Well, here we are again. Surprisingly, it snowed again last week. It was all gone by the weekend, but we had a significant amount. Snow in April is to be expected in this region, but it’s usually not this much. It was surprising, mostly because just a few days prior the temperature had climbed nearly to 80℉. That’s pretty darn hot. I was getting ready to mow the lawn for the first time this year, too. It was just plain weird. I’ve had a rather good week for writing, I think; I made significant progress on my next novella, THE SWORD OF EMRYS. I completed the first draft and now have moved on to editing and plot revisions. It'll have to go through another round of edits once it goes to beta readers, but plot revisions must be made first, as I decided to switch monsters half-way through. I have a more concrete idea for an ending, now, but I’m definitely never starting a novella without a concrete ending in mind first. Just too much of a hassall.
It was a bit easier when I did the same workout routine a few days later, though, and it has made a difference already. Last Friday, I was able to perform 12 chin-ups in a single set; to my knowledge I’ve never done that before. Perhaps I did it once when I was 17 and full of hormones, but definitely not since then. As I’ve posted before, my sister has made a number of music videos on YouTube, which I think are rather good, but she’s having a bit of trouble gaining traction. Social media doesn’t seem to help much; I believe the Almighty Zucc is purposefully suppressing YouTube videos on Facebook to try and get people to use Facebook’s video app exclusively (even though it’s rubbish). This is one of her more recent videos that I hope you’ll enjoy. Please give it a watch, and a like if you liked it. Well, that’s all for this week. Thanks for reading, everyone, and if you want to help me continue in my mission to provide quality content, please consider hitting that “contribute” button. No amount is too small. Literally, I mean that.
Have a great week, everyone.
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There are very few people who have been as supportive of my work as Angela Watts, fantasy author and a truly decent person. When I found out that she had published a new fantasy novel, I leaped at the chance to return the favor. Her novel, Golgotha, has been published through Blade of Truth Publishing, and is available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats. You can purchase it here Angela was gracious enough to take some time out of her busy day to provide us with answers to my burning questions. So without further ado, here they are: 1. Briefly summarize what GOLGOTHA is about. Four unlikely companions must band together to escape the Realm of Bones and save their kingdom from a reign of darkness. 2. Where did you get the idea for this novel? Jesus. But, for real. There wasn’t any “one thing” that sparked the idea. This was a slow-brewing project, which isn’t normal for me. I’ve always enjoyed fantasy worlds and obsessed over them as a child, but this was my first completed fantasy novel. 3. When did you start writing it? Hmm, a couple of years ago. I can’t remember the specific date. Oops. But I wrote about two drafts and kept dropping it because I despised it. Then I really prayed about it, ignored the entire fantasy community, wrote what God told me to write, and was actually happy with it. Weird, right? 4. What is your writing process? If I have an idea I like, I’ll write down what I know, even if it’s just some basic, random thoughts. If I really love it, I’ll sit down and plot it out. I set deadlines for myself because I like them and it helps me get a lot of work done within a year. I write better in the morning so 5 AM mornings are beloved, though I don’t do them as often as I used to. I write till the first draft is done (usually 2-5 weeks) and then give it a short break before diving in for revisions! 5. What does your novel bring to the world? It’s about what it can bring to each reader. For one reader, perhaps it will make them question their beliefs. For another, maybe it makes them question why they hold onto fear so tightly. And for another reader, maybe they get caught up in a fast-paced, complex world they wish they could visit. If this novel gives something to each person who grabs it, then I’ll be happy. 6. If your novel were made into a movie, who would you want to direct and star in it? As strange as it sounds, I haven’t truly given this any thought. I have many readers tell me how they wish it were a movie already and they have casting ideas, but I truly don’t. I have a face claim for Finnigan, so perhaps Daniel Sharman might be up for it, but… besides him, I draw blanks. I might just do an Instagram poll for this, haha. However, I do think it’d be cool for Mel Gibson to direct it, though it’s a fantasy. Still, a girl can dream. (Readers compared the action in my bestselling series, The Infidel Books, to Hacksaw Ridge and Gibson is a hero of mine so… it could work...) I would like to sincerely thank Angela Watts for her time, and I would encourage all my readers to check out GOLGOTHA for yourselves. You can also follow Angela on Goodreads where you can get her latest updates, and you can go to her website and subscribe to her newsletter. I know I did.
Thank you all for reading and have a great week! Ah spring; the buzzing of the bees, the flowers blooming, the hay fever. Such a magical season. Spring is early this week. Or it seems like it. For the past two years or more, we’ve had wintery weather all the way through April, and even into May. For the past week, however, it’s felt almost like summer. I can actually start the process of getting the garden ready for planting; tilling, checking the compost boxes, fertilizing, etc. I’m also going to have to construct some form of fence, as my next door neighbors seem to be incapable of keeping their dog confined to their own yard. I consider gardening a bit more than a hobby; it’s sort of a passion, or an obsession, really. I don’t know what I’d do without it. I’ve always loved living things. In this world, where everything is synthetic and mechanized, I think it’s good to get back to our roots. Not that I think all modern tech is bad; I just think we’ve become too far removed from the natural world. I’ve been experimenting a little with my art lately. For the past year or so, my art has kind of stagnated; I just haven’t been getting better, and I think I’ve actually gotten worse. This is partially because I stopped regularly consuming Silver Age comics and I stopped drawing from life. When I try to produce the human face based just on my own memory or imagination, it typically looks a little flat, but when I use life models or photos as a reference it tends to look a lot more life-like. So I went back to reading comics more regularly, and drawing from photos, rather than just using my imagination. I’ve also been changing up my ink work on my comics. It’s been hard for me to really get the hang of inks, and so I’m constantly trying to improve in that area. I’m kinda stalled out on Walter Ulric for the moment. I’ll get back to it, though. I thought I had some great ideas and it turned out I didn’t. I may just start on the next story in the series and see where that takes me. I have a few good ideas for that, at least. I have made tremendous progress on THE SWORD OF EMRYS, however, and I’m quite pleased with that. I think I may have it published by July. I’ll keep y’all updated on that. Lately, my sister has been making these awesome music videos, and I think they’re pretty good, but they aren’t getting a lot of views. I’d appreciate it if you’d go ahead and click the video below, give it a watch, and thumbs up if you like it. I want to thank everyone for participating in my contest. One of you lucky people reading this has won a signed copy of A SONG OF EMRYS and will be receiving it shortly. Thanks to everyone for participating and filling out the questionnaire. I really appreciate the input, and just people bothering to pay attention. I will be having more such contests in the future, and I will keep you all apprised.
Well, that’s all for this week. I wish you all a very good and I hope to hear from you all again soon. I hope everyone had a good Easter. Mine wasn’t so great, but that was mostly because I bit a massive chunk outta my own tongue and it was so swollen I couldn’t talk or eat right. How did I do this, you may be asking? Talent. In unrelated news, for the past year or so, I’ve had some sort of beard on my face. For a time it was a goatee, then a vandyke, and then I experimented with other sorts of beards. This week I decided to shave it off, just on a lark. Now, I don’t shave my beard entirely off; I usually leave my mustache and soul patch alone. I shaved my mustache off once; it wasn’t good. That wide, bare expanse of upper lip was too much to bear for everyone, including me. After having a mustache for years, I just wasn’t the same man. I have resolved that I will never shave my upper lip again. No, not even if a significant other asked me to. Anyway, I thought I’d finished another Walter Ulric story this past week, but according to my editor, I haven’t yet. I’m still a bit annoyed about that, because I was looking forward to publishing that this week. What makes this story different from the others I’ve published is it’s narrated by Conrad LeFontain, not Walter. That presented a unique set of challenges that I had to overcome. The good news is I got started on the next Walter Ulric story which hopefully I'll have completed soon.
Well, that’s all for this week. Thanks for reading and remember to answer that survey to win a free book!
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AuthorI'm Ian Wilson; an eccentric comic artist, just telling a story.
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