Dylan Charles's Blog, page 35
June 28, 2011
Sick Days
I keep getting jobs where taking a sick day isn't an option because if I don't show up, then I don't get paid. One of my managers even told us that he expected us to come in we got sick because he'd do the same in our situation. That turned out not to be true, but I'm not bitter about that or anything.
The point is that I'm here, right now, because I made some stupid promise that I'd blog every single day of this month. So even though I feel like throwing up whatever terrible, monstrous thing ...
June 27, 2011
Laptop Down
Today I installed the air-conditioner, went to the store, did the dishes, a load of laundry, swept the floor and just generally picked up around the apartment. There's only one reason why I did this and it's not because I have a kind heart.
No, it's because my computer died a terrible, terrible, hopefully temporary, death. As a result, I have to use Emily's computer. But until my computer is fixed (hopefully by tomorrow), I have limited access to the internet and no access to my story files.
Th...
June 26, 2011
Do-It Yourself Publishing
Since finishing my book, I'm feeling reinvigorated about writing.
For a long while, I've been waiting for some kind of validation. I've been waiting for someone to tell me, "Ah-ha! You've reached the point where you're a writer. Congratulations!"
But this time, I said to hell with it and just put it all together and sent it out into the world. And while this isn't as satisfying as having someone else confirm how awesome I am, there's still something to be said for pulling myself up by my own...
June 25, 2011
Tales of the Whispering Mad and the Mis-Dead
After months of (sporadic) work, it's done. The book is done.
You can read it on the Kindle.
You can read it on your computer.
You can read it on your iPad or your iPhone.
Fact is, you can read my book for the low, low price of $2.99. It's at LEAST an hour's worth of entertainment; even more if you're a slow reader. And it's riproaring good fun.
So buy my book. And when you're done, tell other people to check it out too. Cause, here's the deal: ya'll are my advertising, every last one of you. And ...
June 24, 2011
The Panic Horizon
The closer I reach a deadline, the more I start to implode. I begin to notice a thousand different things that are going wrong.
I notice the spelling, the font is too large, the lines are spaced too far apart, the link in the table of contents aren't working, the title isn't centered, there are too many spaces after the period in the second story, the spaces aren't showing up in the third story, where did the italics go, the program doesn't recognize the table of contents, this story really...
June 23, 2011
A Writer Wearing Many Hats
Self-publishing is not as easy as I was expecting it to be. And I wasn't really expecting it to be easy. Little obnoxious problems keep cropping up; like GIMP crashing and formatting errors springing up from nowhere and spelling mistakes showing up that I thought I'd hammered out ages ago.
The biggest issue is that I'm not actually doing much in the way of writing. I've done a LOT of editing and trimming. I've done a lot of research and poking around dingy internet forums looking for the best ...
June 22, 2011
Blood-Tinted Lenses
If I see a man by the road, I'll assume that he's homeless and alone, that he's on the verge of starvation, that this is one of the last moments he'll experience before he succumbs.
If I see a couple arguing in the store, I'll assume that they're both near the end of their tether, that they're both frayed and on edge and that they're both so close to finding a final way of resolving the unending conflict between the two of them.
I see the same things everyone sees, but I jump to radically...
June 21, 2011
Formatted
So, it looks like I might actually be on track to get the book published by Friday/Saturday. I still don't have a cover and I still haven't written the introduction.
But
I figured out how to do the table of contents, something that's been holding me up for months. But now, when you open up my book on your Kindle, you can go to any story you want with no fuss. That's probably the thing I'm most excited about. It's been my excuse for so long, my way of avoiding getting the book out there.
In...
June 20, 2011
Book Review: Un Lun Dun by China Mieville
In recent years, young adult fiction has morphed from Fear Street thrillers and gothic romances into books that transcend age. From books like The Hunger Games to The Book Thief, young adult books have attracted the notice of critics and people way too old to be shopping in a section that also peddles Gossip Girl novels.
I myself enjoy the Chaos Walking Trilogy and Leviathon and recommend them to people who like dark science fiction and steam punk, respectively. I also fervently recommend Un...
June 19, 2011
A To-Do List
With yesterday's announcement, I'm already feeling overwhelmed with the amount of tasks I have ahead of me. In no particular order they are:
Come up with a title.Design a cover.Find out how to code a table of contents and then do that.Re-edit the stories over and over again until I can publish them without some sense of shame.Organize the stories into an order that makes some kind of sense.Write an introduction.Work my way through the publishing process, which is most likely going to include...
