Character flaw: I have no hobbies or other areas of interest outside of stories and publishing.
For twenty years I’ve lived and breathed this stuff. It’s how I spent ALL of my time. What it’s left me with is nothing to do when creative time is done. I’m a different–and older–man compared to my twenties and thirties. I have responsibilities, people to love, and a life to invest in thus my working time has been cut back.
As much as I’d like to say I do this morning until night–like I used to–now I do it morning until late afternoon, which leaves many other hours in the day. I’ve figured out how to spend some of that time . . . but I need a hobby outside of collecting stuff. I need a hobby where I DO something.
The body and brain aren’t cooperating today. I’ve got stuff to do and things to think about and I feel like my body and mind are filled with cement.
Thus is the life of a writer: be at the keyboard anyway.
We’re putting the final touches on GIGANTI-GATOR DEATH MACHINE and getting it ready for press. I also have the newsletter to start and a freelance gig to do.
We’re at the stage in book production where I’m now going to focus on releasing them one at a time instead of working on all three (GATORS, YEAR FOUR, THE LONG YEAR FIVE) at once behind the scenes. Basically what’s left to do is double check the formatting and cover checking.
All this takes time because I’m working with a team so can’t go whole hog and do it all in a single day like the old days. Was mentioning to Melinda last night how I once heard publishing is a young man’s game. The older I get, the more I feel that. But don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere.
I started a Patreon a few years back and stuck with it for quite some time. Unfortunately, it wasn’t financially viable and I had to shut it down. (Too much work for not enough return.) But I’ve been thinking of reviving it in the distant future, the idea being there’s one flat monthly fee and you’ll receive content Monday to Friday. Could be an essay or article, a short story or piece of flash fiction, comics, behind the scenes, a blog post–pretty much anything of interest to the Realm of Heroes and Monsters.
I’ve yet to come up with a business plan for it but this is an idea I’ve had noodling around in my head for quite some time. Hopefully there would be enough interest in the endeavor to make it worth our time together.
Yesterday marked the end of summer for me thus the end of my easier summer schedule. Today I’m preparing the fall one. Lots going on in the fall in terms of book production and releases as well as two comic convention appearances.
As a reminder, I will be at the following events so mark your calendars. I’ll have books for sale and you can bring copies from home for signature, if you’d like. I do not charge for autographs or pictures.
Winnipeg Comiccon – October 28 to 30, 2022 – RBC Convention Centre (Winnipeg) FanQuest – November 12 & 13, 2022 – Norwood Community Centre (Winnipeg)
Part of prepping for these appearances is ensuring I have enough book stock to take along with me so I’ve been slowly going through what I have and setting up an order at the printer for what I need. As long as my print order is in by the end of the month, that will allow enough time for printing and shipping.
I’ve also been reevaluating current and upcoming work in terms of what I reveal to the public about these projects. How many times have I said such-and-such will be ready for such-and-such a date and it hasn’t been? Sure, part of it had to do with me being ill. Another part had to do with summer. Another part had to do with my own disorganization. You’d think after all these years of doing this that I’d have this down to a science. But, again, in the big picture, being ill and spending a long time doing a webcomic would slow things down in terms of release(s).
The fun part about these Public Journal entries is I can make them about anything I want.
Today I want to talk about coffee time, namely morning coffee time.
I have this bad habit of waking up, eating, then wanting to get right to work. I used to do that but my summer schedule has taught me to slow things down and practice self-care. So I have a (new) rule: no working until after coffee. Like everyone, coffee clears the cobwebs and brings focus to the day. And when you’re a writer, a clear head is an asset and I have to remember that each morning until it becomes a habit.
I have an erratic sleep schedule. I go to bed early because I’m tired, then I wake up at 1, am up for a bit, then go back to sleep, then wake up at 5ish, then go back to sleep for a couple hours. I wish I could sleep through the night like Melinda but I wake up with stories on my mind. I also suspect it’s this sleep schedule that makes me groggy in the morning hence why the coffee is so important.
So I’ve slowed things down, in a manner of speaking, and won’t start my day until after coffee and the cobwebs have cleared. I find I’m more productive this way and right now productive is what I need to be even if I’m still on the summer schedule.
As you know, I’m neck-deep in book production. As of this writing, I’m proofing the galley for GIGANTI-GATOR DEATH MACHINE: TRIPLE FEATURE and that’s taking up most of my time. However, I have been picking at an unaired FREDRIKUS episode and plan to share it once it’s done. When that may be, I don’t know.
The comic will come back. I just need the time and headspace to finish making some books first.
In the meantime, you can read the webcomic by going here.
Writer’s block can be discouraging. You’re on a roll with your project then suddenly you hit a mental brick wall and the words cease. Hours go by, days, even weeks. You just can’t seem to get past that certain point in your story. You kinda know where it’s going but how to get there? Good question.
My suggestion to overcome writer’s block is to write through it. You can certainly pick the project you’re working on and give it a go, but if that’s not an option, write something else. It doesn’t have to be for publication. It could be a snippet, a thought, a blog post or article, poetry, even a rant about how frustrated you are. The point is to keep writing anyway.
That’s been my personal experience and writing anyway eventually beats down that wall and let’s you resume your project again.
My summer and fall releases have been pushed back so here’s the tentative new schedule:
Fall:
THE CANISTER X TRANSMISSION: YEAR FOUR THE CANISTER X TRANSMISSION: THE LONG YEAR FIVE GIGANTI-GATOR DEATH MACHINE: TRIPLE FEATURE
Winter:
BLOOD OF THE DEAD reissue POSSESSION OF THE DEAD reissue REDEMPTION OF THE DEAD reissue
Apologies for the delay. With it being summer, my team and I have different schedules so it’s been difficult to align them. Rest assured, these books are coming.
Whenever I get stumped on a story or drawing, I go for a walk and let the idea stew. My thoughts wander from my personal life to my work–namely to the last scene I wrote–and I begin thinking about what should happen next. In the instance of having a lot of tasks to do, I go for walks so I don’t get overwhelmed. This gives me a chance to mentally work through my to-do list and break it down into small daily chunks while still keeping deadlines on track or on shuffle.
I find walks clear my mind–whether alone or with Melinda–plus they are good exercise.
If you get stuck on an idea–or too many ideas–consider going for a stroll to mentally work things out.
