So . . . How Ya Been?

Featured

This is just a general update on what’s been going on with me so I can keep everyone in the loop. Everybody knows that the world is falling apart around us, so instead of crying, let’s laugh a bit with a photomanip I posted a couple of years ago. Not my best work, but the message is profound–and kinda funny. It is, right? Right? RIGHT?

Where Are We Going? And What’s With this Handbasket?

M’kay. Now that that’s out of the way, how has everybody been? Schardein’s House O’ Madness went through about eight weeks of utter hell, but things have calmed down a bit. There’s still a lot going on, but they’re potentially very good things, and at least we aren’t running around like chickens with our heads cut off at the moment. Here are some of the other good things I’m doing.

Vampire: the Masquerade

A friend and I are putting together a new VtM V.20 campaign out on Discord. We’re a ways off from getting it running, but if any VtM fans or other roleplayers are interested in taking a look, let me know and I’ll notify you when it’s finally up. Or, if you’re just interested in hearing our concept, I’ll be glad to share that, too. I think it’s a bit unusual, and people will probably either love it or hate it. As long as they don’t say it’s boring, I’ll be happy.

The new campaign will affect my “Something Went Wrong, Apparently,” fanfic so I’m taking it down. Hopefully I’ll be able to post some short stories or fanfic from our new campaign.

Remember Selene?

My Selene Stormblade fanfiction was a huge labor of love for me, and it was so hard to let it go. But I stopped playing Skyrim and began playing ESO, which is set about 900 years beforehand, so I had to move on. Unfortunately, the half a dozen ESO fanfictions I started didn’t go anywhere, and I’ve taken them down.

But. I’ve found a way to bring Selene into the ESO story (and hopefully Brynjolf at some point). It’s nowhere near canon, so if you’re an Elder Scrolls lore junkie, don’t say you weren’t warned. Constructive criticism is always welcome, but be kind and don’t tell me it’s not lore-friendly because you’ll already know that.

I’ve just started the story, and I’m going to get a few chapters under my belt before I post anything, mostly so I don’t have people faving it a year from now and waiting for new chapters that will never come. I haven’t even finished Chapter One yet, but it feels like coming home.

Speaking of coming home:

Lito’s Children

Hubby and I are still working on Book Two. It’ll be finished and published someday. I just know it.

SHAMELESS PLUG: In the meantime, if you haven’t read Book One, The Order of the White Guard, do check it out. It’s nearly ten years old now, but we’re still hawking it. Here is a preview, and here is the link to the page on Amazon. tinyurl.com/3lpne2wn For Kindle Unlimited users, it’s a free download. This is a second edition. We lowered the price and made a minor change, so if you’ve already read it and want to know what we changed, just let me know. If you order, PLEASE order direction from Amazon, not from the used and new links. Those assholes never even bought the book. And leave a review! And tell your friends!

Logan O’Neill?

(1) Two of the main characters in The Order of the White Guard are Logan Blevins and Peter O’Neill.

(2) NCIS Los Angeles is my current favorite TV show, and Bryan are binge watching like crazy. Last night we were watching an episode, and Callen, who is one of the main characters, went undercover as an attorney. His name was . . . wait for it . . .

LOGAN O’NEILL.

I literally screamed, and I laughed so hard that I almost fell out of my chair.

Character Development Series – Starting with Real People

Oh, no, it’s the “DREAM CAST” article! Yep, it sure is.

Every character I have ever created, all the way back to my first story as a child, was based in some way on someone I could see and watch. Some are based on people I know in real life, but I also use celebrities or fictional characters from TV, movies, and videogames–and to be honest, a handful of professional wrestlers. The reason I do this is simple. I’m a visual person, and having someone or something to look at helps me write. In addition, it’s easy to people watch when they’re plastered all over every screen in the world. I use some people for their faces, others for their personalities, and others simply for the way they move, and one character might be based on three different people.

Continue reading

White Guard on YouTube

BlackWyrm Publishing has a channel on YouTube called Friday Fiction, in which local actors do readings from their books. This week, it’s the hubby’s and my turn! They’re reading a scene from The Order of the White Guard.

WARNING:   It’s not the best excerpt, and there’s s a reason these guys are local actors and not in Hollywood. The acting is…well, let’s just say we’re not watching Hugh Jackman here. But it’s still pretty cool.

Here’s the link: Enjoy! Or just laugh your arse off. Link

Keeping Louisville Weird.

Buy Local Fair (Mraz) - Color.small

The hubby and I will be spending Saturday afternoon hawking The Order of the White Guard at Louisville’s Buy Local Fair, hosted by the Louisville Independent Business Alliance. LIBA’s motto is KEEP LOUISVILLE WEIRD. What a great place to live!

If you’re anywhere near Louisville, Kentucky, come on out, stop by the BlackWyrm booth at the festival and say hi. We’re supposed to have good weather up until about suppertime, so I’ll be stocked up on sunblock and have my little Sharpie ready to sign the tons of books I just know we’re going to sell.