C.M. Simpson's Blog, page 117
April 2, 2018
National Poetry Writing Month: Day 2
Like I said, April is a hella busy month. I didn't realise that April was also National Poetry Month... so, starting from Day 2, there will be a poem a day on the blog, as well. It's a good thing I'm writing a poetry collection, at the moment. You'll get a month's worth of free extracts (albeit in first draft). Here's the first poem of the month:
A Debt to Terra
Written on April 2, 2018, for the February 8 entry of Another 365 Days of Poetry, this piece is a contemplation on the effects of global warming and how someone from the future might view things as they seek to repair the damage mankind has done to his world. It is set in the same era and universe as the stories from Lunar One.
When the north wind blows, it brings the heat and damp,the fingers of another clime, tangling our hairthe whispers of another world, the promise rain will come.It makes us lift our heads to seek the first clouds beneath the sun.
When the wind shifts north-west from here, it brings the heat and dry.No rain forms in the inner lands, and the wind’s breath feels like fire.We dread those days, for they remind us we live at nature’s mercy,and for our negligence of world, the entire planet’s hurting.
When the wind shifts south, it brings a touch of ice, a touch of snow and storming,reminds us that not all is lost, even though the ocean’s warming,and like the creatures of the land, to the winds we have to listen,if we want the ice to cool our world, and beneath the sun to glisten.
The words above are old, from well before my birth,but they explain what happened to this old world we called Earth,and why we made it crash and burn, and why its people fought,and why they fled a planet rent, by destruction, greed and war.
And those words explain to me, why we must return,now that we can breathe its air, and the world no longer burns,because, no matter how far we roam, or how many suns we see,this world will remain our home, and needs apology.
A ‘sorry’ said in deeds, not words, as we come back to make repairs,and to repopulate it with the species gathered to our care,for our ancestors took with them the seeds of its rebirth,and that is our responsibility to this old world we once called Earth.
A Debt to Terra
Written on April 2, 2018, for the February 8 entry of Another 365 Days of Poetry, this piece is a contemplation on the effects of global warming and how someone from the future might view things as they seek to repair the damage mankind has done to his world. It is set in the same era and universe as the stories from Lunar One.
When the north wind blows, it brings the heat and damp,the fingers of another clime, tangling our hairthe whispers of another world, the promise rain will come.It makes us lift our heads to seek the first clouds beneath the sun.
When the wind shifts north-west from here, it brings the heat and dry.No rain forms in the inner lands, and the wind’s breath feels like fire.We dread those days, for they remind us we live at nature’s mercy,and for our negligence of world, the entire planet’s hurting.
When the wind shifts south, it brings a touch of ice, a touch of snow and storming,reminds us that not all is lost, even though the ocean’s warming,and like the creatures of the land, to the winds we have to listen,if we want the ice to cool our world, and beneath the sun to glisten.
The words above are old, from well before my birth,but they explain what happened to this old world we called Earth,and why we made it crash and burn, and why its people fought,and why they fled a planet rent, by destruction, greed and war.
And those words explain to me, why we must return,now that we can breathe its air, and the world no longer burns,because, no matter how far we roam, or how many suns we see,this world will remain our home, and needs apology.
A ‘sorry’ said in deeds, not words, as we come back to make repairs,and to repopulate it with the species gathered to our care,for our ancestors took with them the seeds of its rebirth,and that is our responsibility to this old world we once called Earth.
Camp NaNoWriMo: Day 1
So, this month I have a number of challenges going – and I’m trying to build a few new habits, because a couple of challenges and a novel just aren’t enough.
Starting Points:At this point, I had hoped to be at 36,000 words in my novel, Blaedergil’s Host . That did not happen. My back happened, Easter happened, family happened, and the rest was scramble. Now, I have to try to catch up without killing myself, because this sucker will probably take a fortnight to edit properly and format, I’d like a week’s break between writing it and editing it (and ideally four), and I have one project to complete for publication the week before. I have work to do.
The current starting point is 16,265 words.
Day 1 Progress:By the end of April 1, Australian EST, I had reached 16,383 words, which was pathetic, even if it was Easter Sunday. For April 2, I changed my approach. That day is not yet over, so I’ll report on it, tomorrow.
30 Days of Writing Challenge - Welcome Pack
Okay, so April is turning out to be busy. I have Camp NaNoWriMo, a novel to write, and this: the Shut Up & Write 30 Days of Writing Challenge.
While waiting for the first day's activities, I ran through the Welcome packet. There were some things to consider, and then some questions to help focus on intention. Here are my responses:
Writing Challenge Checklist
Where? Gonna write on the computer, and maybe in a notebook.What? Will be writing Blaedergil’s Host, Poetry, Flash Fiction, and Chapter Books.When?Full-Time. 2 hours before breakfast, 2 hours before lunch, 2 hours after lunch, 2 hours before dinner.Get Excited. Let your family know you will be writing: Already excited. Family already know I write.
Responses to the Questions for Setting Intention:
What do you love about writing?
Discovering the new worlds lurking in my head. Most of the time, I don’t even know they’re there, until they come out in the story.
Why did you sign up for this challenge?
Because writing is fun? And challenges have a way of extending the skills and ideas I have. I have discovered worlds in writing challenges that I didn’t know were there. I expect to do the same, in this challenge… or to be able to expand on the worlds I’ve so far found.
What do you hope to accomplish MOST during this challenge?
I hope to complete my novel, while expanding my horizons, both from a skill point of view, as well as a writing point of view. And I hope to have fun.
Imagine you’ve completed this challenge. After writing for 30 days straight, whatwould Future You say to Present You? Any words of encouragement?
Just to get my backside into gear a day early – and to not make me come back there…
While waiting for the first day's activities, I ran through the Welcome packet. There were some things to consider, and then some questions to help focus on intention. Here are my responses:
Writing Challenge Checklist
Where? Gonna write on the computer, and maybe in a notebook.What? Will be writing Blaedergil’s Host, Poetry, Flash Fiction, and Chapter Books.When?Full-Time. 2 hours before breakfast, 2 hours before lunch, 2 hours after lunch, 2 hours before dinner.Get Excited. Let your family know you will be writing: Already excited. Family already know I write.
Responses to the Questions for Setting Intention:
What do you love about writing?
Discovering the new worlds lurking in my head. Most of the time, I don’t even know they’re there, until they come out in the story.
Why did you sign up for this challenge?
Because writing is fun? And challenges have a way of extending the skills and ideas I have. I have discovered worlds in writing challenges that I didn’t know were there. I expect to do the same, in this challenge… or to be able to expand on the worlds I’ve so far found.
What do you hope to accomplish MOST during this challenge?
I hope to complete my novel, while expanding my horizons, both from a skill point of view, as well as a writing point of view. And I hope to have fun.
Imagine you’ve completed this challenge. After writing for 30 days straight, whatwould Future You say to Present You? Any words of encouragement?
Just to get my backside into gear a day early – and to not make me come back there…
April 1, 2018
PokemonGo: Day 1 Mission
March 31 marked the start of Pokemon missions in Australia. I'd been looking forward to them since I'd see the notification on the phone, and was quite excited to find them ready to go. That morning, I was met by the message, and then a picture of Professor Willow's head appeared at the bottom right of the screen, just above the part of the scanner showing what pokemon are nearby.
Tapping on that icon, took me to a dialogue where the Professor asked for help in his research. To move between each section of dialogue, I had to tap the screen once I had finished reading. After agreeing to help (not that there is an option to say no), I was taken to the screen showing the list of tasks I had been set.
At the top of that screen, under the heading 'Research Progress' were six circles leading to a circle with a box. Below that were two headings: 'Field' and 'Special'. The screen that opened showed the three tasks Professor Willow had set. The heading that was underlined was 'Special', so 'Special' tasks are set by the Professor. Cool. At the very bottom of the screen was an important section marked 'Rewards'.
Awesome, I thought, and tapped the 'X' at the centre-bottom of the page so I could set about completing the first set of tasks. When I returned to the main screen, the Professor's head had been replaced by a set of binoculars.
It was a beautiful morning for a stroll.
So I started on the first task, and discovered that, as you complete actions related to a task, a progress bar pops up at the bottom of the screen, to show you how far you have gone, and how much farther you have left. That's very, very useful. I like it!
I learned more, when I stopped to spin my first pokestop. I'd completely forgotten to look under the 'Field' heading - and the pokestop delivered another pop-out message stating I had 'New Field Research'. Now, I was curious: what was this 'Field Research'? and wasn't I already doing it? When I came out of the pokestop, there was a red dot sitting on the binoculars.
So, of course, I had to go look!
The first thing I came to was the panel of 'Special' tasks. I was pretty happy to see my progress. Now, I touched the 'Field' heading, and saw the first new task. I'm guessing all those spaces told me to visit pokestops to find more, before that task popped up. Ha. So I went and caught a shuppet playing near the playground. After all, That's not something to be left lying around!
Which was how I discovered that that notification bar appears very quickly, and very briefly on completion of each step of each task.
And when you complete a task, the binocular circle turns orange.
And so does the completed task.
Once you tap on the orange line to claim your reward, a line marking the completed task replaces it.
It took me a little while to notice that the progress bar also turns from purple to orange when a task is completed. That, too, is very cool.
When the final task in the set of three tasks is completed, you can collect the reward at the bottom of the Missions panel:
At this point, I discovered the reason why the heading said "A Mythical Discovery (1/8)", when there were only six circles. ONE of eight. And that was because, after another quick chat with Professor Willow, the next heading was "A Mythical Discovery (2/8)". TWO!!!! And you didn't get to progress to the second circle. It looked like I'd have to complete 8 sets of missions BEFORE the second circle could be reached. I have never been so wrong in my life. Those circles had another purpose entirely.
Shortly after this, I discovered what happens when you complete one of the 'Field' research projects. Yep, you guessed it: You get a STICKER!
The sticker has the day's date on it... and, while you can keep going and complete other field missions, you won't get another sticker until you do a field research task on a new day. So that's what the circles are for. Right. Got it.
So, what's the point of completing more than one Field research task each day?
Well, there's this medal, you see...
While it only takes 10 Field Research missions to reach the bronze level of the medal - Special missions don't count - you're going to need to have completed 100 Field Research missions to reach Silver, and a whopping 1,000 to reach Gold.
By the end of my walk, I'd completed 3 Field Research tasks, but was still working my way through "A Mythical Discovery (2/8)". I had also found more Field Research tasks to fill in the gaps. Looked like I was going to go raid hunting the next day... and maybe I'd have to do A LOT of walking! Those Feebas need 5k per candy!
Tapping on that icon, took me to a dialogue where the Professor asked for help in his research. To move between each section of dialogue, I had to tap the screen once I had finished reading. After agreeing to help (not that there is an option to say no), I was taken to the screen showing the list of tasks I had been set.
At the top of that screen, under the heading 'Research Progress' were six circles leading to a circle with a box. Below that were two headings: 'Field' and 'Special'. The screen that opened showed the three tasks Professor Willow had set. The heading that was underlined was 'Special', so 'Special' tasks are set by the Professor. Cool. At the very bottom of the screen was an important section marked 'Rewards'.
Awesome, I thought, and tapped the 'X' at the centre-bottom of the page so I could set about completing the first set of tasks. When I returned to the main screen, the Professor's head had been replaced by a set of binoculars.
It was a beautiful morning for a stroll.
So I started on the first task, and discovered that, as you complete actions related to a task, a progress bar pops up at the bottom of the screen, to show you how far you have gone, and how much farther you have left. That's very, very useful. I like it!
I learned more, when I stopped to spin my first pokestop. I'd completely forgotten to look under the 'Field' heading - and the pokestop delivered another pop-out message stating I had 'New Field Research'. Now, I was curious: what was this 'Field Research'? and wasn't I already doing it? When I came out of the pokestop, there was a red dot sitting on the binoculars.
So, of course, I had to go look!
The first thing I came to was the panel of 'Special' tasks. I was pretty happy to see my progress. Now, I touched the 'Field' heading, and saw the first new task. I'm guessing all those spaces told me to visit pokestops to find more, before that task popped up. Ha. So I went and caught a shuppet playing near the playground. After all, That's not something to be left lying around!
Which was how I discovered that that notification bar appears very quickly, and very briefly on completion of each step of each task.
And when you complete a task, the binocular circle turns orange.
And so does the completed task.
Once you tap on the orange line to claim your reward, a line marking the completed task replaces it.
It took me a little while to notice that the progress bar also turns from purple to orange when a task is completed. That, too, is very cool.
When the final task in the set of three tasks is completed, you can collect the reward at the bottom of the Missions panel:
At this point, I discovered the reason why the heading said "A Mythical Discovery (1/8)", when there were only six circles. ONE of eight. And that was because, after another quick chat with Professor Willow, the next heading was "A Mythical Discovery (2/8)". TWO!!!! And you didn't get to progress to the second circle. It looked like I'd have to complete 8 sets of missions BEFORE the second circle could be reached. I have never been so wrong in my life. Those circles had another purpose entirely.
Shortly after this, I discovered what happens when you complete one of the 'Field' research projects. Yep, you guessed it: You get a STICKER!
The sticker has the day's date on it... and, while you can keep going and complete other field missions, you won't get another sticker until you do a field research task on a new day. So that's what the circles are for. Right. Got it.
So, what's the point of completing more than one Field research task each day?
Well, there's this medal, you see...
While it only takes 10 Field Research missions to reach the bronze level of the medal - Special missions don't count - you're going to need to have completed 100 Field Research missions to reach Silver, and a whopping 1,000 to reach Gold.
By the end of my walk, I'd completed 3 Field Research tasks, but was still working my way through "A Mythical Discovery (2/8)". I had also found more Field Research tasks to fill in the gaps. Looked like I was going to go raid hunting the next day... and maybe I'd have to do A LOT of walking! Those Feebas need 5k per candy!
March 30, 2018
New Release—Dear Tiger: I Like Your Lab
Dear Tiger: I Like Your Lab , the fourth story in the Letters Across Space series, released today on Smashwords, and will soon be available on Amazon, DriveThruFiction, and via Smashwords and Draft2Digital distribution.
Finally located in the same complex, Tiger and Simone are separated again, as Simone begins to mutate—and it isn’t pretty. Tiger says he’ll talk her through it, but will he be there when she finally emerges? There are some things no friendship can survive. Could the hunter fever be one of them?
March 27, 2018
Fourth New Cover for March—The Dear Tiger Omnibus
In preparation for a late May release, I’ve received the cover for
The Dear Tiger Omnibus
. This omnibus collects all six titles of the Dear Tiger/Letters Across Space series and compiles them in one volume.
Progress Report: March 18-24, 2018
This week saw three days of less than 7 hours at the desk due to a back injury. As hard as it was to rest and do other things, it was essential, if I was to be able to write, and I’m surprised I made more than 30 hours.
Progress: March 18-24, 2018
New words produced: 28,375Outlines and Notes: 1,727Words compiled: 0Works completed: 2 ( Dear Tiger: Let's Go A-Hunting , 1 flash fiction)Works edited: 1 ( Rocky Adventures Omnibus )Covers created: 2 ( Dear Tiger: Let's Go A-Hunting , Mack 'n' Me: Blaedergil's Host )Works published: 0Works released: 0Works submitted: 0Competitions Entered: 0Bloggery: 0Hours at Desk—March 18-24: 52 hours 17 minutesHours at Desk—March 11-17: 35 hours 30 minutesHours at Desk—March 4-10: 50 hours 6 minutesHours at Desk—March 1-3: 27 hours 24 minutesFebruary Hours at Desk: 183 hours 50 minutesJanuary Hours at Desk: 180 hours 3 minute
Goal Progress
Publish Fortnightly Goal: Three pieces have now been completed for release in April, and a fourth is underway. One piece has been completed for May, and two more commenced. This goal remains on track.
Short Story a Month Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Chapter Book a Month Goal: The first chapter book for April has been written and is only waiting editing and formatting. The second chapter book for April is almost complete. This goal remains on track.
Novel a Quarter Goal: April's novel is completed. May’s novel has been commenced. This goal remains on track.
Publishing 3-Months Ahead Goal: This goal is not yet on track.
Finishing Series-I-Have-Started Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Anthology Challenge
No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Chapter-Book-Collection Challenge
Book 5 in the Dear Tiger series has been completed, and Book 6 is almost done. Both will release in April 2018, and the Omnibus, collecting all 6 books in one place, will be released in May 2018.
Progress: March 18-24, 2018
New words produced: 28,375Outlines and Notes: 1,727Words compiled: 0Works completed: 2 ( Dear Tiger: Let's Go A-Hunting , 1 flash fiction)Works edited: 1 ( Rocky Adventures Omnibus )Covers created: 2 ( Dear Tiger: Let's Go A-Hunting , Mack 'n' Me: Blaedergil's Host )Works published: 0Works released: 0Works submitted: 0Competitions Entered: 0Bloggery: 0Hours at Desk—March 18-24: 52 hours 17 minutesHours at Desk—March 11-17: 35 hours 30 minutesHours at Desk—March 4-10: 50 hours 6 minutesHours at Desk—March 1-3: 27 hours 24 minutesFebruary Hours at Desk: 183 hours 50 minutesJanuary Hours at Desk: 180 hours 3 minute
Goal Progress
Publish Fortnightly Goal: Three pieces have now been completed for release in April, and a fourth is underway. One piece has been completed for May, and two more commenced. This goal remains on track.
Short Story a Month Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Chapter Book a Month Goal: The first chapter book for April has been written and is only waiting editing and formatting. The second chapter book for April is almost complete. This goal remains on track.
Novel a Quarter Goal: April's novel is completed. May’s novel has been commenced. This goal remains on track.
Publishing 3-Months Ahead Goal: This goal is not yet on track.
Finishing Series-I-Have-Started Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Anthology Challenge
No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Chapter-Book-Collection Challenge
Book 5 in the Dear Tiger series has been completed, and Book 6 is almost done. Both will release in April 2018, and the Omnibus, collecting all 6 books in one place, will be released in May 2018.
March 26, 2018
Third New Cover for March—Dear Tiger: Help Me Find My Sisters
This is the new cover for Dear Tiger: Help Me Find My Sisters , the sixth and final novel in the Dear Tiger series.
Progress Report: March 11-17, 2018
In this week, I completed the CreateSpace format of
Mack ‘n’ Me: Origins
, but knew I needed to get some writing done for the month. Given the CS format and edit took me most of the week, I prepped for returning to writing the Dear Tiger series by reading over, and editing, the
Dear Tiger Omnibus
, which currently contains the first 4 stories in the series.
Progress: March 11-17, 2018
New words produced: 73Outlines and Notes: 1,017Words compiled: 0Works completed: 0Works edited: 2 ( Mack 'n' Me: Origins , The Dear Tiger Omnibus )Covers created: 0Works published: 0Works released: 1 ( Dear Tiger: Don’t Look Back )Works submitted: 0Competitions Entered: 0Bloggery: 0Hours at Desk—March 11-17: 35 hours 30 minutesHours at Desk—March 4-10: 50 hours 6 minutesHours at Desk—March 1-3: 27 hours 24 minutesFebruary Hours at Desk: 183 hours 50 minutesJanuary Hours at Desk: 180 hours 3 minute
Goal Progress
Publish Fortnightly Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Short Story a Month Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Chapter Book a Month Goal: The first chapter book for April has been started. This goal remains on track.
Novel a Quarter Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Publishing 3-Months Ahead Goal: This goal is not yet on track.
Finishing Series-I-Have-Started Goal: The first book in the new science fiction series has now been edited and formatted for print-on-demand via CreateSpace. It only needs to be formatted for ebook release. This goal remains on track.
Anthology ChallengeNo advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Chapter-Book-Collection ChallengeNo advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Progress: March 11-17, 2018
New words produced: 73Outlines and Notes: 1,017Words compiled: 0Works completed: 0Works edited: 2 ( Mack 'n' Me: Origins , The Dear Tiger Omnibus )Covers created: 0Works published: 0Works released: 1 ( Dear Tiger: Don’t Look Back )Works submitted: 0Competitions Entered: 0Bloggery: 0Hours at Desk—March 11-17: 35 hours 30 minutesHours at Desk—March 4-10: 50 hours 6 minutesHours at Desk—March 1-3: 27 hours 24 minutesFebruary Hours at Desk: 183 hours 50 minutesJanuary Hours at Desk: 180 hours 3 minute
Goal Progress
Publish Fortnightly Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Short Story a Month Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Chapter Book a Month Goal: The first chapter book for April has been started. This goal remains on track.
Novel a Quarter Goal: No advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Publishing 3-Months Ahead Goal: This goal is not yet on track.
Finishing Series-I-Have-Started Goal: The first book in the new science fiction series has now been edited and formatted for print-on-demand via CreateSpace. It only needs to be formatted for ebook release. This goal remains on track.
Anthology ChallengeNo advances to report. This goal remains on track.
Chapter-Book-Collection ChallengeNo advances to report. This goal remains on track.
March 25, 2018
Second New Cover for March—Dear Tiger: Let’s Go A-Hunting
Here is the cover for
Dear Tiger: Let’s Go A-Hunting
, the fifth chapter book in my Dear Tiger series, as Carlie Simonsen.
Several solar systems apart, Simone and Tiger must work together to rescue Marrietta before FedExplore terminates her as an experiment gone wrong. It’s a race against time, complicated by the increasing chances of an alien incursion, and Simone’s parents putting themselves in danger in Sharvin’s ruins. This time, the chances of them reuniting have never seemed so far away.
Several solar systems apart, Simone and Tiger must work together to rescue Marrietta before FedExplore terminates her as an experiment gone wrong. It’s a race against time, complicated by the increasing chances of an alien incursion, and Simone’s parents putting themselves in danger in Sharvin’s ruins. This time, the chances of them reuniting have never seemed so far away.
