Clinton W. Waters's Blog: Writing Sundries

(UN)Bury Your Gays & Other Queer Tales

My newest book (UN)Bury Your Gays compiles a novella along with 6 other stories, blending fantasy, scifi, and horror. If you followed along with my lit mag submission journey last year, many of those stories, accepted or rejected, found a home in this collection.

A quick rundown:

1. (UN)Bury Your Gays - Queer horror retelling/follow up to Lovecraft's Reanimator

2. You & Me & The Devil Makes Three - Something is living beneath the kitchen sink...and Alan Jr.'s mother is talking to it.

3. The Wanting - In a world where desires are made manifest, Walt comes face to face with something he's been trying to repress for most of his life.

4. Snakedoctors - Two boys decide to go swimming in the crick, something memaw had strictly forbidden them from doing.

5. Nephilim.exe - Nessie has gotten a new job in the cutting edge field of virtual reality, where something was waiting to be found.

6. Double Exposure - The narrator's prom photos feature his best friend Kyle. The only trouble is Kyle has been dead for months.

7. Out There - A missive written from a spaceship with an experimental engine, a mission to find the intelligent life that crashed on Earth decades before.

If these sound interesting, pop over, add it to your Want to Read list, and grab a copy!

Monarch: Titansong Announcement

Hey y'all! My newest book is out! It's an all ages fantasy featuring bugs (who's surprised?) on a hero's quest. I'm so excited to share this story with you. Hopefully Goodreads will have it available soon to add to your lists.

Check out the book description below and go to My LinkTree to grab a copy for yourself!

Follow The Oak Road, wherever it may lay…

Every year, bugs from all walks of life make The Pilgrimage in hopes of seeing The Monarch. It's said that any bug able to survive the journey to the peak of Mount Kaefer is magically granted a single wish. The path, known as The Oak Road, is winding, strange, and full of dangers.

Which is exactly why Titan has never even dreamed of being a Pilgrim. However, the Monarch has other plans. A big beetle from a small village, Titan must brave the elements, giant creatures, and perhaps worst of all: his own doubt. Luckily he meets some world-wise bugs to help him along the way.

"Monarch: Titansong" is a tale of friendship and adventure for young readers (and readers young at heart), who love books such as "James and the Giant Peach", "Redwall", and "Mrs. Frisby and The Rats of NIMH".

Monarch: Titansong also includes the collaborative storytelling roleplaying game Monarch. Create a bug from one of the four factions and embark on your very own adventure to meet The Monarch!

New Futures Gleaming Darkly 3/20/21

(News story and image via

JapanGov on Twitter )

A pop up cafe in Japan has utilized robot servers and hosts piloted remotely by patients. Definitely check out the video because it's so cool to see in action!

The pandemic has opened our eyes to the numerous jobs that can be done from home, opening doors for those with disabilities that were previously closed due to ableism.

Let's start with a few of the positive implications of this technology. Less physical stress on servers, whether they have physical conditions or not, safer conditions for staff (if you've worked in food you know burns, cuts and bruises are not rare whatsoever) and customers (less likely to pass contaminants), as well as enabling servers to save on traveling or work til close and have their bed just a few feet away.

I also think about mental health implications. It goes without saying, but sometimes it is _exhausting_ to be "on". Even more exhausting than the physical portion of the job. And that's for neurotypical people. For those with depression/anxiety, it can be a nightmare.

Saving physical strain could help cut down on the emotional strain as well. Socially, a server would not have to force a smile and could effectively express themselves with fewer issues involving appearance. Every server, especially women, has at least one horror story about unwanted advances or equally unwelcome critiques about their looks. Happier servers, happier customers.

My mind goes to video games of course and depending on the restaurant, they could even hone personalities or characters to play. It works for Medieval Times, right?

But there are hang ups, of course. Especially in America. In many countries, servers don't rely on tips because they are paid a living wage. Any restaurant utilizing this technology would have to do the same, which would likely be a big turn off for restaurant owners, especially chains. But in my experience at Starbucks, we made more than minimum wage and divvied up tips that were added to our paychecks. So maybe it's not so outlandish to think it could work.

Overall, this is an example of technology that makes me hopeful for the future. Technology should be working to be inclusive to all people. The pandemic has shown some uglier sides of remote work (school programs invading privacy to ensure attendance or not being able to see students of color with darker skin and counting it against them). So it's nice to see something positive to swing the pendulum in the other direction.

What do you think? Would you eat at a robot server cafe/restaurant? If so or if not, let me know why!

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Also, this is a new blog format I'm going to try out! I'm thinking weekly, on Saturdays, bringing you a new tech story and giving you my thoughts. Let me know if you'd like to see more/if you find any cool topics!

-30- Announcement

My newest book, -30-, will be available in paperback and ebook in a little under two weeks, on January 19th, 2021!

-30- is a scifi romance that focuses on Greg, who is celebrating his 30th birthday. A milestone for most people, this birthday is even more important as there is the chance he will utterly disappear at midnight. Using the companion-hiring app Ephemera, Greg has chosen Joe to spend the day with him. What starts as a rented relationship becomes something deeper as the day goes on.

Preorder your ebook copy today hereClinton W. Waters and it will be auto-downloaded to your kindle or kindle app on release day!

Unicalcarida: Genre

Over the next little bit, I'm going to get the word out about my new novel, Unicalcarida, coming out January 3rd! I'll be doing this by highlighting some different aspects of the novel!

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First up, arguably the highest level of classification for a book: genre!

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Simply put, it's fantasy. A rambling, Amazon-esque genre would look like this: young adult LGBT+ fantasy fiction. There's also some magical realism and alternate history thrown in there for good measure.

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This is my first venture into specifically writing for a young adult audience (definitely thinking more in the adult side of young adult). I'm really excited to see how it will be received.

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What genre do you write in? Does this seem ~i n t r i g u i n g ~? Let me know if there's any other info you want to make sure I cover in these reveals!

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Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sale!

Check Out My Books Here!
Waiting in line at the mall? Need a moment of zen before piledriving that old lady for a marked down TV? Avoiding human interaction/the Black Friday madness at all costs? Have I got the deal for you! .
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For a limited time, all of my previously released ebooks are marked down, so don't miss out! .
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And while you're perusing my books, go ahead and preorder my brand new novel, Unicalcarida, slated to release January 3rd! .
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Futures Gleaming Darkly = $.99
Dreams Fading Brightly = $.99
Vivisection & Other Poems = FREE!!! Unicalcarida = Pre-orders available! .

Writing Basics: Magic

There are as many ways to write magic as there are stars in the sky. However, I have a few handy tips to help out in creating the magic of your world. These also apply to superpowers, if that is more your bent!
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1. Magic should not come for free. Whether it is a physical toll taken on the body, prerequisite years of study of ancient languages to be able to perform it, or the sacrifice of components, you are making extraodinary things happen. Setting prices on those things makes them more real.
2. Magic should have limits. Those could be the laws of physics that govern the universe or you can throw those out the window. If you do, however, be prepared to set some caps. This ties into point one, but essentially, avoid letting magic solve every problem or be an easy fallback.
3. Magic can be rare or ubiquitous or somewhere in between, but it should be alive. Even if your world is not earth, people, even if they're elves or dwarves, they will always be innovating and changing how they use tools. There's something to say for the mysticism of "the old ways" but an immediate way of adding depth to your chosen magic is a tweak here, an outlawed practice there. If your story is set on modern day earth, explain how people use their phones and the internet to look up and trade spells, for example. .
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Hopefully that sparks some imagination in your creative process and helps you solidify the magical system for your world. .
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Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think!

Writing Basics: From Concept to Paper

You've got a great idea. It came to you while you were driving home or in the middle of the night on your way to the bathroom. .
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The trouble is, it's not a story. It's just a scene, a location, a character, or a single line. Or so you thought. What you may not know is that one little piece is all you need.
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We can look at it two ways, via the metaphor of sculpture: additive and subtractive. .
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Additive: Say your idea is small in scale. It's a single line of dialogue, such as, "Things will never be the same." Take that lump of clay and add another. Who is saying this? Where are they? What had made them say it? .
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Subtractive: What if your idea is broad and undefined? Let's say you want to write about heartbreak. Heartbreak is the giant chunk of limestone in your mind. Chisel away at it with probing questions. Is it the heartbreak of unrequited love, of a good relationship that can't continue due to circumstances, or is it losing a loved one? Eventually you will home your limestone into a story.
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Whatever that lump of clay or block of limestone is, write it down. Your finished product might be in a completely different medium or turn out looking differently than you thought, but it's still worthy of writing down. .
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This can occur once or a million times over the course of writing a single story. The biggest lie you can ever be told about writing is that you have to have it all planned out before you put pen to paper. Your ideas are valuable and so is your work!

Writing Basics: Conflict

Whether it's an epic quest to defeat evil or a trip to the grocery store, any and every story can have conflict. Even happy stories. "Feel Good" stories usually make you feel good because it involves someone overcoming some adversity. .
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Don't think about conflict as fist fights or someone acting directly against someone else. Sometimes, it is just that and it is plain to see. However, many times it can be much more subtle. Someone could be stuck between two options, both of which are good for them. Someone might have a seemingly great life but still struggle with something about themselves. Not every story needs a hand-wringing n'e'rdowell lying in wait to ruin everything. .
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Internal or external, conflict moves your story forward. Even if your setting never changes, if you only focus on one person doing one thing, the conflict is what keeps us engaged. You don't always have to stick to intro, riding action, climax, falling action, although it is a tried and true method.
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The trouble with this is that many writers get hung up on whether or not their conflict is interesting enough. Listen carefully. If you put your heart into it, readers can be captivated by a quiet dinner alone. Did they choose to be alone? If not, what happened? If so, why? Are they stressed about work or family? If they're pleased as punch, what's got them in such a great mood? Conflict can be told in the past, as it's happening or even as it might come to pass.
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While saving the world is a heavy burden and almost always entertaining, don't feel pressured to constantly raise stakes. Sometimes low stakes make for better reading if it gives us more time to know the characters. Likewise, what may seem like low stakes could feel like the end of the world.

Writing Basics: Food

A little detail that can add a lot of _flavor_ (sorrynotsorry) to a character is food. .
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Specifically, what relationship does your character(s) have to food? What restaurants do they frequent? Is there a difference between what they eat when they're happy or sad? Do they really watch what they eat or do they think life's too short to worry about it?
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Food can be a shorthand for where a character is from or where they're at now. Food is a foundation for every culture and regional group and can vary wildly from one community to another. .
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Take, for example, if you were to write me as a character. I was raised and live in the American south. My mom and two aunts have all or currently own restaurants. I joke that I bleed biscuits and gravy. Today, my mom and I ate at an aunt's restaurant and it felt like what the good parts of my home mean to me. We made small talk with everyone there, there were lots of hugs and "how's your mama and them?"s. Coincidentally, you may have read "biscuits and gravy" and thought "now what the hell is that?"
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When I lived in Germany, I missed that comfort food every day. Luckily, I had lots of delicious food at hand in Bavaria to fill that need. However, at one point me and my friends made biscuits and gravy for our international friends to show them what we kept rambling on about. On the other hand, I have missed Döner and Currywurst every day of my life since I've been back in the States. None of my attempts to make either at home with American groceries can compare.
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Maybe I just like food a whole lot 😅
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In any case, if you're having a hard time nailing down a character's background without dumping exposition, food can certainly be the ticket!