Creativity and being out of touch.

It's been a little more than two weeks since I last wrote on this page, my plan had been to start writing a short story every week, starting it on Monday, and sharing whatever progress I had made here on the following Friday.

But you know what they say about best laid plans.

In addition to the sciatica that has been making it difficult for me to sit and concentrate on any one thing I got hit with a late winter bug that pretty much put me in bed for three days. I'm feeling much better now but the sciatica is still nagging at me, though not near as bad as when it first flared up. I've gone through MRI's and X-Rays only to be told that this is something I'm going to have to deal with.

When I remember to, I do my exercises. There is so much on my plate right now.  Dreadland chronicles book III, Legion of the Damned is in its final stages as we prepare it for a May 31 release date.

A Father's Love is pretty much finished but I haven't made the final decision yet as to whether I want to publish it myself or send it to a publisher. I know JournalStone is open right now and the story would dovetail perfectly into their line. The questions is am I willing to give up the control? Not to mention the potential earnings were it to take off.

I'm also working on the outlines for books four and five of the Dreadland Chronicles as well as a World War Two horror novella that I've yet to work out a title for.

If you'd liker to keep abreast of my releases you can sign up for my mailing list here.

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I'll even throw in a free copy of White Walker.

I want to get back into the story a week idea I originally had a couple of weeks ago. This week I want to tackle superstition. Check back Friday to see what I come up with.

Recently on The Passive Voice I saw a story about renting Emily Dickinson's room for an hour. The first question that came to mind was, who would do that? And why? I can understand a fan wanting to visit the place where the work they've enjoyed was created. After all anyone can visit the café in Edinburgh where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter, or tour Ernest Hemingway’s house in Key West.

Who out there believes that staying in a room where a favorite story was created will somehow allow that same spark of creativity to rub off on them? I don't believe that's how creativity works. Or am I missing the point entirely?

The story about Emily Dickinson reminded me of the Stanley hotel writers retreat that was being hyped several years ago. Stay in the same room where Stephen King came up with the idea for The Shining. Did these writers believe that by paying an outrageous sum to stay in a room where a story was created would expand the horizons of their own creativity? That the same spark that inspired SK would somehow rub off on them?

What do you think?

E-Books are changing the way we read and the way novelists write.

Re-Blogged from The Guaridan
Written by Paul Mason

If you hand me the original paperback edition of Thomas Pynchon’s Gravity’s Rainbow I can, quickly and without too much scrabbling, find you the page where the hero loses the girl. My disappointment on his behalf has lingered physically on that page for the past 20 years. Likewise, in Vasily Grossman’s Life and Fate, there is a long section where a platoon of the Red Army defends “House 6/1”, establishing a temporary zone of political freedom there. For me, this freedom seems to live in that chunk of pages. If I look at the book end-on, I can see, roughly, where House 6/1 exists.

Yet with the coming of ebooks, the world of the physical book, read so many times that your imagination can “inhabit” individual pages, is dying. I’m not the only person in my circle who has stopped buying new books in anything other than digital form, and even the cherished books described above are now re-read, when I need to, on Kindle.

But what is the ebook doing to the way we read? And how, in turn, are the changes in the way millions of us read going to affect the way novelists write? This is not just a question for academics; you only have to look at people on a beach this summer to see how influential fiction remains, and how, if its narratives were to change radically, our self-conception might also change.

Read the rest at: The Guardian

Performance Anxiety?

That got your attention didn't it?

When one spots a title like that surely the content that follows is going to be focused on sex, right?

Wrong.

I'm sorry to disappoint you. Outside of the bedroom performance anxiety is a pretty common occurrence among those who perform before a live audience. Stage fright is the more common name for performance anxiety. Musicians, athletes, stage actors, public speakers all experience performance anxiety at one time or another.

It's that butterflies in the stomach feeling, the fear that once you step out onto that stage you're going to do something memorable in a stupid sort of way, or worse yet, you're mind will go blank, and everything you've rehearsed will be forgotten.

Writers experience that same sensation but usually for a different set of reasons. What normally goes through the writers mind as they embark upon a new endeavor is the fear that this time out will not be as good as the last time. That what they produce will be well beneath the standard they have established for themselves with their last release. That the words will not flow as well as they once did.

For the writer performance anxiety leads directly to writers block. In most cases writers block arises not from a lack of ideas, but from a lack of excitement for the writers current project, or an overwhelming avalanche of ideas the writers is having a hard time choosing from. The latter is what is currently holding me up.

My intent had been to write a coming of age story for release early next year, one I had written a screenplay for several years ago. Unfortunately the muse has other ideas as it keeps teasing me with snippets of a tale that is on my to do list, but not as close to the top as others projects I wanted to finish. Then of course there's the first draft of a novel that has been sitting on my desk for nearly six months now waiting for me to put aside these other tasks so we can spend some time together. To top it off there are a number of really neat ideas swirling around in my mind as we speak.

What I really need is a daily planner to get my limited writing time in order so I can finish some projects. I work a full time job, and while some might assume my writing is nothing more than a hobby, for me it's serious work. I worry over the placement of every word, did this sound right? will the reader understand what is really happening? am I explaining too much? too little? Striking that balance is a full time job. I could fill reams of paper explaining why something happened, but would anybody read it, it's doubtful.

My goal of course is to be able to support myself with my writing. I'm standing upon the threshold of three years as an indie writer. I've learned a lot in that time. And I've yet to make any serious money at it, but I remain optimistic that my time is yet to come. It is that optimism that compels me to sit at my desk every morning, to push through my own performance anxiety, and create what I hope will be considered a good read. 

One Thousand Words A Day

My goal as a writer is to produce a minimum of one thousand words a day. A big part of hitting that goal is my willingness to carve out the time to put those words on the page. It’s all boils down to conditioning the mind to respond to a certain stimulus. If you’re sitting at your desk every day at the same time with the intent to write, I’ve discovered the words will flow. And it’s not as hard as one thinks.

Every morning, without fail, I'm at my computer editing, marketing, or writing new stuff. I put aside the time, before work, to focus on my dream. Some mornings I don’t want to get up when the alarm goes off but I force myself to do so. For me writing is a priority in my life. One I take seriously.

I’m sure as a writer you have several non-writing friends, out of those friends I’m willing to bet one of them would also be writing a book if only they had the time. There’s always one thing or another cropping up to prevent them from doing what they want. The real reason they’re not writing is that for them writing is not that high of a priority in their life.

With a little planning and a willingness to commit ones self to a set time each day, anyone can achieve the goal of writing a thousand words a day. And while a thousand words alone does not sound like much, if you can produce a thousand words each day, on the same project, in three months time you will have a 90,000 word novel.

Establishing a Routine

It's not unusual that during the course of a conversation I'll be having with someone I haven't met before, when the subject of my writing comes up, almost without fail the person will express their desire to write a book themselves. If they only had the time.

Their excuses for not doing so range from having to watch their kids, to wanting to spend time with their spouses. There's housework that needs to be done, laundry waiting to be washed, work around the house that they've been putting off far to long. And the biggest excuses is being too tired after a hard day at work.

Not to brag but I'm writing this on Sunday evening after having worked from 9am until 5pm in a retail store. I got up this morning at 5:30 am, showered and made some coffee, then sat down and wrote until it was time to get ready for work. After work I stopped at another store to pick up food for the dogs and upon arriving home I sat down to dinner with my wife and our oldest grandson who had stopped by for a visit.

After dinner I ran my grandson home, came back to the house and helped finish the dishes. Now I sit at my computer, a cold beer on my desk beside me, while I write this post I've been promising myself I would do all week. You see I've made the decision that I have to post three times a week from this point on. Mondays will be missives like you're reading now about living the life of a writer who also works a full time job. Wednesdays will be devoted to new discoveries I've made in horror fiction, guest posts from other authors, and interviews. Fridays will remain Fridays Frights with a more personal touch as I talk about creepy places around the world. After I'm done this post I'll join my wife on the patio while we watch our dogs play in the back yard and relax for an hour or so before we go off to bed.

Recently I've rediscovered an old truth about being a working writer. To be successful, to complete your projects in a timely manner, you have to have a routine. Setting a goal is not enough if you don't establish a routine that will help you achieve that goal. My shot term goal is to finish Parasite, part two of the Shadows of the Past series I've been contemplating for some time. I want to release it by Halloween this year. To do that I have to finish it by the end of August. That will give me all of September and most of October to rewrite and polish the story in preparation for its Halloween release.

Will I make it?

I'm doing everything possible on my end. For the past two weeks I've gotten up every morning at 5:30, hopped in the shower, and grabbed some coffee before turning on the computer and getting to work. I've established a routine that is slowly becoming second nature.When I wrote Shadows of the Past I did the same thing, starting work the same time each day,and working until I achieved a goal which at the time was five pages per day, many days I'd write ten or fifteen. and in no time I had written 85,000 words.


To date I've laid down just over 25,000 words on Parasite. I'm nearly halfway there.

There's another little truth I've rediscovered recently. By sticking to my routine I've found I actually have more time to do the things I want to without feeling guilty.

Oh and don't forget while you're here to sign up for my monthly giveaway. This month I'm giving away a $10.00 amazon gift card along with an electronic library of all of my work. The drawing will take place August 15. to sign up follow the Where's Puddles link above.

Writing Process Blog tour.

Thomas Kleaton, a talented new writer who is showing a great deal of promise, recently asked me to participate in a writer’s blog tour. The requirement was simple enough, answer four questions, and tag several other writers that you know to answer the same four questions on their blog.

Thomas maintains a blog here: http://thomaskleaton.wordpress.com/

I don’t like to tag anyone for one of these unless I’ve spoken with them before hand and the three I intended to tag have not as yet gotten back to me. So I’m going to change things up here a bit and give a shout out to those tireless souls who help us writers get the word out about our new releases.

They are the readers who have taken their obsession one step further and publicly post reviews on their own personal blogs. So stop by their site after you’re done here, check out their reviews, interviews, new release announcement, you never know you might just find a new writer or two to follow.

What am I working on?
Shadows of the Past Part II Parasite. The creature Sam Hardin though he had killed in Shadows of the Past Part I has returned. But the problem is no longer isolated in the hills of Western Maryland. In Washington State a young man discovers an alien craft beneath his basement floor, inside is a parasite that is tied to what Sam killed and threatens the future of all mankind.

How does my work differ from others in the genre?
Very little blood and guts. I believe real tension is created by the perception in the readers mind of what is about to happen versus a blow-by-blow description of what does happen.
 
Why do I write what I do? 
That’s like asking someone why they breath. All my life I’ve been drawn to the macabre.
 
How does my writing process work?
I allow the idea to incubate, to explore its myriad possibilities, then I start running the gauntlet of questions. Who, What, When, Where, Why, and of course how. Once I have these firmly in mind it is only then that I put pen to paper.


Jim McLeod at Ginger Nuts of Horror: For any and all of your horror fiction needs, Ginger Nuts of Horror is your number one source! Through the many pages that this site has to offer, you will be given the chance to view the absolutely best in horror fiction news, horror fiction reviews, and exclusive interviews with both up and coming stars as well as established horror actors. In fact, Google has recently ranked Ginger Nuts of Horror as the number one website for horror news and horror author interviews, as well as ranking us in the top ten horror fiction review websites. Currently, the site  averages about 90,000 views every month with  over 18,000 unique visitors! Now, it’s time to get into the meat of our website: exactly what makes Ginger Nuts of Horror your number one horror website.

Anthony Seravante at Servante of Darkness: I critique, review, and discuss current trends in literature, especially works of Horror, SF, Fantasy, Crime Noir, and related subjects. I also review film, music, and TV programs. I compile monthly poetry columns and continue ongoing discussions on the Zombie Apocalypse, Cybernocturnalism (ebook publishing, good and bad), and Off Kilter TV: Where Horror Rears its Ugly Head on Family Television. And I publish a Horror Short Story of the Month every first of the month.


Shana Festa at Bookie Monster: Shay Festa A.K.A. The Bookie Monster reviews horror and paranormal books, with an emphasis (but not limited to) zombie fiction. With a background in Psych Nursing, Shay brings her unique perspective to the online reading community. Her highly anticipated zombie novel, Time of Death: Induction, is now available!

Writing for Yourself

I had myself all psyched up to read my literary short story, Forget Me Not, to a packed room on Sunday, during the release party for the 2014 Backbone Mountain Review. That is until the very moment I entered the room and approached the sign up sheet for those wanting to read. It was then I realized I would not be able to finish reading the story without becoming emotional myself. And I understood then, why I had waited so long to submit the story anywhere.

The idea for the story came to me while in the Memorial Hospital waiting room as my wife was undergoing surgery to have a torn muscle in her knee repaired. I had been given a slip of paper with a number on it that corresponded with my wife's information.  My very first thought upon receiving the paper was how impersonal it all seemed. That string of numbers barely scratched the surface of the vibrant, beautiful, woman they represented. As if her life, and everything she represented to me, her children, and grandchildren had been condensed down to a mere string of eight digits.

Now of course the surgery was in no way truly life threatening. After all it was just her knee. But the writer's mind began to gnaw at all the possible ways something could go wrong and I held my breath every time an update came through on the flat panel television hanging from the wall. You see I'm a worrier. I'm the kind of person who hopes for the best, yet prepares for the worst.

I had written the story just for myself. To excise the demons of worry that had hooked their claws into me.  It became an emotional release that was expelled and forgotten, relegated to the bottom of my drawer as my life moved on.

Yet I find myself coming full circle as the possibility of Thyroid cancer hangs over the head of the woman I married. The doctors are confident there is nothing to worry about, my wife is as well, but me, you see I'm a worrier. I hope for the best, but plan for the worst. I know we'll get through this just as we've gotten through all the myriad other problems we've experienced together. Just as we'll get through whatever else life has to throw our way.

And in the wee hours of the morning, when the worry becomes too much, I'll slip down from my bed and pour my soul onto the page. I'll chase away the specter that hovers above my head and return to a restful night sleep. Some people work crossword puzzles when they're worried. Some may clean. Others become lost in old movies from their childhood.

Writers? Well we write.

P.S:  I've added the story to this blog. You can find the link up top just below my photo. Take a look at it, give it a read, and please don't hesitate to let me know what you think. I'd be delighted to hear your thoughts.

Discovering Oneself

It is an accepted fact that our upbringing has a lot to do with the type of people we become. How we are raised as children will have a direct bearing on our interests later in life.

I've often wondered myself what exactly it was that compelled me to become a horror writer. The answer of course has been right in front of me all my life. I never recognized it until now. While visiting my mom, who now resides in a nursing home, during one of her lucid periods, we got to reminiscing about the past. Which always begins with, "Do you remember?"

Recently she asked me "Do you remember how your Aunt Jean used to scare you kids?"

Of course I did.

Being true to your character.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. When it comes to horror fiction I'm the type of reader who challenges the writer to show me the gore, without showing me the gore. I don't need blood splattered walls, or the F word used in place of  every other word to get the point across.

Yet my most recent release portrays a group of twenty somethings who come face to face with their worst nightmare. Opening with a woman being struck by the vehicle they're in when she stumbles into the road in front of them. Their response is typical, in my mind, of a group of young adults placed in a similar situation with the word in question being bandied about quite freely.

Self Doubt & Writer's Block

You know the feeling. Your current work in progress is beating you up. What you first viewed,  in the heat of creation,  as a gift to mankind, has become the muddled ramblings of a lunatic that bears little semblance to the magnificent prose that flowed effortlessly from your fingers only a day before.

What does your muse look like?

The broken queen wanders among the dead.

This sentence, in its entirety, just popped into my head last night as I was working on my latest WIP. Where it came from is anybody's guess. With it came the image of a field covered by the corpses of a recent battle.  Scavenger birds swooped in to feast on the offered banquet. Meanwhile a solitary figure picked its way carefully through the remains. Stopping every so often to inspect an object on the ground. I sensed the figure was looking for something important. She wore a regal gown cinched tight at the waist with sleeves that reached her wrists. Perched upon a head of flaming red hair rode a tarnished crown encrusted with sparkling jewels, some of which were missing, as if they had been pried out to pay for assorted necessities. The broken queen wandered among the dead seeking what only she could discern

Is the Broken Queen my muse?

Many writers in the past have described their muse, that mythical figure who whispers in their ear, and drives them to pour their souls out upon the page. Descriptions have ranged from angry midgets kicking them in the shins to shadowy beauties who hovered over their shoulder as they wrote, guiding their hand, breathing life into their words.

Until this moment I've never given any thought to what my muse might look like. But the image fit what I imagine a writer of dark fiction would have as an inspiration. Leaving only two possible options. My muse has revealed herself to me. Or my muse, who wishes to remain unseen, has given me but a glimpse of a future work. Of a place that exists so far only in my subconscious imagination. A place ruled by a broken queen whose kingdom encompasses a shattered landscape of eternal despair where the sun never shines and the gray clouds blend seamlessly into the dull countryside.

Do you have a muse?

What do you imagine they look like?

Friday's Five with Michael Brookes

I've resurrected Monday's 5Q's and renamed them Friday's Five. Every week a different author will answer the same five questions. If you're a writer and would like to participate, drop me a line at rschiver(AT)gmail(DOT)com and I'll send you the questions. Better yet answer the five questions below and send them to me along with a brief bio and links to your work for sale and I'll schedule it for the next available slot.

This week Michael Brookes, author of Cult of Me, has agreed to answer five questions so without further adieu I give you Michael Brookes.

1.) When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Only recently. I have written since an early age, but only last year did I decide to put it into the public eye. Thankfully the response has been positive so far.

2.) What is the hardest part of writing?
For me it's proofreading, I just can't spot all the errors. I love writing the first draft and I enjoy the edit process, but proofreading I get other people to do for me.

3.) How did you feel upon publication of your first completed project?
I hadn't been that excited since my youth :-)

4.) In addition to writing, what else are you passionate about?
Computer games are one of my other passions and I'm lucky enough that is my day job. Even better I've been asked to write the official novel for one of our upcoming games!

5.) If you could ask any author, living or dead, one question, what would it be?
I'd ask John Milton if he deliberately made Lucifer appear heroic in Paradise Lost.

Bio:
Michael Brookes is an Executive Producer with a leading UK games developer. Working in games and writing are two of his life passions and considers himself fortunate to be able to indulge them both. He lives in the east of England, enjoying starry skies in the flattest part of the country. When not working or writing he can sometimes be found sleeping. Which is good as that is where many good ideas come from.

Book Links:
The Cult of Me
For too long he dwelt apart, watched those who passed him by. With his unique abilities he entered their minds and inflicted terrible suffering upon them. They didn't even know who he was. The game has lasted for years, but now the game has become stale. On an impulse he decides to make a final and very public last stand. After surrendering himself to the police he enacts his plan to seize the prison for his final bloody act.

There he discovers that he's not as unique as he once thought.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Cult-Third-Path-ebook/dp/B008O7ZVXW/

An Odd Quartet
A quartet of dark short stories (10,000 words) to thrill and chill.

The Yellow Lady
Grave robbing is a dirty business, in more ways than one. When he disturbs the grave from a childhood scary story he discovers it's not always treasure to be found.

This Empty Place
At the heat death of the universe, Death contemplates his existence.

Forced Entry
Terrorists seize an average suburban house. A Special Forces hostage rescue team is sent in and encounter more than they were trained for.

The Reluctant Demon
A young demon prepares to take his possession exam.
http://www.amazon.com/An-Odd-Quartet-ebook/dp/B009QJMMPC/