom. (Hi Mom!)

For 2016, I am trying to decide whether or not I should bother trying to gain popularity on the internet. Writers like John Green have an incredible influence on their readers with their use of social media. But those are mainly teen authors. I am writing for younger readers, so I'm not sure about the best ways to use the internet to develop my brand.

Also, and this may just be me making excuses, I'm not sure how much time I should commit to marketing when I barely seem to have enough time to write.

Day #312 - #321: Favorite Things of 2015

As I reflect upon the year before 2015 comes to a close, I want to make a list of the creative works that have influenced me during these twelve months. (So, keep in mind when I say Favorite Things, I won't be listing family or friends -- it goes without saying that those folks are what make my life some kind of wonderful.)

So the following list is a bunch of creative works which have been inspiring me in a variety of ways. Some of them are brand spanking new; others are quite old -- but I'm experiencing them for the first time, or rediscovering them.

10) The Blacklist
I've binge watched several shows this year, but for some reason this has been the most satisfying of the new shows. I think because it taps into something primal. We want evil to be eradicated from the world, but with civilized laws justice if often unfulfilled. However, if another bad guy goes after the villains, revenge seems much more doable. Such was the case during the first three seasons of Dexter, and such is the case with Blacklist. In some ways it's a typical crime TV show, but James Spader takes things to the next level. He makes the show.

9) M*A*S*H
We have been watching every episode of MASH as a family... Well, Emily is usually on FunSubstance... But the rest of us have been exploring the exploits of Hawk Eye Pierce and the doctors and nurses of the 4077. Alan Alda's moral compass is the polar opposite of Blacklist's sensibilities. As a child, I watched reruns of this show, every now and then. But watching it in chronological order and in its entirity is a dramatically different experience. You really sense the fatigue that these characters experience, and you understand how humor becomes their main defense mechanism.


8) Stephen King's 11/22/63

I loved the way Stephen King describes time traveling into the 1950s and early 1960s. He really gets back into his groove as a storyteller with this vivid novel about a man who attempts alter history by saving the life of JFK. One of my favorite moments was when King reintroduces Bev and Richie, two characters from IT. That was so awesome.

7) The Complete Peanuts - 1953 & 1954

Much of my year has been consumed by my obsession with my graphic novel, Duck Town.
I have loved drawing since the second grade, and my greatest inspiration in those early days was Charles Shultz. Peanuts was my first experience as an active reader (meaning the Charlie Brown books were the first books that I actually wanted to read, unlike the assigned readings in elementary school). My art never matched the professionalism of Shultz, but he remains my benchmark, my artistic polaris.


6) Inside Out

I love any creative work that can evoke tears. Pixar's Inside Out did just that. Damn you, Bing Bong!

5) Mad Max: Fury Road

This was a dusty wild ride, and a fitting continuation of the Mad Max world. It's really just a long car chase, but it's incredibly entertaining, filled with lots of action sequences that made me gasp and a 
few sequences that made me cringe. A great big screen experience.


4) Star Trek: The Next Generation

If you know me at all, then you know that I am a joyful nerd. I may not be the biggest Trekkie, but I do love me some Star Trek. This year I decided to rewatch all of the Next Generation episodes, usually during my office hours. I was surprised at how many episodes I had missed durng the original series' run. I missed a whole bunch during the second and third season. I was also pleasantly surprised to find that Weasley Crusher isn't as annoying as I remember. I love the world view (or should I say galactic view) established by Roddenberry. It's his version of heaven -- and I agree with his version of paradise (minus the Borg).



3) Bloom County
One of the most wonderful and unexpected surprises of 2015 is the return of Berkley Brethed's beloved comic, Bloom County. I have loved reading the further adventures of Milo, Opus, and the gang. However, I must say that I have been most pleased to be reunited with Steven Dallas.
2) Hamilton
I fell in love with In The Heights, and then this musical came along. Take my admiration for Lin Manuel Miranda's first musical and multiply it by three, and you'll calculate just how strongly I feel about this hip hop historical masterpiece.
1) Star Wars: The Force Awakens -- Nuff said.

Day #311: New Star Wars = New Levels of Awesome

Okay, I have now seen Star Wars: The Force Awakens twice. I'm still processing my feelings.

I know it's just a movie (and it's not a perfect movie), but at the same time, it's a fulfillment of my childhood dreams. The prequels were very important to me because they visually depicted so many boyhood debated hosted by my friends and me. I speculated endlessly about what happened between Anakin and Kenobi. How did Vader become a cyborg? What were the Clone Wars? What misadventures did the droids entangle themselves in?

I've said before, and I'll say again -- I love the prequels, flawed as they are; the films further explored an imaginary universe that has fascinated me for decades.

I have spent the last two years doing my best to avoid trailers, images, spoilers of any kind. (Although I did know that Han, Luke, and Leia would be in this.) The result: a whole lot of surprises. I won't give much away except this.... Because this was the only aspect of the film that disappointed me: There's a Death Star knock off... I don't know why they decided to do yet another spherical planet blaster as a pivotal plot point. There are MANY parallels to the original STAR WARS (Episode IV) and most of them work, many are pleasing, but the Star Killer weapon seemed lazy in comparison to so many other aspects that were fresh yet fitting.

That caveat is minor in contrast to the sheer joy it has been to see Han Solo and Chewbacca together again.

Day #310: Don't Be a Stranger to my New Play

A few months ago, Heuer Publishing release my latest bittersweet comedy: "Strangers."

Here's the pitch:

Strangers is a touching one-act comedy about two people who interact or encounter each other every few years, throughout their entire lives. But they never really meet... until the end.

So far, no one has produced this play... It's waiting for it's world premiere -- but perhaps no school or theater is daring enough? Or maybe the play is a stinker -- but I did put my heart and soul into this one. So, if you'd like to check it out, you can read a free preview at:

Heuer Plays...

Thanks for reading!