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.

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.

 

Returning to Isla Nublar

     Hearing the beginning horns of the Jurassic Park theme as the universal logo slowly twisted out brought goosebumps to my skin. I was reliving one of my favorite movie franchises of all times. There has been quite a bit of hype for Jurassic World, and while it correlates with the Jurassic Park verse and is not a remake or reboot the story stays very genuine even with the return to the island of the five deaths. While I’m writing this review I am going to try and keep it as spoiler-less as possible though it may pop up from time to time. As the movie starts, there really isn’t any kind of backstory the return to Isla Nublar, or why InGen had decided to keep it at the island location where as in the The Lost World movie (Definitely not the book) they decided to try and build the park in San Diego. None the less, the back story really isn’t needed for movie but it would have been nice, perhaps just a bit knit picky on this point. I was curious to into what characters were going to be returning to the Jurassic franchise after seeing in the credits that read ‘based on characters created by Michael Crichton’. However, the only returning character to this franchise was that of Dr. Henry Wu. Which, I guess I find kind of ironic because if anyone had read the books we all know the fate of Dr. Wu. Again, I am trying to keep as many spoiler-less points for this review but still give an honest one at that. The one thing I thought was very fun about the entire movie was the constant reference to the original film. Some of the shots of the movie the same, some lines had doubled up and were being heard again, vehicles from the first movie reappearing, hell at one point you get to see a very ramshackle Visitor’s Center accompanied with a very sad, and mournful soundtrack from the first Jurassic Park.
     I know that there was one thing scoffed at in the movie, that was kind of a double edged sword. Many people were not impressed with the whole ‘Hybrid Dinosaur’ idea that was seen in the initial previews. That now, InGen was making mutated dinosaurs. To me, that seemed like a bit of a genetic horror movie involving zombies, living dead, or something along those lines. This movie definitely involves the Genetic horror of things and the fact man is trying to play God to make a few bucks. That of course the reason for toying with nature is to make more money and bring in more attendance. I won’t go into the exact details of things, but really the monster of this movie does play out like a Frankenstein, or a creature that was created and out of control to begin with ‘seeing the world for the first time’ sort of scenario. The other half of this whole thing is how the climax of the movie turned out. The ending I think could have been a bit better when pertaining to a very key player. Let put it this way, to keep the spoilers out of it. They were catering to a dead man the entire movie. Again, to those who’ve read the novels will understand exactly what I am meaning by that statement. While I can see that they were interested in doing another movie, I am hoping that the path they are trying to take will not stray from the original verse created by Michael Crichton. His concept and novel both were revolutionary and opened many doors especially when it comes to genetics, and genetic engineering. I hope that the franchise doesn’t turn into a Survival Horror type series like ‘Resident Evil’ (AKA Biohazard), with an evil company running rapid in the shadows creating freaks of nature for military projects etc.
     The other thing I know that was scoffed at was Chris Pratt’s ‘Raptor Pack’ that you see in the previews with him training them and basically controlling them. At first, I’ll even admit that I winced and wondered what exactly they were going to do with this and where were they going to take it? As the movie progresses and the story keeps trudging forward all things are revealed including the intended use for these Raptor’s. While some scoff, the idea is really not too far off. Any kind of animal when raised from a young age that doesn’t know better you can train them and ALMOST domesticate them. Some examples of this would be wolves, bears, raccoons, etc. I say almost domesticate because animals have that instinct in them regardless of the scenario or situation. I really dug the idea and even thought it was well played and the imagination was there! The CGI affects I think were great, the overall visuals for the movie were very stunning. I am glad that we didn’t wait and see it in 2D like the missus and I had intended on doing. One thing that I’d always wished you’d see more of in the JP movies was dinosaurs. This movie certainly was not disappointing with dinosaurs. There was a vast amount of species seen in the movie. While I watched this movie something popped into my mind that I kind of wondered if they weren’t trying to make maybe an alternate universe type movie.
     You know, that this is the story that would have happened if all of the original scientists from ‘Jurassic Park’ had signed off on it. What if the dinosaurs hadn’t burst out of their cages, or eaten people? What if this is the aftermath of a successful park for almost twenty years and this incident happened? It could have very strongly been that case if the old visitor center, and old vehicles from the first park had never been seen. There is really no reference to Isla Sonra, BioSyn, etc. I am glad that they decided to make another Jurassic Park instead of rebooting it or remaking it. While the story for Jurassic World was great, I think the story with the two kids could have been left out or maybe the kids could have played less of a role in it. Obviously, the park employees preoccupied the story more than the kids but it was with good reason. Overall, I think that this movie was great. I would recommend it to anyone who is a Jurassic Park fan either having seen the movies that’ve spanned over twenty something years, or the book that was released sooner than that. It was very fascinating that they released this movie on the anniversary date of the first movies release. I think for me that it just adds to the nostalgia of it.

Party Poppers & New Directions

     As soon as I had posted on my Facebook this morning in regards to asking people what they’d hoped for in the upcoming year, or what they wanted to accomplish in 2015 it got my own mind going. I’m striving towards more in 2015, I’m wanting to reach out more to those who read my books and I’m wanting to be more active with my creativity. 2014 was a hard year for me to get a lot of things accomplished on the sidelines in regards to projects, marketing the books, or meeting other writer’s mainly due to time constraints. Not to say at all though that 2014 wasn’t successful. I was incredibly blessed with the reception that ‘In With The Pack’ got back when I released it in August. I met a lot of other great people along the way and made some very close friends in the process which in itself is an automatic success. But, maybe what I’m trying to get at is I want to branch out a little more with myself. Try to dedicate more time to my projects and make them just as successful as I did with Malakai and his pack. I’ve already got another project going that will probably not be released until 2016, but that is ok. It has been slow going and even though I’m trying to put out a new book every year, it’s added a lot of stress to me as well as trying to find the time to keep up with everything else in my life. Hell, I’m an independent and self-published author I am really my own boss that decides on the when’s and where’s of things. But, in the same instance writing is something that I just can’t turn off and walk away from and decide to be done with it for a while or even take a break from.
     Just like one of those internet meme’s that I saw online the other day, ‘Writers can’t take vacations from writing because even on those vacations you are still writing’. It’s the absolute truth of the matter. But in the same instance, it’s just not that. I love to tell stories; I love to give something to someone who says ‘Wow, this was great! When’s the next one happening?’. I’m not meaning to toot my own horn here but if I can entertain someone other than myself when it comes to writing stories then I have succeeded as a writer. But at the same time, I’ve been mulling over ideas of things that I’d like to do in 2015 as well as my writing:

Meeting other local talent- For those who have met me in person, or know where I live. The Lewiston-Clarkston Valley is an extremely small community. With both populations of Lewiston and Clarkston we probably top out at close to around forty-thousand populous. So, when it comes to meeting other local writer’s or talents I am always excited to meet them. I think as writers, artists, photographers, etc. It’s important for us to stick together especially in small towns. But it’s also fun to plan events were you can have more than one person available for signings. It helps with exposure as well for them! One of the things I’d like to do in 2015 is organize more events or even some kind of a writer’s guild locally here in the valley for all of us to come together. Non-judgmental and the first meeting don’t even have to be about reviewing anything. It’s fun just to get together and talk and learn about the other various types of talent that we have here locally. Maybe even organize some events for us all to participate.

Photography- Though this is done away from both pad and paper I’ve always enjoyed photography. At the beginning of the month I shared some pictures on my Facebook with that of an old flour mill that is located just outside the city park in Asotin. When I got them home and photo shopped them a bit and posted them the response I got was very humbling. So, I was thinking of maybe also doing some kind of photography class or just doing freelance and working on what I already know to take some pictures here locally around the valley and beyond. Where I live there are lots of woods, rivers, canyons, and even some ghost towns for pictures to be taken in. That is also something else I’d like to do both with snowy weather, and sunny weather. Photos capture so much, and even with landscapes that stay vivid in your head it could lead to potential story settings. Really, it’s a win-win situation for me.

Video Productions- Though I know very little about this particular field, I had the opportunity in both 2013 and 2014 to help with video productions of a few budding directors. While the opportunities have been smaller and not as abundant as they had been, this is something that I’d still like to help in. It’s exciting to see people’s ideas jump from the paper to flesh and blood characters. How excited the entire production team is to making this the best product that they can regardless if it is a serious movie or if it’s a humorous movie. The expectations and standards that these independent film artists hold themselves to are phenomenal. It’s almost as intense as writing a book. A little more stress added when you are dealing with the actors/actresses. Where in the process of writing a story you can tell them exactly what you want them to do and you won’t get any fuss about it. With actors/actresses you may get a degree of defiance whether it’s something they don’t agree with on their character or time constraints. Either way, I enjoyed being a part of the production value and helping them realize their own dreams.
     I’d also considered doing more video blogs in the upcoming months of 2015. From what I understand blogs are kind of going on the wayside of things and that VLOGS are the most popular route to go when you are trying to reach out to subscribers. Maybe it’d be a way as well to show off the pictures that I plan on taking. Making a mini-slideshow or something with them. Something to toy around with I guess. I really never learned on how to use the video editors because by the time I graduated *cough* 2002 *cough* things like Microsoft PowerPoint, Windows Movie Maker, Excel etc. were all beginning to come into popularity with not only business professionals but also teachers. I guess my question is do people even use cardboard to make presentations anymore? Or, has it gone to this new digital format? But I digress. So, those are just some things I’d like to concentrate in the upcoming year that I’d like to branch out into. Will it happen? If I can put my head to it and get things situated anything is possible. My own indecisiveness will be my only enemy. 

     

     What do you plan on doing for 2015? Feel free to share with the others at the bottom of this blog, or you can leave a comment on my Facebook page!

Goals On The Ocean Of Imagination

     I have always valued myself as a writer. Whether it be in short stories, novels, opinions, or critiques it’s always came easy for me to be able to write something on a given subject. I have been writing for a very long time. I have been writing since I was about twelve years old, went all the way through Junior High School (Middle School for some) and into High School. I’d won an award my Senior year of High School for a writing contest that I entered into, taking home third place and a cash prize. Believe it or not, I have the check in a frame still on the wall. To me, writing has never been about the money. Nor, the popularity? To me, writing has always been about being able to produce a good story that keeps people interested in with what’s going on with characters. I take critiques and enjoy hearing what others have to say about ideas. I try to keep all of my ideas somewhat within the realms of reality. An idea, that “Yeah this could happen but it hasn’t yet”. Always been about entertaining those around me with what I write. OceanView has been very popular amongst the people that I used to send it out to. OceanView, started as a story concept back in 2006. Over the course of about seven years it has grown and adapted into a collection of short stories. This will also be my first published book on the market. To me, publishing this book has been a dream come true. It’s something that I have always wanted to do, and something I have enjoyed as a hobby. Though as a writer it seems that it’s slipped away from a hobby and keeps me constantly thinking of ideas and characters.
     I had always been intimidated by the prospect of being published. Having seen some of the agents on Twitter, and how they talk about potential writers, and in a way make fun of them because of the way they submit something. To me, I think it’s those writers that keep those agents in business. We are the ones that allow them to keep their jobs! Could you imagine that if EVERY writer in the world decided to self-publish (like me) how quickly they would be looking to sign anyone that was willing to turn in a manuscript. So, again going back to the original topic it was so very intimidating to me to see these kinds of things posted. The amount of rejections that people have gotten saying their work was no good, or crap. But like anything in life, you can’t accept failure you have to prosper and keep on over the top of the negativity. Self publishing OceanView has been a very scary and exciting step for me all in the same process. It’s been exciting for me, because it’s allowed for me to branch out and meet some of my fellow writers out there. Social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook have become outlets for people to get together and exchange ideas, or promote their books. The road hasn’t been easy with having to go back and do the edits, along with having to buy a state business license (For the state that I live in), along with all of the other fun investigable things that I have had to do. But it is so very well worth it in the end. I have several other local Authors here that we’ve been talking and have been attempting to get together for a panel for our books. The stress level of trying to keep things on a deadline, and keeping everything within time constraints has been hard.
     While I want to push through these edits, and get it released to Smashwords, and start getting my books on the print and sent to me, I want to deliver a good product. Yes, I am a writer but at times my English can be a bit off. I have been trying very hard to take things easy, and take them slow. Once OceanView is released, I would rather you concentrate on the story and everything going on in it, rather than the amount of spelling errors, grammatical errors, or things that just don’t make sense because I overlooked it while I was doing my proofing. I want everyone to be happy with my first finished product. I currently have another book that is sitting with it’s copyright papers ready to be sent off to another Beta editor. However, I am going to take some time between the release of that book and OceanView, just to unwind from this huge undertaking of Self-publishing. Now, I’m not trying to convince anyone that going through an actual publisher is a bad idea, but to at least Self-Publish yourself it might work out in advantage. Some writers have been contacted about their books from publishing houses. Below, I am going to be posting a link to a video that Anne Rice posted about publishing books. Her advice, and words on how the best way to pursue things. I am so grateful for everything that has happened with me, my book, and my lovely wife as we are on the verge of this exciting point in my life. You may feel as if it is a burden, and get disheartened as you start through the processes of self-publishing but please, don’t give up! If this is truly what you want, and want to make it happen look that diversity in the face and tromp over the top of it.

Anne’s video: http://youtu.be/bw2KXX7WrOY

Shadowed Contractual Agreements

     I’ve noticed something about the muse, and I’m sure as writers everyone here has one. Sometimes, she’s a roaring lion, other times she as soft as a lamb and just as quiet. Since my injury that I received almost two weeks ago, my muse has been pretty quiet. But, at the same time I think it’s because she knows that I’ve been injured. Not a whole hell of a lot of things you can do while you’re injured especially when it deals with your wrist, as well as dealing with your shoulder. The whole typing thing becomes incredibly hard to do and since I’m left handed and not right handed (Thank God) I found that I think it would have been easier to just write things out. But even then the Muse seems to be sitting in the back of my mind with her hands up holding them up in front of her and going in an up and down motion for me to just quiet down and sit there. This startles me very much. Never, has my muse been this quiet or willing to let me do something other than rest and not work on any of my current projects. It’s been nice though, to sit and find some other things I can work on while my right shoulder is on the mend. It wasn’t till about a week ago that I was cleared to not have to wear the brace. Oh boy, you would have thought that was some kind of flare sent up in the darkness. That, like the loving Gym coach that the Muse had been before the injury had respired to life. I could almost hear her asking me ‘Oh your hands are both free? Guess that means they are good enough to pick up the electronic pen and get back to work’. But at the same time we reached a pretty subtle compromise.
     Even though I was down an arm, with limited mobility to do anything I found that I could use sticky note pads (I know, I know, things of the past right?). I used these and jotted down quite a few different story ideas. Though some of the ideas didn’t really revolve around the Wolves, and my furry friends the other ideas coming to me where just as wonderful and I am looking very forward to getting a chance to let everyone read them. As a writer it never seems like my brain ever takes a break about not exploring different possibilities. The best kind of metaphor I can give is like a bank thief attempting to rob a bank. He decided one day, on a whim to just walk into a random bank and rob it. After getting back to the safe (Using the old pointer finger in the coat routine might I add) he simply stairs at this big metal monster. These metal monsters that is so large, and so in charge that he now realizes that he’s in over his head. Then his best method of trying to crack this safe is to use the old vintage idea, the one thing that never fails, and you can always get the safe cracked! Insert heavy gasp of breath with the finger in the air here folks. Listening to the internal gears of the safe. My mind feels like that all of the time. I’m constantly attempting different combinations of things from ideas that I already have. For instance, I could match up characters fine, setting fine, the plot is the thickest thing to try and weave after that point. Sometimes, I take away from the plot to make it a little less dense, a little less complicated, and overall a little more fun for the reader. But on the other hand, sometimes I find I add plot, I add complication, twists, suspense even when it’s not needed to keep the reader guessing the whole way through. I know the rush I get when I have watched TV shows or movies and a twist and turn in plot is presented I find myself going ‘Whoa! That’s cool’ right along with the folks.
     The one thing that the Muse and I can come to fully agree on, and this is where the title of the blog fits in. We find it mutually wonderful when we go on car trips. It could be thirty minutes from here? It could be six days from here it doesn’t matter. I asked my wife tonight about this, curious if it was because maybe the change of scenery was better? Or if it’s just for the simple fact where we went today was also where I grew up, born and raised. But with that said as well I find that if I go higher up into the mountains, less populated places, lakes, camping, any of that kind of thing the Muse and I get along wonderfully. She breaks out of the Gym teacher mode and instantly wants to become my friend and confidant! Anyone else have this kind of an issue when it comes to writing? Maybe it’s the fresh air and the change of scenery that helps shake off the cobwebs of the same day to day same ole, same ole writing room. I’ve got a lot of family up in the mountains, maybe what I need to do one of these days is just pack it up and spend some time in the mountains for a week and just settle in and do some writing there. It’s worth a shot. What do you do to help enhance the creativity to write? Or, is it one of those things that you have to be in the mood to do so; and does it have to be more centrally located to you as to what the setting in the book is (I.E. Big City, Cattle Ranch, etc.) Please feel free to comment below in the comments and share with the rest!

Darkened Clouds & Obtuse Scenery

In my entire writing career, a good majority of my stories have been pretty strict in one genre. Typically, the genre I like to keep close to is that of realistic/fiction. You will find that most of my stories have some kind of a plausibleness to reality to them. Then, about four months ago I started writing on something that took me deep into the heart of the paranormal. I am a huge lover of the paranormal, and I believe strongly in it. But, as far as my writing goes I never thought that I could bring myself to write an actual paranormal type of story or Hell, for that matter a novel. The idea started off basic, and from there blossomed out into something that completely took my full attention and I began to work furiously on it. The initial idea was dealing with Ghosts, and in this particular setting it wasn’t hard to manifest something like that up. But as I wrote, I found that a lot of the chains that held you in Modern/Realistic either had eased up or had completely gone away. Now, with that said though the story maintains a very realistic tone to it and offers up everything that you might see in a investigation. What kind of investigation? Well you will have to wait and see when it’s released. To me, it seems to take a certain kind of writer and imagination to pull off something paranormal. I’ve seen many movies, tv shows, and other various writings that had a paranormal tone to it but the problem was, they couldn’t quite deliver to me what exactly the writer was trying to get across.

That was always my fear. I have this wonderful idea about a paranormal book, and I want to write it out. The characters are going absolutely nuts in my head, describing to me everything that is happening. I can see clear visions of the scenes, interactions, and characters that I didn’t even knew existed at that very moment. As I started writing, I didn’t want or need something that a person who is into these kinds of novels going Well this appears to be very cliché. I didn’t want a predictable storyline, I wanted something that would scare the absolute hell out of someone and keep them drawn in. Keep them drawn into these world and afraid to turn away, or afraid to put down the book. I feel that the current upcoming story will do exactly that. I’ve already told some of my readers to be tender when it comes to reviews because this is the first time I’ve attempted a book of this nature. Overall? I am very pleased with the product that came out of it. I added enough realism to keep things seated to where the plot wasn’t floating off into the wind, but then turned and added such a paranormal presence to it that it would give you goose bumps during scenes. But again, what makes a cliché horror or paranormal book? I think the over emphasis on the blood and guts of the creatures can be made to a cliché point, but not always the case. I think the predictability of a paranormal story is ultimately what will make it go down in flames. In the story I’m just finishing up it takes several twists and turns. Some of which you might not see coming.

Is there a great possibility that you may or may not see more paranormal novels coming from me in the future? I would confirm that if the idea arises and it happens to be paranormal I think this time around I will not be as hesitant to write about it. Being in the right state of mind really helps as well, I found that having a herbal tea of some kind really helped with the flowing of the ideas. It seems that Muse loved it greatly. I’ve gotten several pages of notes around the office here, about another potential paranormal story involving another time period. A friend of mine and I have talked about possibly doing some kind of a collaboration of minds on a paranormal series but that is still in the very very infant stages. Another fun, exciting idea that we’d pondered. I’ve never co-wrote anything before and I would be curious and excited in the same instance. The thoughts I had for this particular paranormal series would be very awesome to have it in some kind of a graphic novel. As of lately, I’ve been getting into the graphic novel series. I’d always kind of shied away from them but the more I read, the more I realize how deeply covered in detail they are and how the different storylines all can either vary from each other? Or they eventually will all tie into one another it’s amazing. What I love is the fact there is no kind of limitations to writing something paranormal other than one’s own imagination.

Really? That’s it?

To everyone, who has been looking forward to the next blog, I apologize immensely for not being able to get it out sooner that it had. Between life, health, and other medical things it made it hard to sit down at a keyboard to get it typed up. I am confident, and hope that everyone understands this. Now? Onto the main portion of the blog.

The topic for this blog is Story length. Let me ask you this first, what exactly constitutes as proper story length? What do you feel is necessary for a story to be a story, have depth, plot, character development, all of the things that a good story needs in order to survive and attract readers? Should it be limited by only what you put into it at first, being the original plot? Or is it possible to add in more details of a story. Perhaps a sub story? I think the only thing holding a writer back IS themselves. We all know, and have delved into our imaginations. We can come up with a thousand different scenarios for our characters. Perhaps each scenario for the character is different. But is it a good idea to leave items in the story unresolved or skipped over? It’s always exciting to be writing a novel, novelette, short story, poems, and want to get it out for your readers. But what’s the proper length in which you should stop? At what point should you limit your imagination or limit the characters to what they are doing? Maybe, give them a way out of a scenario that could bring the particular piece of work to a grinding halt and make it hard for not only you, but for the character to trudge through. I will be the first to admit that in my imagination, and stories at times I get a bid wordy with ALL the characters details.

However, I know that I’m not the only writer out there that would do this. I think it’s incredibly important at times to add to the story what the characters are doing every time they are in a scene, what they are thinking, etc. However, I’ve read over some of the scenes in my upcoming novel “Whispers” and see where I have been almost too wordy with what is going on in the scene. A quick resolve, but at times it’s dropped me about a ½ or even a whole page of writing. To me? It’s irrelevant on how long a story should be. If I cut out a page or two pages of writing that drops my story to maybe twenty three or twenty five pages that is ok. To me, it’s more important to keep your idea to the point, instead of wandering off track and getting lost with something irrelevant to the story. Whenever I read scenes, and notice these wordy situations I can always imagine my readers sitting in a chair, with one hand propped against there hand. My book would be open and a sigh escaping there lips as they flip the page. The story should be enthralling, it should be riveting, it should keep them interested to the point that they are wanting to turn page and page because they are excited for what is happening in the story with the characters. Short stories are still stories. They can be entertaining, and enthralling as a thousand page novel.

But with that said, a story can be a thousand pages and full of crap. Either the plot development is horrible, slow, maybe irritating? Characters don’t click as well as they should or maybe slapped together too quickly? Editors can be a WONDERFUL help in this department and be able to tell you if you are being too wordy, or maybe not wordy enough. When is detail too much detail? That is up to the individual writer. I think the amount of detail you put into it should keep your writer enthralled and hanging on, instead of making it feel like your reading a dictionary or a quickly rushed idea that has the potential to have a ingloriously awesome idea. It’s important to listen to your muse while your in that frame of mind. Whether your sitting in a police car listening to your characters talk? Or if you are sitting at an Inn in the corner listening to various conversations amongst characters it’s easier to write all of it down as it happens and then go back and read it again later. Really, it’s no different than having a tape recorder walking out in the general public and recording what you hear. At least this way, you’ve got it all documented on the scene and what’s happening. Perhaps there are irrelevant things you can cut out along the way that doesn’t make it into the MS before it goes to editing.

Perhaps, those details can be used for another story, time, or setting. With this said, and since we are all friends here. What is one thing in your stories, poems, etc. that you tend to go on in almost too much detail that you feel? Please, post in the comments below to share with everyone!

Where does the Muse Find You?

     In the last blog, I talked about character development. This blog is taking a step back really from what I talked about last time. Before you can sit down and come up with a setting, a plot, characters, anything of that nature you have to be able to actually sit down and do it? How do you sweet talk your muse? Let’s face it, The Muse will not be completely compliant every time you sit down at your computer, your favorite chair, a writing desk, or even on the back patio. Sometimes she’s rather arrogant and blocks the process and all you can do is stare at the computer screen and admire the blinking cursor. But as you look at that cursor you scowl a bit and think to yourself The only one getting any work done here is the cursor itself blinking and making sure you know where you’re at during the time you have your processor open. Other times it takes a little bit of coaxing to talk to her. Keep in mind, that like cars not all muses are created equal and some are male? Some are female. I often describe my muse as a female, and often times as a very strict boss. It takes a lot of negotiation sometimes to sit down and try get around the wall she puts up. What do you use to get your Muse to let down those walls to allow you to step into your character’s world? Or for this instance, the ability to maybe build one? For me there are several different resources that I use to channel that inner creativity.

     Most often times, I will reflect on the scene to see what is exactly going on in it. Is the scene extreme? Is it character dialogue?, Is there something complex going on? Then I will set to work at looking for either movies, music, art, or even cruise the internet letting the Muse have her way momentarily. Typically for me being in certain settings is what allows me to find the best relaxation to write. As described earlier this week in one of my Twitter’s I talk about the Snow. It seems that the muse becomes most active during snow days, snow storms, or just even a general snow shower. But again, going back and talking about negotiations with the muse. Sometimes, the snow is nice and all but other times it requires a little bit more to be settled. It maybe other adverse weather reactions, Holidays, or Sometimes it’s a certain recliner, sometimes it’s animals present in the room. Other times it’s music turned down low. Often other times I can find inspiration in other ways. For me another huge source of Inspiration can be found through that of music. I tend to listen to the harder music of today some of the band’s including: Rob Zombie, Disturbed, Metallica, Breaking Benjamin, Skillet, and the list goes on. The music can help inspire scenes? Or it can help get me through scenes depending on what is going on with them. Now, on the counter balance of that I have listened to older music to get me through as well. Some of those bands include: Foreigner, Styx, Patsy Cline, The Highway Men, Boston, and again the list goes on from there.
  Just because you listen to one particular genre doesn't mean that you will be able to write to it. Please, I encourage you to listen to any and all kinds of music.

     What about fellow writers? Let’s venture away for a moment from scene creation. When you first picked up that pen, and you touched it to that paper and you let your imagination began to wander. Is there any particular author that stands out alone that you first started reading? That, once you started reading, grasping at the concepts of there stories, and realized the flow pattern of characters, ideas, and overall concepts that you snapped your fingers and went “A Ha! That is who I want to be like there?” Just like the music any particular concepts of other art? What about the respect of other Author’s? George Romero for his inception and creation of the Zombie and walking dead, Bram Stoker and his creation of the Vampire. Stephen King and all of the movies, tv shows, and even comics, Michael Crichton perhaps? All of those are excellent authors, Is it Shameful for anyone to admit if anyone particular writer, singer, dancer, etc. inspired someone to carry on with there dream or find a new one? I’d have to say no. Reading any of the above authors could influence you. For example, if one where to start a paranormal book about Vampires, but you really didn’t know much about them. Where could you go? Bram Stoker would be an excellent reference, What about Laurell K. Hamilton and her Anita Blake Series again. It’s all dependant on what you want to write. But I would recommend experts of the genre and maybe reference to those who created and opened the worlds for everyone else. Doing research on different genres of Vampires, Zombies, Were animals, and all of the likes.

     Who knows, maybe you will create something that will spark an interest with a fellow writer, or maybe even start them down the path of something great. Maybe your story will be like that of Bram Stoker’s and it’ll carry through generations of which everyone will know them. It just takes a little inspiration is all. I encourage everyone who reads this to leave a comment down below. What inspires you? Don’t be bashful!

Don't tell me what to do!

     That’s a funny way to start a blog isn’t it? Probably thinking that I’m making a reference to an editor, or publisher, or something of that sort. Actually, what I’m talking about is the characters I often come face to face with in my short stories, or my novelettes that I’ve written. You are probably asking yourself, What in the hell does he mean. Most of the time when you think of characters you think of the basic principal of one. Male, Female, tall, short, skinny, fat. Are the characters nice? Or are they cruel? The kind that if they unexpectedly had something happen to them in the story it wouldn’t hurt your feelings at all if something where to happen to them? For a moment, I’m going to step beyond all of that and describe a little bit about my characters. With all of the classifications above, I would they could be just that easy to put into a group. Come up with all of my heroines, my bad guys, and the rest of the supporting cast that makes a story good. Unfortunately, in my stories it doesn’t always work that way and about ninety nine percent of the time characters tend to come half-hazardly stumbling into a scene that as I recalled in the initial draw up they weren’t there.

     Does the scene still work? Yes and No. It would have always been a lot smoother if the scene could have been without this particular character or in some cases characters but it adds to the story and it adds a lot more development to it. But on the flip side of this very own coin is that it sometimes can hinder scenes if characters don’t show up at the right time, or in many instances not at all. Reading through this already I’m willing to bet, that you are thinking that I am a complete nut case. Someone who treats these invisible people as if they where truly flesh and blood. That, just like any new age television show, or movie I treat them with delicacy and make sure that they stay happy. But as any writer will tell you it’s not always about what you want the characters to do, they’ll do what THEY want to do. A story will not always have a happy ending, nor will it always have a bad ending. The more time you spend working on any specific character or characters the more likely they will “talk” to you. Again, there you probably think Wow, Grayson you have truly lost your mind. I bet you had an invisible friend as a kid growing up that you shared your toys with. Truth be known, no I didn’t have a invisible friend growing up as a kid. But the more time you spend with a particular character the more of a tendency to let you in.

     But with that said, there are also many instances that a character may or may not talk to you through the entire story. They may want the attention, but will not say anything to get it. I have one character in particular right now that has said very little in the means of development or letting me in on any of his secrets. The character keeps himself well guarded with very little to say all of the time. Even in the current story he gives off a vibe to the rest of the characters that are creepy to them. With all of this said as well though you’re going to find that any one character may not want to be put into a particular situation or later in the story you end up finding out that they refuse to do something. One character in the up-coming marshals story you find she is a huge risk taker. Well when I had originally designed her she hadn’t been that way at all. It’s always fun to see characters evolve into something or make more out of themselves as you had intended to. It’s like watching a child grow and take pride when they do something great in the scheme of things (No pun intended). Or shake your head and cover your eyes when they get themselves into situations that you think they should know better. But always on the other side of this you have a character that is screaming for attention, waving there arms up and down frantically as they try to flag you down. But with this comes the possible chance that they don’t even belong in the current project you have going.

     A lot of the times, the characters will be from either a different series? Same series (That is not relevant to the plot), or a completely new idea. How do you wrangle these characters up and keep them quiet so you can work on your current project? I find that writing the idea down, the character, basic description, and what they do is a simple way to quiet them down. It’s like putting them on hold during a phone conversation. It keeps them quiet and waiting patiently. What’s the point of my blog? My point is this: For any writer out there, that is brainstorming characters, having a hard time coming up with characters, or struggling for plot development. The best thing you can really do is just sit on it. Get a pad and paper and just think on the idea. A lot of the times, the characters will find you before you find them. Once you have a character in mind, or just a basic outline of what you think you want in one. Jot down notes, how can this particular character come into play in either this story? Or a separate one in itself. Many-a-times in my work you will find that my characters have a tendency to overlap in the different series. But in my defense, the characters jobs often overlap which you will seen in OceanView, which will hopefully be online and available by the end of February 2013.

     Nobody wants to read about a two dimensional character that comes from a cookie cutter mesh. If you have an easier time with doing backgrounds or histories? I’d recommend starting there. If you have a easier time with names and jobs? Start there. Either way, the more you brain storm on a particular idea the easier the characters will come to you.