Travis Heermann's Blog, page 7
May 19, 2020
Books and Interviews!
And I had a surprising number of creative folks come out of the woodwork when I asked for a little help on the screenplay for a TV pilot I’m developing. Several people sent me incredibly useful notes, and I managed to organize a virtual table read on Saturday night via ZOOM.
Everybody was incredibly encouraging, making me feel like I’m onto something good, and they also had some brilliant insights into the script and how it could be improved.
There’s the old adage: Art is never finished; it’s only abandoned.
And this is 100% true of screenplays. They are a work in progress until the director says, “That’s a wrap.” And probably even after that, as you know if you’ve seen the documentary about how the original Star Wars film was saved in the edit.
I think more so than fiction, screenplays require many, many drafts to get them right. I hope I’m getting closer to a draft that will get read by the right person on the right day.
This has gotten me thinking about creativity and collaboration. All the actors who showed up for the table read did it because they love acting, and they want to keep up their acting chops, while all facets of the performing arts have ground to a complete halt, film productions, plays, TV shows, everything. I was honored that they were so generous with their time and skills.
An industry friend of mine in LA tells me that Hollywood might start producing again in November or December. It’s all a wait-and-see. But people are still reading scripts, preparing for the day things start moving again. And therein lies my shred of hope.
There is value in creativity and art for their own sake. Because that’s what we’re turning to for escape and comfort, right? We’re cooking, crafting, sewing, building.
Collaborating with other passionate, creative people is one of the greatest thrills I have found, everyone working together to create something we could not produce by ourselves, something bigger and better than we could have envisioned on our own.
There’s a metaphor in there somewhere for the world right now.
Books I’m Reading…
Since we’re all book nerds here, I thought you might like to hear about what I’m reading right now. I have numerous books in process at any given time. Bedroom, phone, elsewhere around the house.
Right now I’m reading…
Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull – A memoir about creativity by one of the founders of Pixar.
The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri – This is Longfellow’s 19th-century translation. It’s been in my To Be Read pile for several years, but, hey, since the world is ending, I might as well read an epic poem about the Afterlife.
Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-fi Exploded by Jason Heller – A non-fiction exploration of the cross-pollination between science fiction and the music of the 1970s.
Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare – Yeah, this is the Slasher Film of Shakespeare’s plays. Mutilation, gang rape, murder, filicide, cannibalism… you know, all the fun stuff!
What are you reading this week?
Virtual Reading!
Last week, I was privileged to take part in a virtual reading to celebrate the nominees of the Colorado Book Award. An anthology with one of my short stories, a horror-western called “Blood Lust and Gold Dust”, which came out last year in Baen Books’ weird western anthology, Straight Outta Deadwood, has been nominated for the Colorado Book Award in the anthology category.
If you’d like to watch the recorded video, you can find the Facebook video here.
My part comes at about the 21:00 mark, but I would encourage to check out all the readers. They were nominated for good reason.
A Fun Interview!
It was quite a week for the virtual stuff.
In addition to the reading, I had a tremendously fun interview on the Draft2Digital Spotlight with Mark Leslie Lefevre.
April 21, 2020
And in the Red Corner…
A Snazzy New Cover for The Hammer Falls!
The ebook is still on sale for only 99 cents! And just $9.99 for the trade paperback!
April 20, 2020
Announcing the YA Charity Megabundle!
When StoryBundle owner Jason approached me a couple weeks ago about putting together a YA MegaBundle for a super-low price, I jumped at the opportunity. I love connecting authors with one another, and with readers. This huge multi-genre project is a perfect chance to benefit a good cause (children’s literacy) and bring a little brightness into the world—for parents and teens alike—during this difficult time.
We’ve gathered a truly exceptional collection of YA books for you in a range of SF/F genres. Whether you’re looking for a pulse-pounding action in space, a witchy urban fantasy mystery, or a sweeter tale of unicorns and magic, this MegaBundle delivers.
And not only are these 28 books packed with fabulous adventure, the bundle itself is an amazing deal. In the spirit of generosity and providing hope, authors have included books that, combined, would cost over $50 if bought at regular retail price. Half the MegaBundle profits will go to Mighty Writers, a non-profit organization benefiting children’s literacy that is also doing some important food security outreach right now for the disadvantaged population it serves. Check out more at Mightywriters.org.
Pay what you want! Since money is tight for a lot of people, we’ve set the floor of this bundle at a mere dollar, but if you’re in a position to spend a little more for this great collection, please do. It’s worth it.
So scoop up this bundle, get over two dozen novels (including award-winning books from NYT and USA Today bestselling authors), AND make the world a better place. What are you waiting for? – Anthea Sharp
For StoryBundle, you decide what price you want to pay. For this special MegaBundle, you get all 28 books for a price you name, in multiple formats—WORLDWIDE.
Glimpse by Stacey Wallace Benefiel
Night of the Hidden Fang by T. James Logan
Under My Skin by Shawntelle Madison
Beautiful Demons – Books 1-3 by Sarra Cannon
Blazing Blunderbuss by Nix Whittaker
Clouds of Phoenix by Michèle Laframboise
Fighting the Morrigan’s Hand by Meyari McFarland
The Black Opal by Linda Jordan
Faery Novice by Leslie Claire Walker
Tiffany Tumbles by Kristine Grayson
Fractured Memories by Jo Schneider
With Perfect Clarity by Jamie Ferguson
Faery Unexpected by Deb Logan
The Falconer by Darcy Pattison
The Sphere of Infinity by Day Leitao
One Bad Wish by Bonnie Elizabeth
Faster by Annie Reed
Atlantis Riptide by Allie Burton
Running Wide Open by Lisa Nowak
The McCall Initiative – Episodes 1-3 by Lisa Nowak
Blades Of Magic: Crown Service Book #1 by Terah Edun
Unicorn Magic by Roz Marshall
Hadrian’s Flight by J. Daniel Sawyer
Stars & Steam by Anthea Sharp
The Dark Realm by Anthea Sharp
Starstruck by Brenda Hiatt
Faelorehn by Jenna Elizabeth Johnson
The Finding by Jenna Elizabeth Johnson
This bundle is available only for a limited time via http://www.storybundle.com. It allows easy reading on computers, smartphones, and tablets as well as Kindle and other ereaders via file transfer, email, and other methods. You get multiple DRM-free formats (.epub, .mobi) for all books!
It’s also super easy to give the gift of reading with StoryBundle, thanks to our gift cards – which allow you to send someone a code that they can redeem for any future StoryBundle bundle – and timed delivery, which allows you to control exactly when your recipient will get the gift of StoryBundle.
Why StoryBundle? Here are just a few benefits StoryBundle provides.
Get quality reads: We’ve chosen works from excellent authors to bundle together in one convenient package.
Pay what you want (minimum $1): You decide how much these fantastic books are worth. If you can only spare a little, that’s fine! You’ll still get access to a batch of exceptional titles.
Support authors who support DRM-free books: StoryBundle is a platform for authors to get exposure for their works, both for the titles featured in the bundle and for the rest of their catalog. Supporting authors who let you read their books on any device you want—restriction free—will show everyone there’s nothing wrong with ditching DRM.
Give to worthy causes: Bundle buyers have a chance to donate a portion of their proceeds to Mighty Writers!
StoryBundle was created to give a platform for independent authors to showcase their work, and a source of quality titles for thirsty readers. StoryBundle works with authors to create bundles of ebooks that can be purchased by readers at their desired price. Before starting StoryBundle, Founder Jason Chen covered technology and software as an editor for Gizmodo.com and Lifehacker.com.
For more information, visit our website at storybundle.com, tweet us at @storybundle and like us on Facebook .
April 16, 2020
The Hammer Falls – The Soundtrack
A few years ago when I was writing The Hammer Falls, I put together a playlist that could get me in the head space of the world and the characters, particularly Horace “The Hammer” Harkness’s life and emotional landscape.
I pulled that out of my hard drive and dusted off the byte-bunnies and now present it to you in the form of a Spotify playlist. This is completely unofficial and unlicensed, just a list of amazing music.
April 15, 2020
Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams – The Soundtrack
A friend of mine gave me a cool idea, and that was to put together a (strictly unofficial and unlicensed) soundtrack for Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams on Spotify. As I was writing the book, I referred to music often to help me capture the mood of a given scene, and also to try to put music into words.
This list of songs tracks the mood and emotional landscape of the book all the way to the triumphant climax. You can listen before, during and after reading. 
The Ebb and Flow of a Creative Career
After my post last week about The Ventures and their music, etc., I received a really cool email from a fan who wanted to tell me a story. I thought it was so great I asked Gareth’s permission to share it with you, and he kindly agreed.
“I used to work on a grounds crew at the University I live by and during the winter, the only thing we could do was shovel snow. The area I had at the time had no gardener’s box, so I shared the box of the area next to mine. The regular gardener of that area was a plow driver, so they had a temporary employee shovel the area. He was an older gentleman named Earl.
“One day another gardener friend of mine asked me if I knew that Earl used to be the bass player for The Ventures!
“I’m like, uh, no, he’s never mentioned it. My friend then told me [Earl] was playing in a duo with one of the mechanics named Jerry, who I knew well. So that morning, on the way to our toolbox, I asked Earl about it, saying I didn’t want to bring up any bad memories or anything, but I was a musician as well, and I was just really excited about the whole thing.
“He was really nice about it, and said yes, he was the original bassist for The Ventures. I told him my dad bought me a 45 of the song Perfidia, and he talked about how the song came about and recording it and stuff. A couple days later, I was at a used record store, so I looked for an old Ventures album, and there was a younger version of my friend Earl, smiling back at me. I looked on the back cover for the credits and it listed [Nokie] Edwards as the bassist. But I knew that the guy on the album cover was unmistakably him.
“So, the next day, I asked Earl who [Nokie] Edwards was. And he said that was a name the guys in the band made up for him because he was always asking what key the song they were playing was in. [He always knew the key.]
“So, I asked him if he’d like to jam with me sometime. cause I lived right off campus. He said, sure. So a couple of days later, he shows up with his electric guitar (not bass, 6-string electric) and we go down to my place and I had the time of my life playing with this guy! I just basically played the songs I knew and he was all over that 6-string. He made me sound incredible!
“I never pressured him again and eventually he and Jerry had a falling out and he quit the job, and I never saw him again, except for maybe once. I was up on the highway at the bus stop and a familiar-looking white van with a thin green stripe down the center flies by. I recognized it just as it passed and I couldn’t see the driver but I yelled his name and waved anyway. I’ve never seen another van that looked like that before or since.”
Something I think about often is what happens when an artist’s star fades. Musicians, movie stars, celebrities whose fifteen minutes of fame is long since over, all those one-hit-wonders, even the ones that had great careers and then just seemed to fade away. I’m sure you can think of any number of singers and bands, from whatever decade you grew up in, who simply disappeared from the charts, from the radio, from public life, and you sometimes wonder what happened to them.
How does one sustain a lifelong career in an artistic field?
How do you get up in the morning and keep going at the only thing you’re put on this planet to do if you’re pretty sure your career has had its zenith? That you’ve done your best work.
I think the answer lies in the joy of doing the “thing”, whatever that thing is.
But joy doesn’t pay the mortgage. How do you make ends meet?
For Nokie Edwards, apparently, he made ends meet as a temporary groundskeeper. Unfortunately he passed away in 2018 at the age of 82. Something I discovered during my discussion with Gareth was that Nokie Edwards also sidelined as an actor, appearing on HBO’s Deadwood as a friend of Wild Bill Hickok.
The Ventures were still touring Japan in the ’00s, as you can find YouTube videos to attest, but maybe that ran out, too.
An artistic career doesn’t have a 401k or a pension plan.
My First Bestseller!
Last week, perhaps you heard my yelp of joy in the distance.
Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams hit as high as #4 on the Amazon Teen Music Fiction Category, #2 in Hot New Releases.
“Logan is a captivating storyteller from word one. Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams is a YA novel full of hope, adventure, grief, first love, self-doubt, self-discovery, triumph, and magic—everything I love in a book.”—Rebecca Moesta, New York Times bestselling coauthor of the Star Wars: Young Jedi Knights series
“Love, loss, music, and magic, woven into an intricate pattern that smells like teen spirit. You don’t want to miss this heart-wrenching, atmospheric, gripping tale of grit, friendship, and a mystical family legacy that might be more of a curse than a gift. And did I mention music?” – Chris Mandeville, Author of the In Real Time YA time travel adventure series
“The chapter titles! *chef’s kiss.” – Goodreads reviewer
April 8, 2020
The Power of Music
I used to love listening to my dad’s Ventures LPs when I was kid.
Here’s a bit about The Ventures for you from Wikipedia:
“The band, a quartet for most of its existence, helped to popularize the electric guitar in the United States and across the world during the 1960s. While their popularity in the United States waned in the 1970s, the group remains especially revered in Japan, where they tour regularly to this day…. [Unfortunately, one of the original members, Nokie Edwards, passed away in 2018.]
Their first wide-release single, “Walk, Don’t Run”, brought international fame to the group, and is often cited as one of the top songs ever recorded for guitar. [[ Trust me, even if you’re not aware, I’ll bet you’ll recognize it.]] In the 1960s and early 1970s, 38 of the band’s albums charted in the US, ranking them as the 6th best album chart performer during the 1960s, and the band had 14 singles in the Billboard Hot 100. With over 100 million records sold, the Ventures are the best-selling instrumental band of all time.
The Ventures have had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide. The band was among the first to employ and popularize fuzz and flanging guitar effects, concept albums, and twelve-string guitars in rock music. Their instrumental virtuosity, innovation, and unique sound influenced many musicians and bands, earning the group the moniker “The Band that Launched a Thousand Bands”. Their recording of “Walk, Don’t Run” was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for its lasting impact, and in 2008 the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.”
Their sound certainly influenced the kind of music I love today. I particularly remember one of my dad’s Ventures records that was all science fiction themes, re-envisioned as twangy surf guitar, The Twilight Zone, the Outer Limits, etc. It was so weird, so surreal to a kid with nothing around except endless miles of prairie and farmland.
I think my love of the Ventures carried forward into my admiration Eilen Jewell and her band, which features Jerry Miller. Jerry Miller is ranked #68 on Rolling Stone’s Greatest Guitarists. His guitar playing is a wonder to behold. Eilen’s music is a mix of blues, traditional, old-timey country and Americana kind of stuff, much of it in a minor key. In fact, one of her albums is called Queen of the Minor Key. But it’s Jerry Miller’s guitar that really raises it all to a quantum leap above so many other Americana singer-songwriters.
Everyone is struggling to find their way through the weirdness of these times, musicians among them, so I was fortunate enough to watch Eilen give a free streaming concert via Youtube and Facebook on Sunday. Her husband and drummer, Jason Beek, accompanied her for nearly two hours from their living room, which was a real treat.
When it was over, I pulled out my Gretsch hollow body electric, looked up the guitar tab for several of her songs, and just played her music for a while.
That was a ton of fun. I’ll never be Jerry Miller, but my wife called from the back room, “Hey are you playing Eilen Jewell?”
“Yup.”
At the last show I saw them live, at Swallow Hill Music in Denver, I got the chance to chat with Jerry after the show. I told him that him and Mark Knopfler are my two favorite guitarists ever. He was very gracious, and told me about how he used to sit on his couch when was twelve years old with his guitar and play along with the music on television or on the radio. It’s how he taught himself to play.
And you know what? His sound goes back to The Ventures.
When being a musician is in your bones like that, I think you’re destined to do it. Some people listen to that call, but many don’t, and proceed to live lives of quiet desperation, never quite understanding what is missing. I think it’s also true of writers, artists, all kinds of creative endeavors. The human being is naturally creative. It fulfills us. And some of us are driven to pursue that for a wider audience.
That’s part of what my book Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams is about, the idea that you can get this kind of bug at a very young age, yet to discover all the roadblocks the world puts in your path.
Writing that book was cathartic for me in ways I can’t quite explain. I never really dreamed of being a professional musician. By the time I was thinking about my future, I was already dreaming of being a writer. Plus, as a kid, I was probably too lazy to apply myself to learning how to play guitar. I remember Dad trying to teach me a couple of times, and I would get excited, but it was hard, and it hurt my fingers, so I gave up. But I played saxophone in my high school band, and I really loved swingin’ to old Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman tunes. I didn’t pick up the guitar with the intention to learn again until I was living in Japan in about 2005 and had gained the mental and life clarity to listen to that little voice.
So we need more music in our lives. Go and find your favorite performers and see what they’re up to. Maybe you’ll find them livestreaming from their living rooms because all their shows have been canceled.
And because so many of us are shut inside, maybe we’re reading more. Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams is on sale now. Maybe you need a little musical nostalgia. Maybe you have a young performer in your life who would enjoy some adventure and inspiration.
Playing your heartstrings at concert volume
Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams is on sale now for just $0.99 for the e-book!
The trade paperback is cut to $9.99 as well. (That’s as low as I can go and still cover printing costs.)
“Love, loss, music, and magic, woven into an intricate pattern that smells like teen spirit. You don’t want to miss this heart-wrenching, atmospheric, gripping tale of grit, friendship, and a mystical family legacy that might be more of a curse than a gift. And did I mention music?” – Chris Mandeville, Author of the In Real Time YA time travel adventure series
“Logan is a captivating storyteller from word one. Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams is a YA novel full of hope, adventure, grief, first love, self-doubt, self-discovery, triumph, and magic—everything I love in a book.”
—Rebecca Moesta, New York Times bestselling coauthor of the Star Wars: Young Jedi Knights series
“This is a brilliant read. Wonderful, well-written plot and storyline that had me engaged from the start. Loved the well-fleshed-out characters and found them believable. Great suspense and action with wonderful worldbuilding that adds so much to the story.” – Goodreads reviewer
“The chapter titles! *chef’s kiss.” – Goodreads reviewer
“Maybe it was just at the right place at the right time, but Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams was a novel I couldn’t put down. Otter’s (the recently-orphaned protagonist) struggles really resonated with me, and the creative use of music throughout the novel brought his angst and growth to another level. Logan’s skill with prose really shines when he describes the protagonist and his band’s performances, building emotions and memories that show his passion for music. If you manage to read those descriptions and not remember when the perfect song fit the perfect mood that you swore would never end and never change, you probably were never a teenager. This is a book that I’ll keep in the back of the shelf, but know that whenever I need to relive those glory days (now I’m writing in lyrics, that’s how infectious this book was), I can reach for it like an old friend.” – Goodreads reviewer
March 18, 2020
Book Release! Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams
I want to play your heart strings at concert volume.
If this sounds like your favorite kind of book experience, check out my new Young Adult magical realism novel Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams, published under my YA pseudonym, T. James Logan.
Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams is a book so close to my heart. I got a wonderful review this week that really made my day.
“Maybe it was just at the right place at the right time, but Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams was a novel I couldn’t put down. Otter’s (the recently-orphaned protagonist) struggles really resonated with me, and the creative use of music throughout the novel brought his angst and growth to another level. Logan’s skill with prose really shines when he describes the protagonist and his band’s performances, building emotions and memories that show his passion for music. If you manage to read those descriptions and not remember when the perfect song fit the perfect mood that you swore would never end and never change, you probably were never a teenager. This is a book that I’ll keep in the back of the shelf, but know that whenever I need to relive those glory days (now I’m writing in lyrics, that’s how infectious this book was), I can reach for it like an old friend.”
A guitar, a box of junk, and a pile of trouble…
Fifteen-year-old Otter is in a dark place.
Child Services wants to put him in foster care, or even a home for troubled youth.
Living on his own, he’s one bad decision away from the street. His band’s first gig is only two weeks away, but his crush on their new lead singer has him tied in knots.
Then he inherits a box of random junk from a dead grandfather he barely knew, only to discover that the junk is infused with his grandfather’s memories. Can this “junk” help Otter win the girl of his dreams, reconnect with his family, and keep him out of juvenile detention…maybe even become a rock star?
You’ll love this touching, contemporary fantasy because who doesn’t enjoy having their heart strings played at concert volume?
“Love, loss, music, and magic, woven into an intricate pattern that smells like teen spirit. You don’t want to miss this heart-wrenching, atmospheric, gripping tale of grit, friendship, and a mystical family legacy that might be more of a curse than a gift. And did I mention music?” – Chris Mandeville, Author of the In Real Time YA time travel adventure series
“Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams is a YA novel full of hope, adventure, grief, first love, self-doubt, self-discovery, triumph, and magic—everything I love in a book.” — Rebecca Moesta, New York Times bestselling coauthor of the Star Wars: Young Jedi Knights series
February 19, 2020
Does Steampunk Stoke Your Boiler?
If you’re a steampunk fan, you can fill your e-reader with this amazing bundle. And the best part?
You can pay what you want!
I’m honored to share this bundle with:
Robert E. Vardeman
Bobby Schemerhorn
Anthea Sharp
Louisa Swann
J.R. Murdock
Tim Niederriter
Kristin S. Walker
Tracy Cembor
Kevin O. McLaughlin
Marie Andreas
And the inimitable Kevin J. Anderson.
Kevin collaborated with Neil Peart, the recently deceased and much lamented drummer for Rush, to produce the Clockwork series, and I gotta tell you, those books are just stunning.
You’ll love this ebook bundle because retrofuturistic sf, fantasy, and horror will keep you up reading way past your bedtime.
January 1, 2020
Ringing in 2020: Reflecting on a Decade
Happy New Year! Rolling out a whole decade and escorting in the New Roaring 20s! But hopefully without the Prohibition, gangsters, and stock market crash.
It’s been quite a decade for me, in retrospect. Most days, it’s really hard to see the forest for the trees. What’s really easy is to let our brains get in our own way. The turning of a decade is the perfect opportunity to reflect on the ups and downs of life and career.
So I’m going to take this opportunity to reflect on what I accomplished in the last ten years.
Wrote and published six books under my own name: Rogues of the Black Fury, The Wild Boys, Sword of the Ronin, Spirit of the Ronin, Death Wind, and The Hammer Falls. Three more novels will be forthcoming in 2020.
Launched a new YA pen name to reboot The Wild Boys under a new title, complete with a new sequel, and wrote a stand-alone magical realism novel due out in the Spring of 2020, Junk Magic and Guitar Dreams.
Ghostwrote four books for clients, two novels and two memoirs.
Got a Master of Arts in English.
Launched a new comic book based on my Ronin Trilogy, Legend of the Ronin.
Relaunched two of my early novels on Wattpad, The Ivory Star and Blood of the One.
Returned to my freelance roots in the gaming industry, working on the Firefly Roleplaying Game (what a thrill this was!) and fiction for Battletech, one story of which was nominated for a Scribe Award this year.
Edited an anthology of Lovecraftian short stories, Cthulhu Passant.
Started writing screenplays and shopping them around, submitting them to various film festivals and contests. They’ve brought home three trophies so far, but as yet no option or production deals. I have learned a tremendous amount about filmmaking and how the film industry works, but there’s still a long way to go. Here’s a meme that I think is applicable here:
Wrote and published over thirty short stories and novellas in various magazines and anthologies.
Joined the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) and Horror Writers of America (HWA), two life-long goals.
Met and got to know several of my writing idols, some of whom I can now call friends and mentors.
Met a lovely, amazing lady and talked her into marrying me.
Moved overseas again, to New Zealand this time, and back again.
Sat on panels at some of the biggest, most prestigious conventions in the speculative fiction/pop culture realm, including Denver Pop Culture Con, DragonCon, World Science Fiction Convention, World Horror, and World Fantasy.
Redesigned and relaunched a website for each of my author names.
Learned to play blues guitar (badly, see above meme).
Took up martial arts again in a fairly serious way, earning belts in Japanese jujitsu, krav maga, and ninjutsu.
Went bionic with a full knee replacement. My super power is that I can no longer walk through a metal detector.
Thankfully avoided the kind of life-threatening illnesses that have claimed friends and colleagues.
Throw all this together at once, it looks like a lot. It is a lot, even though most of the time it felt like everything was moving at a snail’s pace.
But this writing gig is a marathon, not a sprint, as they say, and I fully intend to be creating until I’m a hundred.
May you accomplish everything you dream of in the coming decade. Set goals that will be the signposts toward your dreams.
