C.A. Sanders's Blog, page 15

The Halloween That Wasn’t

I’m sure that you all know by now that Halloween is my favorite holiday. It’s like Christmas/New Year’s/Fourth of July/Every other holiday rolled into one. But this year, something was missing:

Trick or Treaters

Where have all the trick or treaters gone? I only had six groups, and I live in an apartment complex with lots of young families. There’s no traffic. Everyone is familiar with each other. You can knock on one door and four doors open for you. It’s efficient, a perfect place to snag c...

The Fight of Your Life

Everyone you know is in the fight of their life.

Everyone will lose.

All the more reason to fight.

Fight. Rage against the dying of the light. But most of all, fight with virtue. Fight to make the world better. Fight so that other peoples’ fights aren’t quite so hard. Let your struggle give another strength.

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Doggos (and Cattos) Explained

Happy Saturday (even though I’m writing this on Friday)!

My friends know that I’m obsessed with DoggoSpeak, so they send me doggo memes all the time. Closer to the truth is that I’m obsessed with language and how it evolves (even from Doge to Doggo in just a year or two!), but that’s a post for another time. Cat talk like the now mostly forgotten can haz cheezburger also gets me thinking. I mean, why do cats and dogs have such horrible grammar and spelling skills? It does me a bamboozle.

A fr...

Good Morning Starshine…

So thanks to a friend of mine, I got that earworm stuck in my head. If you don’t know the song, here ya go. If you do, now it’s in YOUR HEAD! MMMUUUUUAHHHHH!!

But it gets worse. The ear worm spawned other larvae, dammit, the ENTIRE SOUNDTRACK FROM HAIR!! Well, actually just a couple of them. I’ll treat to you to this one.

I’m from a family of hippies, and this was a pretty influential soundtrack (though not on the level as Rocky Horror). I had long hair until my mid twenties, more than half...

Writers Should Know Better

During a conversation with other writers yesterday, I became shocked, SHOCKED, at how many think that they are so good that they don’t need further study or guided practice. At how many choose beta readers for a pat on a back instead of real feedback. At writers that don’t revise. At writers that think that BOOK REVIEWERS don’t have useful critiques and are only good for marketing and promotion (I always take reviews to heart. Someone went through the trouble of pointing out strengths and wea...

So Far Today

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So far today:

I went to the dentist and found out that I will have to go two more times to complete the implant.

Walked into a chair. Not like stubbing a toe or anything. I walked right into the back of the chair, gut meets wood.

Soaked my pants while washing dishes (soaked with dishwater!)

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Spilled coffee grounds on the floor.

Did not clean up spilled coffee grounds on the floor.

Cleaned Shelvin’s tank, and while he was in his cardboard motel, he almost escaped…turtles are faster than they...

You Can Go Home Again

You can go home again, but sometimes the new owners have painted the house a different color, and they cut down your climbing tree to expand the driveway.

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Friday night I took Katie to her first in-theater viewing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. It was a special one at 9pm, so even us old people could stay up for it.

I’ve written about my love of Rocky before, how it changed my life and drew me out of my shell. Rocky was home to me. It was where I felt comfortable. I could be my most authe...

I Am the Rape Culture

If women are brave enough to post #metoo, I must have the courage to call myself out.

I am the problem
I am the rape culture.
I am the patriarchy.
I have breathed the invisible, foul air since birth until I no longer tasted the pollution.
I have enabled.
I have looked away.
I have put the onus on women to protect themselves with “self defense classes” and “pepper spray” instead of focusing on the rapists.
I have gaslighted.
I have crossed lines and rationalized it as romance.
I have whined ab...

Indie Authors’ Day Workshop

On Saturday I gave a lecture and workshop at Pine Plains Library, in upstate New York. This was my second straight year presenting for IAD. Instead of most presenters that I’ve seen, who give lectures on publishing and marketing, I focused on the actual craft. It doesn’t matter how great a writer you are, you can always be better (myself included), something so many writers forget. Being an author is a combination of narcissism and humility, and the second part is what helps you grow.

A gener...

Holy Shnikes! A 99 Cent Book Sale!

Tomorrow is Indie Authors’ Day, and I am giving a presentation and workshop at a library upstate. To celebrate, I reduced the price of The Watchmage of Old New York to 99 cents! That’s 75% percent off! This is only for a few days, so if you like Historical Fantasy with complex characters, historical accuracy combined with a fantasy world woven into it, and a heavy dose of whimsy. You want this book.

Also, if you like my blog and want to support me, 99 cents is a good way to do so.

And if you’...