T.K. Turner's Blog, page 17

Another one bites the dust

Damn. I've lost another small press publisher this year. It's been happening more and more recently. If you're in the indie/small press circuit, I'm sure you've personally seen at least one small press business close its doors in the last six months. And as a writer, I must admit, this trend kinda scares me. 


I love small press publishing. They take more risks than bigger companies and are more willing to give unknown writers a chance. As a writer in a small press company, you get to know the editors and other writers on a personal level--the work environment feels like a family setting. But nowadays writing for small press publishers can be a real gamble! At any moment your publisher can shut its doors, leaving you and your fellow writers dangling in the wind. I can't even imagine investing two or three novels into a company and in a single instant, lose it all. Poof. Just like that. 


You see, when a publisher closes its doors, it's sort of like being laid-off. The writer may or may not get the cover art rights to their book, and although they get full rights to all of their written work, finding another publisher who'll reprint it is rough. Self-publishing is an attractive option--but for many writers, publishing their own stuff can seem daunting, if not impossible. 


I admire self-published writers. I really do. They work really hard but so many of them often fail. Just yesterday, a writer friend of mine at my local coffee shop (and unofficial "office" haha) told me a horror story about a fellow patron/writer who self-published and spent thousands of dollars on his latest novel. He had his book on display near the cash register--no one was buying it. And according to all the whispers, the guy was in serious debt because of it. It just made me realize not everyone is going to make it--and that goes for self-published or not! 


The truth is, the publishing industry is changing. And as a writer, you have to adapt. 


Think smart. Weigh your options. If you're going to do small-press, make sure you gamble wisely. If you're going to do self-publishing, make sure you research and really know what you're doing before you jump into it. Don't be that moron who wastes thousands of dollars investing in a book only to end up with a mountain of debt. Writing is not for the faint of heart. In fact, I would advise everyone to stay away from the "profession" entirely! 


VC

Smexxxy Friday

How long can YOU go without sex? Anyone experiencing dry spells at the moment?


I'm not embarrassed to talk about this topic but maybe that's because I have such a robust sex life. Cannibals can really get around. I can't even begin to count the number of sex slaves I have stored in my meat locker, hahaha! Oh snap. I just realized I should probably go back there and check on them since it has been like, a month, since I last let them out.


But I digress. I can go 2 weeks without sex. Tops. Anything longer than 2 weeks and I start kidnapping unwilling parters and storing them in my freezer for later use.


By the way, I don't recommend storing people in your meat locker for long periods of time. I've done that before and the results were...uncomfortably shocking. Experienced a lot of freezer burn that day. Lots and lots of freezer burn. *sigh*


VC

December is almost here...

Time sure does fly when you're having fun. Now that winter is fast-approaching, what sort of frosty activities do you have planned for the season?


I always enjoy drinking hot cider this time of year. I like wearing sweaters and long coats too. Maybe it's the latent New Englander in me, but I'm actually looking forward to some snow this year.




On a side note, I am so sad I have to wait until February to see more of my beloved Walking Dead! What shall I do without Glenn or Shane to comfort me during the weekends? Now that I have a serious fangirl crush on the actor Steven Yeun, I will be miserable!

Game of Thrones should also be starting in February too...so at least I have something to look forward to. Don't know what I'll do during the meantime.

Naming your characters (Seventh Sanctum)

I just love using

Now that I'm writing my epic dragon fantasy story, I've been using this site to help me generate some names for my dragons and elves! But I've used this site before for common names too. Give it a try, some of the names on that site are really silly. 

Smexxxy Friday (I like big butts)

I must confess...I too like big butts. When I first heard this song, I think I was in the seventh grade or something. I once had this entire song memorized, hahaha! Love it. 


Hope you have a fantastic Thanksgiving holiday!
VC

A Vegetarian Thanksgiving

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I cannot count how many times I've been asked: "What do vegetarians EAT for Thanksgiving?!" Usually  followed by an aghast or incredulous expression or sometimes a sympathetic shake of the head or a pitying sigh. "Oh your poor, poor thing...vegetarians must starve during the holiday season!" 


Wrong. Vegetarians and vegans alike can and do enjoy the holiday festivities just as much as our omnivore companions. I love love love Thanksgiving! It is one of my favorite holidays because I can pig out on all the tofurky I can shovel into my mouth and not have to worry about fighting over the last few mouthfuls like my meat-eating relatives do when their turkey is nearly gobbled up! 


So what is tofurky? I'm sure many omnivores have pondered on this mystical-sounding food product. Some of the images I've heard described to me are downright hysterical. "Is it a turkey-shaped blob of raw tofu? Does it cook in the oven or is it eaten cold?" 


Hahaha...silly omnivores. This is what tofurky looks like:



Nothing fancy or all that elaborate. It is made out of seitan and filled with a wild rice and mushroom stuffing. You cook it in the oven over a bed of onions, potatoes, carrots, and celery and serve it hot with cranberry sauce or vegan gravy. If you have veg*n relatives to entertain this Thanksgiving, you can look at this site HERE for information relating to where to buy or how to cook it. 


This Thanksgiving, I will be eating green bean casserole, buttery mashed potatoes, vegan stuffing, tofurky, cranberry sauce and "giblet" gravy. I will be sucking all of this all down with a fine Ruffino chianti wine (riserva ducale 2007) and a slice (or two) of pumpkin pie for dessert! Yummy! I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving feast! 


VC

Elder Scrolls V: SKYRIM

It's not often I blog about video game reviews, but I wanted to share my thoughts about Skyrim with you today. Let me be blunt with you first: I am not (and nor will I ever claim to be) a gamer. In fact, I've never played Skyrim before. But because I only have one television, I've been forced to watch at least 5 hours of gameplay a day for the past two weeks now. 


My boyfriend eats, breathes, and sleeps Skyrim. Every spare moment he has is spent on the PS3. Since he hogs the television, I've spent the past few days ordering his Dunmer character around from the couch: "Do the Thieves Guild Quest! Stop wasting time with the Greybeards! Kill the dragon, already!" and such, haha. Skyrim has taken over our lives and I'm a little ashamed to confess I've become somewhat obsessed with this game as well. 


Inspiration is a funny thing, indeed. Before the Skyrim Invasion, I was suffering from a serious case of writer's block. However, after seeing so many Elves and Dragons dance across my screen, I've decided to try my hand at a fantasy story to pass the time until I can get back on track with my novel. 


I really love Skyrim's storyline. The writing is top notch and I enjoy the dialogue sequences from all of the characters. I've never written a dragon story before. I always thought dragons were corny as hell and an overused crutch for many in "epic fantasy" genre. Skyrim has a unique spin on the dragon cliche. I was inspired the most by the "Shouts" and the whole concept of speech and language being used as weapons. 


I have no idea how long this little dragon story of mine will be. Haven't actually sat down to write it yet. I'm hoping for a quick little novella. Maybe 10 to 30 thousand words. We'll see...

Defining "Sexual Tension"

Ah, sexual tension. What is a decent romantic subplot without it? Initial physical attraction...denial...resistance...and sometimes (but more often than not, a lack of) sweet surrender! All wonderful things to flesh out a romantic relationship in a story. 


I just love watching sexual tension develop between characters--I don't care if it is in a movie, TV series, or novel...hell, even in real life! I just like seeing it! There is definitely an "art" to creating this type of tension. An unskilled writer can make it look cliched and contrived, however when sexual tension is done right--wow! I don't think there is anything more explosively entertaining to draw an audience into a story! When folks are screaming: "GET IT OVER WITH AND BANG THE BITCH ALREADY!" you know you're doing the right thing! Haha! 


They key to creating sexual tension is to first understand what sexual tension is. Are there different types? What sort of scenarios create this tension? I'll write more posts about this topic in the future, but for now let's cover the basics. 


As human beings, we naturally try to alleviate the things that frustrate us. However when we're dealing with sexual tension, the situation or circumstance often prevents us relieving the discomforting feelings. This frustration is what essentially drives the sexual tension forward. This is why sexual tension is inherently more "sexual" than traditional overt sexual displays. Denial and restraint require more mental and physical energy than surrendering to an indulgence. The longer we stay trapped in this unpleasant and frustrated state, the stronger the conflict and tension. 


Just like in real life, sexual tension occurs for a variety of reasons. Perhaps two married co-workers develop an interest in each other at the office, or a high school student harbors a crush on their much older teacher. So long as the EMOTION behind the reason is palpable enough to draw in an audience, you can create sexual frustration between characters. Conflict is always entertaining to watch--and readers loved being teased. 


One way to create sexual tension is to make one character push forward (or initiate a sexual response) while the other character steps back. Using the scenario from above, let's pretend the seventeen-year-old schoolboy accidentally bumps into his teacher in the hallway when they are alone. The unexpected physical contact makes him blush, and instead of immediately moving away, he lets his hand linger on her shoulder. In this scenario, the student is the one who is pushing forward with the initial contact and so the teacher must inevitably pull back. Let's say she does not want to act inappropriately with this young boy or maybe she does not want to lose her job. So she smiles politely at him, steps away from his touch, and quickly excuses herself to the teacher's lounge. 


You can also create sexual tension by making both characters step back or refrain from initiating the sexual response, but this will only work if an external force propels them forward again. Maybe our schoolboy is painfully shy around the women he is attracted to. He knows he could never get away with doing something so bold as the first example, so he keeps to himself and just makes goo-goo eyes at his teacher during class. The teacher is still concerned with upholding professional boundaries and so she does not say or do anything to encourage his behavior. However, now let's imagine the teacher is experiencing financial difficulties due to budget cuts and mass lay-offs at work. Unable to afford her mortgage, she moves across the city into a small apartment--the same apartment our little schoolboy lives. Now that these two are neighbors they are forced to see each other every day in a more "intimate" setting and the sexual tension can move forward again. The external force pushing them together is proximity. They can start carpooling together or maybe the teacher offers to help him with his homework after class. The possibilities are endless.


The thing to remember is that the distance between your two characters must always remain far enough to create frustration while maintaining room for interpersonal interaction. The longer you let this "push-pull" effect control your characters, the better and richer the sexual tension. However, if you let it go for too long, people will lose interest. Finding the right balance is key. 

Smexxxy Friday

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What's for dinner tonight? Chicken? 

New Nose Ring

I finally saved up enough money to buy myself something from Venus by Maria Tash! Huzzah! Real diamonds and platinum, baby. Bam!



The picture is kinda small...sorry, took the photo with my phone. But yeah, my nose ring sparkles so much in the light! Overall I'm happy with the product (even though it cost me $195) but I think my next big purchase will be at Alluring Body. I have my eye on the perfect diamond nose stud over there...maybe for Christmas. 


What are you coveting for this holiday season?