Colby R. Rice's Blog, page 10
February 12, 2018
CEFJ #58 Building My Artist’s Studio! + Taking a Step Back from Grad School (2/12/18)
Grad school is really trying me these weeks, guys. Which is why I missed my podcast last week. I long for that moment when I can get up and work on my novels, films, games, creative uni, and my creative business every single day, and just be in total bliss. Until then? I have my new “artist’s studio” which gives me light and hope until I finish this semester. 
January 29, 2018
CEFJ #57 King Arthur, Blackface, and Reclaiming My Culture (1/29/18)
STILL feeling good! This self-care thing? Excellente! This week, I’m bringing you King Arthur: The Colby version, the grand FINALE in my MLK Jr Day mini saga, and some general updates on my creative process for writing, worldbuilding, and creative uni this week! Side note: I LOVE feeling this good on a daily basis, and I hope that I can continue this trend of self-care throughout the semester and throughout the year. 
January 22, 2018
CEFJ #56 Setting Boundaries, Self advocacy, Self care, and Scaling Back to Preserve Creativity (1/22/18)
I’m feeling REALLY GOOD, y’all, and it’s because of my 2018 self-care mantra. More sleep, more homemade food, more time to meditate and relax, and taking it ONE day at a time. Plus, a focus on the journey and the process, rather than on the final product or goal.
Still, I continue to scale back on certain things and home in on others as I continue to recognize where I feel creatively, emotionally, and spiritually aligned on my road to sci-fi writer infamy!
VLOG VERSIONS
JOIN COLBY ON SOCIAL MEDIA!
The Podcast: http://www.colbyrrice.com/the-epic-fantastical-journey-of-a-black-female-sci-fi-writer/
My Author Website: www.colbyrrice.com
My Novels: http://bit.ly/ColbyRRiceAmazonAuthorPage
Support the F’empire on Patreon: http://patreon.com/colbyrrice
My FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/ColbyRRicePage/
My Twitter: https://twitter.com/ColbyRRice
My Instagram: https://instagram.com/colbyrrice
January 15, 2018
CEFJ #55 Another Directorial Success, The Start of Graduate School, and Claiming My Space (1/15/18)
The first week of grad school / the second week of the year was actually pretty mild, with the exception of the AMAZING and EXPLOSIVE slam poetry performance I had the pleasure of co-producing for our “Tucson Celebrates MLK Day” performance.
I also have some insights on what it means to assert your directorial space as a woman and as a Black artist, and as a forewarning, if you aren’t educated on the issues of race and are easily offended with discussions on White supremacy, then this is not the episode for you (but you are more than welcome to join me next week)!
VLOG VERSIONS
JOIN COLBY ON SOCIAL MEDIA!
The Podcast: http://www.colbyrrice.com/the-epic-fantastical-journey-of-a-black-female-sci-fi-writer/
My Author Website: www.colbyrrice.com
My Novels: http://bit.ly/ColbyRRiceAmazonAuthorPage
Support the F’empire on Patreon: http://patreon.com/colbyrrice
My FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/ColbyRRicePage/
My Twitter: https://twitter.com/ColbyRRice
My Instagram: https://instagram.com/colbyrrice
January 8, 2018
CEFJ #54 Fighting Workaholism, Prioritizing Self Care, and Social Media Fasting (1/8/17)
We’re still at the beginning of the new year, y’all, and I’ve had a major personal breakthrough. By accident, lol!
I’m going to talk about workoholism today, and YES, workoholism IS a thing, y’all. In many ways it works on your brain and dopamine in the same way as drugs and alcohol do. BE CAREFUL of letting it take you over; just because amazing work ethic, high levels of production, and hitting goals are positive things DOES NOT mean you can’t overload on too much of a good thing.
Here are some lessons I’ve learned from beginning to turn my workaholism around, and some actions I’m taking to engage more fully in my self-care, health, and preservation.
VLOG VERSIONS
JOIN COLBY ON SOCIAL MEDIA!
The Podcast: http://www.colbyrrice.com/the-epic-fantastical-journey-of-a-black-female-sci-fi-writer/
My Author Website: www.colbyrrice.com
My Novels: http://bit.ly/ColbyRRiceAmazonAuthorPage
Support the F’empire on Patreon: http://patreon.com/colbyrrice
My FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/ColbyRRicePage/
My Twitter: https://twitter.com/ColbyRRice
My Instagram: https://instagram.com/colbyrrice
January 1, 2018
CEFJ #53 Happy New Year! + My Creative Goals for 2018! (01/01/18)
HAPPY NEW YEAR, ALL!! It’s 2018, and I cannot WAIT to jump in both feet first!
Creative Goals for 2018!
BRUH! IT’S 2018!
YAAAAASSS!!
So obviously, because my 2017 was a pretty incredible year for me and Rebel Ragdoll, my goals are on fleek for this year. Yes, I’ve traded my small goal list for a massive one, but hear me out!
(But wait, before we get into my new year wish list, if you haven’t checked out my creative achievements for 2017, now’s the time to do it: CREATIVE ACHIEVEMENTS 2017, FTW!)
So now that you’ve gotten one last look at 2017, let’s move forward, shall we? Onward and upward!
2018:
YEAR OF THE DIRECTOR
YEAR OF SCREENWRITER
YEAR OF SHADOW-DEVELOPMENT
THE PREAMBLE, BITCHES!
Yes, you read that absolutely right! This year is actually going to be a year of hardcore behind the scenes development where my writing, world-building, and novels are concerned. I’m also going to focus my creative/professional development more on screenwriting and filmmaking than anything else, which means that I plan on FINISHING (yes, finishing) the Screenwriting & TV Writing tracks I created for my Personal Creative Uni. As my graduate school work load becomes lighter as of May 2018, I’ll be able to dedicate WAY more time to my own personal / creative development + my businesses.
SUMMARY of 2018 Goals & Plans
I realized that I needed to revamp my way of writing and publishing so that I can serve my audience way better, and for me, the best way to do that is to write a bunch of novels ahead of time, polish them, and then just release them in rapid succession in 2019. (I call this shadow-writing.) So that’s what’s happening on front street this year: finishing Hollow Point and releasing two smaller novellas. On back street, I will work on everything else behind the scenes, both in a writing capacity and in a research / worldbuilding capacity. If we get lucky, we might even see the release of THE HAUNT (book #4 in The Books of Ezekiel series) on front street this year, but I’m not making any hard promises.
More on front street: aside from those three smaller publishing projects, I’m going to focus on honing my screenwriting skills, my filmmaking skills, and on running and evolving the current operating companies of Rebel Ragdoll. I’m scaling back on the shotgun reader recruitment approach. Instead, I am focusing more on specific and focused marketing endeavors: mainly my upcoming co-author novel collaboration, the 24-author box set run for the USA Today bestseller list, and of course, scaling up the author promos going on at New Adult Noir(e).
On the reader side, I want to focus less on volume and more on the quality and integrity of my relationship with my readers. Scaling back my shotgun reader recruitment approach (though effective) is a part of that endeavor. This year, I’ll be hosting more intimate giveaways around my own books, worlds, and products that will really start to build a real community around my work. I’ll also be loving hardcore on my Facebook Fan group that I just revamped: OFFWORLD.
With regard to the fiscal and creative growth of my actual businesses, the start of new endeavors, renewed focus, and brand-building around New Adult Noir(e), The Bohemian Badass, and The Blackheart Boulange will be the biggest challenges to my time and energy this semester. Luckily, though, I already have protocols and systems in place for NA Noir(e), and The Blackheart Boulange will literally be in shadow development until the end of June. Also, while I’m not officially opening the legal non-profit portion of The Dollhouse this year, I will be creating streamable, short-form video content for single mothers on a regular basis. No major pressures here, except to host a few Facebook/Instagram streams per week.
Still, my biggest mistake last year was taking on the growth of Rebel Ragdoll alone. So THIS year, I’m hiring 3-5 virtual assistants to help me run my business on a project-by-project basis. I’ve already set up the Rebel Ragdoll Asana account, and I’m already in love with it. I’ve also started to create online workflows, systems, protocols, and trainings for the various things I need done for Rebel Ragdoll, so that my VAs will know exactly what to do for any project come mid-January.
Finally, I expect graduate school to lighten up SIGNIFICANTLY at the end of May 2018. I deliberately front-loaded my grad school load so that in Year 3 (starting summer of 2018), I only have four classes total to take, plus my Master’s comp (which will take place in December 2018). So I really expect the second half of 2018 to provide a lot of room and opportunity for me to focus on the growth of Rebel Ragdoll, the development and release of creative projects, brand growth, and on planning for what I believe will be the explosion of Rebel Ragdoll in 2019 (in a good way).
Anyways, that’s my executive summary of what I HOPE will be happening in 2018! Check out the sections below for WAAAY more detailed plans for each area of my creative, business, and personal growth in 2018. (If all goes according to plan, that is.)
And of course, I have a VIDEO version and a PODCAST version of this entire post, and you can check them both out here:
CEFJ #53, HAPPY NEW YEAR! + MY CREATIVE GOALS FOR 2018!
my 2018 goals! TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Marketing and Social Media Goals
Community-building Goals (w/ Readers)
Community-building Goals (w/ Authors)
Research, World-building, and Shadow-development Goals
Writing & Publishing Goals
Rebel Ragdoll Goals
Rebel Ragdoll Press Goals
Rebel Ragdoll Productions Goals
New Adult Noir(e) Goals
The Bohemian Badass Goals
The Blackheart Boulange Goals
Professional Development, Part I of II: Personal Creative University Goals
Professional Development, Part II of II: Graduate School Goals
Personal Goals
Marketing & SOCIAL MEDIA
Optimize my current properties: update book back matter, turn all properties into paperbacks, submit free book lead magnet to all free e-book sites, etc
Build out the websites and blogs for current businesses and brands: Colby R. Rice, Rebel Ragdoll, Rebel Ragdoll Press, Rebel Ragdoll Productions, New Adult Noir(e), The Bohemian Badass, The Blackheart Boulange, The Blackheart Bakery, The Blackheart Boudoir
Build out the social media outlets for both my author brands and my current businesses
Start sharing content and keeping the social media accounts active and engaged
Successfully execute a 100-review book launch for Hollow Point, as well as trickle down reviews for The Given and The Taken
Work on and FINISH all my marketing funnels
Three major (potential) marketing pushes:
4-author novel collaboration
USA Today run
Summer Digital Summit
Community-building GOALS (w/ READERS)
Find out who my readers are and what they want from their experience on my list
Develop an even closer, more intimate relationship with my reader base and developed a super fandom
Build up and show mad love to my fan group OFFWORLD and to my Offworlders
Offworld Overlord group*
Community-building GOALS (w/ AUTHORS)
Continue to forge really awesome rships with authors through New Adult Noir(e) and other selective author collaborations
RESEARCH, WORLD-BUILDING, and SHADOW-DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Research and work on the story bible of the ASYLUM trilogy
Research and work on the story bible for THE RIGHT HAND series
Research and work on the story bible for THE WORLD OF NEVER AFTER (includes The Hitmen of Happily Ever After series, The ForNever Files series, and the Godsman series)
Research and work on the story bible for THE BOOKS OF EZEKIEL series
Research and work on the story bible for THE FORGOTTEN trilogy
Research and work on the story bible for the SENTIENT trilogy
Research and work on the story bible for the BILLY N’ BLACK film series (the 6-film, crime noir / urban fantasy adaptation of Shakespeare’s Roman history tetralogy)
Research and work on the story bible for the IMMORTAL TV series
WRITING, SHADOW-WRITING, AND PUBLISHING GOALS
Writing Goals
Hit 1,000 words per day with my writing regimen
Shadow Writing Goals
Shadow-write the manuscripts of the ASYLUM trilogy
Shadow-write the manuscripts of The Hitmen of Happily Ever After series
Shadow-write the manuscripts of The Books of Ezekiel series
Shadow-write the manuscripts of The ForNever Files series
Shadow-write the manuscripts of The Godsman series
Publishing Goals
Polish and publish HOLLOW POINT (BOE #3)
Polish and publish LOOSEY, GOOSEY (HOHEA #0)
Polish and publish PEPLUM (ASYLUM #0)
REBEL RAGDOLL GOALS
Write grants and raise money for Rebel Ragdoll
Make all relevant business purchases
Optimize Patreon page for Rebel Ragdoll
Complete lead magnets for each subsidiary
Hire and lead a team of virtual assistants to help manage the entire Rebel Ragdoll f’empire
Continue to develop and plan for the five latent subsidiaries of Rebel Ragdoll: The Dollhouse Foundation, ChickRogue Studios, Doll Theatre, Subterranime, and Miscellany! by Rebel Ragdoll
REBEL RAGDOLL PRESS GOALS
Colby R. Rice Brand
Write, polish, and publish Hollow Point (BOE #3)
Write, polish, and publish Loosey, Goosey (HOHEA #0)
Write, polish, and publish Peplum (ASYLUM, #0)
BONUS: Write, polish, and publish The Haunt (BOE #4)
Continue podcasting for “The Epic, Fantastical Journey of a Black Female Sci-fi Writer” podcast
Continue blogging for the Colby R. Rice brand (sporadically)
Secret Romance Pen Name Brand
Continue shadow-developing the secret pen name brand, website, blog, podcast, social media outlets, project slate, and giveaway/promo outlet
REBEL RAGDOLL PRODUCTIONS GOALS
Outlining
Finish season outline for EZEKIEL TV series (Season #1)
Finish season outline for IMMORTAL TV series (Season #1)
Writing / Drafting
Write, finish, and polish SANDMAN feature script
Write, finish, and polish EZEKIEL pilot
Write, finish, and polish IMMORTAL pilot
STRETCH GOALS: Finish drafts for all 10 episodes for EZEKIEL TV series (Season #1)
STRETCH GOALS: Finish drafts for all 13 episodes for IMMORTAL TV series (Season #1)
Film Production
Finish pre-production for SANDMAN film
Finish fundraising plan for SANDMAN film
NEW ADULT NOIR(E) GOALS
Kick off New Year with customer satisfaction survey to see what current authors want re: services
Continue to manage and evolve the NA NOIR(E), its current giveaways, and book blog
Host our 11 Monthly Free Book promos
Host our 6 Mega Giveaways
Host 2 major audiobook giveaways
THE BOHEMIAN BADASS GOALS
Overhaul and flesh out the website and blog for The Bohemian Badass
Overhaul The Bohemian Badass School for Creatives
Weekly Blogs, Vlogs, and Podcasts
Blog at least 1x a week at The Bohemian Badass
Podcast at least 1x a week at The Bohemian Badass for “The B-Badass Podcast”
Send 2-4 newsletters per month to our Creative Badass community
Creative Course Development
Finish and release the “Metaphor Maven” brand, which includes:
the signature course
the masterclass
the workbook
Finish and release the “Plot like a Badass” brand, which includes:
the signature course
the masterclass
the e-book
the workbook
Finish and release “Writers UnBlocked / Novel Kickstarter” brand, which includes,
the free e-mail course
the workbook
Finish and release the “Breaking Badass” Challenge, which includes,
the free e-mail course
the workbook
THE BLACKHEART BOULANGE GOALS
Draft and test 5 recipes for The Blackheart Bakery pastry/treat lines
Draft and test 5 flavor brands for The Blackheart Boudoir skincare/hair care lines
Open The Blackheart Boulange for test business on October 1, 2018!
The dollhouse foundation GOALS
Create and publish short-form video content for The Dollhouse vlog and blog and podcast
Create and grow The Dollhouse’s “Single Mom Creative” community via your FB group
Support and love on single moms trying to hustle their ways to creative infamy!
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, I OF II:
PERSONAL CREATIVE UNIVERSITY GOALS
Focus on developing my Directing skills ALL YEAR LONG
Finish Screenwriting Track at my Personal Creative Uni
Finish TV Writing Track at my Personal Creative Uni
Continue to work through various Filmmaking & Film Production Tracks
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, II OF II:
GRADUATE SCHOOL GOALS
Use every aspect of grad school to build my business and forward my creative career as an ARTIST, not as an academic
Stay focused on what YOU are here for, even when others around you are “going with the flow”; stay in charge of your own destiny
Prioritize your needs, acknowledge your limitations, and set clear boundaries
Take care of yourself first; then take care of the kid; then take care of grad school
Take advantage of my waning responsibilities in grad school as an opportunity to build up other areas of creative entrepreneurship and creative interest
PERSONAL GOALS!
Physical Health: Elevate my physical prowess by moving from casual physical maintenance to a targeted endurance training and muscle toning. Sleep WAY more (8-9 hours per night) + naps. Join a martial arts class.
Emotional Health: launching into full self-care mode by paying attention to my thoughts; engaging in ACTIVE positive self-talk; filling my blessings jars to help me along my journey; keeping graduate school away from my spirit and my art
Financial Health: continue to build out the five pillars of economic stability and freedom (investments, real estate, credit, entrepreneurship, and asset protection); stand as an example to other artists of how to build wealth as an artist; build towards my four major financial and business goals for 2020-2025
Spiritual Health: get into a daily spiritual practice, through meditation, prayer, or just focused breathing
Self-love Care: more shopping, more cute clothes, more boots, more shea butter, more bubble baths, more afro glory, and ::gasp:: eyeshadow! Just a tighter focus on doing little things for me that center me once in a while.
Family / Motherhood: see my daughter through to an amazing age 4!; spend even more time on my kid; go home to visit family AT LEAST once
Hobbies: engage a bit more in learning some new crafts hobbies; re-connect more fully to my gourmet cooking/baking hobby; diving back into my language study casually; planning my 2019 international trip to Zanzibar
So there you have it, folks! These insane goals are what I’m aiming for in 2018. I expect new things, surprises, and set backs to change the course of some of these (obviously), but I always like going into the new year with a solid plan. That way, I can find my way back from my inevitable detours. So how about you? What are your major creative goals for 2018, and how do you plan to achieve them? Leave your comments below, and HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Stay badass, stay indie,
December 25, 2017
CEFJ #51 MERRY CHRISTMAS + My Q4 2017 Creative Achievements! (12/25/17)
MERRY CHRISTMAS, Y’ALL! As promised, here’s a weekly and a Q4 Creative Achievements Round Up, with a LOT of effort to not repeat info, lol. It’s been a really wonderful and productive 2017
In the meantime, check out New Adult Noir(e)’s AMAZING “25 Days of Box Sets” giveaway: http://bit.ly/25DaysALLBOXSETS
VLOG VERSION
December 17, 2017
CEFJ #50 I Don’t Need Your Fucking Permission: Re-reading Shakespeare and Putting the Fuck You Back into the MFA (12/18/17)
Chile, the ENTIRE TITLE of this vlog is “I Don’t Need Your Fucking Permission: Re-reading Shakespeare and Putting the Fuck You Back into the MFA”.
Yeah, bruh. That’s how annoyed and angry grad school had me in its final weeks, lol. This update is HELLA long (over 2.5 hours), and encompasses three weeks of creative hustle, so be forewarned!
In the meantime, check out New Adult Noir(e)’s AMAZING “25 Days of Box Sets” giveaway: http://bit.ly/25DaysALLBOXSETS
VLOG VERSION
December 14, 2017
Check out the Action Scene I Just Edited!
GUYS!! Behold the fruits of my long and arduous labor, lol. A finished edit of the action scene that I’ve been working on. This is, for me, a MAJOR milestone in my creative journey and development. Indie action filmmaking and editing here I come!
EDITING PROJECT NOTES
So, I’m enrolled in this AMAZING class: Film Editing Pro’s “The Art of Action Editing”, which is a really great class for, well, learning action editing. Check them out here: http://filmeditingpro.com
For this class, my final project is to edit this action scene together, and I’m SUPER amped about my cut. It’s not a perfect cut, and I still struggle with audio a bit, but I literally started this semester with pretty much zero editing knowledge, and I’m really proud of my final product. Constructive feedback is welcome, y’all!
ALSO **THIS VIDEO IS FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY, NOT FOR COMMERCIAL USE!**
(As an FYI, I really recommend that you have or develop a basic technical knowledge of how to use video editing software (Avid, Premiere Pro, or any other) before you try this class out. It’s a great class, but they do NOT teach you how to use a specific film editing software, so you need to know how to use it before taking this course.)
