M.L.S. Weech's Blog, page 17

Visits From A Man Named Nobody 46

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Fourteen

Jan. 28, 2036, 8:19 p.m. 

14 Years, 308 Days Ago

Paul stood next to Jordan in a chamber that was hardly big enough to contain the equipment they needed. The applied physics team was nice enough to provide materials and do some basic setup, but after some brief excuses, they headed out, leaving Paul and Jordan to do the rest of the work. They didn’t think the experiment would work. If it did work, there was, of course, the small possibility that they’d create a black hole in the middle of Pittsburgh. 

They were being overdramatic. 

With the help of computers, Paul ran simulations thousands of times. Yes, one of those times formed a Black Hole, but that one in thousands chance was contingent on the vacuum they were forming actually connecting to some other random vacuum. So as long as they didn’t expand the tube into the atmosphere, that could never happen. 

A metal shell in the back of the room looked a lot like an egg, and it served two purposes: First, it would contain the spacial vacuum Paul and Jordan sought to create. Second, it would show them if their vacuum field needed a container. 

It shouldn’t. Nobody would have had to build little stainless steel chambers everywhere. That was the big news this experiment promised. A self-contained vacuum would be a big scientific advancement in and of itself, but it was just the first truly big step toward Paul’s goal. 

The egg, there really wasn’t any other thing to call it, contained various instruments. The test was to see if they could create a field in natural space without, well, breaking the fabric of space. 

Most thought that the egg itself would just become a vacuum. This would mean the experiment was a failure. It would mean the school would have wasted thousands on a project that hadn’t made any new advancements. It might even mean Paul and Jordan would lose their scholarships a little more than a year before graduation. 

Two feathers rested at the top of the egg’s interior, where the vacuum shouldn’t reach. They were held up by clamps that Jordan could release with the press of a button. In a vacuum a feather would fall as quickly as a brick. If the feathers fell quickly, that meant the egg had become a vacuum, and they’d failed. 

Of course, if the feathers just slowly drifted all the way down, that would also mean they failed. 

“Do you want to activate it?” Jordan asked. 

Paul smiled. “No, you can do it.”

Jordan shrugged. “I was … I was sort of actually hoping you’d do it.”

Paul chuckled. “That way, it would be my fault if we destroyed the Milky Way.”

Jordan gave a wry smile. “I mean, if we really mess this up, at least we know no one will remember us.  We’ll have destroyed all life in the galaxy.”

Paul cocked his eyebrows as a thought hit him. “Doesn’t the Bible say the world will end in fire or something.” 

Jordan’s head jerked back. “That’s 2 Peter.” 

“Sure,” Paul said. He didn’t know the verse. He just knew he read it. 

“I keep forgetting you’ve read it,” Jordan said.

“I didn’t memorize it, but, ‘destroyed by fire’ is a pretty memorable phrase,” Paul said. He hadn’t so much as looked at the Bible Nobody had given him for years. “So if the world is supposed to end in fire, we should be fine.”

Jordan smiled. “That … That’s actually true.” 

That worked? Paul was actually just trying to be sarcastic and maybe send a not-too-painful jab in Christianity’s direction, but it actually seemed to make Jordan feel better.

“In that case, I’ll do it!” Jordan positioned his hand over the control station that activated the equipment. “Start the recording.”

Paul walked over to the room, where a control panel sat where most would put a light switch. The room was open to most of the scientific courses of study, and it was equipped with cameras that could record to the cloud, documenting the experiments. Paul pressed the familiar red-circle button and returned to Jordan’s side. 

“Self-contained spacial vacuum attempt experiment: First Trial.” Jordan spoke in a booming orator voice, trying to be sure the cameras picked up the audio. He activated the system.

Paul immediately smiled. The air in the room dipped to freezing, swung up to an incredible heat and normalized. Water dropped from the egg as if it had suddenly dropped from the sky. It was exactly how it felt whenever Nobody traveled. 

Also, the world didn’t end, so that was nice. 

Paul crowded in closer to Jordan to look at the monitor that connected to the camera inside the egg. Everything seemed to be working still, and that was another plus. But they still didn’t know if the experiment was successful or not. 

Jordan looked at Paul and smiled again. “This time I think you should do it.”

“Um, the world is probably safe from us at this point,” Paul replied.

Jordan nodded. “Uh-hu, but now I think you should do it because it’s sort of your project.”

Paul chuckled. “Ok.” He reached out, holding in a breath as his finger rested above the button that would open the clamps holding the feathers in the egg.

He pressed the button. They watched the screen. The finger-like clamps holding the feathers opened at the same time. The feathers slowly flittered downward. 

“Yes!” They both shouted. Paul wanted to jump around, but that only meant the upper portion of the egg did not have a vacuum. If the feathers never dropped, it would be because they never made a vacuum in the first place.

“Come on!” Jordan said. 

The feathers swung around each other.

“Come ooooooon!” Paul said. 

The feathers swung in the air, drifting downward. They’d only traveled a few centimeters, but they seemed to be taunting Paul. 

Then, one feather shot down as if it had turned to stone. The second feather drifted up. As it fell back down, the pace shifted. One moment, it was a feather, drifting down. The next moment, it could have been a brick. 

“Yes!” This time, Paul and Jordan leapt into each others arms laughing. “We did it!” 

They laughed and celebrated another few moments. They then talked over each other, checking the readings and looking at the data. How big was the vacuum field? How long did it last? 

A thought occurred to Paul. “Shut it down!” 

“What? What’s wrong!” Jordan asked.

Paul slammed his palm onto the emergency shutdown button. Jordan stared at him as if he’d gone mad.

“Look,” Paul explained. “We don’t know the effect a sustained field will have. We have the data we need, but let’s not try our luck by leaving that field open too long.”

“Right,” Jordan said. “Good point. Let’s not tempt fate.”

The Return of The Great Game!

Greetings all,

While I hope to have some author news for you in the very near future (maybe as soon as the end of the month), there’s not much on the news front. That means I get to be a bit random this week. So, why not celebrate the beginning of the new football season.

I love football! I’m a die-hard 49ers fan and have been for more than 30 years, but I love the game. As I type this, we just got back from the high-school game. My middle boy is in the marching band, so we went to watch him play, and I got to see the game.

We got manhandled physically, but the score looked reasonably competitive.

Anyway, I thought I’d use this post to talk about things I’d like to see this season. So let’s do a top five!

#5: Another Browns winning season. I’m not a Browns fan, but I feel like if any team’s fans deserve some back-to-back winning seasons, it’s the Browns (maybe the Jets, but it’s not their time just yet). I actually like Mayfield. They have a great defense and a lot of moxie. I think football needs a relevant Browns team.

#4: The rushing record stay safe. Look, I’d be ok if Henry or some other back hit 2,200 yards, but Dickerson did it in, like, 14 games. So if it’s going to be broken, I think it should be broken in the same time period. That record is one of probably all records doomed now that we’re in a 17-game schedule, but I’d be happier if it stayed. The only way these records should be broken is in the same number of games. Yes, one can argue the 16-game schedule is the same way, and that’s legitimate, but we’ve been at 16 games for a long time now. I just think this record is special.

#3: A close playoff race. I mean, I want all of the playoff teams to be decided in the last week of the season. Otherwise, what’s the point? The worst thing would be for the playoff bracket to be finished by week 14 and have the preseason in the last three weeks of the regular season. I want Week 17 to matter. A lot of people are excited for more football, but I want it to be more football, not just pointless roster evaluation games.

#2: The Raiders in the playoffs. So I’ve rooted for the Raiders for quite a while now (since Jerry went to play for them). They’re also my brother’s favorite team. There are moments when I think the Raiders are just “something” short. Unfortunately, that “something” might be a defense. I love Mayock. I like Gurden, but something isn’t right there. That’s not going to stop me from rooting them on. In fact, I’d be overjoyed if they made it to the Super Bowl against this other team …

#1: A 49ers Super Bowl win! The last two losses were heartbreaking if I’m being honest. Now before you ask, I’d be fine with a competitive team (winning record). Honestly, I’ve seen enough top 5 picks to last me another 30 years. I can’t stand people who say, “Man, fire that guy. He can’t win a playoff game!” I’m like, “Ya know, it’s nice when you win more than six.” Of course every fan wants to see the top of the mountain, but I’d like to make it to a foothill reliable each season. Look at the Steelers and Ravens. Sure, you might be frustrated you don’t make the big game, but isn’t it nice to win more than you lose?

So there you have it. Do you have a 2021 NFL Wishlist? Let me know in the comments below.

Thanks for reading,

V/R
Matt

Book Review: White Sand Volume 1 By Brandon Sanderson

Spoiler free summary: In White Sand by Brandon Sanderson, Kenton aspires to be a master, but he’s barely able to control on stream of sand. That doesn’t stop him from taking on a challenge only a master could overcome. No test, however, can prepare him for the events of the future. His guild is devastated by betrayal and murder, and Kenton must rise up despite his lack of power.

Character: Kenton is a fine enough character. I like his drive and effort. The most interesting part of this book is that Kenton is weak. Most stories reveal a main character who discovers a great power. Kenton is probably the best part of the story.

Exposition: So it’s here that I’ll I’m not a fan of the graphic novel format for Sanderson. I’ve been trying to put my finger on it since I finished reading it a few months ago, and I can’t really identify it except this: the graphic novel deprives a reader of Sanderson’s prose and perspective. So while the story was ok, it lacked the life Sanderson writes with even with the quality of the art. The story didn’t drag, but neither was I pulled along the way I was with nearly every other Sanderson book. Yes, I’ll probably check out Dark One, but I was surprised to realize how much I missed Sanderson’s writing.

Worldbuilding: This is a strength of Sanderson’s, and lack of prose didn’t diminish that. The world is interesting. The way the magic system works within the society is interesting. I feel like this got right what Elantris didn’t do so well for me. I am of the opinion that Taldain has a much bugger role to play in the Cosmere than it currently has, so I may think more highly of some aspects of White Sand’s worldbuilding than is justified, but at its worst, the story’s worldbuilding is comparable to most Sanderson stories.

Dialogue: Where I really missed his prose in some areas, I think the graphic novel adaptation did Sanderson’s dialogue justice. The characters were unique. The conversations weren’t just vaguely hidden expositional blocks. The dialogue was even charming in some places.

This portrait of Mr. Sanderson was taken from his About page on his website for review purposes under Fair Use doctrine.

Description: This was the other area I felt hurt the story for me at least in regard to Sanderson. Sure, the art was well done, and it was cool to see the power work in a visual format, but I felt like my imagination was deprived of its ability to visualize the story. It’s kind of unfair to say about the format, but it is how I felt. I think another aspect was actually how there weren’t a lot of fights. White Sand is more of a political drama than an adventure story. It has fight scenes, but they aren’t what drive the story, so a graphic novel loses some power without a lot if great fights to give it that cinematic feeling.

Overall: I’m glad I read it, and it was an OK story, but I hope Sanderson doesn’t release that much stuff (especially Cosmere stuff) in an exclusive graphic novel format. The story doesn’t have the same power it would have in a fully fleshed out Sanderson book. However, I’d take a graphic novel version as opposed to nothing.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Announcing the August Book Cover of the Month! Vote for Week 3 of September!

Greetings all,

The 2021 M.L.S. Weech Book Cover of the Year is moving along. We now have a winner for August, and September is moving along nicely. Let’s get straight to it.

The August 2021 M.L.S. Weech Book Cover of the Month is …

I honestly think She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan was a no-brainer. It’s just a stunning cover.

We’re almost halfway through the roster for the 2021 M.L.S. Weech Book Cover of the Year. September’s cover will actually be the halfway winner. So let’s look at the winner for Week 2. And that winner is …

War Priest by Harmon Cooper was a pretty wicked-looking cover. It has so much energy, and the color is great.

War Priest is will join next week’s winner, The Desert Prince, and one more cover in the September 2021 M.L.S. Weech Book Cover of the Month poll. You can vote for Week 3’s best book cover right here.

I’d appreciate it if you took a look at my YouTube channel and shared it. I’m trying to generate more voters and more support for these authors and book covers, and that will also help me.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Visits From A Man Named Nobody 45

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Her hand in his sent shivers along his body. She led him down a hallway, and all he could do was stare at her hair as it swished around her long, slender neck. She opened a door and guided him into a bedroom. 

An enormous bed dominated the room. It had a red quilt that matched the color of the wooden frame. A vanity sat along the far wall. She stepped over to the it and pointed at another door.

“Bathroom is in there,” Stacy opened a drawer and started shifting through its contents. “Take off your shirt.”

“Um, what?” Paul stood dumbfounded trying to look at the door and Stacy at the same time. 

She turned around, holding a white pull-over t-shirt. “You gonna wear that beer covered shirt for the rest of the party?” One of her eyebrows curled up. 

Paul shrugged. He took the shirt and went into the bathroom before taking off the old shirt.  When pulled the soiled shirt off, he saw Nobody sitting on the white lid of the toilet.

Paul cursed in shock. 

“What’s wrong?” Stacy asked from the bedroom.

“Nothing,” Paul lied, staring at Nobody. “I just almost tripped is all.”

“This path only ends in heartbreak.” Nobody spoke softly. Apparently he didn’t want Stacy to know he was there any more than Paul did. 

“What are you doing here!?” It was hard to shout while whispering, but Paul managed it. 

Other than the sink and the toilet on which Nobody sat, the only other fixture was a bathtub. A muted-glass wall with a small door topped the rim of the tub, allowing it to serve as a shower without the use of a curtain.

“What are you expecting to happen?” Typical. He ignored Paul’s question to ask one of his own.

“Even you have to know what I’m hoping to get out of this. You wouldn’t be here if it weren’t at least possible,” Paul whispered even after turning on the sink faucet to cover the conversation. 

“Why her?” Nobody asked.

“Have you seen her?” Paul asked in reply. 

“Is she special?” Nobody asked. “She certainly isn’t your wife.”

The fire that always lived deep in Paul’s chest seemed to grow hotter. “I’m not a little boy you can just order around.” The words came out in a growl. “I even know where you’re going with this, but Bill died. He died never having what he wanted.”

“Do you truly think Bill regretted not having sex?” Nobody asked. 

“I’m sure he regretted a lot of things.” Paul used one of the towels that hung on a rack fixed to the door. He wet a part of it and used it to wipe his chest and stomach. “I’m not going to let go of an opportunity like this.” 

“One of the great lies of sin is the idea that what you think you want is going to satisfy you,” Nobody said. 

Paul smiled, turning the towel so he could dry off. “I have every intention of being satisfied.”

Nobody’s head sank. He stood up and opened the small door of the combination bath and shower. “Is that really all she is to you?”

“She’s smart, beautiful, and successful,” Paul said. “Any guy would be lucky to have her.”

“But is it that you want from her?” Paul felt Nobody’s eyes lock onto is own despite the opaque mask he wore. 

“I don’t know, but I know I want this,” Paul replied. 

Nobody carefully stepped into the shower. 

Paul chuckled. “Are you seriously going to teleport from in there?”

Nobody paused with the door half shut. “Did you want to talk about how I do it?” His head turned back to the door to the bedroom. “Or did you have other things on your mind.”

Paul looked from Nobody to the door. He only got more angry. “You’re not going to take this from me. You wouldn’t tell me how it works anyway.”

“No,” Nobody replied. “I wouldn’t. He shut the door.” 

Paul watched as the plexiglass flared with bright light. As always, the temperature seemed to dip to freezing, swing to boiling and shift back to normal as the light of the teleportation burst to life. 

He turned around and turned off the sink faucet. Then he put on the plain shirt Stacy had given him. He looked in the mirror. Bill died without so much as enjoying one moment of being in a relationship. Paul refused to miss out on those same things. Of course, that didn’t mean he was guaranteed to get what he wanted. He took a few deep breaths, and walked out.

Stacy sat on the bed. She was beautiful. She wore a strange smile that Paul felt both encouraged and confused by. 

“You’re more shy than I thought you’d be,” she said. 

Paul shrugged. “I don’t really know what to say.”

They both laughed. “You’re weird,” she said. 

“I don’t think I’m weird,” he replied.

“You are.” She used her hand to pat a spot on the bed beside her. “Let’s talk.”

Paul sat down. Next to her, he could smell whatever perfume she wore. He couldn’t identify the scent, but it might as well have been some sort of magic potion. It seemed to cloud his thoughts. “I don’t want to miss out in life.” 

“What would you miss out on?” she asked. 

“Someone … “ His voice caught. “Someone close to me died a while back.”

Her face and posture shifted. She frowned. “Who?”

Paul shook his head. “It’s hard to explain. Can we talk about you for a while.”

She tilted her head. “What do you want to know?”

He looked into her eyes. “Everything.” 

They talked for what seemed like forever. She told him about growing up. She told him about her goals to have her own business. He just listened. It was much easier to listen to her talk than to think about his life. She talked about growing up. She talked about getting into college. 

“Isn’t this boring?” She laughed and shifted as if she meant to stand. 

He snatched her hand. “No!” He smiled. “It’s not boring at all. You’re amazing.”

“I’ve just been talking.” She chuckled softly, letting herself settle back down onto the bed. “I didn’t think you’d listen to all of that.”

Paul smiled. “I already told you. I want to know everything.”

She returned the smile. She leaned in, gently kissing his lips. He was nervous at first. It felt like all of his muscles came to life at once. He held himself back for a moment, afraid to let his desire take over. Then she grabbed his head and climbed onto his lap. After that, they both let their passion run wild.

… to be continued …

Marketing Journal: A New Record For Sales In A Month!

Greetings all,

As you can see in the title, I’m quite excited by the news of this month. A while back, I was glad I about 12 sales, but I spent around $200 to get there. That led me to work to bring down my ACOS (which is always important and should be below 70%). That meant decreasing what I spend on clicks and getting my sales back to where they were (or better).

In my last update, things looked good. I brought my monthly cost down to below $100, and my sales were starting to creep up.

This brings us to the last two months.

I spent about $94 in July. You can see the one order, but that’s not the total of my sales, just what AMS tracked as sales resulting from clicks. All told, I had 12 sales in addition to the 2,619 pages read or more. Again, AMS only counts what they can track directly to clicks.

So things were picking up, and at that point I had gotten all the way back to 12 sales (where I was when I realized I was blowing money faster than I could save it), and I had cut my cost in half.

I still have a lot of work to do in this area though. What I know is that most (but not all) of the insane CPC bids have been eliminated, and that saved me about $100. I also did a decent job of finding the obvious non-profitable keywords, which are keywords that get me a lot of clicks but don’t result in any conversions. This is why my monthly bill is starting to creep in the wrong direction again. However, the same sales for half the expenses is a step in the right direction.

So August came in, and I was closer to $100 than I want to be (at least not without 55 sales), but as you can see, AMS saw 10 sales, and there were more.

I’m happy to say I have a new record for online monthly sales, which is 14!

Now I know 14 is pretty pathetic compared to someone who’s profitable (they make money on writing). It’s even worse for those big stars out there. However, anyone will tell you to celebrate every victory.

I don’t honestly remember when I started, but I do remember where, and reaching a point where I have sold more books and had more pages read than ever before is absolutely something to celebrate.

What’s the next step? Well, I scanned my books to see where my impressions were, and I had six books that had fallen well below 100,000 impressions per month. That means I have to get those books back up to snuff. Then I have to track down those vampires that are sucking up pennies and not rewarding me with any conversions. I also want to use Publisher Rocket’s new keyword analyzer function to try and get new keywords that are more profitable.

That’s going to take time, but I usually wait a few months before I do another analysis of my campaigns and add to my keywords. My hope is to get those six (I already have at least two of them) back up to 100,000 impressions per month. Then I can go back into monitoring the campaigns and trying to optimize them. I still hope to reach 60 sales a month (which would theoretically allow me to break even or better), and I’m just under a quarter of the way there!

I’ll keep you all up to date on how things progress. I’m glad to share good news with you for this post.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Book Review: Demon Slayer Volume 23 by Koyoharu Gotouge

This cover image was taken from the manga’s buy page on Amazon for review purposes under fair use doctrine.

Spoiler Free Summary: Demon Slayer Volume 23 by Koyoharu Gotouge is the twenty-third and final volume in the Demon Slayer manga. Even as the battle reaches its bitter-sweet conclusion Muzan Kibutsuji deals a blow that may mean the end for everyone. The demon hunters must set their feelings aside to take on one of their own. Can such a horrible turn of events ever lead to a happy ending?

Character: Tanjiro shines here in his determination and love, which this manga had established from the first volume. This conclusion brings everything perfectly together, and it’s Tanjiro’s heart, not his swordsmanship, that drives this story.

Exposition: I was a bit surprised here that the volume slowed down for me. The exposition here wasn’t anywhere near bad, but there were some parts that bogged the pace down. I think I noticed it more because I wanted to see how things progressed, and I felt like there were these periodic pauses that tripped me up here and there. It’s not anything crippling, but it’s there.

Worldbuilding: I don’t know how often worldbuilding plays a role in foreshadowing, but this series pulled off a wonderful plot reveal that was satisfying. From the beginning, we see something special, and that element turns out to be so very important as the story comes to a conclusion. Another element, the one that most manga of this style (Naruto/Bleach), would normally be the difference maker. We see Tanjiro’s skill develop, and like those other stories, we naturally assume that development would make the difference. That assumption is wrong.

Dialogue: From Volume 2 to Volume 23, the dialogue is more or less the same. There were several conversation and expositional (or thought) boxes that harken to older genre’s, but they’re not so many that they drag the story down. I found them mostly charming through the series, but the trend got a bit annoying in this specific volume.

Description: The panels aren’t as cinematic as the others, and some would think that means this volume is less impactful. However, I feel the opposite is true. This volume focuses so much more on character. While that means we don’t see as many epically awesome fight moves, we get much more satisfying emotional validation and closure.

Overall: As I thought about this final thought, I decided this: Demon Slayer is officially my favorite manga series ever. It’s predecessors (Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, and Bleach) were all wonderful, but Demon Slayer gets right what those other series got wrong. Those other series focused on length, but they inevitably ran into repetition issues that where meme worthy. Sure, it’s nice to have another volume to read. Yes, I still thought those series were fun to watch, but they dragged on and on. Demon Slayer is a concise, character-driven story that grabs readers by the neck and drags them along for 23 volumes until we see what might also be the most satisfying resolution I’ve ever read in a manga. That’s my opinion. I’m not saying the other sagas weren’t good, I’m just saying this saga (possibly learning from those others) is even better because I get my big fight and I get my conclusion without having to read 60 volumes (or watch 100 filler episodes) that are basically the same thing. If you haven’t started it, you should. It’s truly wonderful.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Vote for the Week 2 September Book Cover of the Month

Greetings all,

Before we talk about September, please know that the voting for the 2021 M.L.S. Weech August Book Cover of the Month is still live. As I type this, we have a tie, so your vote really matters. Please take a moment to vote.

With that said, we’re already working our way through September. We have a new winning cover to announce and seven new covers to choose from.

The winner for September Week 1 is …

The Desert Prince by Peter V. Brett was not actually my favorite in the last seven, but Brett is a wonderful author, so I’m glad this got the victory. The framing is solid, and the art style is unique, so those are points in the column, too. Prince is the first book to make it to the September poll.

You can vote for Week 2’s cover right here.

I’d appreciate it if you took a moment to visit my YouTube channel and give it a like and a follow. It’s a way to support me and watch me talk about these covers for a few minutes.

Thanks for watching,

Matt

Visits From A Man Named Nobody 44

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Paul and Jordan arrived at the Sigma Alpha Sigma sorority house more than an hour after the party’s scheduled start time. Paul didn’t really know the rules of a party, but he felt certain that showing up at the start time was considered uncool.  The four-story building seemed to be jumping with music. It was an effort not to stare at it. They weren’t the sort of people to be invited to these sorts of places. 

“I don’t think I’m going to go in,” Jordan said.

“What?” Paul asked. “Why not?”

Jordan gave him a flat look. 

“What good is it being all religious if you’re never going to have fun?” Paul asked.

Jordan jabbed a thumb at the sorority house. “What they’re doing in there might seem like fun, and maybe some of them are great people, but the majority?” Jordan shrugged. “Dude, they’re in there to get drunk and get laid. It’s not about actual fun; it’s about gratification.”

“Maybe I need a little gratification.” Paul said. 

Jordan gave him a look of pity, which bothered Paul.

“Dude you can do or not do whatever you want, but don’t get all judgmental on me,” Paul said.

Jordan closed his eyes as if Paul had just called him a name. He took a deep breath. “Fair enough. You have a right to do what you want, and I know you like Stacy. Just, just be careful, ok?”

“You’re really not coming in?” Paul asked.

Jordan shook his head. “It’s not about not having fun. I think all those people in there think they’re having a great time. But tomorrow half of them will be hungover, and another percentage will walk to their dorms in shame, regretting the fun they thought they were having. Go in there and take Stacy out on a real date. Get to know her.”

“That would be really great,” Paul said smiling and raising his eyebrows. 

“Not that way!” Jordan said. “Sure, she’s pretty, but what do you like about her?”

“You just said she’s pretty,” Paul replied.

“Lot’s of girls are pretty,” Jordan said.

“Not as pretty as her.” Paul smiled again. “If you’re not coming, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Jordan returned the smile. “OK.” He at least made an effort to hide his disapproval, which Paul supposed was something. 

Paul turned around and looked at the door. He had no interest in the drinking, but he wanted Stacy. Maybe it was shallow, but was there anything wrong with a man wanting a woman? How did relationships really start without physical attraction anyway?

Paul climbed up the three stone steps to the building’s large oak door. He pressed the doorbell and waited. The already ear-bursting volume of the music seemed to triple when the door opened revealing a short brunette wearing a sleek black pullover dress. 

She was smiling when she opened the door, but one glance at Paul caused her to frown. “Um … “ 

She jerked and looked at her PID.  The invitation link must have pinged her device. She shrugged as she glanced at the notification. “Come on in.”

Paul walked in. He hardly got both feet inside without having to push through the crowd. Was it legal to have this many people in one place? Paul turned sideways to maneuver past two dancing women and had to pull one kissing couple apart to get by. They only grunted, pulling away from each other for the second it took to let Paul past. Paul had never understood the cliche “bull in a China shop” until that moment.

“Woooo!” A male student, who wasn’t wearing a shirt, passed by with a clear plastic cup full of some drink or another. “Welcome to the party!”

Beer splashed on Paul’s face before he even knew what was happening. Paul could hardly see. He sputtered and tried to wipe his face. 

“Dude! Don’t waste it!” the student said chuckling. “Respect the brew, man!” The cup only had about another centimeter in it, but the man tossed it back and let out another wail, walking away.

Paul was preoccupied with trying to get the alcohol out of his eyes. 

“Not really used to this kind of scene are you?” Even despite the amused derision, Paul knew Stacy’s voice.

He took another moment to use what used to be a nice button-up shirt to wipe up his face. However angry he was, he was that much more determined to talk to her.

“Worth it if I get to see you.” He gave what he hoped was a winning smile. 

She laughed and shook her head. “Flattery got my attention,” she said. “But what got you in the door was how nice you were.”

“Nice?” It was strange. Paul had to basically shout to be heard, but he doubted anyone outside a one-foot radius could hear him. 

“When you helped that cafeteria worker,” Stacy said. 

“That?” Paul asked. “I was just cleaning up a mess.”

“You didn’t have to,” she said. 

“I didn’t have to throw my food all over the place either, but I did. Well, we already discussed whose fault that is,” Paul replied.

Stacy frowned at him. Her brown stare grew harsh. Why? Didn’t he just compliment her.

“So what, you’re just going to stare at me and tell me I’m pretty?” Her tone frosted over. It was almost like she was a different person. 

“Well,” Paul thought for a moment. Something Jordan said before he left seemed to echo in his mind. “Look,” he said after another second of thought. “What I want is to get to know you. Yeah, you’re pretty, and I bet a lot of guys are into you. Yes, I’m one of those guys, but I’m not just after you for, well, you know.”

She gave him a skeptical look, but she seemed to be at least calming down. “You want a drink?”

He shook his head. “I don’t drink.”

Her lip quirked in what might have been a smirk. “You don’t drink.”

“No,” he said. 

She shrugged, but her posture seemed to shift again. Did he just pass some sort of test? “Come on,” she said. “I’ll show you where you can clean your face and maybe find another shirt.”

She grabbed his hand and proceeded to guide him up the large spiral staircase that lead out of the main floor where the bulk of the partygoers were frolicking.

… to be continued …

The Wheel of Time Amazon Series is Coming! How Do I Feel?

Greetings all,

I thought I’d talk about this since the Weech news is a little light this week. As any who follow this blog knows, The Wheel of Time is my second favorite series. I think it’s brilliant. The Amazon live-action series based on those books is scheduled to air in November.

I’m not normally one to rely too heavily on book adaptations. They’re better than they use to be, but they can be hit or miss, especially for those who are truly invested in the source material.

If I’m being honest, I’m worried. I’ve read a few posts from Brandon Sanderson regarding it, and I want to hope for the best, but the correct frame of mine isn’t to think of this as a live action version of the books. Instead, one needs to think of it as a reimagining of a story based on the source material.

That’s pretty much impossible for me to do. I don’t want to watch someone else’s version of Rand, I just want to see that story played out in a live setting.

So that leaves me in a place where I already know I’m going to watch the show, but I have to keep telling myself not to expect a direct recreation (though if they do that, I’ll be ecstatic). I don’t know how I’ll feel about it. The thing is, I just want to see these characters.

Sure, they’re making some casting decisions for the sake of diversity, and I understand those decisions on some level. I think I can swallow some of those decisions. (If you want me to talk more on this, just post a comment below). What should matter more to me is that the essence of the story be maintained. However, what I must admit I want is that the actual story (not just some director’s vision of the essence of that story) be respected. I don’t need every scene played out exactly the way it happened in the book. I don’t need every character. But I do hope to see the story play out the way it did in the books. That’s why I loved it.

None of those desires changes the fact that I doubt things will play out that way. I guess I’m going to try and accept it for what it is, but I can’t express how hard that is for me.

Take the Phoenix saga. They’ve tried that twice, and twice they failed my favorite comic event ever (horrifically). I will say I thought the second attempt was better (I at least saw the entity twice). I’ll never understand how people don’t just faithfully recreate what people love.

So expect to see reviews from me (I’m not sure how often). I’m hoping I’ve grown enough as a person to at least give this a fair try. My hope is acknowledging my bias will help me be more conscious of it, and so better able to control it.

What about you? Are you going to watch? What are you hoping for? Let me know in the comments below.

Thanks for reading,

Matt