EK Jonathan's Blog, page 5
May 6, 2019
New Podcast Episode is Here
And this time we’re talking about creating compelling characters. What makes certain characters feel like living, breathing people while others feel flat and uninteresting? In this episode, I attempt to answer that question. Enjoy!
May 3, 2019
Podcast coming soon
Hi there! Just a tiny update that the writing on STAND is going well (maybe even a tiny bit ahead of schedule). I'll provide a bit more info on it in an upcoming podcast, which will delve into some helpful tips for crafting compelling characters. Stay tuned!
April 17, 2019
I took a trip to Namibia, and here’s what I saw
Ok, so not a real, physical trip. While I’d absolutely love the chance to fly to the Southern end of Africa and explore Namibia’s canyons, its sprawling desert coast, and its majestic rivers and waterfalls, due to financial limitations such a trip is currently out of the question. (Maybe one day?)
For now, I’ve settled with traveling there through the wonders of technology, particularly via Google Earth. I’ve soared over the dunes of the Kalahari desert and strolled through the streets of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. I’ve trawled through Wikipedia’s copious articles on the indigenous tribes found in this part of Africa, like the mysterious desert-dwellers known as the San, renowned for their ability to draw water from the ground using only blades of grass and empty ostrich eggs.
I of course realize that many have found the premise of the FLEE series farfetched, and rightly so. The notion that we’d somehow be corralled into a single location for salvation during Armageddon is highly unlikely (some might even say impossible, though I'm wary of calling anything impossible). But if a mass evacuation were to happen, my bet is that we’d be headed here, to Africa, where the land is almost endlessly vast and largely uninhabited.
There is something uniquely alluring about this part of the world. Perhaps it is the fact that our first ancestors were likely given life in a land not so far away, so that much of our early history unfolded in a region similar to this, where many of the same plants and animals existed. Perhaps it is the presence of so many indigenous tribes down to this day that makes the land feel, in some ways, pure and untouched, so unlike our developed, technology-dependent cities.
Maybe it’s the raw beauty of the land: golden desert sands stretching for hundreds of miles before abruptly ending in the crystal blue waters of the Atlantic; natural rivers winding like arteries through otherwise barren scenery; stunning night panoramas that bring to mind Jehovah’s promise to Abraham about his seed becoming as numerous as the stars. In developed countries, that metaphor doesn’t evoke much, but here, where cities, billboards, and highways don’t exist to reflect so much light into the atmosphere, you can see with the naked eye more stars than you could count in a hundred lifetimes.
Of course, there’s another possibility for why I find myself so drawn to this part of the world. Perhaps there is something elegantly poetic about restarting civilization here, right where it all began so many millennia ago.
There is something irresistibly beautiful about such symmetry.
April 14, 2019
It’s tax season, and boy do I have things to say about it
Today I’m not blogging about the books or about writing, but about the dreaded annual American pastime of tax preparation. (If you’re not American, chances are that tax preparation for you is a much simpler, and possibly even automatic, process.)
If you’re like most Americans though, you probably get anxious just thinking about tax season and the necessary paperwork involved. Chances are you’ve probably also used paid software like H&R Block or Intuit’s TurboTax. After all, these services provide convenient tools to expedite the tax process… right?
Living abroad, tax filing for me is an especially arduous process. I’m required by the US government to report foreign earnings as well as any money made in the US. Of course, this includes Amazon book sales and PayPal donations. For years, TurboTax seemed like the best option to handle all of these details. After all, it was only about $40 per year to purchase the software.
Well, this year I ran into major problems. For whatever reason, the 2018 software was incredibly buggy and slow, and update downloads sometimes took hours to complete. I actually had to shut the software down multiple times since it completely froze my computer. It was so frustrating that I decided that next year I’d try some other option and abandon TurboTax altogether. So, while waiting for the program to perform one of its many hours-long updates, I did some digging online.
And this is when I found out the ugly truth behind TurboTax: It’s parent company, Intuit, actively lobbies in congress to make the tax filing process as complicated as possible. In 2016, for example, they spent $2 million on lobbying. This money was primarily spent to fight a bill that would pave the way for a free, automatic tax-filing service. The reason for all the lobbying? Simple. Easier tax filing would rob these companies of their customers. (According to their own fiscal reports, Intuit made $5.2 billion in 2017 alone.)
Of course, this isn’t the only example of big companies throwing money at government entities to protect their interests. Cigarette companies, big pharma, and weapons manufacturers all play the same games.
This blog post isn’t meant to be political in any way, or to suggest any kind of reform or boycott. After all, we all know the only solution to these problems is a completely clean slate, where corrupt governments, lobbyists, and greedy corporations don’t exist. Still, I find it especially frustrating to know that even a simple thing like a piece of software is really just another cog in the greed machine.
Can’t wait for the end!
(If you’d like to read up more on the subject, check out these articles: Vox & NBC)
If you’re like most Americans though, you probably get anxious just thinking about tax season and the necessary paperwork involved. Chances are you’ve probably also used paid software like H&R Block or Intuit’s TurboTax. After all, these services provide convenient tools to expedite the tax process… right?
Living abroad, tax filing for me is an especially arduous process. I’m required by the US government to report foreign earnings as well as any money made in the US. Of course, this includes Amazon book sales and PayPal donations. For years, TurboTax seemed like the best option to handle all of these details. After all, it was only about $40 per year to purchase the software.
Well, this year I ran into major problems. For whatever reason, the 2018 software was incredibly buggy and slow, and update downloads sometimes took hours to complete. I actually had to shut the software down multiple times since it completely froze my computer. It was so frustrating that I decided that next year I’d try some other option and abandon TurboTax altogether. So, while waiting for the program to perform one of its many hours-long updates, I did some digging online.
And this is when I found out the ugly truth behind TurboTax: It’s parent company, Intuit, actively lobbies in congress to make the tax filing process as complicated as possible. In 2016, for example, they spent $2 million on lobbying. This money was primarily spent to fight a bill that would pave the way for a free, automatic tax-filing service. The reason for all the lobbying? Simple. Easier tax filing would rob these companies of their customers. (According to their own fiscal reports, Intuit made $5.2 billion in 2017 alone.)
Of course, this isn’t the only example of big companies throwing money at government entities to protect their interests. Cigarette companies, big pharma, and weapons manufacturers all play the same games.
This blog post isn’t meant to be political in any way, or to suggest any kind of reform or boycott. After all, we all know the only solution to these problems is a completely clean slate, where corrupt governments, lobbyists, and greedy corporations don’t exist. Still, I find it especially frustrating to know that even a simple thing like a piece of software is really just another cog in the greed machine.
Can’t wait for the end!
(If you’d like to read up more on the subject, check out these articles: Vox & NBC)
March 12, 2019
New podcast epsiode
If you've ever tried working on a creative project but weren't feeling at all inspired, you'll know the struggle I describe in this episode. Fortunately, over the years I've found some helpful tips for navigating those times, and describe them here. Enjoy!
March 3, 2019
On a roll!
So I'm going to be cautiously optimistic and make it official: I'm on a roll with the writing of the final installment of the FLEE series, STAND. It can be a tricky thing to determine if momentum on such a large project is temporary or stable, but I'm feeling pretty good about this book after taking a few months off after The Bloom of Youth. I'm back on track and hitting daily writing goals and it feels great. There's still plenty of work left on it but we're still looking good for a late Summer release, so stay tuned!
In the meantime, check out the newest podcast episode. I've been asked in the past about the tools I use to write novels, and while I've talked here before about MacJournal, I thought a video of me actually navigating the program would be helpful. Enjoy!
In the meantime, check out the newest podcast episode. I've been asked in the past about the tools I use to write novels, and while I've talked here before about MacJournal, I thought a video of me actually navigating the program would be helpful. Enjoy!
February 17, 2019
On a roll...?
It's been a productive last couple of weeks. I've set clear writing targets for the last book in the FLEE series, STAND, and have really been motivated to progress with the story. As I mentioned in the last podcast, it's proving a real challenge to connect and conclude the story lines and character arcs introduced in previous books while moving the general plot of the series forward. But we're getting there, and it feels really good!I've also been chipping away the the newest podcast episode when I have some spare time ("chipping away" meaning working on the illustrations for the video). My drawing skills aren't great and my digital drawing skills are even worse, but perhaps with time and practice the quality will improve some. In the meantime, I hope you can enjoy the illustrations, messy though they are.
This latest podcast episode, number 14, answers some of the questions I've gotten regarding the latest book, The Bloom of Youth, and in particular, whether or not Will's experiences parallel my own as a teen. Enjoy!
February 11, 2019
Podcast Episode #13 is here along with a sneak peak...
Yep, a new podcast. This one answers some of my most commonly asked questions regarding the FLEE series and also offers a sneak peak of the last book’s cover and title. Enjoy!
January 26, 2019
New podcast
Hi all! As promised, the new podcast episode is here!
In this episode I offer some suggestions for improving creative writing, and specifically descriptive writing for fiction. So if writing's your thing, definitely give it a look!
I tried something a little different with this episode and did some drawings for the different sections. I realize that this makes it a bit less of a ‘podcast’ and more of a standard YouTube video, but I think it makes the visual aspect of it a lot more interesting. If you like/don’t like the change, feel free to let me know!
In this episode I offer some suggestions for improving creative writing, and specifically descriptive writing for fiction. So if writing's your thing, definitely give it a look!
I tried something a little different with this episode and did some drawings for the different sections. I realize that this makes it a bit less of a ‘podcast’ and more of a standard YouTube video, but I think it makes the visual aspect of it a lot more interesting. If you like/don’t like the change, feel free to let me know!
January 21, 2019
Still here...
Hi all, and whew has it been a long time since my last post! I try to update this blog at least once a month, but lately... well, that hasn't happened.
Actually, there isn't much to report, but I wanted to pop in and let you all know that I'm still alive and kicking, and that the third book of the FLEE series is still underway. Additionally, I've got a new podcast episode in the works, so you can keep an eye out for that. (I actually wrote and recorded episode #12 and was about halfway through editing it when I accidentally lost all of my video files, so I'll have to start that one over, but it should be coming soon!)
Aside from all this, there's been plenty of interesting correspondence coming in. In the early days of writing these books, I'd get maybe one or two emails every couple of months, but as the catalog of novels has grown [and readership along with it], it's not uncommon to have new messages waiting each morning. I try to reply promptly to each and every message, but some require a bit more time and thought to form a proper response. So if you've written recently and haven't yet heard back, I'm not ignoring you... :)
As always, thanks so much for your patience, messages, and reviews on Amazon. All of it is greatly appreciated!
Actually, there isn't much to report, but I wanted to pop in and let you all know that I'm still alive and kicking, and that the third book of the FLEE series is still underway. Additionally, I've got a new podcast episode in the works, so you can keep an eye out for that. (I actually wrote and recorded episode #12 and was about halfway through editing it when I accidentally lost all of my video files, so I'll have to start that one over, but it should be coming soon!)
Aside from all this, there's been plenty of interesting correspondence coming in. In the early days of writing these books, I'd get maybe one or two emails every couple of months, but as the catalog of novels has grown [and readership along with it], it's not uncommon to have new messages waiting each morning. I try to reply promptly to each and every message, but some require a bit more time and thought to form a proper response. So if you've written recently and haven't yet heard back, I'm not ignoring you... :)
As always, thanks so much for your patience, messages, and reviews on Amazon. All of it is greatly appreciated!
