An Update On Times

     So, a couple of days ago I promised an update of what has been happening in the Michael’s household. I know that my appearances have gotten less since about the middle half of November and all the way up to the present time. To be hones t with you, things have been incredibly busy around the Michaels’ household and the burn out is running rapid. Before you panic too much after seeing that word, “burn out” I would like to explain to you a few things going forward. It’s not that I haven’t been writing, but it’s the fact that I’ve gotten too many irons in the fire and I’m having a hard time balancing them and trying to get the projects done that have become the issue. 

Collaborations 

    About a year ago (this month), I started collaborating with a now good friend of mine, his name is P.K. Woods. While he hasn’t been officially published yet (either through a publishing house or self-publish) I’ve been helping him a lot behind the scenes with his new novel, including up to writing out sections for him and I’ve recently taken on this fantasy world with a full embrace as he now wants me to help him finish writing the story. I’m blessed. PK has been truly a wonderful writer to work with, and his passionate is on the same level of mine when it comes to writing out a good story, one that’ll keep the reader engaged and hooked wanting to go to that next chapter and then the next, and then the next. His genuine interest in creating a character that is almost fleshy enough to jump off the page at you. Characters, that you can either feel pity for, or you can get real pissed off at. The world we’ve began to build started off very small, and started on an island. Currently we are expanding northwards into a continent that has just as much curious and wonder to it as the island did when we first started writing this story. However, the characters are a bit…’different’. That’s all that PK has wanted me to say at this point and the fact we agreed on it I’ll stay true to our agreement. What I can say, is that PK has helped me break away from the normal realm that I had been writing which is modern/realistic fiction. I’ve began to brainstorm some of my own ideas in the realms that we’ve created and I’ve taken lots of notes on.
     While the story itself is in the last t throws of “T’s” journey, there will still be a lot of work to be done after that when it comes to edits, book covers, copyrights, etc. So this is one of the irons I’ve got in the fire, is helping another writer brainstorm and world create which has cut into my creativity somewhat, but not completely? If that makes sense.

Charities & Non-Profits 

     Something else that I got heavily involved with, is looking at the prospects of Charities and Non-Profits. An outlet to give back to my community while doing something fun and making memories while I was at it. A friend of mine who is heavily involved with the Ghostbusters fandom invited me to join a local franchise that he had created and opened. What I didn’t know about this, is that it goes far beyond the Ghostbusters fandom and franchise itself. There are literally hundreds of franchises all over the world that are opened with the same kind of mission on their mind. All of the franchises, while they don’t bust ghosts per-say work with other non-profit organizations and help them raise money for charities such as: Relay for Life, Toys For Tots, and other types of charity events where they will show up dressed in the flight suit, and the other props that the Ghostbusters have. My friend helped me build, a ghost trap, ecto goggles, and proton pack to wear for these kinds of events after I agreed to join his franchise. The lovely missus and I will tell you; straight up, that we are nerds. Not only has it given me a break from writing and pursuing other creative outlets but it has given the wife and I much time in the shop working on the props that I feel it’s helped our marriage greatly. This hobby has also tied up a little bit of time dealing with the props, and getting everything made but it has been an incredible learning opportunity along the way. I found that I really enjoy wood working, and looked forward to getting out to the shop as much and as often I could. 

      When we were building the props. Now, we are waiting for the comic-con season to kick off so we can debut at Lilac-City comic-con come June. If you would like information on when that’s happening please don’t hesitate to ask I would be more than happy to give you the dates if you would like to meet us up there.

Mentor ship & Creative Writing 

     Just as I have made mention of helping PK get his story and book off the ground, I’ve also fanned out to quite a few others and have been helping them with their writings. While it’s not necessarily my own idea, I’ve been in the realms of helping others for a very, very long time. I love hearing back stories of other people’s characters. Origins are always fascinating to me, almost more fascinating than the present characters because that is how they are. But what makes them tick? How did they get that way? What drove them to this particular personality and attitude? I don’t think that I could ever escape writing and just say “Nope! Not doing it anymore”. It has become such a passion and escape for me I honestly think that the depression I already suffer from would become worse than it already is. Part of the reason why I chose to help PK with his new book, ‘Scars’ is because of him bouncing ideas off of me, and reading other stories by friends that are writing in the same realm. A good friend of mine, Lupe let me read a rough draft of an idea that he started almost a year ago and I fell in love with his concept, time era, weapons, etc. that I was relentless in asking questions about his particular idea. It sparked a curiosity for me, as well as getting to know his characters. About a month later; Myself, PK, and Lupe all sat down and talked about these characters. While it was a typical writer’s bullshitting session we talked a lot about character growth and development. I love helping other writer’s and hearing the lightbulb click once an idea comes together for a setting, for a plot, or for a character. Sometimes, the characters are just inclined to tell you a little bit about them. A name, or perhaps it’s what they look like but not a whole lot more.
     Sometimes thinking out loud and talking with others helps their voice get a little louder or excited about a detail that they heard. Even if it’s not my own stories I feel a great gratification in knowing that I helped someone with theirs.

Projects and Ideas On Hold 

     After I had finished OceanView, I had looked forward to starting another book series. While I had loved writing OceanView, during the editing phase and all of the corrections that had to be made to it I was incredibly burnt out on the series and needed a break from it. I know that there have been questions in regards to a relationship that was beginning to blossom in the last few chapters of the book and if I’ll ever go back and revisit it. Eventually, yes I would love to return to OceanView and pick up a few more stories going in there that had just began to talk off. But, for the foreseeable future I don’t see myself returning to OceanView just yet. The other story series that I was looking forward to and getting off the ground was that of ‘Through the eyes of a marshal’. This series was going to be dealing with the US Marshals, and for those who know Tal had recently joined them. He was going to be simply a supporting character in this new story series, and there was going to be an introduction of new characters. The possibility of one of these characters being his son was in the realms, but never fully developed. Much like OceanView, this book series was going to be presented in a series of short stories within the main novel itself. I had finished one complete novel dealing with a story that Tal was involved with. It’s done, and ready for editing but since I’ve been working with PK on this new idea and fanning some of my own flames in this new world. The Marshals series has also been put on hold for the time being until I can get to a point of which I can return back to my modern/realistic writing.

New Worlds & Concepts 

     The last year has been a bit of a different concept for me. While I’ve enjoyed my time writing realistic/modern fiction the new concepts that PK was introduced me to has gotten me excited. When I write, I create worlds. I have a hard time creating just individual stories or concepts of people. I like to know about their worlds that they live and exist in. Along this journey I’ve ventured into the realm of fantasy and honestly it’s got my full attention. The worlds’ are so much easier to build because you are not constrained to the normal, everyday mechanics that we know. The ability to create, geography, topography, different times of characters with strengths and weaknesses and then exploring those have gotten me very excited again and in front of a computer screen a lot more typing away. Recently, another good friend has joined the group, whom we will call Kiotske since I’m not sure if he wants me using his real name. I’ve got now two friends whom to bounce ideas off of, and ask for advice on wanting to take characters in a certain direction and if it seems plausible to do so. I haven’t forgotten my roots with my other stories or my real world concepts. This has made me excited again, and I’m not feeling the burn out that I had once been experiencing with OceanView, and ‘Through the eyes of a marshal.’ I knew that after I had finished the book ‘Whispers in the hallway’ I wanted to explore something else. I began looking for something a little more exciting than every day life. Looking for something to break away from the chaos that the world is so inflamed in today.
     Maybe it was a little bit of influence of the comic tv shows, movies, and other content? Maybe it’s because I felt the inclination to open my mind up a little bit more and continues to chase genres that interested me in writing as well. I look forward to everyone reading scars and the concepts that we came up with in that particular book.

In Conclusion

     So, this has been a rundown of what has been happening in the Michaels’ household. There is a lot happening, but it’s all for the positive. Again, I apologize for not being able to post as much or as often as I would like on Facebook and I thought I owed it to you to write just a quick and brief summary (If that’s what you would like to call it anyways) of what has been happening. At the current time, I have no plans to release any books for 2018, but I do look forward to continuing to mentor other writers and work with collaborations with them. Even if it’s not my own idea that I’m writing down, I like to help them out with their own ideas. I’ve also got a few writers that I’m going to help get published hopefully this next year so they can pursue that. So, I guess you could call it a mini-break even though it’s not really a mini-break? I’m just working a lot more behind the scenes and helping other writers and talents pursue their own dreams and helping them to be just as successful. Again thank you to everyone who has been patient with me, for delayed responses, no communication, and everything in between. 2017 was incredibly busy and 2018 doesn’t show any kind of sign of slowing down if not being busier.

Bleeding Through The Pen

I’ve always made it clear that I love to talk with other writers. I do believe that we all bleed through the pen a little different than the next writer, graphic novelist, screen play writer, etc. We’ve all had experiences, educated ourselves on subjects that fascinate us, and took paths in our lives that would lead us down the road to write what we do. What makes it right? What makes it wrong? Well, my friends, that would be completely up to the writer who is writing the content. There is absolutely nothing out there that says what a writer is writing is wrong! We are all entitled to our opinions, and feelings to what we put into our work. It’s been said time and time again that writers will often write what they know. For me? This is true. A major chunk of my career has been based around civil service. I know civil service. Not every aspect of it, but from the aspects that I do know I can piece together a story and weave it so that it is interesting for not only those who may have been involved with the same branches of civil service, but for those who haven’t had any experience can understand what is happening in the story. I’ve had characters that have come my way and approached me at what I like to call the bargaining table. Sometimes I know little about their backgrounds, or even when they tell me an occupation that they are interested in I don’t know one hundred percent of it.
    In the latest story I’m working on, there has been a lot more gun play as well as dealing with backgrounds and occupations like technology involving security systems, and hit men/women. I’ve had to research it all because I don’t have all the information that is required for the accuracy of the story. This was a giant step out of my comfort zone but found it thrilling and exciting. Not only for the accuracy for my current project but also getting a chance to delve into mysterious levels of unknown. I’ve had several ideas come to me while researching some of the topics above and even the lead assassin character in this story has spoken to me louder and given me a few ideas for maybe a book of her own. But the other thing that has been particularly exciting for me is getting to talk with other writers who know the ins and outs of writing a good book about assassins, hitmen, and mafia type characters. Sitting down, listening to them, and asking them questions even when I feel stupid about a subject I can see they are excited to have someone asking and talking to them about a subject they know much about or are intrigued in. Of course, some of the questions I am corrected on or told that it’s a common misconception that A and B would be related. I tend to get over zealous or excited when it comes to learning new subjects that grab my attention. I recently had the opportunity to read a story by a good friend that involved a subject I knew very little about. But he’d told me the concept of it and I was almost instantly snagged by it.
     However, after reading the story I felt I had gained some ground on the subject matter. He, himself, is very knowledgeable about sailing, eras of the time that the story is thought to exist in (which I later found out was the 1300’s off the coast of Ireland). I walked away confident in the story and knowing what exactly I had read. There was no room for speculation, and I could visually see everything in my head that I needed to. I would consider him a very valuable source if I were to begin writing in that era. The characters were very well defined, and I even began to have doubts on some of the characters and how they were presented because of their actions. I had almost instantly a thousand questions for him in regards to where the story was going to head next because it grabbed my attention and thus far has not let go of it. Low and behold? A character has come to the bargaining table and has wanted to talk with me ever since I’d read that story. It goes to show how important world building is and that as writers we need to always have open doors to other realms that we haven’t been to yet. Characters do not always present themselves as flesh and blood humans. They come in a variety of different forms, shapes, attitudes, looks, etc. I think that as a writer it would be wrong of us to listen to a character that comes to us out of the blue and begins talking to us.
     Instant example, would be that of Malakai, my wolf character in my novel In With The Pack. Malakai would not be considered a normal character. While you may incorporate wolves into a story that you are writing about, very rarely would the primary focus be on an animal. But, Malakai talked to me several times and as I sat down and began to write and explore his world with his Motley Crew pack I grew excited to see the character growth and how he expanded out from his beginnings to where he is present day. Again, wolves at the time, were not a subject that I was very educated on and began to reach out to those who were matter subject masters. They were excited to talk with me about wolves and the animal in general. I walked away more educated, and explored various traits that I could give Malakai because of the information I had gained. Of course, during writing this book I got some odd looks because it is non-traditional, and a challenge to read from the point of view of an animal. However, after I finished the book it brought me much joy, and Malakai is still one of my favorite characters who have come to the table. Though, for a while now he’s been increasingly silent.
     I think as a writer, one of the hardest things to do, and accept as a challenge for writing is writing about content or something that is out of the scope of normalcy in fear of being branded because of the content you are writing. For a long time, you would have been considered a nerd or a social outcast if chose to write about super heroes, or people with abnormal abilities like vampires, werewolves, etc. But, look at the popularity of ALL those subjects today. There is a lot of hype a lot of fans in those communities that are not afraid to express themselves as belonging to that community because there are others out there that understand. I think that is where we need to help support each other as writers. Not every writer out there is going to create, or write content that is going to be something you are interested in. I think honest feedback, and integrity in handling those works is imperative if we are asked to help beta read something or even look over a rough draft. Like I mentioned above, not all characters come to us as flesh and blood human beings. Sometimes they are creatures from other worlds, other dimensions, hell even different realms. While it might be scary or embarrassing or uncomfortable to want to reach out and let your characters go into the world, you should be proud of what you’ve created and what road you’ve started down. Past experiences or even events that you’ve encountered often work themselves into the stories I’ve written. Even ole Malakai and I have some things that we can relate to.
     I realize that I’m kind of all over the place with this blog, but what I’m really trying to reiterate is that as writers, and being a small community of those who are either trying to strike out on being published, self-published, or just doing it as a hobby with no real aspirations of wanting it to go further we need to be able to support one another. Whether it’s fan-fiction, or an original concept we will never be able to benefit from someone being over critical of every point in the story. Take suggestions in stride, and if you can offer up ideas or perceptions of what you see coming down the storyline. Even if the creator doesn’t use it, it helps with the feedback to know from an audience of which way they think that the story is going. The pirate story I read, I couldn’t quit talking about it for days because the author made so many open doorways that I had to ask him when I saw him of all the possibilities. For those writers out there that want a second opinion on what they’ve written, or are unsure of where they are going I am always willing to read and give honest feedback. Please feel free to contact me on Facebook by either private message or you can E-mail me at: AuthorGraysonMichaels@Gmail.com. While I may not be a fan of all genres of writing, I’ll always be a supporter for the writer who chose to write about the subject. It takes a lot to communicate an idea and with passion.

Reboot, Reset, Or Stand Alone? (A Ghostbusters 2016 Review)

***SPOILER ALERT***

     So, I know I’ve been saying that I was going to review this movie for quite a while now. It was released on July 16th of this year and initially going into it I was a little worried. I’d written a past blog kind of describing my feelings towards the movie in general, and what as a fan, I would’ve liked to have seen with the direction of this movie. I think that anyone who is a true Ghosthead knew the amount of negative publicity going around about this movie, including some of the stars from the movie having their social media hacked, websites hacked, etc. There is frankly no excuse for this. If you really are against the movie that much then you just need to not go and see it and just let it be. However, with that last sentence just said I think that if you don’t go and see this movie, or even rent it when it comes out then I think that you might be making a mistake on things. Sony Pictures kept throwing around the word “reboot, reboot, reboot”. That the previous two movies had nothing to do with any of the events of this third movie and in fact was going to be a completely different verse where the original Ghostbusters didn’t happen. Again, I grew worried about this fact as I had read that and began to wonder what was going to happen with the movie overall then. If we were going to be seeing the original movie, just remade and updated with a new cast and the events of Zuul and Gozer dropping into central park west and tearing up the city. That’s when Sony dropped the trailers for the new movie.
     It wasn’t quite what I expected to be honest. They give credence to the original team in the trailers’ almost immediately. One version of the trailer saying ‘Four Scientists thirty years ago saved New York City, now a new team answers the call’. The other version of that trailer said essentially all of that, but they changed the wording to ‘Four Friends’. Then Sony began to release little bonus content videos talking about the reengineering and revision of all the equipment. During those videos, they give credit to Dr. Egon Spengler for creating the first proton pack, followed up by the female lead that created the new versions of it in the movie. That’s when I had a hard time believing that this was going to be a reboot. I thought that maybe Paul Feig was preparing for the largest troll on the internet. I watched the trailers several times over, just as my inner kid started screaming and wanting to see the movie regardless of their not being an original cast mentioned anywhere in it. I tried to keep an even keel as well on the movie and the developments of everything going on behind the scenes. What I thought was actually really cool is that both Dan Ackroyd and Ivan Reitman were brought onto the projects as producers and executive producers. Ivan Reitman was quoted as saying he couldn’t do another Ghostbusters movie without Harold Ramis on the set. That, Harold gave kind’ve the push of what he wanted to see done with the movie, as well as the story progression. Harold Ramis’ daughter later confirmed that this was the end of the project once Harold passed away seeing as some of the original cast had no interest in returning or even following up with another movie.
     We DID see the Ghostbusters: The Video Game released in 2009 on various video game consoles, which many of the fans interpret as being a third movie, and at one point Dan Ackroyd was quoted as saying that essentially that game would be considered the third movie in the franchise. Finally, the big day arrived, and I was one of the first ones in the movie theater to buy tickets to go in and watch Ghostbusters 2016. Even though this isn’t exactly the way of my childhood, hearing the theme song almost immediately and wanting to sing along brought me back to my childhood. I went into this movie WITHOUT any possible theory on what it could even be about. In my own mind, as I entered the theater I went into it with a clear thought and I would judge the movie based on what the movie gave me. I had zero expectations for it like I said I would in my last blog. Walking out of the theater, my initial thoughts? ‘Man! Let’s go again!’ the movie was great. While the original cast that wanted to return to the big screen for this movie did! In fact, they made very subtle cameos throughout the entire movie. Was it a reboot? Meh, I personally didn’t think that it was a reboot. I can even give some samples of evidence to why I don’t think that the movie was a reboot. Rather, I think that this movie would make a great stand alone! It would be a good direction for the franchise to go in especially now they’ve got some ground work laid with the characters of this verse. But even if it was a stand-alone, there were things mentioned in the movie by characters or hinted at that could place this movie into the same verse as the other two movies. I know, I know some might think that I’m trying to grasp at straws defending it to the end that this isn’t going to be a reboot. But, for a moment just hear me out and let me explain a few things:

     Harold Ramis Bust Or Egon Spengler?- During one of the scenes in the movie, you see an actual golden bust of the actor or his character in the background. It would make it extremely plausible that it could be Egon seeing as where the setting is. However, it could also be that of Harold Ramis making his cameo into the movie like the rest of the original cast did as well. Since Harold is no longer with us I think that the later would make sense as he was one of the original creators to Ghostbusters, as well being in the movie. But the way that he looks on the bust is how his character looked in stripes. Big afro, with glasses and that signature smirk that he could put on his face. Once you see the movie, I’d be curious on what you think about it.

    Acknowledgement Of Ghosts Existing- As we all know about the original Ghostbusters movie, is that everyone thought they were insane, or really good con-artists just trying their damndest to rob the good people of New York of all their money. However, in this movie the city and federal government acknowledge that they’ve known about Ghosts existence for a very long time. Even one of the mayoral aids citing at one point that big events have happened, and that people will eventually begin to forget about the big things over time. Are they talking about the previous events in the first and second movies, and that’s where they already know about the existence of ghosts is after the battle in Ghostbusters II? They make mention to the girls that they have to make everything appear fraudulent that they do because it’s to protect the public at large. Just something again I noticed in the movie that they were talking about.

     Lay Line Discussion- This actually has quite a bit to do with the plot of the movie itself. They discuss Lay Lines and how the earth has them crossing over various parts and funneling energy all the time. Well, as the climax starts to happen they discover a pattern that makes a huge X over a certain part of the town. They reference a book of New York, and as they open there is already a recorded event in the book they are referencing. My mind almost instantly jumped to Dana Barrett’s apartment when Gozer and Zuul came the first time into the Ghostbuster verse. Could this be a book demonstrating that this event happened already? Again, when you watch the movie check this out and I would be curious again on what you think.

     ‘I don’t go Soho, I don’t go uptown, and I ain’t afraid of no ghost’- This is probably one of the best cameos in the movie which involves Dan Ackroyd himself. He shows up as a taxi driver in one of the scene as one of the girls is asking him to take him to where the main battle is and that he should be careful about the ghosts flying around. The cabby quickly quips about what kind of ghost it is, and the classification of it. Is this Ray Stantz at a horrible part in his life? Again, maybe stretching a bit on this one but I wondered about it.

     The acknowledgement of Egon Spangler- Again as stated above, at one point during one of the bonus clips that Sony released on Youtube leading up to the new movie being released talking about the reengineering of the proton pack Dr. Egon Spengler was given acknowledgement for being the original creator of it. Now, if we are going by some reboots standards then technically this wouldn’t be true. While it would be acknowledged in the verse that was originally created, it wouldn’t in the new. If it’s a reboot then why is Egon still being given credit for it let alone mentioned?

     So now that I’ve got my soap box out of the way on why I don’t think this movie was a reboot what was my general thoughts on it? Overall, I would say that the movie was excellent. The story was completely different than the original one panned by Harold and Dan. Ghosts were different, and we even saw the appearance of slimmer towards the end of the movie. I don’t think that the amount of hate that this movie generated is really warranted. Anyone who is a fan of DC or even Marvel Comics should know that super heroes are rebooted and recreated all of the time. Not only that, but there have been some changes made in the cinematic universes of both Comicverses that not all fans are happy with, that left them with a sour taste in their mouths. Harold Ramis’ daughter actually endorsed this new movie, and stated that her dad would’ve loved to have seen this franchise continue to grow and expand outwards. I shared that article shortly before the new movie came out, and then I shared it once after the movie was released. I think that the villain was a little weak, and watered down but they still gave a very climatic ending to the movie, as well as providing some pretty awesome special effects when it came to the ghosts. 

     I also breathed a little easier knowing that both Ivan Reitman and Dan Ackroyd were involved with the project. Just, if you go and see this movie please just keep an open mind, and even if it doesn’t live up to expectations or what you expected, you can always count it as a stand-alone right? Thanks to everyone for being so patient with me while I worked on putting this blog out. I know I’ve been saying it for a while now, but life has a funny way of getting in the way at times. I look forward to hearing your comments as well about the movie, or anything talked about above.

Adventures in Geocaching

     I know that I’ve spoken a few times on social media about the lovely missus and I out ‘Geocaching’. I’ve had several people ask me what we’ve found, and are the rocks pretty. I generally offer a friendly smile, and a shake of my head and explain to them that what we do has nothing to do with Geology or rock hunting. I do however, inform them that like rock hunting it takes a lot of time outdoors, traveling, and enjoying the thrill of the chase. For those who are curious into what exactly Geocaching is, I went ahead and broke it down into some of the most asked questions that I generally get when I tell people that we spent an entire day out Geocaching. If you have any more questions about what Geocaching is, please do not hesitate to get in contact with me. My e-mail address is AuthorGraysonMichaels@Gmail.com.

Grayson, what exactly is Geocaching?

     Geocaching put simply is a giant treasure hunt. You are using GPS coordinates that are provided to you to find hidden items out in your community, along highways, along biking paths, hiking paths, historical markers, and the list does go on! There are over fifteen million Geocaches hidden worldwide. It is not constrained to just one city, county, state, or country. You are rewarded electronic badges for each state or country that you visit. Where I live here, in the LC-Valley there are over four hundred Geocaches to be found. Looking at a small map on my tracker, the entire area is covered and dotted with small green circles that will blot out both Lewiston and Clarkston’s name. 

What exactly am I looking for? How do I know it’s a Geocache?

     When you arrive at the location, it will give you a hint at how big a particular object might be. So, it will give you a rating on the difficulty of the cache itself and how hard it is to find it. The tracker will also give you a size of how big the cache might be. So, for instance if it says that it’s a micro you might be looking for a small, metallic object that is the size of a thimble that you can unscrew and inside will be a piece of paper that you will need to sign and log that you were there. Others, might be bigger and can vary from being film containers, creamer containers, ammo cache boxes, small Tupperware containers, sometimes they can be objects like bee trapping containers, or even electrical outlets that are not connected to anything but give the illusion that they are! Other containers might be marked with stickers that provide you a clue that ‘Hey this is a Geocache and not a piece of garbage, please do not throw away’.

So, you find these Geocaches and now what?

     Honestly, it’s a very exciting feeling when you do actually find the Geocaches! Usually there is a container (like mentioned above) that you will find a log in. You sign the log and then on the app that I use you will actually log it into a database that will be tracked electronically for you. It actually be logged into an international database. In the caches sometimes you will find items that people have put in there. Commonly referred to as ‘Swag’ it will be up to you to replace a piece of swag in the container if you take an item. The lovely missus and I will often times deposit some fake pirate coin, and a dinosaur if we take an item from it. Once you sign the log and replace the container back into it is hiding spot then it is time to move onto the next one!

So, is it just looking for these containers? What other kind of challenge does Geocaching provide?

     While a good majority of these Geocaches are exactly what is listed as being a small box or container with a log and ‘swag’ in it, there are some unique challenges to Geocaching! Since we upgraded to a premium account through the website there are several other kinds of Geocaches. Some are ‘mysteries’. What exactly does that mean? If it is a mystery Geocache there will be a series of clues or hints that you are going to have to follow to find the main cache itself. So for an example, the lovely missus and I completed a ‘mystery’ cache this last weekend that involved playing an overgrown size of battleship in one of the local public parking lots here in Lewiston. Where were the clues you ask? The clues were actually the giant lamp posts throughout the parking lot. While examining them by lifting up the metal rectangular skirts around the base of the light would either identify a ‘hit’ or a ‘miss’. If it was a miss and you didn’t understand the clue you’d have to go back and attempt to figure out where your numbering went wrong. Once you arrived at the final location, then the final coordinates of the Cache were given to you and you were able to log that you completed the challenge.
     Other caches might be a ‘multiple cache’. Which means that the coordinates to the real cache you would get after stopping at several markers along the way to get the coordinates. While it’s similar to doing a ‘Mystery Cache’, the multiple caches might require signatures at them as you go along the path to get to the final one.

Grayson, do you find Geocaching rewarding? Or is it just something to pass the time when you should be writing?

     Really this question kind of ties into one another. I find Geocaching EXTREMELY rewarding to be honest. Not only does it help with getting out of the house, and traveling (Sometimes quite extensively) but it also helps with relationships. The lovely missus actually introduced me to it back in early February of 2016. Since we set out on that date (which happened to be Valentine’s Day of all days) we’ve been hooked on caching. It has been a great stress relief for not only me, but also for her as well. The challenge of finding these things has helped bound our relationship with working more together as a team rather than individualists. It’s rewarding in the aspect of being able to set out and accomplish goals and spend some time together has really helped us. I think, even if your relationships are healthy and great this will just help improve them. The lovely missus and I have made some wonderful memories together and it isn’t just because we are out caching. Some of it stems from the fact we’ve done it in almost every kind of weather. We’ve shared some good laughs about it, as well as how we’ve looked so hard for a cache to be so simple and it’s looking us right in the face.
     While I had announced that I’d taken the year off and hadn’t intended to put out any books this year, I don’t think that you can ever really take a break from writing if you are a true writer. The muse has been constant, and very loud in the back of the head. While it may not be in any kind of correlation to the US Marshals project that I’m working on now, the cities, and some of the more rural areas that we’ve visited have really sparked her. I made mention on a Facebook post a while ago about an elderly man that has come to the table to talk again with me. Geocaching helped this. The lovely missus and I have seen some lovely country in our travels around the area that we live and it has really flared some creative processes.

Grayson, you made mention about having to buy a premium package to unlock caches. Is this a pay to play?

     Absolutely not! Upon you registering at the website for Geocaching, you are allowed to begin logging and caching right away. There will be several caches available to you for free. All the premium account does is unlocks the mystery caches, multi-caches, and some of the harder caches for difficulty and terrain. There are some other advantages of going premium as well that you can read about on the website. The cost for the premium package is only $30.00 for the entire year. The next time you’d have to re-up your premium account is the day that you decided to go full premium. Or, if you don’t want to do a yearlong subscription you can make it monthly and I believe that is only $6.00 a month. It is definitely worth it though if you decide to do the full year. Geocaching is HIGHLY addictive.

You keep saying there is a website. What is it?

www.geocaching.com

What is your Geocache name so I can add you?

Once you get into Geocaching, then we will talk! Right now, it’s set to a private profile.


     While this blog hasn’t necessarily pertained to writing, I wanted to go ahead and answer some of the questions that I’ve been asked in both private message on the streets while we’ve been out Geocaching. I think that it’s a very unique treasure hunting hobby that benefits you in all kinds of ways. As I had mentioned above if there are any other questions, please do not hesitate to get in contact with me right away. I hope to see you out there someday!

Passing The Torch

!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!

(This Blog Contains Spoilers)

     As I begin this blog I am going to warn you that there are spoilers entail for ‘The X-files’. In the beginning months of 2016 I have certainly experienced a very nostalgic feeling with all of the old shows, and all of the old movies beginning to reappear. It was truly exciting to hear that FOX had agreed to bring back ‘The X-files’ for a six episode run and then it was said that these six episodes were all that the fans were going to be getting. However, towards the end of this six episode run, a few different things happened. The first thing I noticed was it was only saying ‘Season Finale’ instead of what should’ve read ‘Series Finale’. This excited me to see that perhaps FOX was doing a test run to see if these six episodes were going to be enough to bring that flame back and breath some more life into the show to see if it could be completely revived. The second thing that I noticed was that there were two new agents introduced into the mix at about episode three. The agents possess very similar characteristics to both Mulder and Scully, so what is the potential here? The last episode had Mulder very close to death due to a contagion break out and a ship appearing above the car that they were driving and it slowly fades to black. So obviously FOX has more than enough intentions to bring back more episodes for another ‘partial’ season. The intention is to have the fans begin to speculate about where exactly are they taking this particular storyline? While I’m excited about the return of a Season 2.0 for the X-files I have some questions myself.

1) Most of the original actors agreed to come back for the ‘rebooting’ (and I use that term loosely) for ‘The X-files’ television show. Chris Carter the original creator and writer for ‘The X-files’ was back behind the helm again as well and why wouldn’t he be? I have a tendency to give the show a lot more merit and a little more clout when you have the original creator and writer returning to the show. This wasn’t something that was drafted by someone at the network, after taking away all of the creative rights to the show from Chris Carter and just going with it. The writer knows the characters, knows how they feel, what kind of world they live in, and can more accurately describe everything going on around them since he had done most of the world building. Not to say that any of the writers’ that are working on the show are incompetent just without Chris I think that it would’ve been a little awkward to those who didn’t fully understand his intentions or creations when he made the X-files. But my question is, are these returning characters going to stick around? Or are we only going to be seeing them for a short while to help establish another storyline for a newer generation? This is where I begin to get scared.

2) While I realize it is great to see the ‘X-files’ returning to the airwaves and to see Mulder and Scully chasing the truth around again. I would also have to say the fact the timeline has remained consistent with not only the amount of years passing by, but also because the characters are aging and have grown even without them appearing for over twenty years. Obviously the characters are not going to be as rambunctious, or as willing to be able to take the beating that they did when they were younger, so are we looking at a ‘potential cookie-cutter’ set of characters being introduced to replace them so that the X-files can continue on? I winced at the fact of how close the similarity was to Mulder and Scully and how they even looked like them. Mulder during the course of the show even broke the wall a little bit, and asks the new agents “Have we met before?” I chuckled at this because I think it was the writers’ attempting to cope with what they were trying to do. However, that is what partially killed the X-files back in the early turn of 2000 and two thousand one when the show officially was taken off the air. David Duchovny left the show, while Gillian Anderson remained in it and put Scully into a softer situation dealing with the birth of her and Mulder’s kid but the overall story was affected and changed. What it had started out being, turned into a strictly Sci-fi kind of story and it didn’t have nearly the same effect with it. Even with the changing of agents that went through the X-files it didn’t hold quite the clout with it in the shows final running. 

     I honestly don’t have a solution to this, but I think If Chris Carter provided some more world building on why Mulder and Scully pass the torch even after they’ve come back to the FBI for the short jaunt I think it would certainly help the series out instead of one of the characters just suddenly leaving and even the audience is left wondering what happened to the story. But, I think that even the characters saw the writing on the wall when it comes to a passing of the torch. The agents took under their wing the respectful agent that was most like their personality and provided them some ‘helpful advice’. Again, I won’t go too much into it but I think that if done right I think that the X-files could make a strong return chasing new conspiracies, and adding a whole new level of storyline coupled with today’s events. 

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     The next one I was excited to see coming back was that of ‘Ghostbusters’. Now, this particular ‘reboot’ I have covered in another blog, and my thoughts and ideas on that. However, on March 3rd they introduced the trailer for the third movie. BUT! At about seven seconds in or so, they give credence to the old team thirty years ago saving New York, and now they are saying that a ‘new team’ will be responding to the call. So is this a reboot? Or is this a continuation of the story? I’m sure if you follow me regularly on Facebook you saw my post on whether or not it was a reboot and I’ve had some hearty discussions on there and I’m all for them! I love knowing others opinions and talking with others. Many discussions I’ve had with people had opened my eyes. Now, before we continue any further with the blog I’d like to clarify a couple of things. I would like to clarify ‘reboot’ and ‘soft reboot’. 

Reboot: In serial fiction, to reboot means to discard all continuity in an established series in order to recreate its characters, timeline and backstory from the beginning.[1][2] The term is used with respect to various different forms of fictional media such as comic books, television series, video games, and films among others.[1] (As defined by Wikipedia)

Soft Reboot: A soft reboot is keeping all of the continuity of the original ideas and concepts. It just makes it to where you don’t need to see the original films, books, series, etc. to understand the new plot that they are beginning at with the new production. So essentially the new ‘Ghostbusters’ and ‘The X-files’ could be considered perhaps a ‘Soft Reboot.’

     I have a hard time thinking that with the ‘soft reboot’ of Ghostbusters I am expecting that with both Dan Ackroyd (Original writer and co-creator of Ghostbusters), and Ivan Reitman (Original director of both films) that this movie will not disappoint. I am also beginning to wonder if Paul Feig isn’t out to troll the rest of the internet by releasing things that he wants people to think are relevant and then blow everyone away in the theater with this movie with it possibly being a standalone or continuation in the ‘Ghostbusters’ franchise. High hopes I suspect, but in the same instance I am remaining hopeful about it. Ackroyd had commented that he wanted to build the Ghostbusters Universe similar to how Marvel built the cinematic universe revolving around all factions and stories that happen much like the comic books. So again, I can only comment that much on the new Ghostbusters since you can’t read too much into trailers since some industries and studios purposely build the trailers to deceive those who are adamantly watching to give them a false sense into what is actually going to happen. I would love to see a passing of the torch film that unites the old Ghostbusters, with the new Ghostbusters. See the boys in grey go out on top with one more world save. They could definitely build a story around the death of Egon, or even start it at the funeral where the three of them decide to close up shop because of the loss of their beloved team member. Again, it’s all speculation at this point but I remain hopeful that Ackroyd and Reitman (Being the executive producers on the film) will not let the film dive bomb. Once I see the new ‘Ghostbusters’ movie in July expect a blog on that.

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     So! I haven’t lost you! That’s always a good thing! So I guess the topic I’m really trying to drive home here is a common theme. A ‘passing of the torch’ moment. When do we as writers decide when a good time is to pass the torch to other characters? Or are we going to decide on when the series will it. Are we going to kill off the main characters, are we going to eliminate the concept and everything that had to deal with the world building, or are we going to decide that the world is intriguing enough that we need to pass it off to a younger, more compatible character that is trained by the original character you designed and nurtured. I’ve had a character that I created over ten years ago in the law enforcement field. I have talked about him in a few different blogs and how much he’s meant to me. However, he is beginning to get into his mid-forties now. Don’t get me wrong, for what the character does he is still able to do his job great. However, to keep him realistic he’s began to develop health issues in relations to the field of which he is in, law enforcement. The character has whispered to me on more than one occasion that he would like to write his memoirs for his final act in my books. He has told me he would like to helm the pen of course to write them and at the end of writing them that would be it. He would be done. I agreed to this as I know a lot of the personal struggles he is beginning to have, and take on. A lot of this is covered in the new novel that I’m currently writing about him. But this also got me to thinking as well about the future for the world that I’ve spent so many years building with him. It’s hard to move on and think about forgetting everything that he had hands in with or he has touched. 

     As much fun as I would have with the introduction of a new generation, creating another cop character like Tal I don’t think I’d ever be able to capture the same essence. Tal in a lot of ways WAS me, and the way he acted made judgements early on was all a reflection on me. I wouldn’t want to create another ‘cookie-cutter’ character due to the fact of that. I wouldn’t want someone picking up a book and go ‘Wow. Tal Hunter squared’. For the amount of years that I’ve written about Tal and his adventures it’d be hard to duplicate everything he experienced and try to make another character with as much time and effort put into him. Tal has come a long ways since he was first introduced as a beat cop and I’ve explored the option of maybe going back and writing a few side stories involving him and what exactly he encountered to become the way he is. But I’m rambling. Sometimes it would pay off to start with a fresh slate, or even continue on in the verse with different characters. JK Rowling has talked about how easy it would be for her to return to the world of Harry Potter and continue on with various stories in his realm without directly using him. She had taken a break from his world and done a few other novels. What characters do you have or used that passed a torch to either ones that could accept the responsibility or was it a passing of the legacy of the name on? Or did you end the series once you got done with the character and it was truly indeed a final curtain call. Please leave a comment below and share with everyone else!

     I apologize for the length of the blog but wanted to discuss two different examples that have come up lately of passing the torch. Thank you for reading this, and have a great day!     

Writers Blocked, now What?

     I personally do not think that there is anything more frustrating than when you sit down and you blaze through several pages of a fresh story idea, only to return after taking a break or getting distracted and you do nothing but stare at the blinking cursor for hours on end because you cannot think of what to do with the story. Or you stop at a good stopping point with the idea and you come back several days later or even weeks later and you can’t seem to get onto the same page as your characters. It feels like you are meeting them all again for the very first time and you are scratching your head as they are looking at you heavily confused and even are offering up hugs because they think you’ve totally lost it and gone off the deep end. Your characters will only understand the initial intentions of where you wanted to take them, they can’t or won’t understand why you have de-railed and will begin to fight you even with the intentions of where you began to take them. You are now officially ‘Writers blocked’ and probably are frustrated beyond hell of what you want to do with the idea. I still continue to get that way. But after offering up some advice today for a friend of mine it got me to thinking, and I wanted to blog the advice in case anyone else out there maybe feels the same way.


Environment-  It always seems to me, in my experience that characters come to you during the worst possible time. They always want to talk to you while you are predisposed with something else or you are working on another character for them to interact with later on in the story line. Just like a big game predator you have to feel the top of your game and comfortable in your environment. I’ve become the biggest stickler for being comfortable and being able to write. The muse however, is pickier than I am and I will address that little minx later on in the blog. You have to be able to relax and find a comfortable place to write. I often times will struggle if I am in the same environment so many times, that everything about it begins to feel blah and the muse won’t talk to me or I can’t get comfortable enough to write. So I would suggest attempting to change up your environment. So if you are used to writing in the same kind of living room, bedroom, or kitchen arrangement, I would suggest trying to switch it up. Sometimes the change will prompt the muse to become more intuitive and courteous with your needs! Car trips, overnight stays out of town, walks, or just the quietness of the mountains will usually prompt her enough to pay attention and ideas become more fluid.      ALWAYS keep a pad and paper nearby for side notes, or possible plot lines. Sometimes characters won’t necessarily talk to you. Sometimes it’s the action of the scene or the setting that comes through the loudest. The only thing I’m ever only been able to see is black figures with no faces acting out the scene.
After some careful thought on it, then that’s when it becomes clearer and exactly to what characters I am looking at. But it never fails that the best ideas come when I have no pad or paper to write them down. That’s why I heavily believe in always being surrounded by some kind of pad and paper for ideas.


A Musical Sensation- Now with this prompt, I’m not suggesting to go out and write a musical number or a song (unless that is indeed something that you do!) but sometimes finding the right kind of music genre could play a big part into getting that mojo flowing and get the muse dancing. When I get ready to write a particular scene that seems to be particular tough I will turn to music. I think that every writer knows what I am talking about. The one scene that you’ve been dwelling on for days, weeks, or even in some cases months. It’s finally come to fruition and all you can do is look at a blinking cursor. I recently just had that happen on my most current project that I am writing on. I got to the scene that I’ve wanted to write and the muse just clams up. The characters’ clam up and all I’m staring at is a blank setting with nothing there. It helps to venture into Youtube, or into a playlist that you may have created or need to create and listen to music that could inspire that particular scene. In one of the books that I’ve written I had a situation with a shootout. I got to that scene, and nothing I could put down on paper was making it sound right. 

     I tried over, and over, and over again trying to word it right and nothing I could do was helping the situation. I got into Youtube and listened to a few various types of music (Most of it was very hard metal). Listening to it, I began to get more motivated for the scene, the muse was throwing her hand up and she was head banging right alongside me. I had the music, I had my muse on board, and now I could write the scene. The words flowed over the page and by time I got done writing the situation, it was how I had envisioned it with a little musical help in the background. I’d also used various Celtic singers, performers when I was in the process of writing ‘In With The Pack’. The music helped square the mood, and the feeling and my wolves came alive! When the tough get going, the tough surely get musical! I’ve always found that finding music to write those difficult scenes have always helped me. I used to be able to listen to the music while I wrote, sometimes that sparked the emotion needed to complete a scene. Now I can’t do that, it de-rails my train of thought way too bad. So the next thing I would like to suggest is white noise!


White Noise- So for paranormal buffs out there, that might be thinking that I’m referring to ‘White Noise’ as in doing a E.V.P. (Electronic Voice Phenomena) session this isn’t quite what I’m meaning. What I’m referring to is ‘White Noise’ as defined as noise containing many frequencies with equal intensities. I will often use white noise either before starting a fresh chapter on a book, or I will use it as a kind of decompressing after I finish writing what I wanted accomplished for the day. There are several methods of meditation; introducing ‘White Noise’ is only one of them. Most people are meditation with the stereotypes of people sitting cross legged, elbows on their knees, with their fingers clinched as if they are grabbing a dinner fork and saying “uuuuuuuuummmmmm.” Over and over again. But meditation can take several different forms including the type that was mentioned above. Meditation can be writing, it can be listening to music, or it can be used as ‘White Noise’. 

     Examples I can give that I’ve used for white noise is natural earth sounds (Rain on a tin roof, Wind blowing in the mountains, trickling streams, camp fires, etc.) Even when I was stressed out, and just couldn’t put anything on paper I turned to these various types to help calm my nerves down so I could establish something for the scene and to help the plot along. Even if it was only for a chapter or I muscled by an incredibly hard event this noise put my mind at ease. Like I mentioned above, the muse may talk stronger if I am writing something nature related and that white noise may help the circumstances.

Jealousy- When all else fails? Sometimes it’s best to go ahead and write on another project, or even if it’s some short-hand writing long-hand writing. You can ALWAYS go back to the work that you had started before. Sometimes, it takes brain storming and different ideas, locations, and times to really get the creative juices flowing. Sometimes the muse gets fussy, and gets tired of the same ole, same ole. It would be comparable I suppose to eating the same meal night after night after night. What I have found is that sometimes just letting the pen wander and the muse dance is the best for all situations. Sometimes, an idea or a particular situation with one character may work for the character in the project that you are working on currently. Or, sometimes characters will get jealous of each other and the original character that you were writing with may speak more loudly and more willing to assist you. The point I’m trying to drive home here is WRITE, WRITE, AND WRITE SOME MORE. You won’t be able to gain any headway on any project if you don’t write regardless of the subject.

     I realize that some of this might work for you, or it won’t work at all. Some will be able to piece parts of this together and make it work, and others will completely disregard this. That’s ok! I hope though that I’ll be able to help some through this blog and give some ideas, and thoughts into ways that you can get around writer’s block. Not all of these work for me all of the time, but at times it helps me clear six or seven pages in a day. You just got to be in tune with your muse, your characters, and making sure that your carrying a notepad and a pen because you never know when inspiration is going to strike!

Calendar Scratches

     Honestly, it only seemed like yesterday that I’d gotten the edits back for ‘Whispers In The Hallway’ that Spring was right around the corner and I had plenty of time to concentrate on getting these edits done. Then, you blink and we are already halfway through the summer and a little more than halfway through the year of 2015. Where has this time gone? So far, 2015 has not been the nicest of years to have dealt with as we’ve had a lot of term oil here and dealing with unwanted guests in our household. Most of my stuff is in my office, which has been quarantined for well over a month now because of these guests. The mood has been pretty low in the household as we feel as if we are prisoners in our own household. However, I’m hoping that as of Monday of this week things will begin to change. I don’t mean to start off with such a negative introduction to a blog but rather just some thoughts that have head me leading up to next years’ time line and schedule. I’d already prepped another book for editing, as well as having sent off the information for the copyright office so it could be copyrighted and my editor would be set to receive it. However, as I began to do the edits for this book, ‘Whispers In The Hallway’ I began to realize something. I am beginning to get burnt out on writing!
     For me, this is a horrible thing because for so long I’d used writing as an advantage to escape the real world, talk with my characters, and just get away from the stress of the day. But, as I’ve tried to put out a book every year I’m finding myself feeling rushed, I’m finding myself stressed about the overall content of the book, and it has begun to cut into the personal time that I have with my family. As a writer, I don’t want any of those things. I want to deliver to the readers an awesome story, I want them to enjoy the characters that I’ve introduced them to, and I don’t want something to me feeling like it’s only half cooked coming out of the creative oven. At some points it has been hard for me to work on ‘Whispers In The Hallway’ just because I’m beginning to feel completely burned out on the entire process that this takes. I feel that I could use this to my advantage, as since I’m an individual self-published writer I don’t really have to abide by any schedules or having to put out a book a year, or continuing on with a series. I am looking forward to releasing ‘Whispers In The Hallway’ over the last half of October. I really want to release it on Halloween, or maybe the day before. I’ve got another contest in mind, and am real excited about getting to meet everyone again at the signings much like I’d met everyone at the events I’ve already done this year.
     So, what are you saying Grayson? That you are going to be hanging up the towel after you release ‘Whispers In The Hallway’? Absolutely not. I’m not going to ever quit writing. It is a passion and truly a gift from above that I found early in my life. What I am thinking, and I’m sure other writers’ out there would agree with me on is that I am thinking I need to take a break. I need to make sure everything goes smoothly with ‘Whispers In The Hallway’ for its release and the contest that I have in mind for it. Take time off during the holidays to spend it with family and friends and then start sharp again after the New Year. But, for 2016 I do not plan releasing any book. Like I said, I have one US Marshals story that I’ve got finished and ready to go. I realized that there are other ideas and other genres I’d like to concentrate on first. While the marshals deserve to have their story told, and that yes IT WILL be eventually released right now, I want to introduce some other characters that have been talking to me for some time. Again, this is the reason why I like to think of myself as a multi-genre writer. I’ve been building on so many worlds, for so many years that I’ve got lots of characters that want to come through and have their stories told. A lot of the characters you’ve probably noticed do a lot of cross world appearances. Either in cameos, or they will show up for a short section in the story and leave again just as quickly. To me, it’s more fun to see characters you already know interacting with the new ones that have come to the table.
     2016 I would like to take the year off and kind of regroup my thoughts, and get in touch again with my characters. I wouldn’t have to worry about edits, I wouldn’t have to worry about meeting deadlines for book releases, and above all I would have time to do some real quality writing. Deliver a product that is well worth the wait! I’ve been asked several times about the return of Malakai and his pack and whether or not he’ll have another book. At this current time, I’ve had some new characters come through on that front and we’ve talked briefly. If I could paint a picture for you what the muse has brought to the table you’d laugh I bet. Imagine a conference room with a large oval table, the nice leather chairs all around it and not one of those chairs are empty. All of them have a particular character yelling or wanting something addressed. Then add a few more characters that didn’t come quick enough to the meeting to get a chair and now are standing at the back of the room screaming their heads off because they want attention. I think that 2016 will be an excellent year to regroup and relax. My other hope for 2016 is getting together with fellow writers in the LC-Valley. I’ve had discussions with a few local talents and their seems to be quite a few shows that will be happening next year. I plan on making as many events as I can as well as helping promote my fellow writers around me.
     The other thing that I know I’ve talked a little bit about this last year as well as my wife getting ready to put her book out. I’m very excited that Emma has been working very hard on getting her stuff ready to be sent off to be printed and into a book. She has been there every step of the way for me when it has come to publishing, marketing, and making sure everything looks great. I would like to return the favor for her as well during 2016 to help her get her book off the ground and to make sure that everything gets situated as it should be. There are certainly not enough days in the year to make everything happen as you would like it to and that is why I’ve reached this decision to do this. Maybe during this off time, I’ll use it to explore other things as well (photography, podcasting, and collaborating with other writers, musicians, etc.). The future is very bright. I would like to send out another special thank you to those who have supported Emma and I through this entire endeavor. There are a lot of people who have backed us all the way through it and I couldn’t be more thankful. Too many to list but you know who you are and I continue to thank you for your support and help through it. Being a self-published writer is definitely not the easiest endeavor that I’ve taken on, but in the end it is definitely the most worthwhile thing I’ve done other than the career I am in.
     Please continue to watch my Facebook as I will continue to updates for not only the release information for ‘Whispers In The Hallway’ but I will also be posting other information on there about new and upcoming projects. I don’t really use Twitter anymore. My website has also been updated so please look there as well for updates on events. Thank you everyone and I hope you have a wonderful summer.