This Writers Journey

Find me at JayrodPG

Howdy folks!  It has been a long week for me.  I've missed posts for Last Friday, Monday, and my Wednesday Mashup.  And to be honest I would have felt bad a while ago.  But I don't this week.  I think it is because blogging went from being work, to being fun for me.  I really enjoy blogging and if I miss a few posts it isn't the end of my world, or the end of my ability to connect with people here.  It means I missed a post (or a week of them).  And that's okay.  I've been away with various responsibilities that came before writing and I've taken care of them now, so I can come back here and have some fun with you.  Aren't you lucky?

This month I've spent some time preparing for Camp NaNoWriMo.  I'm actually really excited about it, because I think that I'll have adequate free time to work on my novel in this upcoming month.  Time that I very well may not have during this upcoming school year, so I figured I would attempt to knock out my NaNoWriMo experience early this year.  But I get ahead of myself, I figure some of you don't know what NaNoWriMo actually is.  NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month and if offically takes place in the month of November.  It has been running this will be its 14th year and it is starting up a little early with two Camps during the summer for those of us who aren't sure if they can do November.

As I was signing up for it though, I noticed a little thing about fundraising for Camp NaNoWriMo, and it got me thinking.  I remember how much progress I made last November when I was doing it for me.  What if I went and tried to fundraise for the program this time?  Could I do it?  Would anyone even donate towards it in my name.  To be honest, I have no idea.  But I really love the way the NaNoWriMo program builds a community and gets them all writing.  It was "crossing their threshold" that took me beyond the realm of a person who wanted to write to being a writer.

I speak of the threshold in Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey.  I like to think of that as the pattern which I am following towards my own dreams of becoming a writer.  I've been on this journey for 14 years and I think I spent most of that time "denying the call to adventure" and just wishing that I could magically be at the end of the journey.  It was my participation in NaNoWriMo that taught me that the journey is important, not just for what I'll learn, but for who I'll meet.  I've had the opportunity to meet up now with my Mentors for this journey and I'm grateful for the opportunity to get to know them better as continue on the path together.

Writing Group on Twitter

I think one of the most valuable things I've learned as I've trudged along the path towards becoming an author is the value of my fellow writers and readers.  I never realized just how important knowing other writers to help you learn along the journey was, and I had no idea that the people who love reading would end up being some of your strongest allies in the journey either.  I had it in my head (even though I knew I needed others to make it as a writer) that I would end up on this journey alone without any help.  I figured that because so many other things in my life have been or felt that way.  But writing, thankfully, has been entirely different.


So for the upcoming month much of my content will be focused around the goals I am making and keeping in line with Camp NaNoWriMo.  I know that if I give it my best shot, I'll be able to get through a lot more of "Crimes of the Umbramancer" than I have for several months.  (If you are familiar with NaNo's fussy rule about doing new material, know that I'm disregarding it so I can finish what I started last November.)  I have a new protagonist to focus on and build a story for, and that is going to be my focus.

Thanks so much for reading folks.  If you feel so inclined to donate to NaNoWriMo, you can find the link for me here.  Things will be changing up here the next month at the blog to expand what I've been doing.  I realize I should probably do a writing blog each week along with a culture blog and my midweek mashup.  Hopefully it will all go well.  I'm Jayrod Garrett, the First OG and I'm hoping that you'll join me in the mad dash to 50K in June!

 What goals do you have for this summer?

War Post: May 16th Mashup and Goals

Another week another Mashup!  Good to see ya'll.  I hope that I'm able to deliver some good blogs and links for you all to be able to really enjoy.  This one will be a little long, because I'm focusing on not on blogs this week, but some good links to sites that can help you in your journey into the world of literature.  So without further ado I wish to introduce you to some of my favorite helps for writing more successfully!

Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Howard Taylor, and Hugo Award Winning Mary Robinette Kowal host a program called "Writing Excuses" that you got to check out.  I learn a ton from their weekly program and have begun using their writing prompts in my writing group.

"I Should be Writing" by Muir Lafferty is a great podcast that gets real about writing.  Some of her material is videos, other things are just sound advice for how to become a better writer.  It would do you good to check her out.

This chart does a lot for my own self esteem, I figure it might help you out too.  It is called the "Photographic Height and Weight Chart."  It has helped me to better envision characters and get their proportions right in my head without having to look at hundreds of pictures online to get the same idea. It also has changed my ideas about weight and what is heavy and what is not.  Give it a look.

This blog is run by a group of authors too numerous to share here, but they have some of the best material on the web about how to write better fiction and keep yourself sane while doing so.  Check out "Magical Words", you won't be sorry you did.

For those of you who are aching to put yourself in ridiculous amounts of pain during the months of June or August, I have news for you!  Camp NaNoWriMo!  We get to do 50,000 words while working with folks in internet cabins.  I've never the camp before, but I think it will be a lot of fun.  I'm prepping myself for it now.  Oh for the record, I will not be writing something new.  Its a chance for me to get way ahead on Crimes and let my family know what kind of writing atmosphere I'll need come November.  Join me!

For those of you getting ready to submit Query Letters a great resource to look into is "Agent Query."  It is a website with all of the agents who are in the business all in one place.  You can start your research into a good agent starting here.  It will help you to get familiar with names and what a agent represents and allow you to find out what they really like to read too.

Do you like free music?  Do you like video game music?  Do you like remixes of free video game music?  Look no further then than "Overclocked Remix."  They are a great site that has given new life to a lot of the songs from my childhood of playing video games.  It is really neat to see what people do to the music to make it bearable to listen to outside of a game.

I'll end the favorite's this week with something that might appeal to some mathhead out there.  This was a site my cousin showed me years ago, which has helped me immensely with my math.  It is called "Wolfram Alpha."  It works much like a calculator, only you can put into it complicated problems that would take you a while to solve and it will show you all the steps of how it is done.  I don't honestly know how to get the best out of it, but I figure if you like math, you'll figure it out.  Enjoy!

And for our video of the week, I couldn't think of anything better than Lindsey Stirling's trip to Africa.

This girl makes me long to hear my cousin's wife play the violin.  
This week has really been about starting to make time for my writing.  Sometimes even when I shouldn't be writing.  I've sacrificed sleep to be able to write this week.  And it has finally gotten me closer to where I really want to be.  I'm a big believer in the idea of projecting what you really want.  You might have heard the idea on the movie The Secret.  It's not that much of a secret really, envision what you want, work with all your might towards that goal, and be receptive to the myriad of ways that your dream can come to life.  You'll notice that trend as we work through the goals today.
1. Finishing Chapter Two and starting Chapter Three of "Crimes of the Umbramancer by next week.     Chapter Two is done.  And I love what has happened in this chapter.  I think it gives a nice introduction to my second character and enables me to bring her to life in a way that keeps the tension of the story.  I'm really looking forward to what will happen in Chapter Three now.  I need to switch back to the point of view of Sora, but much of the action will be around another character.  Excitement builds!
2. Write seven four thousand words per week. (Between blog & fiction.)     I fell short of this goal by about three thousand words again.  Some of that is due to the anniversary, some of it is due to just not working hard enough, but most of it is due to the fact that the goal is unrealistic for me.  I think I can handle four thousand words.  Seven is just too much with all that I have on my plate.  (Keep in mind the four thousand is only my words for the blog and my fiction, I do other writing I don't count here.)
3. Exercise five times a week.     This is one of the most challenging goals.  I made it out to exercise three times and I got a gym membership and found friends to exercise with.  As I've been working at this blessings have been consistent.  I might not make the goal of five times a week yet, but things are certainly moving in a positive direction, that much is certain!
4. Finishing up my school work from my last semester in College.

     Still not done with this one.  I'm making it my goal to be done with this by the end of the round.  I think that will make my teacher happy, and also go towards making the atmosphere of achieving goals a lot more cheerful!

5. Spending time everyday with a spiritual source.
     I've been doing really well with praying everyday.  To be honest I usually find myself getting to Morning and Evening about once a week.  I spend a lot of time reading it then.  I would like to get a morning ritual of waking up and doing spiritual study then, but I'm trying to take things slow.

6. Finishing homework from Group Therapy.
     I'm all done with the first six weeks of my workbooks for group therapy!  I'm really proud of myself for actually getting it all done.  It's been pretty hard and I've learned a lot about myself.  I'm hoping that I'm able to keep up the great work as I progress into the next phase of my program.

A while ago my son asked me, "Why do you talk about writing your blog as if it is a chore?"  And it got me thinking that I must be putting off the wrong kind of energy about the things that I'm writing and working on.  I don't want to do that, so I've worked at making my goals more positive.  And thus far it is working, I feel better about writing and I want to do it more.  Just have to figure out the right balance between writing and the rest of life.

This is Jayrod Garrett, the First OG.  I'll be back on Friday with a post about a significant difference between the way that men and women think in my opinion.  Thanks for reading.  Much love to you all!  Peace.

IWSG: Self Trust and Voice

Last week I wrote about self trust at the end of a post and I thought I would elaborate on my own issues with self trust here for the support group.  I think that most folks who have met me in person would agree that I exude confidence.  I'm kind, charismatic, and gentle which I guess in a soldier is a good combination.  However, I'm actually insecure about something that most wouldn't guess, and that is my voice in writing.

Obviously, I don't have an issue with speaking my mind.  I'm willingly opening myself up to people criticizing my thoughts concerning abortion, politics, and black culture.  I welcome that.  It doesn't bother me if you don't agree with me.  What worries me is that I come across saying what I really want to say.  That isn't an issue of simply word choice, but the tone and voice of my writing.

Blogging for me is an exercise in learning to self validate.  Often my writing when I blog is quite raw.  It hasn't gone through multiple different people.  It has seen my wife and sometimes our adopted son.  But it hasn't gone to them for proofreading or to help me fix problems.  Instead it has been about validating my writing for me.  And that's not fair to them.  I need to be able to self validate and trust that what I put down is good enough.  But I bet there is someone else out there like me who suffers from the same fear of not being good enough.

So here is my advice to those of you who share my fear.  Write inside your own comfort zone.  My comfort zone is a unique one, I feel most comfortable talking about issues that are particularly controversial in society.  I realize that I have good things to say about them.  And that because of my own experiences that I have an education there that other lack.  So I focus on those things because for me, I am most comfortable there.  And it gives me an opportunity to exercise my voice and learn about how I write and how I express myself.  Both of which are crucial for any young writer to learn about.

But once you have found your comfort zone, push the envelope of your abilities.  You do not learn to walk without failure, and you will not learn how to write without failure.  As I grow in my abilities and my education I hope to work towards making this more culturally friendly as a blog.  I want to be able to speak about issues that the LBGT community, Asians, and the Native Americans face.  I might have someone comment and tell me that everything I'm writing is garbage, and inform me as to what the real deal is on a subject.  And guess what, that's okay!  Because I'm comfortable with failure in my journey.  Because I don't learn the most from my successes, but rather from my failures.

Soon I'll have a new comfort zone and I'll have to reach further to search out excellence.  I want to the same thing in literature.  I recently read a post from Nora Jemisin on RaceFail, and I realized that I'm coming into writing at a good time.  When I was younger I wanted to just write a story about an African American Hero in Science Fiction & Fantasy, but now my views have expanded to want to see Heroes and Heroines of color throughout SFF.  I think I'm a decent writer, but while I am bringing my skills up to the level that someone will choose to publish my work, I'm going to focus on other cultures and religions and bring them to light.  But again I cannot do any of this if I lack confidence in my voice.

So I leave you my fellow writers with a challenge.  Start writing within your comfort zone.  And as soon as you think you have a grasp on your voice, start pushing the envelope.  Don't sit back and think you are good as is.  Develop the healthy mindset that you are always seeking out the next peak of performance.  Writing is a journey that has potential to never end.  Look at Frank and Brian Herbert, their journey in writing has already spanned two generations.  There is no limit to what we can do as writers if we will work towards touching the stars.

If you are struggling with your voice, that's okay.  But it isn't okay to give up.  Sit down in your chair and write.  Something, anything.  One word or a thousand.  Because for each word you put down you forge the voice within you.  And after you have forged the edge of your own voice, you'll find the battle towards becoming a paid author one that you can tackle with the grace of a ballerina.

That's all I got for today.  Stay tuned for the end of the week when I tackle my first interview.  I'm Jayrod Garrett, and I'm the First OG.  And naturally I have a question for you:

What do you want to do with your voice?

War Post: May 2nd Mashup & ROW Goals

Today should be a Insecure Writers Support Group post.  But I decided to make it just a Mashup and Goals like usual.  Why you might ask?  Because I wrote something separate for the IWSG.  I realized that it needed to be separate, and it was a blog post all of its own, so check it out if you are into that kind of thing.  Let's rock this Mashup and Goals peeps!

Scott Ashton made my week when I discovered his blog about Brandon Sanderson's creative writing class.  Check it out at: "Write about Dragons."

Ava Jae wrote about the challenge of Finishing in: "How to Finish Writing a Novel."

If you ever wanted to find out how many millionaires are paying in a lower tax bracket than you check out: "The Buffett Rule."

Larry Correia shares a little about how ridiculous our administration can be in: "Freaking ridiculous, child labor laws coming to family farms." (And if you want to read more go here.)

At Spirit of Ilithyia a story about the way birth is handled in this country, tune in at: "How Birth One Hundred Years Ago Impacts Birth Today."

Stephen Foster Jr. shares the thoughtfulness of a girls father and the sensitivity of a radio personality in: "Rape Away The Gay?"

Martha Wells brings us back the past, so we can recognize the future in: "Erasing Women."

Bjorn Lomberg has great news telling us we have enough food to end world hunger, but we still need more in: "How To Get Food on Every Table."

N.K. Jemisin talks about a topic I never knew came to pass in SSF (and I'm thrilled it did) in: "Why I Think RaceFail Was The Bestest Thing Evar for SFF."

And Timothy Sexton wrote an article on similar topic in: "How Martin Luther King Kept Lt. Uhura on the Bridge of the Starship Enterprise."

And for our laugh of the day I thought, let's watch Leonard Nimoy be lazy for a day. 

This week has been so much more productive than the last several.  I'm so thankful for smaller goals.  However as I was about to do a lot better, I had a friend in the National Guard take his own life.  It kinda ruined the end of the week for me.  Still here's a taste of what I accomplished in the last week.
1. Finishing Chapter Two and starting Chapter Threeof "Crimes of the Umbramancer by next week.     I wanted to finish up Chapter Two, but unfortunately after the news I've become both depressed and busy.  Hopefully I'll finish up this week, but we'll have to see what happens at this point.
2. Write seven thousand words per week. (Between blog & fiction.)     Well counting what I write on Twitter, Writing Group, my Scene, and getting a Blog Buffer, I have managed to get at least seven thousand in the last week.  Which I'm very grateful for.
3. Exercise five times a week.     The end of the week I didn't make running at all.  Though I have managed to get a fair amount of walking in on Friday and Saturday, but it just doesn't get me the work out I need.  Still working this goal.
4. Finishing up my school work from my last semester in College.

     Ever have a professor tell you how hard it is to get students to do work after the semester is over.  It is true, because you have the multiple pressures of being in class, having friends with you, and most importantly, a grade that is hanging over you at the end.  But remove that and you can find yourself floundering.  I wonder if this is to all help me be a great college advisor?  I've gone through pretty much every bad situation you can think of while I've been in school.  Oh, but you didn't come here to listen to me complain.

    Nothing got done this week (Thank God for a merciful teacher).  And Pride and Prejudice is still kicking my butt.  I'll get through it though.

5. Spending time everyday with a spiritual source.
     One of my cousin's gave me a little book called Morning and Evening Daily Readings by C.H. Spurgeon.  Now I received this back around the time of my wife's grandfather's funeral, but I haven't read from it much at this point.  But I picked it up thinking, it has some really good insights, and I haven't been disappointed yet.  I've been reading since Saturday and it has given a shot in the arm to my spiritual walk.

6. Finishing homework from Group Therapy.
     I have a friend who has a motto in her home of "No Secrets."  And I love this philosophy.  But I also know that to keep such a rule you also must know how to keep certain knowledge within certain circles.  It changes what you mean when you say that you trust somebody.  So I thought I would test my own ability in following this rule and admit that I'm going to Group Therapy.  It has been wonderful because they are helping me to get through some of the challenges of my childhood in an environment with other folks like me.

Well that's everything for Goals for ROW80.  If you are interested check out the sister post to this blog for the Insecure Writers Support Group.  I'm Jayrod Garrett, the First OG and here is the ROW80 bloghop.  Look it up, comment, or join us.  There aren't any cookies, but there is certainly a lot of love, growth, and thoughtfulness in our community.  Peace peeps!

Special ROW80 Message From the First OG

So this probably comes across as ridiculous seeing as I just posted for my goals yesterday.  But I made a commitment to begin doing this again, so it won't be a long post.  But it is going to project what I would like to have happen for each day of the week for what my goals between now and Wednesday.
15th April: Finish another twenty percent of Pride and Prejudice and finish several blog posts today (Monday's, Friday's and hopefully next Monday's also.)  It would account for at least three days writing by itself.
16th April: Rewrite Chapter Two of "Crimes of the Umbramancer" and another twenty percent of Pride and Prejudice.  And I hope to get my "summer job" tomorrow also.  That will make up for another three days of writing.
17th April: Do Wednesday's ROW80 Mashup another twenty percent of Pride and Prejudice and write a paper on why the Satire of Douglas Adams books is awesome.  And if there is time also begin the rewrite of "The Prophecy Engine."  (Lot of homework for that day.)
18th April: Review week and talk about whether or not I've reached these daily goals for the end of my ROW80 week.  (I end weeks for ROW80 on Wednesday not Sunday.  I'm weird sue me.)

That's everything for today.  My wife and I had a long talk yesterday about a lot of things, and it really got me thinking.  I need to focus more on realistic goals and this is my attempt at doing some.  The goals will get smaller, just I also have to cram a lot into this next week.  Tomorrow I'll have a post up on Teaching in America.  This is Jayrod Garrett, the First OG, hoping that you have a wonderful day.

Oh and I'm learning a lot about writing and plotting from Jane.
Ladies, I agree, she's brilliant.

War Post: April 5th, Mashup, & the IWSG

Howdy Howdy folks!  Welcome to another Mashup on the OG's blog.  Now mind you theres a lot in today's post so if I happen to jump around a bit understand that's because I try to accomplish a lot in a Mashup & IWSG day.  But I'll be short on the Mashup and long on the IWSG part.

On Letters of Note they post a letter from Kurt Vonnegut which is truly the real thing in: "I am very real."

Robinson Wells, an up and coming Utah writer (yes, I have all sorts of love for Utah Writers) shares with us some concerns in: "Ranty Ranty Rant-Face."

Susan Donaldson James shares with us one family's agony in dealing with legislation concerning Abortion in: "Danielle Deaver denied Abortion Even as Uterus Crushed Fetus." (More on this on Friday.)

Robyn Oyeniyi shares a touch of her memories in: "So it is Easter and school holidays."

Carol C. Rzadkiewicz shows us an awesome technique to use to make our writing better in: "Improve Writing Skills by Using Sentence Parallelism."

The Wordslinger tells us what not to do in naming children in: "Stop in the Name of... Terrible Baby Names."  (Obviously this woman is doing something right, study her to build a better blog.)

Jael McHenry turns oft heard advice on its head in: "Flip the Script: Write What You Don't Know."

Natalie Hartford shares a concept I'm too familiar with: "Urban Word Wednesday: Vacationitis."

Rainy Kaye shares a breath of fresh air with me in: "The Hunger Games, Rue, and a Meme in the Making."

As stated a short Mashup.  So you can watch this Ted Presentation.

Note: I'm not an Introvert, but I recognize this as a problem in our society also.

Let's be honest here.  I can cover my goals for the week in a few sentences and get on to my bit for the Insecure Writers Support Group more quickly.  


1. Finishing Draft Two of "Crimes of the Umbramancer" by the 30th of April.I got a great review back on a chapter of Crimes this week.  And I'm hopefully during the next 48 hours going to knock out about six thousand words of rewrite.  I'm learning a lot about my story as I start again, there was a flaw in what I wrote and I can't continue until I fix that flaw.  So the draft is moving along.  (Needs to move faster to make the end month goal though, but once Spring Semester is over I'll make more progress.)2. Exercise five times a week.I'm haven't gotten as much exercise as I was hoping this week, but I did have a great work out today and I'm looking forward to a great one tomorrow.  And I'm excited about my walk this Friday with my wife.  It is a great time to talk and just unwind.3. Finishing up my school work from my last semester in College.

     This weekend I'll be rewriting an older story and reading Pride and Prejudice.  It should be an interesting weekend.  But I got a query letter to also get done this weekend.  I'm stacking it high so I can get it all in by the end of the term.  I need to pass this class.
4. Get myself some stories ready to get published somewhere.
     The story I'm rewriting is one I plan on submitting to a few contests this year as well as sending it to the Writers of the Future Contest.  We'll see exactly how it goes when I do it.  I'm pretty excited.

So we are through with my goals and I can get to what I want to really talk about.  An insecurity.  This past weekend I had a really long talk with some of my family (the folks in Utah who are family are those I've adopted, because I didn't have one of my own) about my identity.  For the longest time I've always tried to hide by being extra religious a part of me that scared me.

I went through a lot of emotional abuse growing up, and while I don't sit here and blame my Mom for it.  I don't have much of a relationship with her either because there is a great deal of toxicity there that I'm not able to deal with well.  Between the darkness that I think was always mine and the darkness etched upon my soul through the abuse I find myself wondering who I am frequently.

And as I read I am not a Serial Killer and A Game of Thrones I've begun to think who I am is much more complex than I thought before.  That like the color of my skin the darkness that is within me isn't a bad thing, but instead a misunderstood thing.  Darkness isn't evil, because I can use my fingers to feel what it is, and my feelings don't tell me its bad, instead they tell me that its important.  This isn't to say that I plan on going out and killing anybody or using the F-bomb at every opportunity, but instead to come to grips with the fact that who I am, is much larger than who I've allowed myself to be.

An example of this can be seen in how I approach schoolwork.  I don't set aside time for schoolwork.  Instead I do it when I feel like doing it.  Sometimes that is right after I get it.  Other times it is right before the assignment is due.  As a whole it usually is done in such a way that I can fit whatever else is going on in my life around school.  And at one time I thought that it made me less of a person to be all about getting the work done one day and the next laissezfaire about when it got done.  (Did I mention I'm an A to B student most of the time?)

I'm the same way with pretty much how I approach life as a whole.  I'm either one extreme or the other.  I'm either full of energy or nearly falling asleep.  I'm either completely prepared or completely unprepared.  Super loud or completely quiet.  Terribly busy or crazy bored.  And I thought something was wrong with me because I was always like that.  Until one day someone said to me, "I think you are the most balanced person I've ever met."

That blew me away.  But it made sense.  Because while my personality is made up of extremes my views of the world are not.  I tend to have liberal values, but I temper them with a sense of what is right and wrong.  And while I might not agree with others I have been successful in sharing my thoughts in the manner of a philosopher that rather than wanting you to agree with him, wants you just to think a little deeper about the problem at hand.

I tend to think I'm a little like Mulan, who in order to find herself had to become someone that nobody, including herself, believed that she could become.  I'm Jayrod the writer, but there is something more that I don't think I'm really aware of yet.  But only as I continue writing, will I get there.  And that journey both thrills and scares me.

Well, I realize all the bits of the post today were short, but it has been a crazy week for me.  I will be back on Friday to discuss with you a subject that is near and dear to my heart: Abortion.  Yeah, I wasn't going to talk about it now, but I figure after seeing that video earlier that I should share my opinions and perhaps open up some minds by the sharing.  Until then I'm Jayrod Garrett, the First OG.

Do you ever get afraid that who you are is going to get in the way of who you want to be?

The Lucky Seven Meme & A request for help

I've not been writing too much about serious issues for the past few days, and just kinda relaxing a little bit.  After Wednesdays Mashup I plan on being back on track with some more serious issues, but I thought that I would take this opportunity to thank Breeana Puttroff for sharing with me this Lucky 7 Meme.  


Here are the rules to the Game:
1. Go to page 7 or 77 in your current manuscript.
2. Go to line 7.
3. Copy down the next seven lines (sentences??) as they are – no cheating.
4. Tag 7 other authors.


So I am grateful for the opportunity to share a few lines from my novel "Crimes of the Umbramancer" with you today.  (Incidentally I was really glad that a few weeks ago I rewrote this part so it is a little more clear.)  Started at line 7 on page 7:

*     *     *

     And his mother's scream was crystal clear at last: "Run Sora!"


     He ran down the hall and various men in black ran out of the kiften following after him with fireballs in their hands.  Throwing his bedroom door closed he ran over to his bed and hid in the corner.  Footsteps and hard breathing echoed in his ears as he prayed for deliverance.  And just as one of them was about to grab him he woke up.


     These were the nights that Sora hated.  Usually they were infrequent, but for the past week he'd had the same dream at the end of the first sleep.

*     *     *

Here's my seven victims who you should visit their sites.  (Pretty much this is the Word Mongering Crowd.)  For the record, none of you are expected to do this.  It is a just if you want thing. :D


1. Morgan Dragonwillow
2. Moni-Marie Vincent
3. Julie Jordan Scott
4. Eden Mabee
5. Annie Grey
6. Asrai, Mavin of Mischief
7. Julia Indigo

*     *     *

And that is it.  I thought it worth mentioning that at an event called, "Writing for Charity" I learned that discovery writers like myself is that we tend to do a lot of rewrites of the stories that we are working on.  Which is why I've always found myself revising so quickly.  So I'm planning on figuring out what doesn't feel right about what I've written most recently and I'm going to go ahead and continue my novel from where I left off.  It makes the most sense, and besides it cuts down on the massive amount I need to begin working through in the next month.  But I can't say this time that I've spent researching and trying to figure out what has been wrong has been for naught.  I've learned a lot about martial arts, a little about asian culture, and I thought that this would be a good opportunity to ask you my readers for some help.


One of the things about the story that I am preparing to tell is that it going to take place in an asian culture similar to either Japan, China, or Mongolia.  I would really love some recommendations for books that I can read to learn more about these cultures so that my writing can be more authentic.  


I find it a little strange that I'm starting a story in a culture foreign to my own, but I'm pretty certain there will be quite a few similarities that I'll be able to work with.  Or at least I hope so.



In the meantime, the end of the month is upcoming so take another look at our books of the month: Tankborn by Karen Sandler and Dhalgren by Samuel Delany.  Both of these are excellent books and I'm giving them away this month to a lucky follower of the blog.  Cause I know that not everyone can follow my blog there are two ways to get entries.  One is to actually follow the blog this will get your name put into my hat three times, and the other is to leave a comment on the blog.  For each comment I receive on my blog during the month of March I'll put your name into the hat once.  I enjoy doing this because it gets me reading different books, supporting authors I love, and it allows me an opportunity to give back to you, my audience.

Wednesday will be my Mashup like usual, and on Friday I hope to have a blog on guns in fiction and gun control itself. That's all from me for now; I'm Jayrod Garrett and I'm the First OG.  Any recommendations on good asian literature?

War Post: March 22nd's Mashup and ROW80 R1 End

I chose deliberately to be a day late, because I thought that the most appropriate posting day would be the end of Round One for A Round of Words in Eighty Days.  So here in no particular order is all the great links I have found in the past week.

Chuck Wendig reminds us that we must kill self doubt, while using vulgar humor to make us chuckle in: "Writers Must Kill Self Doubt before Self Doubt Kills Them."

Chris Hedges reminds us that America speaks in the language of violence in: "Chris Hedges speaks on Osama Bin Ladin's death."

Justin Rosario lets me know that if I had been raised in Wisconsin, I would have been abused by being raised by a single Mom in: "Wisconsin GOP to Battered Women: Don't Get Divorced."

Marc and Angel give great advice in both: "20 Things to Stop Doing to Others" & "30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself."

Danyelle Leafty is trying to do something special for kids check it out at: "Kindles for Kids Short Story Contest."

Christine Slaughter reminds us government starts within ourselves in: "My Personal Bill of Rights."

Carl Duzett opens our eyes to what Inception is really about in: "Inception is About Storytelling."

Kirk Cunningham of Jollyfish Press gives us valuable tips in: "The 7 Laws of Successful Social Networking."

MaryAnn Pope made the list because she talked about Prince Zuko.  Enough said.  Check it out at: "Antagonists: Depths and Motives."

J.A. Bennett reminds us in the crazy blogging we do of the impact of reading upon our writing in: "The Impact of Reading."

Erin Shakespear recaps a writing conference in Utah where our authors came and showed us how to write better fiction this past weekend in: "Writing for Charity Highlights."

Morgan tells what you can do with those funny looking trash talking trolls that might frequent your page in: "Trolls in the Writing World ... They're There."

Asrai Devin, the Mavin of Mischief shares about her acts of self forgiveness: "Acts of Self Forgiveness."

Alice Dreger informs us about the reality of giving birth in our modern era in: "The most scientific birth is often the least technological birth."

Phil Plait makes a great argument for why Science is so important in: "This is why we invest in Science. This."




After all the serious topics above I thought, "Lets have a good belly laugh."

Kait's Future Beach House

For this First Round of ROW80 I've had great success.  I joined up with ROW80, because I wanted to blog regularly.  Guess what, I blog three times a week because of them now.  I also joined because I wanted to find other people who write like me.  And I got that too!  On their Facebook page I am thrilled to be a part of it because I've met so many wonderful people.  Last of all I joined because I wanted to finish my draft of "Crimes of the Umbramancer."  I didn't get nearly as far with this goal as I would have liked.  I played Skyward Sword, I had weeks of no writing but for blogging, and I've read several wonderful books.  But guess what?  I'm writing more now than I ever have at any time before in my life.  And I'm becoming comfortable with my own voice in writing because blogs forces you to write raw.  ROW80 has been one of the best things for my writing that I could have ever dreamed of.  Kait Nolan, the creator of ROW80, should be given a beach house in the bahamas for such a great idea.

Here are the ending goals of Round One.

1. Finishing Draft Two of "Crimes of the Umbramancer" by the 30th of April.

     I've started the rewrite here and it is going slowly.  But in this rewrite I'm learning concepts that I missed when I wrote the first time.  It is slow going, because I've picked up on a lot of reading.  I've read three books in the past month and before the month is over I want to be done with book four.  But April is crunch time for "Crimes" and I will be doing little reading that month.  Just working out the rewrites I need to do and finishing the draft.  (Yes next month will be a NaNo-like month.)

2. Comment on ten blogs in ROW80:

     This was an epic fail.  I visited the blogs of folks in ROW80, but I don't think I commented on a single ROW80 post.  This is totally unlike me.  As a Sponsor I'll do much better than this, because I know how much a single comment often meant to me when I was starting this.  Often Gene Lempp kept me going when I might have stopped early on.  I owe him a great deal.  Thanks Gene.

3. Walking at least a mile five three times a week.

     ACHIEVED!  By gearing it back I've actually done better than three times a week.  I actually hit four I do believe and it has been awesome.  Glad to be doing this.  Next round I'll be in the middle of a Juice Fast to reboot my body... yeah that's going to be fun.  But totally worth it!

4. Going back to my writing ritual.
   This one is still a struggle for me.  I need to find a time of day that works best for this, and hopefully I'll find it soon.  But I tend to always do scripture study before doing any work on "Crimes."  And that usually makes me quite happy.

I finished this round with so many awesome things happening to me.  I've been to two writing conventions, joined several writing communities, started my own writing group, networked with several professionals, written over 70,000 words, read several books, and improved my relationship with my wife.  She's my Muse and one of the best sources of my ideas.  I don't recognize her enough for her support of my writing and the ideas she gives me.  I am overjoyed with how many good things have happened this round.

I'm still giving away our books of the month: Tankborn by Karen Sandler and Dhalgren by Samuel Delany.  Both of these are excellent books and I'm giving them away this month to a lucky follower of the blog.  Cause I know that not everyone can follow my blog there are two ways to get entries.  One is to actually follow the blog this will get your name put into my hat three times, and the other is to leave a comment on the blog.  For each comment I receive on my blog during the month of March I'll put your name into the hat once.  I enjoy doing this because it gets me reading different books, supporting authors I love, and it allows me an opportunity to give back to you, my audience.

As I've come to the end of this Round of Words, I'm not sure what I want to write about next time.  I'll just have to think about it.  Until then, I'm Jayrod Garrett, the First OG.  PEACE... Oh wait question time: What topic would you like to hear from me on next?

War Post: 14 March & The Avengers

Sometimes you just see pictures as you are looking for material for a post that is just too awesome not to use.  This was one of those things for me.  I love the advertising campaign for The Avengers, and each of the movies that have lead up to it.  My wife and I are really excited for it to come out.  I think the only thing that really disappoints me about this film is the lack of diversity among the cast.  Every character is an American.  Yeah Nick Fury is black, but seeing as he never rated his own story, it just isn't the same.  Maybe its just me, but the group likely to save the world would have a bit more culture than this.  Cause shouldn't they be representative of the world, and not just America?  Excited about the movie, just wanted to share a minor rant with you.

This Mashup was a big one this week.  I found so much material out there that was good, that I just had to share it all.  I'm sure someone else will post something cool next week.  My wife even suggested a few of these.  Feel free to tell her thank you in the comments.  On to Mashing:

Kristen Lamb shares her story of failure and steel in: "Failure- The Key Ingredient to the Successful Writing Career."

David Powers King reminds us of the awesomeness of the Fool in: "Tuesday Tropes: The Fool."

Lisa Miller of The Washington Post really gets me thinking in: "Feminism's Last Frontier: Religion."

Kana Tyler gives us the business of Freelance Writing in: "A Forum on Freelancing."

Katie Baker of The Daily reminds us of the dangers of bullying in: "Driven to Suicide at 10."

Tom Abbott reveals the secrets of the New Publishing Market in: "Understanding the New Publishing Market."

Ellen Oh shares about the how a book cover leads to racism in: "Why the Pretty White Girl YA Book Cover Trend Needs to End."

Adam Gaylord shows us real monsters in a little thing he calls: "Tips for Creating Believable Fantasy Beasts."

Angela Ackerman helps us understand how to write better characters in: "Character Trait Entry: Affectionate."

Lisa writes about something near and dear to every Latter Day Saint Woman in: "13 Articles of Healthy Chastity."

Jessica Strawser interviewed the big names in publishing to get the real deal in: "Writing Rules: 10 Experts Take on The Writer's Rulebook."

Morgan Dragonwillow still has her writing contest going on!  Read about it and submit something that can help you get another published work in your writing cap at: "Fantasy Fiction Writing Contest I: Day 23."

Chuck Wendig tells us how we need to choose the write–no, rite–no, right word in: "25 Things You Should Know About Word Choice."

Fabio Bueno shares about two weeks of #ROW80 goals (the real reason I chose this is the awesome video at the end) in: "ROW80 Update + Other Updates."

Cat Rambo dies of a case of awful jealousy in: "Transitions and Shifting POV in Fiction."

Julie Glover (My first role model in how to blog right) shares the ugly truth of following bloggers in: "I Know I Should Follow Your Blog But..."

Jane Friedman talks about all the things I wish I knew on Monday when I shared with a writing group about the business of writing in: "A Definition of Author Platform."

Karen Sandler shares about Tankborn Sequels!  Check it out here: "Tankborn Sequels!"

In my search I found this, a great Mashup Trailer by a Avengers Fan.  Enjoy!

As with every Mashup Wednesday I review my past week of goals for ROW80.  I don't think it is any secret I've been struggling with them lately.  But I honestly don't have energy to dwell on that.  For the first time in my life I'm writing regularly and even if it is mostly this blog, I love the feeling.  The story will come, but the writing needs to be my main priority always.  Heres my goals!

1. Finishing Draft Two of "Crimes of the Umbramancer" by the 30th of April.

     I finally made a return to Wordmongering this past week and during my time doing it I finished about 3000 words on my WIP!  I realize I said I would get through 8,000 and that I would take the advice of my friends.  But after spending eight hours with only 3000 words to show for it, I thought it best to trust my gut.  One part of me says to finish the story and the other says to trust my process.  I'm going to be true to both voices.

2. Comment on ten blogs in ROW80:

     I got to four blogs not my normal ten. This week I'm going to make up for that by getting twenty for this upcoming week.   It will be good practice, because I was lucky enough to be chosen as a Sponsor for ROW80.  I'm really excited about it.  Woo!

3. Walking at least a mile five three times a week.

     In the past week I've been out walking three times.  I'm hoping to make three times for this week too.  I think for now this is a more doable goal.  I'll up it again to five times hopefully in the next few weeks.

4. Going back to my writing ritual.
   The ritual is going well somedays, and poorly others.  Frankly this was a poor day.  (The eight hours of writing had both exercise and scripture study which is why I chose to trust my gut.)  Still four out of seven days is pretty solid though.

I'm not going to finish this round with a bang.  I'm going to finish it with conviction.  Since I've joined ROW80, I've been to a writing convention, joined several writing communities, started my own writing group, and written over 40,000 words on my WIP, and another 25,000 in my blog.  I don't talk about all I'm doing cause I don't think all of it is important, but I've made so many strides forward since joining ROW80 my life will not be the same.  Thank you for accompanying me on this journey.  We still have a long ways to go and I plan on having draft two of "Crimes" done by the end of April still.  To make that goal I'm going to keep April's weekends free for massive #wordmongering to reach my WIP goal.  To quote Larry Correia: "People ask how do you become a professional writer?  I just spent 26 hours editing and writing over the last two days."  That was this past weekend as he finished Monster Hunter Legion.  If he can do it, so can I.  It is all about how dedicated you are to it.


Our books of the month remain Tankborn by Karen Sandler and Dhalgren by Samuel Delany.  Both of these are excellent books and I'm giving them away this month to a lucky follower of the blog.  Cause I know that not everyone can follow my blog there are two ways to get entries.  One is to actually follow the blog this will get your name put into my hat three times, and the other is to leave a comment on the blog.  For each comment I receive on my blog during the month of March I'll put your name into the hat once.  I enjoy doing this because it gets me reading different books, supporting authors I love, and it allows me an opportunity to give back to you, my audience.

Next time our discussion will be on the Hypocrisy of Religion.  I'm excited because I've wanted to write this particular blog for several months, but I needed the ideas to brew for a while.  This is Jayrod Garrett, the First OG, with one question for you: What is your favorite science fiction or fantasy movie?

The Fellow Writers Blog Hop: Question of the Month

Learn more here.

Friends, I have to apologize to you.  I expected to be writing about the Hypocrisy of Religion today.  However I must forebear, because I made a commitment to use the second Tuesday of each month to share a thought for the Fellow Writers Blog Hop (or the FWBH).  This is only my second blog hop that I've tried out and I know there is Mark Hoopmans "Got Green" Bloghop taking place this week, but I thought it would be wiser to just do one at a time and just take things nice and slow.  I find myself blogging with too much of my writing time as it is.  I love you, but I have needs too.

So each month at the FWBH they ask a question that they want us to answer as writers.  And this months question was:

Be it a full size novel or a short story, a writer has to prepare for writing. What steps do you use, how do you research your information, what tips do you have to gear up for page one?

For me this is a loaded question because there are a lot of things I do to prepare myself for each kind of writing that I may need to do.  I'll try to approach all the different things I need to do in a manner that makes the some sense.

1. I try to read or listen to the Word of God before I write.  I find this ritual puts my mind in a much better place to do anything writing related.  I'm more at peace, more receptive to inspiration, and most of all I'm much more focused when I begin my writing.

2. I prefer to world build and idea monger before I actually start any story.  Much of this has simply to do with designing the background of the story that I'm working on.  Without any background it makes it really hard to write anything.

During this part of my process of writing I am developing everything for the story except the story itself.  I search for ideas to build my world, the setting that the story will take place upon, a series of events that could take place during the story, but I refuse to outline the story at this point.  I am not only a seat of the pants writer, but also an organic writer.  If I set up the events the characters should be able to play through them naturally in such a way that I get to the ending I have envisioned.

3. This is a more recent thing, but I build a community of people around myself of folks who I can share and gather energy with.  Sometimes it is as simple as just myself and my wife, and other times it is as large as my Google Plus writing group, my #wordmongering friends on twitter, and my #ROW80 friends too.  Each group serves a certain purpose in helping me with my writing and I'm glad to have them to help me.

Because right now we are celebrating the first birthday of #wordmongering I thought I would share a story with you.  Hopefully this describes how a community helps me with writing.  One of my blogging friends Asrai Devin, the Mavin of Mischief and I were #wordmongering together trying to get through our words.  But she was having a hard time with thinking of something to write about.  I was smoothly working through my words, but she had serious writers block.  I gave her a writing prompt and shared with her that she should write about what she enjoyed.  She began a fan fiction that night and the words flew from her fingertips.  But a couple of weeks later, during my own slump in working on my story she came back with encouragement and words of advice for me to get me through a hard time.  I rely on my community of friends I've made online to help me get through the hard work of getting a story written.  For me it is more than just a social experience.  It is the energy and lifeblood of my writing.

4. Lastly, I take the advice of Stephen King to heart.  In his book On Writing he states: "Never come to the blank page lightly."  This means you didn't come to just play around and doodle on the page, or give less than your best effort.  You came to create, you came to learn, and you came to inspire.  Make sure that is all reflected when you put your words on the page.  Like even for my blog.  I don't write with the strokes of my keyboard like you may think.  The ink left on these pages is white (once blue cause that's my favorite color) because I'm writing with the material of my soul.  I work hard to be honest, because that is what I want my writing to reflect.  I strive for sincerity, because I want you to believe me.  I labor for love, because that is what I want to share with my readers my love for them.

For me the blank page represents the relationship that I have with my readers when they first meet me.  Whether that is through my fiction or through my blog when you first read what I say we begin a conversation and a relationship.  I must share with you the gift that God has given me to express myself through the written word.  One day in the future I know that this will be a business where I'll receive from my readers cash for what I have written.  But these exchanges are meant to be something precious, even something holy.  Because by giving you a book or a blog that you might learn something from that comes from the inkwell of my soul, I hope to have given you things that might make your life better.  When that is given back to me in your time reading what I've written or paying for what I've written it is a donation to the welfare of my family.  To explain the concept better, I'd rather use a full post to describe the culture I hope to build for when I am paid for my work.

I believe like Howard Taylor (author of Schlock Mercenary webcomic.  Read it, for it is made of awesome.), that an artist should get paid for their work.  Is this art?  Sure it is, but my payment right now isn't a financial one.  I'm paid through the development of my writing skills, the comments you leave on my pages, and the opportunities to share what I've learned with others.  Just like any other job when you are training you don't get paid much, but what you learn when you aren't getting paid magnifies what you will be worth when you do get paid.

Which is part of why I give away books here.  Its part of the time, sacrifice, and love trilogy necessary for me to create good art.  Which is why I share with you you of our books of the month.  Tankborn by Karen Sandler and Dhalgren by Samuel Delany.  Both of these are excellent books and I'm giving them away this month to a lucky follower of the blog.  Cause I know that not everyone can follow my blog there are two ways to get entries.  One is to actually follow the blog this will get your name put into my hat three times, and the other is to leave a comment on the blog.  For each comment I receive on my blog during the month of February I'll put your name into the hat once.  I enjoy doing this because it gets me reading different books, supporting authors I love, and it allows me an opportunity to give back to you, my audience.

Next time our discussion will be on my weekly mashup and recap of #ROW80 goals.  And I promise that on Friday or Saturday morning we will have a post on the Hypocrisy of Religion.  It is always a juggle here at the Garrett home for time to make this work and also get everything else important in life done.  This is Jayrod Garrett, the First OG, with one question for you:

What do you need to create your art?