Return of the Blog - 2016 Year in Review

Dear Conspirators and Ramblers,

Here were all those highlights from 2016 that kept me away from my blog until this afternoon. You probably caught some of this if you've seen my website or follow in insta or facebook, but here we go.

First, here are my top three projects for 2017:
A Cord of Three Strands, Book Three in the Tully Harper Series.An album with my good friend Andy (aka Seven River Day). A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help NASA preserve one of its most iconic locations.:) Okay, here's 2016.

Boba and Jango Fett and me. Kinkaid School.#5 "You're teaching again?"

Wacky Wednesday. :)Yep, but I'm still writing, too! When my friend and fellow writer Angelique texted me one night about an opening in the Kinkaid Middle School (where she teaches), it gave me pause. Was I ready to go back into the classroom after three years away?  I thought. I prayed. Then the second text came in. This time from administration. They were interested in having me on staff. I've been their head volleyball coach for a few years, but I was initially reluctant. Wasn't this taking a step back into my old career?

After some thought, I had a realization that it was actually taking a step forward . At this point I understand my writing process, and, well, I miss school. I missed the structure of the school day, and a supportive school with a great student body only emphasized the point. So I applied. So I'm officially Mr. Holt again, but I'm also Adam the writer. Teaching takes time, but it's worth it, and I haven't felt like either career has compromised the other. So go Falcons and go Tully, too!





#4 - Kickstarter Media
Houston Public Media | "Writing the City"For my first book, my good friend and editor Kristen convinced me to use crowdfunding to cover the costs. Creating books isn't cheap.

To date, I've raised over $10K on Kickstarter, which then went into cover art, layout, printing, marketing, and shipping those copies to my supporters, too!

This year marked the first time other artists actively pursued me for help with their own crowdfunding campaigns. It has been fun to see others begin that process, and I'm glad to get them started on making their creative endeavors a reality. Here's an audio interview I did about it on Houston Public Media.



Public Poetry Series | Summer Poets#3 - Reading at the Public Poetry Series - At this point only four of my poems have been published. I haven't pursued publishing them very vigorously since I've focused on the science fiction; however, it's such a delight to read and I've been fortunate enough to be selected to do so at a number of events around Houston.


#2 - Author Visit | Gaithersburg, MD
This was my second year to visit Redland Hills, a middle school near DC. I've developed a great relationship with their school. This year we even skyped before my visit, which added to the anticipation of the author visit. I look forward to making a yearly pilgrimage there to work with their students on learning the craft of writing.





#1 - Santa Monica Music Sessions - (blog entry here)
Andy on guitar, me on drums.My friend Andy already has one album to his credit (Songs for the Early Morning). Then he and I began writing a song together on a surf trip a few years ago. It sounds way too cool to be true, and I feel like that every time I think about it. After sending sound bytes back and forth and a few visits to Santa Monica for some live sessions, we have an album's worth of musics. To me, that has been borderline magical. I've always loved music but don't play anything particularly well, and only in my wildest dreams did I consider putting out an album.

Well, enter 2017. Andy and I plan to record later this spring.

So what's going on in your world? Hopefully wonderful things. Those are mine, and I'm thankful to God, my friends, my family, my employers for all their support in these endeavors. Drop me a line and let me know how your 2017 is going as well.

Dad, Mom, and I at a NASA Alumni League gathering.
Dad is the president. And Mom makes everything better.Love and rockets,
Adam