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  • Blogging Has Lost Its Way

    I discovered this link through Warren Ellis’s blog. As a paraphrase of what it’s about–though I encourage you to read it–it basically says that blogs have now been geared toward getting traffic via catchy headlines and, simply, have become a complete defeat of what blogging was meant to be, which is merely a place for someone to log their thoughts and personal items and create content of interest without getting all gimmicky about it.

    The argument put forth over at Ribbon Farm is a compelling one, especially to someone like me who hates the pursuit of money and fame and popularity. (If those things are an honest byproduct of what you do, that’s different. I’m talking about making those things one’s goal(s) as the error).

    The idea of writing a blog where, even if it had just an audience of one (me), is tantalizing. I’m very anti-establishment by nature and tend to see the strings in what people are doing (especially in the creative industry). It all comes off as so flimsy and childish. I’m not knocking my fellow creators but am talking straight to whomever this entry here at Canister X and over at Ribbon Farm speaks to. Should a person not be of interest through genuine organic efforts instead of a blatant attempt to sell a product? Shouldn’t who they are be more important than what they make? When did an inorganic object of extremely limited value replace a person whose value is limitless? Something’s not right here.

    I’ve always been partial to the random, the underground, the unique. Maybe because those are my roots and are a constant theme in my work (taking an idea and trying something new with it, consequences be damned). There has always been a soft spot in my heart for that guy or girl with an obscure blog from some other part of the world, the kind of blog you read where you don’t know if you’re the only audience member or not.

    Capitalist culture would call blogging for no one a wasted effort because it doesn’t–or is unlikely to–yield a financial result.

    This is foolish.

    Blogging isn’t about money despite what the marketers tell you (who want you to visit their blog for information so they can sell you something).

    Blogging is about showcasing a life in thought, word, and deed. Blogging is about honesty. It’s about talking to the world about anything that interests you or is on your mind and heart.

    I might not have always succeeded, but since I’ve been back after being ill, I’ve made every effort to showcase myself and what I do and talk to you honestly through my blog entries and newsletter. Sometimes you might have enjoyed what you read, other times not. And that’s okay. I’ve been doing this long enough to know I won’t hit a chord with everyone. The magic is in the honesty. The magic lies within you, dear reader, when you commit the simple act of reading regardless of how you feel about what you’re reading. It’s the fact that you did take the time to read the words of a person you only know through a screen. And maybe that’s the secret right there? Taking the time to read the words of a person–a very real person with a physical body and mind and heart and spirit–whom you never met. Like I always say, time is the most valuable thing a person has and its wealth surpasses anything we can compare it to. The fact that a person takes that precious commodity and spends it on you is magic.

    Here at Canister X, the Realm of Heroes and Monsters, there is a certain blogging style, a way of communicating that’s in a constant state of adjustment and fine-tuning but one that has a core that has been in place long enough that you know what to expect from me. If I segue into experimental blogging styles, I hope you come along for the ride. Or I might start a new blog where I can fiddle with blogging conventions until I find a method I like and is an honest expression of myself. Time will tell.

    In the end, it does indeed dismay me that blogs are often started as business ventures versus public journals. I get the reasoning behind it, but it doesn’t sit right and that’s probably because it replaces a person with a commodity and, in the end, it’s our replacement of people for commodities that caused the world to be in the state it is currently in.

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  • Not Dead Yet

    station ident apr2420

    I haven’t blogged here in nearly a year, which makes me a hypocrite because I used to stress blogging fairly frequently. Thing is, I fell ill again and had to put a full stop on most things while I recovered. I was able to pick at odds and ends but wasn’t able to get back into the full swing of things.

    Over the past few weeks I’ve been as productive as ever and finally brought some book stuff out of the darkness and into the light. I did a lot of work and the following is an update as to where my various projects are at.

    In no particular order:

    Giganti-gator Death Machine: Triple Feature – with the editor.
    The Canister X Transmission: Year Four – with the formatter.
    The Canister X Transmission: The Long Year Five – with the formatter.

    Expected release: Summer 2022

    Reissues:

    Blood of the Dead – with the formatter.
    Possession of the Dead – with the formatter.
    Redemption of the Dead – beginning of final proofread.
    Surprise Project – In pieces but not in a bad way. Just need to assemble everything and write something for it.

    Expected release: Fall 2022

    The Axiom-man Saga:

    The Summoning – to be written soon.
    Episode No. 4: Transformations – to be written.
    New Dawn – to be written.

    These three Axiom-man books will be written back-to-back because these three stories are The Battle of Power Trilogy, so essentially one story told over three parts. My goal is to have them out by Winnipeg Comic Con in the fall. I know the above looks like a lot and overshooting the year but you have to remember what these projects are and how close each one is to being finished.

    Other items:

    Fredrikus – I have one episode inked and ready for scanning. The comic is temporarily on the backburner while I finish up the above.
    The Canister X Transmission: The Very Long Year Six – I plan to resume the newsletter at a later date. I want to wait until I’m fully back up and running so I have something to write to you every week.
    YouTube – I have a package here at Axiom-man Central that I want to do an unboxing video for so look for that soon. I also plan to make more videos once I’m fully back in the saddle.
    Canister X – I’ll blog when I can and when I have something to say.

    And there you have it: A complete picture of what’s happening with various projects on the go. Let’s hope my health keeps up.

    Cheers.

    ~APF

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  • Upcoming Changes to the Blog

    Due to my changing workload, there will be some changes to the blog, namely in the area of Status Reports. I might do one on here once in a while, but I’ve decided to do them as weekly videos instead.

    The plan is to record them Thursdays and then air them Fridays. I’m not sure when this will start.

    My regular YouTube programming like unboxings, reader questions, vLogs, collectible showcases, etc. will remain ongoing.

    This plan also opens up the blog for more topical content, whatever that might end up being.

    There will be some overlap between these new weekly update videos and the newsletter because some folks prefer reading the updates and some prefer video. Whichever side of the fence you fall on, they’re both worth checking out because the content won’t be 100% identical and each will have their own perks.

    Subscribe to my YouTube channel here.

    Subscribe to my newsletter here.

    Send me any questions or comments here.

    Enjoy your weekend.

    918kiss casino slots easily represent nearly 70% of annual casino income.

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  • Weekly Update Videos?

    APF YouTube promo image

    One of the ideas I’ve been toying with off and on–and recently mentioned in my newsletter–is doing weekly update videos in lieu of updates on the blog. They would air here as an embedded video from my YouTube channel.

    Given the current–and upcoming–workload, this idea seems to be a way for me to simplify things on my end and free up some time, time that would in turn be spent working on projects.

    The other benefit is it would free up the blog space for more topical items and/or thoughts.

    The videos would be casual vLogging and just a way to keep everybody in the loop.

    Note: These videos wouldn’t replace standard features on my YouTube channel like unboxings, reader questions, collectible showcases, etc. They’d probably go under their own heading as a weekly update.

    What you think? Is this something you would watch?

    I’m reviewing my interaction with the Web so any feedback is appreciated. Please write in and let me know and we’ll go from there.

    Also, be sure to subscribe to my channel so you’re always in the loop.

    Thanks. Enjoy your day.

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  • On One Thing at a Time

    In our effort to Slow Down to Speed Up, we’ve been adjusting our workflow to One Thing at a Time. Yes, we have several irons in the fire at any given moment, but in terms of dedicated approach, we are working on one thing at a time throughout the day, sometimes for the whole day depending on what it is.

    Example:

    Today’s main task was proofing the second part of my two-part article series for Patreon on what to do if you feel your career in the arts isn’t doing well and then uploading it. This is complete and can be accessed here.

    The next task was to promote it online (also done). Now we do this blog entry before moving on to something else.

    However, the day had a priority task–the article–thus the One Thing at a Time approach.

    Due to world events, I’ve had to adjust my workflow and for right now, One Thing at a Time is the best thing for how I conduct my day.

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  • On Gearing Up for Three Project Launches

    Soon, my on-line offerings are going to go through a change-up because THREE project launches are happening all around the same time!

    This was not planned.

    The three things:

    1) Launching Fredrikus

    2) Launching a new serial novel on Patreon

    3) Launching Year Six of The Canister X Transmission

    I suspect my work schedule is going to shift for a short season at that time so I can spend my days doing the necessary Web stuff to get this all going. That said, creating will drop to second tier as these roll out so I can properly get them out from the studio and into the world.

    Formal announcements to occur around the time of the launches.

    Regularly check back here on the blog to stay in the loop. My door is also open if you have any questions about these upcoming project launches.

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  • Newsletter Delay; The Canister X Transmission Issue 252

    Just a note to inform you there is a newsletter delay this week due to TinyLetter’s site glitching. Until it’s resolved, I am unable to send out the most recent issue so I’ve blogged it here in the interim and will send it out proper once I am able to, which might mean this week you’ll be getting two editions of The Canister X Transmission close together. If the problem persists due to possible staffing shortages on their end, then we’ll just air the newsletter here until things get back to normal.

    There’s a first time for everything.

    Here is the latest edition. It is dated yesterday.

    Newsletter:

    Issue Two Hundred-fifty-two – April 18, 2020

    Hello and welcome to the 252nd issue of THE CANISTER X TRANSMISSION, a weekly newsletter from a schlub up north who offers you strange ramblings every week.

    How is everyone?

    It has been a busy week. Lots of tasks. Lots of work. Lots of prep. Lots of thinking. Lots of stress. Lots of accomplishment. Lots of, well, lots.

    And here we are.

    Oh, and I made bread.

    Work log:

    PROJECT JACKASS (title reveal below); uploaded a sneak peek to the Behind-the-Scenes tier on Patreon showcasing one of the opening pages of PROJECT JACKASS in full color (link below); shot and uploaded a new video to YouTube, which announces PROJECT JACKASS’s real title and quickly takes a glimpse at the artwork and offers a brief premise (link below); blogging; and administration.

    Quick note regarding this newsletter: Issue 260 is the final issue of The Long Year Five. We will do something special at that time. As always, the invite is there if you want to see something particular in that double issue. Just shoot me an email and I’ll see what I can do.

    In blog headline news—and once information known only to my patrons on Patreon—the title of PROJECT JACKASS was revealed! PROJECT JACKASS was a place-holder name for an upcoming webcomic from me called FREDRIKUS, which is about an anthropomorphic dog in a dystopic sc-fi world. Phew. Now I can finally refer to it as an actual thing and not some project document (which is actually a combination of multiple documents including a notebook for the stories).

    Blog headlines:

    Various Bits from the Net – 041220

    Status Report – 041420

    Project Jackass Title Revealed: Fredrikus

    Fredrikus Social Media

    New Fredrikus Behind-the-Scenes Post on Patreon!

    On Art and Never Arriving

    Fredrikus Webcomic Announcement

    Status Report – 041720

    As you can see from the above headline, you are invited to like and follow FREDRIKUS on social media so you can be notified when the strip airs. Please do so. More details about the webcomic to be revealed in due time. Watch the blog to stay current. I will admit, it’s high time new things started to roll out from me and warming up the machine for FREDRIKUS is part of that journey.

    I’m thinking that the next thing to roll out from me is the Inktober 2019 sketchbook I mentioned in a previous issue. PROJECT REBUILD is taking some time due to elements beyond my control and I don’t want to leave you hanging.

    Side note: As much as my blog has been retooled on the back end, sometimes the theme acts up and reverts to black text on white rather than white text on black. If you come across this, don’t worry. I’m still troubleshooting the issue with the hope of taking care of it once and for all in the near future. Just check the blog as per usual and you’ll be fine.

    We’re also gearing up for the new serial novel to air on Patreon because GIGANTIGATOR DEATH MACHINE is almost complete. Watch the blog for the announcement and be sure to get in on the ground floor by becoming a patron today for just a buck. The entirety of GIGANTIGATOR DEATH MACHINE will remain on the site so come time for the new serial novel, you’ll have two novels to read for the price of one. Awesome deal. Please take advantage (it also helps keep me fed). Link below to subscribe to what is essentially the Netflix of literary entertainment from a book and comic guy like me. Thank you in advance for your support.

    Also going on, but not worked on this week, is PROJECT COBALT. This is a big one and an important one, and a lot of thought, trial and error, and work has already been put into it. I’m suspecting a latter 2020 rollout, but keep that fluid for the moment. The world is in upheaval on multiple levels and things are in constant flux as we combat this invisible enemy (amongst other things). But yeah, PROJECT COBALT, man. Onward.

    For a good while I’ve had the marketing materials for a YouTube subscription drive, but we’re not quite there yet in terms of the channel’s relationship to other things. However, I’m a firm believer in groundwork and foundation and I’d like you to be a part of all that’s planned for the channel plus what’s already there. Please use the link below and subscribe. Your subscription will eventually lead to me monetizing the channel, which in turn will fund more comics and books and the stuff I put online for free. But it all takes time and time, in order to do this job full time, requires money. The subscription costs you nothing other than 5 seconds—which I recognize is your valuable time hence why I try and create interesting content in the vein of Heroes and Monsters—and will go a long way toward keeping the media machine running. Thank you in advance again for your support.

    With Year Six of this newsletter fast approaching, I’m getting eager to see how the new format will work, how it will flow, and, ultimately, what it will do for you as my reader. I hope you enjoy the new format in 8 issues.

    In other newsletter news, Year Four was obviously completed a long time ago but was never published. It is still the plan to release it along with The Long Year Five. Also soon, my how-to book, GETTING DOWN AND DIGITAL: HOW TO SELF-PUBLISH YOUR BOOK, will be going out of print. Please grab your copy now. The principles and methods apply to both books and comics. It is also ideal for creators on a budget who are unable to afford fancy formatting programs. It walks you through formatting in MSWord for both print and electronic editions in a tried-and-tested procedure that is quite simple to follow.

    We’re also noodling with the social media broadcaster for FREDRIKUS because I’ve never run a broadcaster for anyone but myself and since good ol’ Fred can’t work the thing himself due to his paws, I’m stuck with the job. Hopefully it all works out. Speaking of which, the broadcaster has run out of broadcasts from that time I loaded ’er up good so that will have to be addressed in the coming week or two as well, but I’m toying with some new ideas. Not that the old ones were bad, but as it is with this game, doesn’t hurt to try new things.

    Okay, I think the above about covers it for this week. Lots of commercials, I know, but we’re at that stage in the grand plan.

    Rollout soon.

    We’re finally getting there. Isn’t that a thing?

    Take care of yourselves and each other. In the end, it’s on us about how we treat people.

    Have a good weekend. Make bread. Send me some.

    – A.P. Fuchs

    All the New Things, MB

    As usual:

    Patreon – Where I post an ongoing serial novel, essays on the creative life, behind-the-scenes secrets, and general jackassery.

    Canister X – Where I’m blogging during the week.

    YouTube – My channel that needs your subscription and views to help it grow.

    Ko-fi – A Tip Jar designed to cover the costs of the free stuff I put on the Web (daily blogging, this newsletter, YouTube videos, and artwork).

    End transmission

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