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Letters' Blog
I can't promise a cure to boredom, but perhaps a different kind... |
  Welcome to the blog and thank you for visiting. I had a blog running back before I left the country, but now that I am back I figure I might as well get it going again. Here I will post any updates about anything, but I cannot promise it will be good. The Lost Prince is my epic fantasy novel and is currently in talks, so maybe it will be in print sometime in the next decade. There is a mini synopsis for it in the profile if anyone is interested. I am attempting to get some new short stories out, just fighting the big writer's block monster that seems to lurk in the shadows behind me any time I open a word processor. |
| Time to reboot? |
Well I know it has been a while since I have had any time to do anything on here, but I have a few minutes this morning, so why not jot something down. First off I would like to start by saying thank you to Jonas   and blue jellybaby is BLUE!  for their awesome judging of "So, You Think You Can Write"  , I could not have done it without them. Round 1 of "So, You Think You Can Write" was, I believe, a success. There were seven total entries, which is not bad for a contest debut, and I am hoping to get into the double digits with entries during Round 2. I already have some judges lined up for Round 2 and I think they are absoutely perfect for this round's genre requirements. For Round 2, if you are interested in entering, you may choose from two different mixed genres including Drama and Fantasy or Drama and Western. I cannot tell you how excited I am to read this round's entries. I thought the last ones were good, but I have a feeling this round's will take the cake all out. You have until August 31st at midnight to enter your best mixed genre story for a chance at some great prizes, and remember, the more people that enter, the more GPs get dished out.And... I do have a bit of time left. Well, how about a small glimpse at The Dark Knight Rises! Don't worry, no spoilers. Now, I can't tell you how excited I was going into this movie, and I must say that I walked out just as awestruck and satisfied as I did from The Dark Knight. Nolan has done it again by putting together a stellar cast including newbies Ann Hathaway as Selina Kyle, Tom Hardy as Bane, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as John Blake. The original cast exists, save for those who didn't make it out of one and two, but the story absolutely works. If you were worried about Heath Ledger's performance being unmatchable, I can honestly say that you need not worry about Bane in the newest (and final) installment of Nolan's batman series. Bane is smart, creepy, and all around evil, and though I would not go as far as saying that he is a better villan than the Joker, he is definitely on the same par. Christian Bale is great yet again and the supporting cast of Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, and Michael Caine are yet again what makes the movie work. The movie is PG-13, 2 hours and 45 minutes, and is for sure worth it. I don't want to give anything away as far as the story goes, because you really, really need to go see it for yourself. My sisters loved it. My wife loved it. I left the theater with a huge smile and the desire to see it again. Well guys, that is all I have time for this morning. I hope you weren't too bored, and if you were, well... |
| An ode to all those who have served, to all those that will |
| Memorial Day weekend is almost over, and I felt it necessary to thank all of those that have served before me, to those that are currently serving, and all of those that will serve their country in the armed forces. My time spent in the Army has proved to set me up for success for later on in my life, but it is important for every service member to remember that we could not do it without the entire support of the nation we are fighting for every day. Every soul that calls the United States of America home is fighting for the same thing, whether we disagree in certain aspects, or go about it in different ways. We must remember that we are all in this together. So, again, I thank everyone who has served, and I thank those who have supported a service member either directly, financially, or most importantly, emotionally. Now, I have been out of the loop lately, so I have not been able to watch as many movies or read as many books as I would like, but I have heard some good things about both the Avengers and Men in Black 3 (yes, I know, MIB3...). Now, The Devil's Double, a movie I did watch recently that was, I must say, superb. It is about a local man named Latif who is picked by Uday Hussein, Saddam's son, and forced to play his double. Both Latif and Uday are played by Dominic Cooper, and he is amazing throughout the entire film. I won't ruin anything else for you, but definitely give it a watch if you have some time. A book I finished recently that wasn't terrible is called The Assignment by Mark Andrew Olsen is a decent thriller/suspense novel based on a shadowy, thousand year old person and his battle with evil forces. It is well written and proves to be a good, quick read. Now, if the thriller/suspense genre isn't your cup of tea, how about Rant by Chuck Palahniuk, the author of Fight Club and Choke, is an exceedingly interesting read and will both disgust and make you roll around laughing. It is written in its entirety as an oral biography, where you never actually read directly about or are spoken to by the main character, Buster Landru "Rant" Casey, but instead get the views and opinions of people who knew him, or of him at least, as they paint the picture of the phenomenal life of Rant Casey. Give it a try if you are looking for something entirely different than you have ever seen before. |
| Let the contest begin! |
| Well, I had been toying with the idea of creating a contest and finally got it up. "So, You Think You Can Write" is a mixed genre short story contest that accepts entries from 1000 to 10000 words in the Mystery genre with a choice of Romance or Psychology as the sub-genre. I really wanted to give the great writers of WDC a chance to compete in a contest with worthwhile prizes and a solid judging structure. I think some contests get too caught up in complex prompts and endless regulations, but with "So, You Think You Can Write" I wanted to give writers the chance to show off their creative talents and get some great prizes in the process without being handcuffed the entire time. So, if you have some time and want to see if you have what it takes, stop by the page and enter with your best! I would like to thank Addison - Writing  for his help and input in creating the contest, as well as being the first donation.Alright, enough about me. Let's talk about a pretty decent movie me and my wife watched the other night. Machine Gun Preacher stars Gerard Butler and follows the true story of Sam Childers, a biker badboy who gets out of prison, gets into trouble once again, but instead of going down the same path as before, he finds Jesus and gets his life on track. He eventually goes to Uganda on a mission trip and then, changed by the things he sees over there he decides to build an orphanage for Sudanese children who are fleeing the civil war. Well, I hope I didn't ruin the movie for you, but seriously, if you have a chance give it a watch, you won't be disappointed. Well, hope you weren't too bored. Thanks for stopping by! |
| Off to the races |
| Well, it has been a busy week, but I thought I would take a few moments at least to post something. Not a whole lot of news here. North Carolina just passed the Marriage Amendment, don't really care to elaborate on what that means for the state, or the country for that matter, but I am sure you can look up and see what it means. I tend to shy away from politics, something about being in the military makes it all seem somewhat absurd. Anyways, I finally got a short story out. "Art of the Con" is a story about a career conman/thief named Aaron. I wrote it for the What a Character contest and am hoping to get a few reviews on it before I send it in. I have a feeling it needs some more editing. If you have a chance, give it a read and in your review make sure and link me one of your pieces that you would like reviewed and I will get to it within the next couple of days.I am hoping to get to join in on the upcoming WDC Power Raid that begins on the 11th, I believe, but don't quote me on that. Oh, pretty cool movie to give a watch if you are bored and have some time to kill. Chronicle is about three friends who gain telekinesis by coming into contact with some sort of artifact one evening. It is shot by hand cam and uses some pretty amazing special effects that are not too Michael Bay. All around, it is a good, entertaining, and interesting movie. My wife even liked it, which is saying something. It has been fun, but my time has run out. Have a great rest of the night and hopefully you will sleep better than I will. |
| Contest much? |
| Well, as you are probably astutely aware, there are many great contests on WDC. Now, I have not personally entered many of them, but someday when I have this little thing called time, I would love to. I do, however, think that the very least I can do is spend a small amount of time talking about them and maybe get them a little more business; the circle of life, as it were. Let's start with one of my favorite ones, "Last Pen Standing." which is hosted by TheGary . Now, this is a contest where the first round is based on peer votes, and the second round judged by, in most cases, TheGary himself, along with other guest judges. Each month there is a new, well thought out prompt that varies in its intricacies. Take a moment to stop by and get the gist of the contest for yourself, I promise you will not be disappointed.I also enjoy some contests without prompts, such as "The Classic Story Contest" . This is a fun one and is a more character driven contest. Lornda  strives to read a story with a well thought out equally displayed character that will inspire readers. Sometimes it is cool to not have a prompt, to just put pen to paper and surprise even yourself. If you are looking to flex your creative character making muscles, give this one a look.Of course WDC official contests are always worth giving a look at, even if only for the awesome rewards they boast. Though, I must say, Short Shots is usually pretty interesting and worthwhile. Hmm... well I still have some time so I'll talk about a pretty interesting movie I found the other day. Largo Winch, directed by AJ Schnack, is a French film based off of a Belgian comic and I must say, it is a must see. If you are looking for a fun, intelligent, and action packed film, then look no further. The story envelopes the life of the adopted Largo, heir to a multi-billion dollar corporation, who is thrust into the spotlight after his father's murder. He faces multiple assassination attempts as he tries to decipher who he can and cannot trust. There is more twists and turns in this movie than a Dan Brown novel, and at the end you will be left with a satisfied smile on your face. Brave the fact that half of the film is in French, and other languages, making you read a lot, and you will not regret it. Well, I suppose that is enough for now. Remember, I am not against reviewing, so drop me a link with whatever you want looked at and I will give it my best. Have a great rest of the night and good luck with the coming week. |
| No news is good news. |
| I know, this post has nothing to do with the title. I just thought it one of those weird sayings... right? Time, as it always seems to do, flutters by aimlessly. April is almost over and we will be moving on to May and promises of hopefully less rain storms and more sun. If there are any Game of Thrones fans out there I haven't watched Episode 4 of Season 2 yet, but I am hoping that it is on par with the rest of Season 2. So far, this show is probably the finest product HBO has put out, maybe other than The Wire, but they are so different in premise and setting that they are hardly comparable. If you haven't read the books by George R. R. Martin yet you definitely should. I must warn you that the first novel is a bit overwhelming with the introduction of some 20+ characters. I would say if you can get past the first 250 pages you will fall in love. I know that is not something one wants to hear when being pitched a novel, but when Martin writes an Epic Fantasy, or High Fantasy, novel, he doesn't play around. In the Song of Ice and Fire, which is the series that envelops the Game of Thrones (the first novel in the series), you see one of the most complex political systems ever to reach fiction, and characters with equal depth. I definitely hope you read all five of them. Not interested in the Game of Thrones? How about a little Patrick Rothfuss with his epic adventure, The Name of the Wind, the first novel of The Kingkiller Chronicles. Rothfuss weaves a world that people cannot even dream of, much less put down on paper, and he has created a character in Kvothe that rivals even the deepest, most interesting characters ever depicted. Kvothe is an orphan who, through considerable aptitude and cleverness, succeeds in more ways than one. I recommend this read to anyone who enjoys books, not just epics or fantasy, don't let the genre full you, this is one of the most stunning novels I have ever read in my life. Anyways, I hope you got at least some ideas, and I hope you have a better day than you started with. Thanks for stopping by! |
| Oh Saturday... |
| Well, happy weekend to everyone. Right now I am deciding between a few pieces and a few contests, trying to pick which one to enter with which piece. I have read some interesting stories lately, but I am currently reading House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski and let me tell you, if you want a very different type of read take a look at it. House of Leaves is ergodic literature, which means the style and page layout are very nontraditional. Danielewski uses the actual distribution of words on the page to help the effect of the story. There is also two separate stories being told from different narrators and footnotes to various different books, most of which do not exist. Anyways, it is in the horror genre, but I would go as far as to say that it is actually a bit of Romantic Horror, if there is such a thing. If you have the time check it out. It definitely doesn't disappoint. The Lost Prince is still in negotiations and I don't know much else other than that. I try to forget that there is even a chance that it could be published just in case it all falls through. Hopefully it will make it. If you are even the least bit interested in the story I have the "The Lost Prince mini synopsis" that gives you a rough overview and also "The Wash" which is actually the short story that inspired the novel and main character. Now, The Wash is slightly different than the end product of the first novel of the series, but it gives you an idea of where Kareth is coming from as well as outlining the basics of the Vint and its surroundings.That is all for today. Thanks for stopping by and have a great day! |
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