Maybe I need more fiber?

I haven't been able to write anything for several days now.

When I say "haven't been able" I don't mean that I'm physically incapable of writing anything. I also don't mean that I don't have any ideas. I just mean that when I set out to actually perform the act of writing it just . . . isn't there.

I mean, when I think, "I need to be writing now," it's like some sort of paralysis sets in and I can't move until I decide, "Okay, later." Then I can move again.

I guess you could relate it to some form of constipation--the ideas are there, and the interest in putting them down is there, but it just won't come out. Yeah, I know that's an extremely unflattering comparison but it's better to me than the other one that springs to mind, that being impotence.

Eventually it'll all build up and then explode in a burst of creativity that will shock the world. Or overflow a few toilets.

I hope. Honestly, I don't really know how this happened. It can't be that I'm depressed--dealing with depression is what got me started writing in the first place. I write more when I'm depressed. Sometimes, when I'm really depressed, writing is the only thing I can do.

Maybe it's because I'm not depressed? Hmmm . . . I wonder if I could go into therapy for that. "Doc, I need to be depressed because I can't write when I'm content with life."

Of course, I could just watch the news . . .

Well, my plan to deal with this situation--for now--is to watch a few of my favorite movies. Sometimes watching one of those--Alien is a really good example--gives me just the kick in the ass I need to do something.

We'll see. I know I'll get over this eventually, if not today, then soon. In the meantime I'll have revisited some of the films that inform and inspire me.

I'd say that's a win-win situation.

Starting the weekend randomocity

Well, my goddaughter and her mom are on their way back to California. Yes, I'm sad, and I'm missing them both. Nothing reminds one of the whole wide world more than having an active and incredibly bright nine year old around. And her mom--my best friend--is one of the few people I can actually have a conversation with about things that truly interest me, because they interest her, too. So, she doesn't freak out when we spend hours discussing serial killers and their crimes, or the darker aspects of human nature, the various forms of insanity, etc. Plus, she's a writer, too, a damned good one, so she is very understanding of my own quirks and distractions.

Anyways, they're on the road, and I miss them.

Speaking of my goddaughter, here's her Little Debbie commercial. Just because. Ain't she adorable?

Just accepted an offer to collaborate with an old friend on a screenplay earlier today, too--it sounds like an interesting project. I'm looking forward to diving into it.

As for my other projects--The Sorcerer's Daughter is on hiatus right now. I'll definitely get back to it--it's a great idea and deserves to be written--but I just can't concentrate on it. It deserves my full attention. The Dreamer saga is coming along, slowly but surely.

I do need to get as much done on Dreamer as I can, since the NFL will be kicking off in a couple of weeks. Once that starts it'll be hard to stay focused.

Oh, and check out my blogging buddy's book. She's a terrific writer--hysterically funny, and she tells a good story, too. I highly recommend it. It just came out today.

And it's the weekend! Writing, painting, and laundry all on tap! As usual.

An unseasonably chilly randomocity

Let's get this weather thing out of the way--it's chilly and rainy outside. In August. In Georgia. Can you say "Global Climate Change?" I thought you could!

This new idea I mentioned earlier is beginning to sort of catch fire. I keep having ideas about it, making connections, seeing stuff I can do regarding subtext and foreshadowing and all that. I've read over what I've done so far and it's not bad for a first draft. Maybe, just maybe, I'm onto something.

I'm calling it Dreamer's Story, Dreamer being what I call the central character. She's probably going to be the most complicated character I've ever written. I'm actually looking forward to it, instead of dreading it. This is fun. This is why I do this.

At this point I don't even know how long it's going to be. All I can say is it's going to be multiple books, but not an unlimited series--there is an ultimate story arc that will be concluded in the final book.

I hate unlimited series, by the way. Just flat-out hate them. Every idea I've had for anything--comic books, TV shows, novels, whatever--has had a limit to the number of installments.

There are a couple of reasons for this. The first is a story consideration--there are only so many stories that can be told in a given setting, and eventually the whole thing becomes stale and you begin repeating yourself. At some point it has to end. The best place to end it? In a place where the bigger, over-riding issues have been settled, but maybe some other, more minor (from a plot point-of-view) issues may still be unanswered. Let the fans continue the story for themselves at that point. They may grumble about not having every single tiny plot point addressed, but they'll also have a great deal of fun fighting among themselves about what happened after the story ended.

The other reason is economic--being able to purchase the entire thing, from beginning to end, in one boxed set, is very appealing. If you love it you can read/watch/listen to the entire thing from start to finish in one sitting if you are so inclined.

Anyways, that's going to be my weekend. I'm going to be pounding out more words in this thing, and doing some drawing and painting. And laundry. Don't forget laundry.

There's always laundry.

O! For a Muse of Fire! Which I have. Dammit.

An idea occurred to me the other day that I'm becoming obsessed with.

This while I'm still dealing with writing The Sorcerer's Daughter. I have no choice, now, but to put that aside while I work on this new thing.

At this point I really can't discuss it, mostly because there's so much of it that has yet to be developed. It will be a series of books, and I'll be reusing many of the elements from The Harvester of Faces. In fact, that will be the name of the final book in the series, and a lot of the characters I used for that one I will use in this one.

There is one big difference, though--my central character is a costumed vigilante. I hesitate to call her a "superhero" because she has no superhuman abilities--she's just a terrific athlete who is really good at martial arts and also obsessed with a mission that she's given herself. There are some other differences between her and most of the other heroes out there. One--her costume is one of practicality. She wears what she wears to conceal her identity, to give her some resistance to light weaponry, and to obfuscate her heat signature. She's not looking for a reputation--she'd rather no-one even know that she exists. The only thing that matters to her is her goal.

She's also a master strategist and is using a sort of psychological judo on her enemies, pitting them against each other and concealing her own existence from them as much as she can.

What is her ultimate goal? That would be telling. One day, if I ever finish this thing, you'll find out.

I did initially consider doing this as a comic book but there are just too many practical impediments to that approach. I may change my mind down the road but for right now I'm going to do it as a novel.

One reason I'm so excited about this is the opportunity it gives me to grind one of my favorite axes, and that is the affect of the obscene amounts of wealth some people are accumulating and the immunity it provides from normal human laws, morality, and ethics. How much money and power is enough? To some people, not all of the money and power in the Universe, it seems. They always want more. One thing to remember about these people---they think everybody else is like that, too, and they don't understand anyone who isn't.

Anyways, that's going to be my big project over the next little while. We'll see if I get anywhere with it.

Stay tuned!